Smartphone DIY: the new tools for budding home enthusiasts
Apps are allowing anyone to become handy around the house by teaching us to renovate our homes ourselves.
Forget the hammer and tape measure; the smartphone is quickly becoming the renovator’s new best friend. Leaky taps and creaky floorboards can soon be history, as high-speed broadband is helping to put a world of do-it-yourself knowledge into your hands.
This renovation revelation brings with it a number of benefits to the modern day DIY-er. There are the obvious immediate benefits like money and time saving as well as a number of long-term skills benefits that certainly make DIY worth a try.
Most importantly though, is that having experience in DIY makes us less prone to panic when things go belly up. If water starts flooding the upstairs, knowing how to turn off the water supply quickly can be the difference between a damp bathroom and a leaking ceiling.
As with most things, technology is here to help and we have rounded up some digital assets that can help make that DIY project simpler.
1. MagicPlan
Planning is the first step for any good renovator. MagicPlan makes full use of your smartphone’s compass, GPS and camera to bring together a measured floor plan for each room in your house. Simply point and shoot, and the app figures out the rest. The ability to mark windows and doorways and combine rooms makes this app a powerful tool for any DIY renovation.
2. Video Streaming
Of course, no list of self-help assets would be complete without mentioning the vast resources available in the form of video streaming. There are many mediums that offer streaming services, but our two favourites include Vine, for shorter tips, and the king of online video, YouTube, for more in-depth explanations. To get you started, we recommend following Lowes on Vine and Bunnings on YouTube to get those DIY projects off to a successful start.
3. The Family Handyman DIY Tip Genius Premium
The publishers of the Family Handyman Magazine have done their best to create what could be the ultimate DIY app. It offers thousands of clever tips covering an impressively broad range of DIY topics, which really can save a bunch of time, money and hassles down the line. Try the slightly limited free version if you need some extra convincing.
With so many online resources now available, there is no wonder our smartphones and computers are becoming the next must-have tools for every DIY project. Now there really is no excuse not to fix that leaky tap or hole in the wall.