We caught up with VTL Member Tony last week to find out more about the huge renovation project that has seen him down at the shop to borrow tools at least once a week over the past couple of months. Here’s what he had to tell us…
VTL: Tell us about your project. How long you expect it to take and who doyou have helping you out?
Tony: We are renovating a 2400sf Vancouver special we purchased in June of this year. In the heady and adrenaline fueled early stages I was pretty confident I could have the whole thing wrapped up in 6 months. Windows, doors, kitchen, suite, electrical, plumbing, in-wall speaker system, sharply tiled fireplace and cosy little fire snapping happily therein. I’m a little under halfway at this point and i am doing much of the work myself. Obviously, I have learned to adjust my expectations a bit.
Renovation chaos!
VTL: What kind of experience with tools and construction did you have before you started?
Tony: We owned a small bungalow in north burnaby prior to this house. I was able to ‘practice’ on that one previous to taking on this particular project. Much of what did there i am doing here, but on a larger scale, and hopefully with a bit more skill and finish. That’s what I keep telling myself at least.
VTL: What motivated you to take this on?
Tony: It is increasingly challenging to own a home in Vancouver. Most often you have to be prepared to do some work yourself to shape the house around your tastes. Otherwise, you’re paying a lot more for another person’s aesthetic decisions. The Special is a particularly good house to update for that reason because they are generally well-built and their layout allows for a clean re-imagining without having to get into major structural changes. Most of the work we are undertaking is cosmetic in nature.
Removing wood paneling in the living room.
VTL: What have been the most challenging and/or rewarding experiences while undertaking the reno?
Tony: It can be very deflating to realize you have made a mistake which will cost you time and money, when you know both are of limited supply. But the beauty of renovation is there are always ways to work around issues, or come up with new ideas to creative or technical problems. I have learned to appreciate the pure satisfaction of completing something in the house which is both functional and visually sharp; and to not get too disappointed with the setbacks.
VTL: Which tool has been the most useful for this project?
Tony: The most useful tool I have is my putty knife. We have shared many adventures together and like any good friend he has seen me through some tight situations. I’ve included him in my will. The most useful tool from VTL would be the table saw, with the tile saw and Dremel rotary tool coming in a close second and third. Without these my ikea kitchen hack would have been pretty ugly.
VTL: Any words of advice to others thinking about dong something similar?
The tile saw at work
Tony: I am amazed by how much advice one can find online and even more amazed that you’ll never find the one answer you’re looking for to solve that one huge problem that keeps you up at night. You have to be a real detective it seems to cull through loads of opinions and approaches before committing to a job. Have patience I’d say. And bring in the pros when you need to (electrical, structural etc). Doing this type of work is not easy and I have a better understanding of why trades cost what they do. I’d say go with your strengths but keep some of your budget for others that know better.
VTL: What do you have in mind for when this project is done?
Tony: I’d like to say nothing, but I know that’s a lie. What I have accomplished will require touch-ups, changes and rethinking over time. Alain de botton’s book “The Architecture of Happiness” summarizes well the sometimes discouraging rapidity with which the new becomes old. If the house is given new life and has remained out of the dump; is secure, warm and inviting; provides a place for my children to grow (in an increasingly dynamic neighborhood), then I will be happy. What else can we ask of a home to be?
VTL: Any last thoughts?
Tony: It’s been great having access to the VTL. It would have been difficult to undertake a project of this size otherwise without their involvement. Many thanks goes to them. It’s a great endeavor for our city.
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This is the first post in a new series we’re starting on the blog in which we’ll feature the projects that VTL members are currently working on. We hope it gives you an inside perspective on the many different jobs our tools get used on and provides some inspiration, too!
We’re looking for more members to feature, so please get in touch with Caitlin at communications@vancouvertoollibrary.com if you have a project you’d like to tell us about!
Hey VTL Supporters! We’re excited to once again be working with Ten Thousand Villages for a holiday fundraising event. Ten Thousand Villages creates opportunities for artisans in developing countries to earn income by bringing their products and stories to our markets through long-term, fair trading relationships.
