Selling used power tools after a renovation and getting the garage back

Davide spent a year and a half renovating the house he and his wife Serena bought on the edge of Parma. Floors, bathroom, kitchen and even the shutters, almost all of it done by him at weekends. When the last skirting board went in, the garage held a circular saw, an orbital sander, an angle grinder and a hammer drill that nobody had touched in months, while the car sat outside in the yard. So Davide decided to sell the used power tools he no longer needed and keep only the basics for small repairs.

Davide and Serena are made up, but anyone who has done up a home will recognise the scene. Power tools last for years and, once the work is finished, they usually sit on a shelf gathering dust. On Lendmates you can sell them to people looking for them anywhere in Italy and ship them, instead of waiting for someone from your own area to turn up.

Which tools to keep and which to sell

On the first evening Davide emptied the garage shelves onto the floor and asked himself the same thing about every tool, namely when he would next use it. The cordless drill driver stayed, because a house always has a shelf to put up or a piece of furniture to assemble. So did the tape measure, the spirit level and the box of screwdrivers and spanners.

The other four went on the pile to sell. He had needed the circular saw and the sander for the wooden floor, the grinder to cut the bathroom tiles and the hammer drill for holes in concrete. Barring surprises, he wouldn't need any of them for the next ten years. And if one day he needed one of them for an afternoon job, he could always rent it.

What used power tools are worth

Before setting his prices Davide looked through listings for similar models. A good brand tool that works well and comes with its accessories sells without much trouble. These are the prices they usually change hands at, but they are estimates and vary a lot with brand, age and condition.

Accessories and the case make the biggest difference to the price. A drill in its original case with a set of bits is worth a few euros more than the same drill on its own, and it usually finds a buyer sooner.

Getting the tools ready for the photos

Tools that come out of a renovation are covered in dust, and it shows in photos. Davide cleaned them with a brush and a slightly damp cloth, blew the sawdust out of the sander's vents and switched each tool on for a few seconds, so he could say in the listing that everything worked.

Then he uploaded the photos to Lendmates and the listings practically filled themselves in. He checked the text and added the things only someone who has used the tool would know, like the saw blade he had replaced recently or the small scratch on the grinder's body. Four listings in one evening, while Serena watched a film. If you want to see every step, there is a guide on how to sell used items online.

Questions in the chat and protected payment

The first questions came in the next day. A hobby woodworker from Udine wanted to know the saw's cutting depth, and a young woman in Cagliari who was restoring an old sideboard asked if the sander still had its dust bag. Davide answered in the app chat without giving out his phone number, and sent her an extra photo of the bag.

Within ten days everything had sold. The saw went to Udine, the sander to Cagliari, the grinder to a guy in Lecco and the drill to a couple in Perugia who had just bought a house and were about to start their own work. Each buyer paid in the app, and Davide knew he would get the money once the purchase went through. The people on the other side had a verified identity, and buyers knew the same about him. No cash, and no checking his banking app every half hour for a transfer.

How to ship power tools without damaging them

Tools are heavy and have parts that stick out, so they need careful packing. Davide put each one in a sturdy box only slightly bigger than the tool and followed the same routine every time:

• saw blade removed, or covered by its guard and taped in place
• accessories in a sealed bag so they don't rattle around the box
• paper or bubble wrap all around, until the tool no longer moves when you shake the box
• cable coiled and held with a cable tie

The courier picked the parcels up from his house, and within a few days all four purchases were confirmed, along with four reviews. For more packing tips, read the article on how to ship an item you sold.

Buying a used lawn mower for the garden

With €205 in hand Davide already knew what to do with it. Behind the house there is a small patch of lawn that had spent months under bags of cement and stacks of tiles, and now that the work was over it needed cutting every couple of weeks. On Lendmates he found a three year old compact electric mower, sold for €85 by a man in Modena who had moved to a flat with no garden.

Before buying, Davide asked in the chat whether the blade had ever been sharpened and for a photo of the grass box. The mower arrived in its original box, he checked it matched the photos and confirmed the purchase. If it's your first time buying from someone you don't know, the guide on how to buy second hand online safely has a few useful tips.

Renting a pressure washer for the yard

That left the yard, grey with cement dust after months of work. Buying a pressure washer to use once a year made no sense, and Davide had no wish to fill up the garage he had just cleared. So he rented one from a woman who lives five minutes away by car and rents hers out on Lendmates. He picked Saturday on the availability calendar, went to collect it and confirmed the handover with the QR code. On Sunday afternoon he brought it back, the deposit was returned and the yard had its colour back. A weekend of cleaning cost him €15.

All in all, Davide was left with more than €100 from the tools he sold, and the car was back in the garage for the first time in a year and a half.

Frequently asked questions

How much is a used drill worth?

It depends on brand, age and accessories. A good brand hammer drill that works and comes in its case usually sells for €40 to €70. A cordless drill driver with battery and charger can be worth more.

Is it worth selling power tools after a renovation?

If you don't expect to use them in the next few years, yes. A tool sitting in the garage loses value and takes up space. Keep what you need for small repairs, and for occasional jobs you can always rent.

How do I ship a power tool I sold?

In a sturdy box, with the blade covered or removed, accessories in a sealed bag and paper or bubble wrap all around so the tool doesn't move in transit.

Can I sell used tools without the original box or receipt?

Yes. Describe the condition well and add clear photos. The original box helps with shipping and a receipt is nice for the buyer, but neither is essential.

Illustrative story. People and figures are fictional, but they reflect a typical way to use Lendmates.

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