If you buy your own groceries, clean your own house, and occasionally eat cereal in your underwear while paying the electric bill, then congratulations: you’re officially an adult. That means you go to work, spend weekends landscaping or decluttering the house, and you have at least partial control of the remote. It also means you should have mastered these home improvement skills years ago. (Don’t worry. We promise not to tell if you’re still learning).
5 Home Improvement Skills Everyone Should Have
- How to hang a picture. Arbitrarily tacking nails into the wall (or worse, nailing tacks into the wall) may be how you did it in college, but that won’t fly once you reach adulthood. To properly hang a picture, first measure 57”to 63” up your wall. Why? That’s the height that museums and art curators recommend for best displaying your artwork. Make a mark with a pencil where you want to nail. Make sure you use a picture hanger that can bear the weight of both the picture and the frame. Nail, hang, and voila!
- How to install a hanging shelf. First step? Locate the studs in your drywall. If you haven’t mastered the “knock and listen” method, pick up a stud finder at Ace of Gray. While you’re here, make sure you also grab the right size anchors, or your drywall will crumble and the contents of your shelf will end up broken on the floor. Carefully follow the instructions included with your shelf.
How to stain wood. A nice finish is the cherry on top of any DIY sundae. But if you don’t know what you’re doing with the wood stain, things can get a little messy. Using a paintbrush, apply a thin layer of wood stain, painting with the grain. Wait the amount of time recommended on the can, then wipe it away with an old rag (again, moving with the grain). If you want a darker stain, you can leave the stain on longer or reapply after 4 hours.- How to reseal a window. If your caulk is moldy or crumbling, it needs to go. Scrape away old caulk with a screwdriver. Clean the surface and make sure it’s dry before whipping out the caulk gun and applying a new seal.
- How to replace a shower head. Simply buy a new one, unscrew the old one, and replace the teflon tape from the shower pipe. Screw on your new shower head and you’re ready to go.
Need supplies, ideas, or advice on a project that didn’t make our list? Ace of Gray is here to help. Visit our home improvement store for tips and tricks for your next project.
