Author: Victor

How does it feel when something breaks in your house and everything that you do to fix it goes in vein? Have you ever felt amazed by the job of a handyman who did what was needed for fixing any issue in your home? You can yourself become that awe-inspiring person with little bit of safety, knowledge and good work ethics. In this article I’m going to describe the six traits of a professional handyman that separate them from amateurs in:

Keep safety in mind: You don’t want to be a dead man instead of a handyman. So keep security in mind before doing anything. Heed and read all the instructions published in the manuals of tools that you use and the machine that has issues because roots of all these instructions are in the misfortune of someone else!

Get the right tools: This point relates to first point. The tools that you’ll need before anything else are safety tools like respirator, stable ladder and face mask. Using the wrong tools like a shaky stool instead of stable ladder can lead to injury or even damage of machine in some cases. After safety tools you’ll need other tools that come handy in opening and repairing the machines. Purchase only the tools that you’ll need because there’s no point of wasting money on tools that you’re not going to use.

Educate yourself: Before you start messing up with the screwdriver and all other nitty-gritties educate yourself enough so you can complete the job in perfect manner. Do some research online about the machine that you’re going to repair, go to the library and read some books about it and also get in touch with someone who has been doing that kind of job since long. Educate yourself about the machine as thoroughly as possible so you don’t end messing up everything.

Open yourself to new approaches: Don’t close the doors of your mind to learning by thinking that you’re the best. Those who think that they know the best way of doing something often don’t try to learn anything new about that thing in the whole life. And sometimes this overconfidence leads to serious health hazards or a presentation of stupidity. Instead of being such an overconfident handyman, open yourself to new insights and ideas. It doesn’t matter from where those ideas arrive, if any idea suits better to a particular task than yours, accept it!

Give enough time: In most cases the time that we think for a particular repairing task is based on our hopes. However, the unforgiving reality doesn’t unfold in that time and we often get involved in complicated tasks that we didn’t know earlier. So keep enough “time” in your plans and expectations.

Clean up the mess: The job of a handyman isn’t over until tools are cleaned, dirt is swept and trash is removed. This is the most important trait that separates professionals from amateurs. Keep all the cleaning related material with you and clean up the mess after completing the job.

Cordless drills are the latest in the industry trend of combining portable technology with human effort. Hitachi lives by its logo, “Inspire The Next”, and is currently one of the biggest electronics manufacturer in the world. Hitachi cordless drills are available in a wide array of models, each with its own special temporary and permanent features. The most popular model is the 12-vold NiCad, which is battery operated. Hitachi cordless drills are light, easy to use, and run by a twin battery system. Each drill kit comes with a user’s manual to help you in using the drill, a battery charger, and a flashlight.

Using A Hitachi Cordless Drill

Here are some tips to get you started in using the Hitachi drill:

Open the kit and check if the batteries are already charged. If they are, place them in the battery space. If not, charge them with the included charger. If you plan on using the drill for long periods, make sure the batteries are fully charged. Also, do not keep the batteries inside the drill, for safety purposes. This especially holds true if you have kids in the house.

Find the forward and reverse buttons on the drill. The forward button can be reached using your thumb if you’re holding the drill, while you can reach the reverse button with your forefinger. If you want to reverse the functions of the buttons, you can do so, but make sure you do it after you’ve stopped the drill.

Practice care in handling the start switch of the drill. Press it lightly to make it run slowly and apply more pressure if you want to increase the speed. As a general rule of thumb, if you’re drilling smaller screws, slower speed is best, and if you’re drilling larger screws, you should use more speed.

The speed of the Hitachi cordless drill can be adjusted from a minimum zero to twenty. The speed is calibrated in simple numbers, so it can easily be understood by anyone. The higher the speed you select, the faster the drill will run.

A distinctive feature in the Hitachi cordless drill is its “keyless” chuck. This helps to concentrate the drilling action on a small portion of the surface area you are going to be drilling.

If the need to change parts arrives, Hitachi tools offers all kinds of spare parts and accessories. It also comes with a one-year manufacturer’s warranty which covers repairs. Keep in mind that you should have the drill serviced annually to make sure it stays in good working condition.

If you are a handyman, you are required everywhere for everything! You may get good money for even easiest task such as painting the outside of any dwelling or simply repainting the kitchen. However, you may have to accept some advanced task as a handyman such as replacing an air conditioning unit. If anyone thinks about any of the household things, it is you, you and only you!

However, you must get a license to work. This is to be on the safer side and also to enhance your presentation since many customers prefer handymen those are licensed. If you wonder how do I get handyman license, you must learn that getting a license to become professional handyman reflects the potential customers that you are qualified and also sincere about the task is given. When you compete with those who do not have licensed it is quite obvious that you are the final choice! Even many states have ruled that handymen must be licensed.

