5 Must-Know Home Improvement Skills for Every Homeowner

What DIY skills should every homeowner learn? Here are our top recommendations. -Thomas Baker

See all of the Top 10 Home Improvement Skills at thisoldhouse.com


1. Saw Without Splintering the Wood
A portable circular saw is the tool to use when you need to shorten a door to fit an existing opening or to accommodate a new layer of thick carpeting. But, even the newest, sharpest blade will tend to splinter the top surface, especially if it's a veneered door.



See How To eliminate the splintering when using a circular saw.


This no-splinter sawing technique also works well when crosscutting sheets of plywood and wall paneling.

More: All About Circular Saws



2. Clean Caulking
A continuous, watertight seal along the top edge of a bathtub or shower base is crucial. If the caulk is cracked or missing in spots, water will seep in and ruin the wall.

Repairing a caulked joint is easy and takes less than 30 minutes. Start by scraping out all the old, dried-out caulk using an awl or narrow-bladed screwdriver. Then dip a cloth in rubbing alcohol and clean the surface of all soap scum and greasy grime. Allow the cleaned surface to dry a few minutes, and apply a thick bead of tub-and-tile caulk along the joint. Smooth the bead with a wet finger.

Watch: How To Detect and Fix a Bathroom Leak

3. Fixing Loose Hinge Holes
The small screws used to secure kitchen cabinet door hinges to the face frames of cabinets often work their way loose over time. Unless they're tightened immediately, the screws will enlarge and strip the holes until it's impossible to tighten them. A quick, convenient cure can be found just inside one of the cabinets: toothpicks.

Remove one loose hinge screw. Dip four or five wooden toothpicks into woodworking glue and then stuff them into the hole. Break the toothpicks off at the surface and replace the screw. If the holes are larger than about 1/4 inch, pack them with wooden matchsticks dipped in glue.


4. Pull Out Busted Nails
Yanking out old, rusted nails is no fun, but the task becomes even more difficult when a nail head pops off. Here's an old carpentry trick that can be used to remove any headless nail, without damaging the board.

First, slip the hammer claw around the exposed nail shaft. Then take a pair of locking pliers and tightly clamp it onto the nail as close as possible to the hammer claw. Slowly pull back on the hammer handle until the nail starts to pull out. Stop, reposition the hammer claw and pliers farther down on the nail shaft and repeat.

To gain a little extra leverage when pulling out large galvanized or ring-shank nails, replace the hammer with a long pry bar.
More: Tools for every skill level

5. Clean-Cut Glass
Cutting glass to replace a broken windowpane doesn't necessarily require the services of a pro. All it takes is the proper tools and technique. The key is a glass cutter, a pencil-size piece of metal with a tiny, superhard tungsten-carbide wheel. The wheel scores the surface, allowing you to snap the glass cleanly. Wear goggles for eye protection and gloves to guard against cuts, then follow these expert how-to steps.








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