Where to Find Equipment for Home Improvement

Adam Garrett
Oct 22, 2022
8 min read

Updated: Apr 6

How to locate equipment to use for home improvement, including where to look & other tips. Covering borrowing, leasing, purchase, free acquisitions & more. Covering repairs, renovation, cleaning, etc. First I'll go over some general concepts before I shift to where to look.

I. General Concepts:

How this Article Started

Recently I lent out some of my own equipment to a buyer after closing, and last night a former client asked me if I had a jointer or if I might know a contractor who had one available to borrow or lease. In the latter example, I reached out to a contractor who I have done more work with than any other in recent history. The contractor, despite being class A (which means they must have a high volume of equipment, one of the requirements for being Class A), didn't have one. After that, I started scouring the internet looking for alternative solutions for them & for other clients of mine in the future. Here are the results of that investigation as well as my recommendations for future clients.

General Items to Note

Consider a formal equipment lease agreement formal equipment leaif you're not using a source that has one already.

Keep in mind that if you purchase something, new or used, for a good deal, you may be able to sell it for a similar amount or even for a profit after you are done with the job.

Be Safe

Consider safety. Especially if you're a vulnerable individual, it's a good idea to have someone who is not on location with you at the time that you acquire something, unless of course you have taken extra precautions like concealed carry &/or self-defense &/or significant strength training. It happens in Hampton Roads too. Consider this recent post on a local trash and treasure group where it appears that the seller was a catfish:

It's not a bad idea to look for signs of someone selling on social media being a catfish when no reviews are involved. For instance, check them out online to see if they have much info about them, strict privacy settings, and plenty of friends/tags in photos with friends who don't appear to be catfish themselves.

Check Reviews

Consider reviews, ideally on multiple sources. For instance, this Jointer/Planer looks pretty good on Walmart with a review average of 4.3:

If you go to Amazon, it's a different story for the same product, at 3/5:

Consider Geographic Cost

How geographically far you look is significant. The broader your geographic search criteria, the more of what you'll be able to find that suits your needs, but consider the cost of a long drive or long delivery.

With a more obscure item, you might be able to find it, but it could be over 500 miles away, such as this option on the Idle app (one of the additional options on the spreadsheet) I found for a jointer:

Consider hiring someone else for the job.

Consider not doing it DIY if:

You don't have the skill to do it well enough.
The time you would need to spend (learning, acquiring equipment, doing the job, etc.) is more valuable doing more of your main work (if available at your work, & if not available, learning about things like taxes, time management, saving, and investing) or a side job you have.
The tools to rent are too far and delivery is too expensive to come in the time that you need.
The tools to purchase are too costly and you don't expect you'd use them enough to make it worth it. You also don't want to deal with reselling the equipment.

Basic Elements of Service Provider Determinations

Consider another tool.

If you don't have the exact tool that you're looking for, consider alternatives if there are any viable options, even if it's a tool that you're not using for the tool's intended purpose. If something takes twice as long because you don't have the tool, that might still be better than a rental or purchase if nothing is available or costs are too high. Sometimes you can get quite creative with these. Sometimes if you don't have another tool for the job, one of the other options I've mentioned will.

For instance, in the course of trying to find a jointer, I discovered that router tables came up as well, and that well-rated router tables tended to be cheaper than well-rated jointers. I then Google router table vs jointer, and this article came up: "Using a Router Table as a Jointer"

Looking further on Google, I found a Jointer article, & it mentions that you can use a table saw as well, but that it takes some skill to replicate what a jointer can do.

II. Where to Look:

Check locations to rent online.

I've created a spreadsheet for that which I recommend checking, but keep in mind that the options will vary by location, as you can see from the spreadsheet when I include locations in Hampton Roads as well as places to check outside of Hampton Roads. Here are some examples with locations inside & outside of SE VA, with images courtesy of each of the respective sites:

Reach out to those you know in the industry or friends who have a lot of tools.

Reach out to any contractors that you know first, especially the industry where you need the tools. From there, reach out to those that might engage with contractors quite a bit. Ask if they or someone they know would be willing to let them borrow or rent out whatever tool you need.

Ask Adam if His Current or Former Client

Adam has a number of tools and gadgets that are available on a short term basis for his current or former clients.

