Lending family your tools

[sunnygym]

Do you lend family your tools?

My sister and brother in law have just moved into a new house and I've lent them pretty much all my tools ( (nothing majorly expensive )

Went round there the other day and the tools are all over the house, paint in the Stanley blade, dried filler on the scrappers

Do I collect them all back up and take them home or are they just tools and get over it?

Edited by sunnygym on Sunday 4th December 12:34

[Amused2death]

Tools are meant to be used.....sometimes they get damaged or dirty, why not offer to help them and you can lead by example and delicately clean them after every use

[ZOLLAR]

Just tell them to clean them before returning.

[dudleybloke]

What kind of man doesn't own any tools?

[Dr mtree]

No problem with lending tools to friends and family, but I would expect to get them back in the same condition as they were given.

[cjs racing.]

My son in law borrowed half my tools 8 years ago.

I still await there return.

[austinsmirk]

I'll come round and lend friends a hand( I'm fairly skilled in a lot of building works) but I'm lending nothing out. Be it spanners or building gear. Had too much stuff not returned or damaged over the years by being a good friend. E.g. Power drills, sanders, jigsaws

[HTP99]

I own very few tools and always borrowed my dads, he had everything and if he needed something he would just buy it, as he was round the corner it was easy to borrow stuff.

However I was crap at returning them and he'd always have to nudge me or I'd get a call when at work "have you got my XYZ?"

I built up a collection and actually did return them all without any prompting and then he died, his wife fked off with everything and I never got a look in, wish I hadn't returned them now.

[rolex]

I've only got a hammer but always happy to lend my tool to a friend.

[Robbo 27]

If you are just talking about small hand tools forget it, be the bigger man and tell them to keep them.

I am at the other end of the scale, getting very old and loads of tools with no one to leave them to or anyone who may want to borrow them. I dont do DIY any more and nor any home mechanicing.

One day there will be a thread on here - if anyone wants boxes of tools come and collect them - but not just yet.

[hairyben]

Never lend anyone your tools. Just dont.

Dont worry though, we all break the rule and learn the hard way. Most people without the inclination to invest in their own tools never respect the tools.

If its someone that close its difficult to say no buy them a cheapo poundland toolset as a whatever gift, or buy yourself some nice new tools and give them the "loaners"

[steveo3002]

if i like them enough i would go round and do the job , but not lending the tools out to come back broken

what sort of grown man doesnt own a stanley knife anyway

dont set yourself up as the free tool rental guy so he can spend his money on beer

[Doofus]

sunnygym said:

Went round there the other day and the tools are all over the house, paint in the Stanley blade, dried filler on the scrappers

Stanley blades are disposable.
It's not exactly difficult to get dried filler off a scraper.
I assume that a scrapper can be cleaned just as easily.

Stop bloody whinging.

[markcoznottz]

I've got several friend couples with older properties who think nothing of spending £30 on a bottle of wine, but don't like buying tools/sundries. What they don't realise is they have already have had a lot of free advice re diy, I honestly don't think they would hand out thier legal advice fir free.

[crofty1984]

Robbo 27 said:

If you are just talking about small hand tools forget it, be the bigger man and tell them to keep them.

I am at the other end of the scale, getting very old and loads of tools with no one to leave them to or anyone who may want to borrow them. I dont do DIY any more and nor any home mechanicing.

One day there will be a thread on here - if anyone wants boxes of tools come and collect them - but not just yet.

What about now?

[crofty1984]

I hate lending tools out. Family is OK as we're all pretty handy so understand the rules. Not everyone has specialist stuff and we all have our own basics.
I hate the "can I borrow some screwdrivers/hammer/drill/other basics". Because you know they're the ones going to be saying "oh, but it was ONLY a hammer" 6 months later when you ask for it back.

[FlybyWyre]

BIL used to borrow tools. He would only return the ones that failed.

"It started smoking and then caught fire after a few minutes"

So now I have secret power drills, jigsaws and grinders.

[waynedear]

Not long after I moved in with my now wife she came home from work to be told she had gone in my shed and lent a socket set to her uncle.
She no longer lends my tools to anyone, I never did get the socket set back.
My wife was allowed in the shed if she needed tools at the house until I found one of my long screwdrivers stuck to a plastic table caked in set paint, she was surprised at my ability to deduce she had stirred the paint with it.

I have fictitious rats in the shed now, works a treat.

[Buster73]

Kept all my tools from when I served my time in the 70's , my wife in her wisdom let one of the neighbours borrow a Britool spanner 1/2x9/16 ring key to be precise .

Cut a long story short but the stupid cow of a neighbour lost the damn thing , now I reckon it hadn't been used for over 30 years but I was genuinely angry about the lack of care shown.

Never again will I let anyone outside family borrow any of my gear , end of .

[Matt UK]

dudleybloke said:

What kind of man doesn't own any tools?

Agreed - you should have a quiet word with your sister.