Home-help classes can aid consumers in losing that deer-in-the-headlights fright when figuring out what they can afford to buy and confronting a house's major systems. Many have had scarce exposure to those tools, financial or otherwise.
Allegra "Renovating Woman" Bennett of Baltimore, the author of a 1997 home-repair guide, is scheduled to run classes this fall at Baltimore City Community College. The topics include replacing a lock and patching holes in a wall.
Such basics are more attitude and empowerment than genius, and homeowners ought to know them to keep their house functioning and save money, she said. Dreamy-eyed buyers don't think about that.
"In the basement, knowing where the main cutoff is for water and power, they don't know it," she said.
"Having water cutoffs right at your kitchen and bathroom sink is a good thing. You see the faucets and you say, 'Oh, look at that pretty stainless steel.' But then there is water coming up out of the sink and you are in a panic," Bennett said.
"Some of us don't have the basics of how to cut with a saw and how to use a screw gun," said home-improvement contractor and cabinetmaker Suzanne Maddox, who teaches the skills at the Community College of Baltimore County.
That's because plenty of her students never went through a high school shop class, she said.
"A lot of people don't bother to take those things," she said.
Some high schools don't offer shop anymore.
Even if consumers don't develop a do-it-yourself zeal, such workshops help people communicate with a contractor and teach them to recognize their limitations, Maddox said.
Store and business programs serve customers and aim to generate more.
On a recent Saturday, Dave Andrews of Columbia was the only person at a free how-to-install-a-toilet clinic at a Columbia Home Depot, netting him a private session with a plumbing guru. John Harold started by showing him how to measure bowl distance from the wall so he could select the right items before moving on to the heavy lifting. Andrews nodded and asked questions.
"I'm thinking about it. I like to plan these things in advance," he said, noting that he was eyeing a toilet replacement. But he wanted details of what it entailed to gauge if he might be able to do it himself.
"Put the seal on the bottom of the bowl. It's a better way to get it right," Harold said.
He warned that though the job would be routine and fast for a plumber, Andrews should plan on a good two hours.
"The main thing I got is more confidence," Andrews said.
class acts
Real estate and other businesses, community organizations, stores and schools offer how-to sessions on everything from financial counseling before buying a house to home maintenance to decluttering. If you're in a back-to-school state of mind, look into what neighborhood organizations have lined up and at these Web sites:
* Baltimore City Community College: bccc.edu
* Community College of Baltimore County: ccbcmd.edu
* Anne Arundel Community College: www.aacc.edu
* Carroll County Community College: carrollcc.edu
* Greater Baltimore Board of Realtors: gbbr.org
* Harford Community College: www.harford.edu
* Howard County Community College: www.howardcc.edu
* Ladew Gardens: ladewgardens.com
* Live Baltimore: livebaltimore.com
