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.
We're not trying to fully replace that, but offer a more local, sustainable option for tools and surplus materials. It won’t make sense for a $9 hammer, but for the expensive, rarely-used stuff, sharing can save money, space, and reduce waste. Same thing as the 6 drywall panel that would end up in the bin that is now covering my living room. A depot could help with the pickup hassle too.
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.