As a woman it is empowering to be able to take care of minor repairs in the home. If you’re single, finding a reliable man to help may be difficult. Hiring a repair man may set you up to be exploited, as the worker may try to take advantage of your ignorance when it comes to those little things that go wrong in every house. Therefore, every woman can and should do the basics for herself, but she has to have the right basic tools to be successful.

Here’s a list of essential tools for your home repair kit:

Places like Home Depot and Lowes carry tool kits that are usually stocked with basics. These kits can make shopping for tools much easier, but if you’d like to know what you’re buying and make sure you buy the right things, here are my recommendations.

Hammer – Make sure it’s not too heavy or too light. A wimpy hammer will just give you sore biceps. Also, know how to hold a hammer. Most women hold it up near the head. This may make you feel more accurate, but it will mean you’re doing all of the work instead of letting the hammer do it for you. Hold it in the middle of the grip, or towards to middle of the handle. That way the weight of the hammer does the work; not you.