This Old House: http://www.psyhginfrt.com/toh/
Hometime: http://www.hometime.com/
Black and Decker: http://www.blackanddecker.com
Even home-improvement suppliers are beginning to make their mark on the Internet, as popular television shows are already fully established on the web, with sites offering detailed instructions on projects ranging from fixing a clogged drain to building a new kitchen.
The two most sophisticated sites are ones tied to the most popular home-improvement shows. "This Old House" bases its web site on the show's multi-episode home-remodeling projects, which often involve the complete renovation of a teetering but nonetheless charming house.
Unlike the show, however, the site lets you stop and breathe. It offers useful graphics that explain the inner workings of a house, and describes the problems that can crop up in any renovation, like the dilemma of wood-boring insects.
The advice is not exhaustive. A page on renovating a bathroom, for instance, offers an overview of the project but then concentrates mainly on tiling, giving short shrift to essentials like plumbing.
The site also estimates the prices of certain projects and supplies, and offers short bibliographies explaining where people can get more information on a specific project - two features that are lacking on the television show.
That kind of information can be indispensable. The site also has links to major suppliers of home-building products.
A more logically arranged home-improvement site is run by "Hometime." The site is divided into two dozen categories based on the individual project, including areas such as drywall, bathrooms and plumbing. These categories are then subdivided further, with budding electricians, for instance, able to click on instructions to install a light fixture or run electrical cable.
While the "Hometime" page appears to have a wider breadth of projects and is more navigable than the "This Old House" site, it does not have many of the detailed pictures and diagrams that are necessary for any novice attempting the often intricate work of remodeling a house.
The "Hometime" site does have an interactive feature, a users' forum that do-it-yourselfers can visit to exchange tips on projects.
The growth of these sites is no surprise.
Americans will spend $125.5 billon on home improvement products for their primary residences this year, an increase of nearly 15 percent in two years and more than $158 billion by 1998, estimates the Home Improvement Research Institute.
Comprised of burrowers who enjoy the satisfaction of working on their houses, men and women who, of necessity, have to do more themselves. Along with the traditional do-it-yourselfers, today's market is more diverse than ever and covers everything from building houses to installing wire.
That means the home center is growing, too. The top 100 companies increases total square footage by 50.8 percent between 1989 and 1995 while increasing their store count by only 3.7 percent, according to National Home Center News.
Americans will spend $125.5 billon on home improvement products for their primary residences this year, an increase of nearly 15 percent in two years and more than $158 billion by 1998, estimates the Home Improvement Research Institute.
And the home center - it's no longer called a hardware store - is growing: the top 100 companies increased total square footage by 50.8 percent between 1989 and 1995 while increasing their store count by only 3.7 percent, according to National Home Center News.