After decades of experience in the tool and construction industry, we’ve learned some pretty awesome time and sanity-saving tool tips, tricks, and hacks. Here’s a list of our best general tooltips and life hacks to help you always #DoYourBestWork!
For those of us who need instructions. Use your phone to take a picture of them before opening the package. Often times the packaging gets torn, thrown away, or covered in product that keeps us from referring back to the instructions. Now you can refer to your phones camera and keep on working.
Simply drill 1” holes in a shelf so that you can store your glue bottles upside down. This keeps the glue near the tip and ready to use.
Wrap a dryer sheet around a paint roller and secure with rubber bands. Boom! You can now clean the dust from the top of ceiling fan blades without having to climb a ladder.
If your miter gauge is not sliding as freely as you want it to, grab your pencil and give the miter slot a light marking. The graphite pencil lead will act as a dry lubricant between the metal of your table saw and the miter gauge bar.
Put an old copy of Wood Magazine to good use. Wrap it in sandpaper and bend it to match a hard to reach curve on your project. Just change the shape of the magazine and you are ready for your next difficult spot.
Keep an empty spray bottle with your plumbing supplies. After a vertical pipe has been cut, there is often water left inside. You can use the head to pump out at least six inches of the water into the bottle keeping your work area dryer.
Tired of re-opening a container of water-based putty that you haven’t used in awhile to find it dried out and hardened? You can avoid this by gluing a small piece of sponge to the inside of the lid, and then adding a few drops of water to the sponge after each time the putty is used.
Get a collection of washers and mark their diameter with a permanent marker. You can use them for spacers, to scribe with, or if you need to cut a ¾” inch radius on a corner just use the corresponding washer as a template to make a cut line.
Don't throw away that old nasty paint brush. Their handles make great push sticks. Just pry off the ferrule holding the bristles and cut a notch in the handle.
Before you throw that old broken tape measure in the garbage, take the clip off of it. You will never know when you could attach it to a different tool or tool pouch giving it a handy hanger that will keep it by your side.
If your project to big for your workbench and you don't want to just lay it on the floor, create some quick assembly pads. Attach some carpet strips to 2x4's and set your project on the carpet for the ultimate protection while you finish assembly. Spare carpet pad also works great for this and it prevents your project from slipping around.
Do you need to make a narrow, quick, & accurate cut? We have seen the pros use their fingers as a rip guide but if you are not comfortable doing so and want to keep your fingers, grab a locking pliers. Line up your saw on the cut line and clamp the locking pliers against the edge of the material. This will keep your saw from wandering and will give you a handle to hold onto while making the cut.
Tired of picking through a pile of screws looking for the right one as you’re building a project? Problem solved! Just stick your screws into a piece of foam packing material at the onset of the project. The time spend doing this will be more than made up by not searching for the right screw time and time again.
Plumbing shut off valves can often be hard to reach so instead of emptying out the cabinet and climbing in, grab a piece of 1-1/4" PVC, cut (2) 1" wide x 1/2" deep notches on opposite sides of 1 end and slide the notches over the shut off valve handle. The PVC will allow you to reach into the cabinet without any effort. Make sure to keep the PVC length long enough to reach the valve but short enough to store it in the cabinet.
When you get a new cell phone, keep your old one for a “toolbox” phone. As long as the camera works your old phone is great for taking pictures of such things as assemblies before you take them apart. You should still be able to connect to Wi-Fi so you can use email and Bluetooth. This keeps your brand new phone away from the hazards of being on the jobsite.
Brass screws are notorious for breaking and stripping, even with a pilot hole. To avoid this calamity, run a steel screw (same size as the brass one) through the pilot hole first and back it out. Bingo! Now the brass screw will easily follow the threads cut by the steel screw.
X Marks the Spot. To sand a glued-up panel flat with a belt sander, first grab a flashlight and straight edge. Lay the straightedge on the workpiece and shine a light from behind it. The light will shine through underneath in low areas. Use a pencil or chalk to mark the dark areas (the high spots) with an “X” to show where to sand.
Open up your tool box and say "Ahhhhhh"! Tongue depressors make great glue spreaders, shims, stain can stirrers, scrapers, and epoxy mixers. What are some workshop uses you can think of for tongue depressors?
Putting wax or soap on the treads makes it easier to drive a screw. But, storing wax or soap in a tool box can be cumbersome and messy. Lip balm in a small twist tube is just the ticket.
To find any flaws before finishing, give your project a rubdown with mineral spirits. This shows what the wood will look like under a clear finish and will highlight any remaining tool marks, including sanding swirls. Take care of any needed areas and repeat the rubdown. The mineral spirits will evaporate and as a bonus, it will highlight any glue stains that you may have missed.
If you need to drill repetitive holes a consistent distance from an edge, make a jig. The simpler the better, and if needed use CA glue to make a stop block or add pencil references to your jig so you know the placement is correct. Your hole placement will be more accurate and faster.
You can use a level to set the height of your table saw blade or router bit. If you need to raise the saw blade ½” above the table. Lay a ½” drill bit parallel to the blade and rest a level across the blade and bit. Adjust the height of the blade until the bubble is perfectly in the center of the level’s window.
Having trouble finding those small screws or nails on your workbench? Drop a magnet in the pocket of your shirt or shop apron. Boom! A handful can be kept at your fingertips!
