What hardware/gardening tools would you buy for your home? Budget $500

LFlyingSpaghetti on 19/05/2016 - 16:14

First time poster, longtime lurker.

I just signed my life away to the banks, to claim a small patch of grass in Australia.
As a first home-buyer, I was wondering what hardware products (though I'm also interested to hear re: gardening) people thought were useful
for general maintenance of an average property (for example my house is a 3-bedroom, 1 bathroom with a yard).

For an example of tools, "I really love my AEG 18V Cordless Compact Drill/Driver as it allows me to do blah blah blah."

To clarify early I do already have some basic gear (mostly only hand tools, not powered), just interested to hear from people who may be more experienced then me.

Home & Garden

Comments

  • battler on 19/05/2016 - 16:43
    +1

    get your gardening hardware from kmart: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/246217
    usually cheaper than bunnings.

  • mskeggs on 19/05/2016 - 16:54
    +5

    Check out garage sales for cheap tools.

    The things I use most:
    - screwdrivers
    - pliers
    - shifting spanner
    - multi-meter
    - drill
    - tape measure
    - handsaw
    - allen keys
    - ladder
    - sander
    - paint scraper

    And in the garden:
    - mower
    - whipper snipper
    - leaf blower
    - hedge shears
    - rake
    - spade
    - long handled shovel
    - mattock
    - long crow bar

    I have lots and lots of tools, but these ones cover nearly all the jobs I have done in the last couple of years. About the only things on the list where I demand quality is the screwdrivers. Good pliers are a joy to use too.

  • Randxyz123 on 19/05/2016 - 18:46

    My current main tools:

    Stanley Screw Driver set
    Stanley spanner set
    allen key/hex key set
    Cordless Drill —> I think it is that one. It might have been the cheaper one though.

    I also have
    - a tape measure
    - a ladder
    - a multimeter
    - pliers (long nose and the fat ones)
    - an adjustable spanner

    Note prices are from bunnings website in my location and are subject to change. Most of the ones listed above I bought on special. You also should look at Masters given they are slowly closing down.

    As you can see I quite like Stanley. Most of their tools have a lifetime guarantee and are excellent quality. You do pay quite a bit extra though. For the hex set I decided it wasn't worth the extra cost.

  • nocure on 19/05/2016 - 18:59

    Add a Spirit level too the above lists.

  • stevednj48 on 19/05/2016 - 18:59

    for spade shovels rakes Etc
    i find Spear and Jackson garden tools pretty good quality for the money.

    As for what to buy
    i usually wait until i need a specific item then go buy it from Bunnings.

  • RobMel on 19/05/2016 - 19:15

    Always recommend electric over petrol gardening tools.. cheaper to buy and run.. and usually has enough grunt unless you have a jungle.

    • altomic on 19/05/2016 - 20:35

      less maintenance as well.

      • Euphemistic on 19/05/2016 - 22:49

        Can cost a small fortune in extension cords though!

      • Name on 24/05/2016 - 12:51

        That's assuming you do maintenance.. I've had my lawn mower (bought for $150 at big-w on sale) for about 6 years now. I haven't once done anything to it except for put petrol in it, same as whipper-snipper- although you mix oil in with the fuel for the snipper.

        • Euphemistic on 24/05/2016 - 14:47

          Most unmaintained petrol engines will get harder and harder to start and/or lose power over time though. Electric should continue to be easy to start and keep the power without maintenance a lot longer.

  • ms_caz on 19/05/2016 - 19:37

    Secateurs are something that come in quite handy at my place. I like knowing there is a good torch in the tool box (or maybe that is an inside item for you.) We have a couple of ladders, but the three step aluminium one is often used, both inside and out. Definitely a tape measure and good screwdrivers.

  • [Deactivated] on 19/05/2016 - 21:50

    My cheapest tool and used a lot. These are great!

    http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=272240996991&al…

  • inherentchoice on 19/05/2016 - 21:51
    +3

    Don't go out to spend $500 just for the sake of it. Just accumulate tools and things as you need them. And wait for good bargains.

    • Euphemistic on 19/05/2016 - 22:41

      This.

      I've got a shed load of tools. I do a lot of stuff DIY, so for diffent projects I've accumulated additional tools, and then find them useful for the next round of projects.

