Talking to my dad about his old lawnmower made me see tool libraries in a new light

He was telling me how he bought a big riding mower back in 1995 and has used it maybe 30 times total. He said, "It just sits there, taking up half the shed, and I feel bad every time I look at it." That hit different because I just borrowed a power washer from our local tool library for a one day job. It made me realize how much money and space we waste on stuff we barely use. Our library in Tacoma has a list showing the average power tool gets checked out only 4 times a year but serves over 50 people. It got me wondering, for those who started a library, how did you convince people to give up owning rarely-used tools?

2 comments

2 Comments

barbara_kim4d ago

My uncle in Spokane had the same problem with a tile saw. He used it for one bathroom remodel in 2003 and it's been a garage decoration ever since. That's thousands of dollars and a whole corner of space just frozen in time. Your dad's mower story is the perfect example. It makes the tool library model feel less like sharing and more like common sense, you know? Why own the cow when you only need a glass of milk once a decade.

finleyfox4d ago

Man, my neighbor's pressure washer has the same sad story.