Nail Files or Emery boards are great for sanding delicate or hard-to-reach areas. They don’t cost much and come in several grits.
When drilling a hole into side of a round rod, finding the center of the side can be challenging. To find center balance a metal ruler on top of the rod & lower the bit to pinch it lightly. When the ruler is parallel to the ground your bit is centered on the side of the rod. This trick works equally well for metal or wood rods.
When drilling into a piece of PVC pipe, the bit tends to skate around to the side. To keep things on target, use a hand file to quickly create a flat landing area for your drill bit.
If your cable tie is too small to hold your bundle, gang two or more of them together. Just insert the tails into the heads and you’re good to go!
When the temperatures start to decline during the late fall and winter months the cold air can cause havoc with your air compressors, air hoses, and pneumatic tools. Protect your tools and productivity with a Winter Blend Air Tool Lubricant and when the temperatures get really low and the moisture in your air lines start to freeze take a tip from the trucking industry. Run Air Brake Antifreeze in your lines, this will prevent them and your tools from freezing up and protect them from rust.
Hang a funnel by fastening it to any vertical surface and drop in a ball of twine. Feed the twine through the end of the funnel and Bingo! An instant twine dispenser!
When using a wet saw to cut tile, mark your cut lines with a crayon. Pencil lines tend to wash off or become hard to read. Your crayon marks should remain easy-to-read until you decide to clean them off.
Tired of searching for the end of the tape, only to have to work to get it started? Here’s the solution: just stick a washer to the end of the tape after you’ve used it. The next time you want a piece of tape, you have a nifty tab to help you out.
When drilling into a wall, you typically leave a mess along the baseboard that requires vacuuming. But, you can avoid this tedious clean-up step. Simply fold a sticky note and attach it to the wall just below where you’ll be drilling. It’ll catch all the debris and won’t leave any marks on the wall.
To fix a dented piece of wood, don’t reach for your sander! Instead, reach for this surprising tool that you probably already own… You can’t sand out a dent without removing a ton of material. However, you can fix the dent by restoring the damaged wood fiber. Place a damp cloth over the dented area, and then run a hot household iron over the cloth.
If you’ve had your shovel for a while, chances are you’ve dulled the edge by hitting a few rocks and roots. To save time and energy in digging, take a moment to sharpen your shovel. You’ll find that a sharp shovel will cut through the ground much easier. Secure the shovel with clamps or in a vice. File a 45-degree bevel on the edge. When finished restoring the bevel, make a few strokes with the file against the backside of the shovel to remove any burs.
Give your fingers and back a break! Attach C-clamps to hard-to-carry items like plywood and particleboard for a great set of handles. They can be placed where it is comfortable to carry and used by right handed or left handed workers.
Stirring a can of stain with a stick can bring up clumps of pigment from the bottom of the can. To avoid this, don’t use a stick; simply drop a few large nuts into the can, replace the lid and give it a swirl.
Gluing a frame’s mitered joints together while keeping the corners square can be a nerve-wracking task. To tame the process, make two notched strips of wood, as shown in the photo. The notches allow you to use clamps while gluing two pieces together in perfect alignment! After the glue cures, remove the strips and then use them to glue the remaining corners.
To shorten a bolt simply chuck it into your drill and simply hold a hacksaw as your drill does the work.
Stop sucking up small metal objects into your shop vacuum! Tired of bending over to pick up screws, nails and other metal pieces as you clean up? Worse yet, do you hate sucking these objects up with your shop vacuum? Here’s an ingenious solution: Epoxy magnets to a coupling that slips snugly over your shop vac hose. Use this “attractive” coupling to separate the metal from other debris and make it easy for collection.
Just drill two holes in a piece of PVC or dowel rod. Insert a section of bungee cord and tie it off. Boom! You’ve got a great way to keep your extension cords and hoses organized.
Use chalk to keep pencil lines from “disappearing” when drawn on darker woods. Simply rub white chalk over the general area you’ll be marking to give your eyes a break while you make spot-on cuts. To clean off the chalk simply brush off any loose chalk and wipe with a damp cloth.
Need some gentle persuasion? Slip a rubber leg tip onto the head of your hammer to protect a surface. A rubber mallet is usually the better choice of course, but these tips can save space in your on-the-go tool box.
A story pole is a measuring stick with the markings related to a particular project. Because it contains only the measurements for the project, it acts as a check against absent minded errors. Here’s how to make one. Use a narrow board that is just a little longer than the project’s longest measurement. Transfer all the measurements (lengths, widths, depths, and spacing) to the pole, clearly labeling each one. Now when it’s time to cut your pieces, simply use the pole as a custom yardstick.
Place a dab of woodworking glue over the area with the splinter, cover it with a bandage strip, and let it dry overnight. In the morning when you remove the bandage and dried glue, the splinter is usually pulled out in the process.
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4 Comments
Larry Weaver
November 28, 2017 at 7:31 pmThanks for the advice to use a moisture-absorbing silica gel pack to help prevent rust on tools. Next time I get something electronic, I’ll be sure to retrieve some gel packs that I can use to prevent rust.
Paul L.
April 19, 2018 at 7:54 pmChalk also works well for this purpose
Troylo
February 27, 2018 at 10:31 amAcme Tools, thanks so much for the post.Much thanks again. Really Cool.
Missouri Bob
January 25, 2020 at 10:15 pmNice. Some new ones in there for me.
Thanks for the tips.