      Cordless drills are pretty handy, but unless you are using it regularly it's not so good for the batteries and you might be better off with corded drill.

      My current serious renovation work I have got several new tools. Nail gun, multi tool, laser level, plastering hand tools. These have saved so much time, being able to the job quickly rather than stuffing around with hand tools or tools not quite suited to the task.

      When you want to try a new task check out YouTube first to see what you might need.

  • cypher67 on 19/05/2016 - 22:24

    I have so many tools that I've bought and used once, I couldn't imagine how much I could spend if I went into a hardware store to buy stuff I didn't have an immediate need for. Where possible I do the reverse e.g. I dont own a ladder … never needed one, but if I did I'd probably borrow it from my neighbors Flanders style. If you have the basics spend nothing until you need too, perfect excuse to visit the hardware store.

  • captobvious on 19/05/2016 - 23:01

    a pick
    a weeder
    high pressure blaster, good for making holes when the pick fails or when your back gives in.

  • FlyingSpaghetti on 20/05/2016 - 00:11

    Thanks a lot for all the ideas everyone.
    Definitely in no rush to go out buy products, just given the Ebay 20% off deal https://www.ozbargain.com.au/search/node/ebay+collect, I've been slowly making my way through the masters catalogue to see if there is anything of value.
    Yet to find it ;)

  • Donaldhump on 20/05/2016 - 02:00

    mexican

  • bumblebeetuna on 20/05/2016 - 09:20

    Some good info here, though not many reports on makes/models & if they're good or not.

    I just bought my first home late last year, slowly collecting the tools i need too, though some things you probably don't want to wait too long for a great bargain. Few people mention ladders, and i can't agree more. I had bought a Gorilla Mighty 11 ladder within about a month of moving in, mostly 'cos it was on sale at Bunnings and looked pretty solid. It's actually a very solid little ladder. Had used it a number of times to get into attic, change lights, adjust air vents, get up high for painting, get onto roof. Biggest benefit so far was getting upto the gutter to clear a blocked downpipe last week. Water was pissing everywhere, and I wouldn't have been able to clear it without a ladder. If i didn't have one, I would probably have had to rush out to bunnings at 7pm and make an impulse purchace that i wasn't really happy with, so i'd say grab a ladder soon if you don't have one already. Whatever you get, i would recommend a multipurpose type that's useful indoors and outdoors.

  • Speckled Jim on 20/05/2016 - 09:30

    While you're out, get some brass and plastic tap valves and teflon tape. The latter could once be found as multi-packs in $2 shops, possibly still.

    A caulking gun and cartridges of silicone, filler, roof/gutter sealant etc will save you a trip one day too.

    Additionally, if you don't already have one in your current home, a first aid kit. Savlon and band-aids at the very least.

    • Euphemistic on 20/05/2016 - 12:11

      Tap valves are no use if you only have fancy new ceramic cartridge taps like 1/4turn or mixers.

      • Speckled Jim on 21/05/2016 - 19:06

        Front yard, back yard, laundry including washing machine taps, toilet inlet.
        Get some valves.

        • Euphemistic on 22/05/2016 - 08:03

          True enough, but, how often do tap washers fail spectacularly enough that you need to repair them immediately? I've seen quite a few and you just end up with some extra drips which I f necessary can be avoided by turning off the water at the mains until you can get to a hardware. Given that hardware is usually open early and closes late within a few minutes drive for most people I wouldn't bother getting them until required. Heck, you can even get them from supermarkets too.

        • Name on 24/05/2016 - 12:55

          I'd wait to buy that stuff until you need it. Then when you do buy it, but an extra few tubes/packets etc. It's handy to have spares in the shed, but I wouldn't go out of my way to buy a bunch of stuff upfront… unless they're on sale.

  • dasher86 on 20/05/2016 - 12:02
    +4

    Duct tape and wd40

  • inherentchoice on 01/06/2016 - 10:02
    +1

    Have a look at the current Supercheap Auto catalogue. Then you can take an additional 20% off pretty much any of the items on sale thanks to this deal:

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/250584.

    For example, this Wall Cabinet set seems pretty decent:

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/250598

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