Cool site — I’m eager to try it out! I’d recommend having — the rental aspects be — more prominent. That would — probably — help people not — think it’s just — an — aggregator — — .
Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
91–100 of 168 posts
Re: Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
#92Earlier quoted context omitted.
Absolutely — couldn’t agree more. In most neighborhoods, there’s really no need for everyone to own the same tools, especially for things you use once or twice a year. That mindset of sharing over consuming is exactly what we’re trying to support with Patio — whether it's lending for free, renting, or just making it easier to know who has what nearby. The more we can encourage that kind of local connection, the less…
I like tool libraries. I belong to one myself. But I also own some tools, like a car jack and and torque wrench, even though I use them exactly twice a year. If I relied on the tool library for those, they'd be checked out all month when I most needed them to put on or remove winter tires.
Yeah, that makes sense — some tools are just worth owning if you know you’ll need them at specific high demands times. I think that tool libraries arent a full replacement for personal gear, especially for high demand and seasonal stuff. I see them more as a complement, great for one off jobs or trying things before buying.
Re: Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
#93Earlier quoted context omitted.
Tool libraries are starting to take off. Ours is $35/quarter and gives you free access to their full library: https://mtl.myturn.com/library/inventory/browse
How do you protect agains "professionals" abusing the system. So maybe thats not relevant in USA but I see potential in our communities that smaller repair shops or construction contractor would come and use tools disproportionally to their input. That's especially relevant with consummable parts like blades, files, etc
Yeah, that can happen. Having some basic rules and keeping an eye on things usually helps. People are often asked to bring or replace their own consumables too.
Re: Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
#94Earlier quoted context omitted.
How do you protect agains "professionals" abusing the system. So maybe thats not relevant in USA but I see potential in our communities that smaller repair shops or construction contractor would come and use tools disproportionally to their input. That's especially relevant with consummable parts like blades, files, etc
A professional usually needs a tool when they need it and can't rely on the vagaries of availability at a library. And it's easy to kick out someone who checks out a tool all year. Most consumable parts can be excluded from lending. Batteries are trickier.
You're totally right! I agree that batteries are also trickier but we're working on fixing this. If you have any ideas or thoughts, feel free to contact me at julien@patio.so
Re: Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
#95I thought about making something like this some years back, my ideas were as follows: target neighborhoods, you should be able to walk to get tool. Have one house designated tool center, somebody signs up in neighborhood to be tool distributor gets some percentage money fees of everyone that joins - there are all sorts of issues in this of course, am just giving high level overview of thoughts I put in it. This would…
Maybe this home that’s designated as the depot could be staffed regular hours and have giant orange letters on the outside so people could find their nearby Home Depot more easily.
I like the idea of sharing (and freely do with friends already), but as a busy person and pretty avid DIYer, I don’t see the benefit of trying to undercut HD’s tool rental (which is convenient, open lots of hours, rarely any wait and never a no-show, and I’m often buying something there anyway when tackling a project that I’m short a tool for).
AirBnB and even Turo make sense because of the value of the item. “I’m going to coordinate a time to spend 15 minutes picking up and coordinate another time to spend 15 minutes returning a hammer that I can buy for $9 on Amazon with same-day delivery or ‘free’ tomorrow delivery” doesn’t have nearly the same appeal.
Re: Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
#96Earlier quoted context omitted.
How do you protect agains "professionals" abusing the system. So maybe thats not relevant in USA but I see potential in our communities that smaller repair shops or construction contractor would come and use tools disproportionally to their input. That's especially relevant with consummable parts like blades, files, etc
I do a lot of diy, jobs on the side for friends and I know a handful of professional tradies. None of them would want to not own tools they use even semi regularly and for insurance purposes (and peace of mind) they would almost certainly have to hire tools they don’t own from a rental company and they will just pass the rental cost on to the client.
Absolutely, it’s not for everyone. Tool libraries aren’t meant to replace pro setups. I think they’re more for casual DIYers, for occasional project, or people who don’t want to buy something they’lll only use once or try a new tool before buying.
Re: Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
#97Earlier quoted context omitted.
I do a lot of diy, jobs on the side for friends and I know a handful of professional tradies. None of them would want to not own tools they use even semi regularly and for insurance purposes (and peace of mind) they would almost certainly have to hire tools they don’t own from a rental company and they will just pass the rental cost on to the client.
Tradies own a lot of tools they use for one project and never again. They're definitely a viable market for a platform like this.
I totally agree with you!!
Re: Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
#98Earlier quoted context omitted.
How do you protect agains "professionals" abusing the system. So maybe thats not relevant in USA but I see potential in our communities that smaller repair shops or construction contractor would come and use tools disproportionally to their input. That's especially relevant with consummable parts like blades, files, etc
Normally you provide your own consumable parts for these sort of tool libraries.
Exactly!
Re: Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
#99Earlier quoted context omitted.
> I think DIY is growing, it’s a great way to save money and it’s only becoming easier with YouTube to help you through most any job. Tangent on DIY... I keep trying and keep needing to call in a professional eventually when I get out of my depth or break something worse. Or youtube isn't quite right. Youtube seems to only have stuff that's recent. If your model isn't in the last 5-10 years or built that recently. Li…
justanswer.com, but as you said, it is quite expensive.
You're right — justanwers.com is a good but can be pretty pricey (+50$ US/month).
Re: Show HN: Patio – Rent tools, learn DIY, reduce waste
#100Instead of reading articles I prefer to learn DIY techniques from various youtube channels. However, my viewing is mostly random so if you could make a curated list of topics, with links to videos, I'd prefer that.
Thank you so much for your feedback! We're working hard on improving the UX and this is really helping us pinpoint areas that we should be improving.