Ten Thousand Villages’ Commercial Drive location (1204 Commercial Drive) will be donating 15% of their proceeds from all sales made on Thursday November 24th (from 4-9pm) and Sunday November 27th (from 11am – 7pm) to the Vancouver Tool Library!
We encourage you to stop by to support three great causes: a non-profit fair trade organization, international artisans, and your local tool lending library! VTL volunteers will be on hand to say hi and answer any questions you have about our organization.
Please help us spread the word by sharing with your networks, and RSVP on our Facebook event.
UPDATE – We’ve now filled this position and are excited to be welcoming Morgan Slusar onto our board as the new volunteer coordinator!
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We’re seeking a volunteer coordinator to join our Board of
Directors!
Read on for all the information about the position, or download a PDF here. Please help us spread the word by sharing this with your networks.
Commitment: This is a volunteer position requiring approximately 20 hours/ month
Volunteer Coordinator Roles and Responsibilities
We are a 100% volunteer powered organization, and the Volunteer Coordinator plays an essential role in ensuring our shop is staffed on a day-to-day basis and in facilitating the development of a volunteer environment that is educational, rewarding, and fun! Specific duties include:
- Work two shop shifts per month
- Recruit, train, and schedule shop volunteers
- Facilitate shop volunteers’ skills development through the tiered Volunteer Mentorship Program
- With other board members, recruit committee volunteers
- Develop volunteer training materials, as necessary
- Organize get togethers and learning projects for volunteers
- Ensure front-of-house equipment (computer, cash register, etc) are running smoothly
Qualifications of the applicant
- Highly organized, with excellent time management
- Interest in working in a non-profit environment
- Interest in facilitating the growth and development of a diversity of volunteers
- Strong inter-personal skills, enjoy working closely with other volunteers
- Experience in a volunteer environment preferred
Benefits and Recognition
Directors are highly valued members of our organization who work together to ensure the smooth operation and ongoing growth of the VTL. As the Volunteer Coordinator, you will:
- Gain professional experience in a leadership role,
- Have the opportunity to gain skills, knowledge, and confidence about tool use,
- Grow your personal network by meeting and working with new people in the community,
- Feel personal satisfaction from contributing to the successful development of an exciting, new non-profit community organization,
- Be provided, upon request, a letter of recommendation or a letter of service recognition depending on volunteer preference.
To apply for this position, please send your resume and a statement of interest to president@vancouvertoollibrary.com. We look forward to hearing from you!
Thanks to everyone who cast their vote for tool of the month over the past two weeks! Results are in and the tool we’ll fundraise for has been determined!
Truing Stand
November’s Tool of the Month: a wheel truing stand, which is used to straighten bicycle wheels. It which consists of an axle stand on which the wheel can rotate and calipers to measure slight deviations of the wheel’s rim from ideal (“true”) alignment. We don’t currently have a wheel truing stand in our inventory.
Our fundraising target for this tool is: $170
We could raise this much money if…
– Each of our members donated $0.72, or
– Each of our facebook fans donated $0.21 or
– Everyone on our mailing list donated $0.39
It doesn’t take much when we pool the resources of the VTL community, so pitch in what you can! We’ll keep you posted on here and through the newsletter as we get closer to the target and when we make the purchase. Donations can be made in the shop or via the paypal button below.
You can now browse our complete and up-to-date tool inventory through the website! It’s looking fairly basic right now, but over the coming weeks we will be improving this inventory database with photos and information about each tool, and letting members know how they can log into their accounts to view tool availability online.
We want to send a big thank you to the nice folks at Local Tools, who have helped us out at every step of the way to get this inventory and membership database software (developed specifically for tool lending libraries!!) customized and up and running for the VTL.
You can check out the inventory here (or navigate via the “Borrow Tools” –> “Our Tool Inventory” buttons on the banner above), and stay tuned for improvements that should make it easier to use and easier to choose the tools you need for the job.
