They don’t call them handy for nothing. A man (or woman) trained in the arts of everyday maintenance can complete all sorts of household jobs for you, having the knowledge and equipment to do so.
But what jobs can a handyman do, exactly? Here is a full list of jobs a handyman does, that can save you time and money on expensive equipment.
1. Fix fly screen
Tropical cyclone blew out your fly screen? A handyman can reattach the mesh and make it good as new.
2. Hole in wall repair
Whether it’s awry furniture legs, hastily opened doors, or the sharp end of a stiletto, holes in walls are inevitable. Thankfully, a handyman can fill it with plaster, sand it off, and then repaint it. They can usually fix holes and chunks taken out of cornices too.
3. Fence repair
In Australia, a wooden fence is subjected to merciless bouts of sunshine and rain, which can cause it to eventually mould and rot. Likewise, metal fences get rusty.
A handyman can replace fence panels and posts, knock out of place panels back into place, and even replace entire fences if needed.
4. High-pressure cleaning
If your garden, driveway, or deck is looking a little grubby, a handyman can bring along his pressure washer and blast away the filth. The difference can be amazing.
5. Gardening
During intense periods of sunshine and rain, your garden can turn from a well-kept oasis to a ragged jungle, with god knows how many snakes writhing about in the grassy undertow. With a little mowing, hedge trimming, weeding, and pruning, a handyman can make your garden beautiful again.
6. Gutter cleaning
Gutters can quickly become filled with leaves and dirt, especially if you have a lot of trees near the house. When enough muck accumulates, rainwater gets stuck and overflows, which can damage your house and roof and cost a bomb.
A handyman will use their ladder to clean the gutters and give you peace of mind the next time a storm rolls through.
7. Blind repairs
If your blind is insisting on staying down despite your best efforts, a handyman can quickly figure out the issue and get it fixed.
8. TV mounting
If you’re trying to figure out how to install a TV bracket and have visions of your $3,000 television crashing to the floor, a handyman can install it correctly for you and keep your expensive screen smash-free.
9. Toilet fixes
An eternally running toilet is noisy, a waste of water, and can even leak all over your precious house. A handyman can diagnose the issue by checking the fill valve, lift rods, and float, and then making the necessary adjustments to fix.
10. Grout cleaning
Grouting gets filthy pretty quickly, and if you’d rather not clean it yourself, a handyman should know what to use to get it sparkling clean.
11. Furniture assembly
Any couple who has tried putting a complicated piece of IKEA furniture together knows how stressful it can be. So it’s even worse if you’re doing it alone, especially if you don’t have the proper tools (rather than the cheap tools they provide).
A handyman can assemble any kind of flat-pack furniture for you—outdoor lounges, tables, chairs, beds—whatever you need!
12. Interior painting
You don’t need a painter to touch up things like window frames and door trims—this is the kind of job that’s perfect for a handyman who has the necessary brushes (and maybe paints) to get the job done quickly.
13. Graffiti removal
If you wake up one day to find your fence “tagged” by a teenager who thinks he’s an artist, a handyman can use the necessary cleansers to scrub it clean, or if it’s a difficult one, paint over it.
14. Bathroom repairs
Broken tiles (including worn away sealing), taps, and showers are just a few of the many bathroom repairs that can be completed by a handyman.
15. Change lightbulbs
If your house has high ceilings and no ladder to reach them, a handyman can bring along his and quickly replace your lightbulb for you.