If you are thinking to tie up with some firm, company or franchisee, they will ask you for the license. Let us find a way that can get you to answer for how do I get handyman license.

Step 1: First of all is determining the type of handyman license you require. You can review the state board of contractors for this. The license depends upon the experience and field of your expertise.

Step 2: You should then get prepared for the test through the local state board of licensing. This requires you to pass an order that obtains the handyman authentication. The test may include the topics of general state laws and businesses. You can schedule the test date next week or two so that you have enough time to pave the way for the same.

Step 3: To get through with all the preparations of the handyman license test, you can simply sign up for some seminars that may assist you to prepare for the test. You can also contact The National Contractor License Service as they can guide you about various seminars in your region. You can also ask the state’s licensing board for some specific codebooks and some other text or study material that can assist you in mastering on the subjects. Once you are through the test, you get a license.

Once you are licensed, you can either join some franchisee or can work independently. Whatever the way you choose, if you concentrate and gain experience, you can earn flawlessly.

Tools are the most important asset of a handyman. Without proper tools he can do nothing regardless of his knowledge, skills and expertise. I know some people who keep almost every tool known on the planet in their toolbox. I don’t know how much those tools help them, but in my opinion eleven tools are enough to complete majority of handyman jobs. So if you want to set up your own handyman toolbox or just want to clean up your toolbox a bit then you can start with these eleven:

Crescent wrenches: These wrenches are used particularly for loosening or tightening bolts and nuts. Keep a few versions of them with you. I personally prefer a 10″ version for opening larger bolts and a smaller version for opening smaller nuts.

Hammer: There aren’t too many varieties of this tool and any hammer will do the tasks that you need. Several hammers sold in the market today are made of plastic and rubber. Avoid ball-peen hammers with rounded heads because they’re useless for most household tasks.

Drill bits and drills: Many people may advise you to purchase a cordless drill. But in my opinion, you shouldn’t. When batteries die in the middle of the task, it leads to frustration. So instead of carrying so many battery packs in your toolbox, purchase a drill with cord and get rid of that extra crap.

Circular Saw: Instead of messing up with handsaw for hours it’s always a good choice to choose circular saw that’ll do most jobs decently.

Level: Choosing a level for your toolbox shouldn’t be complicated. Plastic, wood or metal all can work finely. However, keep in mind that you should choose the one that’s at least 12-inches long.

Screwdriver Kits: First of all don’t mess up with battery powered screwdrivers, stubby screwdrivers and 4 in 1 screwdrivers. You’ll need two types of screwdrivers – a slotted screwdriver and a head screwdriver that looks like cross.

Pliers: Choosing this thing is an art because there are thousands of types of pliers out in the market. However, a slip join plier and a needle nose plier are enough for most household tasks.

Tape measure: A 12 or 16 feet long metal retractable tape measure will be fine for almost all household tasks.

Tin snips: Although these are used particularly for cutting sheet metal, still they can be used for cutting plastic or wire too.

Stud finder: The only purpose of this tool is to locate a board in the wall so don’t get fancy while choosing it!

Utility Knife: Here comes the most dangerous tool of this list. If you’re a beginner, be extraordinary careful while using it otherwise you may end up in hospital. Use it for safely cutting things like cardboards and ropes.

Finding the right handyman isn’t easy. A lot of crooks are out there in the form of handymen and those who are handymen indeed may not possess enough skills and experience for repairing our machines. But you can make this process easier by gaining proper knowledge about the process of finding a genuine handyman. The very first step for that you should take is starting your research in right place. For doing that I’m mentioning some places from where you can find the finest handyman for doing your repairing job:

Yelp: You may not even guess the things that people review on Yelp. It’s quite easier to find the local businesses and contractors offering handyman services. You even get the opportunity of reading reviews that other people post about any particular company’s services. You can even see the photos of their work if someone posted them for supporting his/her assertions. Yelp can be a great starting point for you if you have no idea about the place where you can find a good handyman.

Angie’s List: It’s a paid-member only list, but it’s the most trusted online resource for finding handyman services. Membership fees of the site vary depending on the area in which you live but for an average price of $30 per year you get access to the largest directory of contractors who can do almost any type of handyman job for you. They also offer monthly subscriptions if you want access for shorter period. It’s considered the best resource for finding contractors online because it offers a quick glance on the contractors who have extraordinary track record of satisfied clients. Contractors can’t pay to get featured on the site and can’t buy reviews as well. Anonymous reviews aren’t a headache here because site itself verifies the reality of review posters.

Word of mouth: Another easiest but reliable method of finding a handyman is taking advice from your friends and relatives. If a handyman provides good services then chances are quite higher that he’ll have a track record filled with satisfied clients. Those clients may include your friends, your relatives, your neighbors and so on. And since they’re linked to you in some way, they most probably won’t give a bad advice.

If you look carefully in the places given above then you won’t have any problem in finding the right handyman for your needs. Good luck for your research!