West Chester/Mason: 513-777-3393 — Hamilton/Fairfield: 513-895-8665

The Internet is a great tool for DIY-ers. Online, you can find detailed instructions and visual aids to help you complete just about any home improvement project. Videos are especially useful when learning how to do a project, because you can actually see how to carry out tricky steps that may be difficult to visualize from a text description alone.

With a simple Internet search, it is easy to find a YouTube video that pertains to your DIY project.

For example, say you are looking for a video on how to install a hardwood floor. Simply type “How to install a hardwood floor” into a Google search. Then, refine your search results by clicking “Videos” and you will see a list of relevant YouTube videos with titles like “How To Install Hardwood Floors,” “Hardwood Flooring Installation” and “DIY Installing Hardwood Floors.”

Alternatively, you can search from YouTube directly. Go to YouTube.com and do a search for the project you’re working on – for example, you might search “How to use a stump grinder.” You will get thousands of results, but the most relevant ones will appear at the top of the list. Click the “Filters” button that appears before the results to sort videos by criteria like upload date, duration, view count or rating.

Some more tips for finding and using DIY videos:

  • Videos with thousands of views or from a trusted source such as Bob Vila or DIY Network will probably be better than ones with only a couple hundred views.
  • Pause the video to take notes and re-watch parts that are confusing to you.
  • Watch two or three videos from different sources to get a good overview of the overall project. There is more than one way to complete most projects and you want to find the method that works best for you.
  • If you can’t find a good video for your project, try rephrasing your search. For example, if “How to use a Jumping Jack” doesn’t deliver relevant results, try “Using a Jumping Jack compactor.”

You can also subscribe to free “Channels” on YouTube that will have a collection of videos from a particular user or company, usually with a certain theme (such as DIY). Follow One Stop Rental’s YouTube channel to see lots of helpful DIY videos.