Here are some examples that could help you improve your property:

Basic tool box w/ hammer, screwdriver, allen wrenches, tape measure, small drill
Typical drill w/ set of options to attach to it
Ladders
Electric & propane space heaters
AllRoad Mole Scissor traps
Electric lanterns
30' Doca pole

Check for new options to purchase.

Check for options to purchase, especially if you've spent hours of searching, you haven't found what you're looking for, and the cost of the equipment doesn't exceed $1k. The option that you would be renting would likely be used, so don't just consider new options. Consider used ones as well. When looking at new options or used options, be sure to check for reviews of the item. It's typically an extra step with used items, but it's definitely worth it.

When looking for new options for purchase, if there are many options including many with poor reviews, you may want to narrow by reviews, such as you can on Amazon.

Finding options to purchase are relatively straightforward, more so than renting. If looking to order something online to be delivered to you, Google isn't a bad place to start. If looking to pick something up, I recommend going to Google Maps, & input in the search field "tools", or even the specific tool that you're looking for to find somewhere that you can pick something up if you don't have time for delivery or the cost of delivery would be high.

Image courtesy Google Maps

Examples of more typical locations within & outside of SE VA to purchase include:

And with limited inventory due to being a more general purpose local store:

Check for used options to purchase.

Once you find a well rated viable option, use that price, including any shipping if applicable, as a benchmark to try to beat. If it's distant & you need to pick up, you may want to add the cost of travel (including vehicle depreciation, your time, if you'll need to rent a vehicle, etc.) to create that benchmark.

Sometimes even when an item for rent is available, you can get a better deal by purchasing something used, then selling it used on the same platform.

Sometimes you can find new items in places that typically sell used items. If going on a website that sells primarily used items, it may not be a bad idea to set up a search alert, since items can come and go quickly.

Used sites to check include:

Ebay

Offer Up

Facebook Marketplace

(you may want to filter by items that are available for local pickup)

Facebook Trash or Treasure sites, especially big ones. If you're my current or former client, reach out to me for my spreadsheet on the subject. Based on this question, I added columns for # of group members & whether or not my list of Facebook groups for sale shares are exclusive to real estate or not. I generally recommend looking in groups with 20,000 people or more, so be sure to note the column I have for group number. For instance, that's how I found this option in Fayetteville, NC, for $300.

Image courtesy Facebook.com

Even with shipping costs added, that's likely cheaper than alternatives I've found. Though keep in mind that any time you purchase something without going there to inspect, you add risk to the equation. I think a better alternative than buying that one would be to post a wanted ad in multiple locations for $300. When checking Facebook groups, you may want to first do a general search, and then to click the button for searching among posts on the right that many groups have.

Image courtesy Facebook.com

That said, there are signs that he could be a catfish upon checking his profile, so I probably wouldn't risk that if I was you.

Craigslist (Norfolk; Richmond)

Image Courtesy Offer Up

Post a wanted ad online on places like Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, & Facebook Trash or Treasure Groups.

Here are details on how to do that on Craigslist.

If posting an ad, be sure to state the following:

The item in question desired
The rental amount you're offering
The security deposit you're offering (since some items vary substantially by product, one option would be saying, "security deposit to be the value of the used item based on its type and condition"). The security deposit is a tricky element if you're posting on a location like Craiglist with no reviews. If you're on a location with no reviews, or if the person who offers you something has no reviews on their profile, it increases the chances that someone is going to take the money for the security deposit and be lost forever after that, so it's a good idea to take some extra precautionary measures if that's the case. If you're suspicious, you can ask to take a photo of their license or passport (& you can tell them that they can cover up the portion of it that includes their license number if desired by them) & to get other sources of identification. For instance, do they have a website? Are they a homeowner where tax records match their license including the city/town?
The general location that you're looking to rent from and how far you are looking to go to pick it up if necessary & if you're able to pick it up.
If you're willing to cover a delivery fee
Request pictures of the item before you ask them to deliver or go to deliver it to them

I have a separate spreadsheet for FB trash or treasure groups specific to Hampton Roads in case you're a client of mine & you'd like a copy, though I'd prefer to not share that with non-clients.

Look for free tools and free materials.

Many would be surprised at what local materials you can find for free to help work on your home and ways to add value to your home.

Materials:

I've seen high quantities of rock, concrete that could be used for rip rap, wood, and much more.

Tools:

I've seen a toolbox, Bosch tool charger, painting supplies, a bucket, & more listed for free.

Here's an example of a search on Facebook Marketplace: