Share More, Own Less: Your Guide to Tool Libraries and the Sharing Economy
Whether your home contains 3,000 or 300,000 items, you probably own more things than you really need or could ever count.
What barely-used tools are lurking in your garage or storage closet? We all have them—from pressure washers that see daylight once a year to camping gear that dreams of adventure to food dehydrators that produced exactly one batch of banana chips before being banished to the back of the pantry. While it's undeniably convenient to own everything we might ever need (and yes, it is fun to show off our well-equipped workshops and kitchens), it comes at a steep cost. Tool libraries and sharing platforms are more sustainable. Instead of everyone filling up their homes with stuff they rarely use, entire communities can share resources, reducing both environmental impact and household clutter.
But as anyone who's ever tried to get a neighbor to return a borrowed wrench knows, making sharing work takes more than good intentions. In this post, we’ll explore some practical tool-sharing solutions, starting with your local “library of things.”
What Is a Tool Library (or “Library of Things”)?
Picture your local public library, but imagine rows of well-maintained power tools, garden equipment, and kitchen appliances instead of books lining the shelves. That's a “library of things”—a community hub where members can borrow everything from circular saws to pasta makers.
The inventory typically reflects the community's needs. In urban areas, you might find apartment-friendly tools and bike repair equipment. Rural tool libraries stock farming implements and food preservation gear. Some even offer workshops where experienced members teach others how to use specialized equipment safely and effectively.
While saving money is an obvious perk of tool libraries, the benefits run much deeper. An artist borrowing a tile saw might meet a tiling contractor, leading to a collaboration on a community art installation. Because tool libraries and other sharing spaces often provide training, classes, and workshops where people can meet and interact, these kinds of connections happen regularly, turning simple tool loans into valuable opportunities for skill exchange and community building. Adding a “thing collection” enhances a public library’s natural function as a community center.
The environmental impact is equally important: reducing manufacturing demand, cutting carbon emissions, and keeping tools in operation and out of landfills. Many tool libraries have skilled volunteers who can repair broken tools that most homeowners would simply toss out. Tools that no longer work can be disassembled for parts, something that wouldn’t happen in most homes.
Sharing Platforms and Free Exchanges
While you can share your home with AirBnB, there isn’t a comparable app for renting out your tools. But there are several platforms that allow you to give away your unwanted tools—sharing your stuff with your community—or get free tools from someone who no longer wants them.
The Freecycle Network is a grassroots community of people who are giving and getting stuff for free. The network is organized by town, so you can look online to see if there is a freecycle group active in your locality. You can subscribe to your local town’s Freecycle email list or visit the Freecycle website to see what’s on offer and what’s wanted today.
The BuyNothing Project is a corporate version of the Freecycle Network (organized as a Benefit Corporation), funded by angel investors. BuyNothing has an app you can download.
Nextdoor, a neighborhood social media app, has a For Sale & Free section where you can list and search for free stuff. You can also check Facebook for groups where people offer and ask for free stuff.
Rental Companies
If your local tool library or sharing platform doesn’t have what you need, you might find it at a local rental company. National chains like Home Depot and Lowe’s have tool rental departments, and a quick search online will turn up other rental companies in your area. While paying to rent a tool from a company doesn’t offer the same financial savings and community benefits as becoming a patron of your local tool library, it does capture many of the environmental benefits. Businesses that rent tools tend to buy more durable ones that are easier to repair than consumer models that are intended to get little use.
Expanding Your Sharing Horizons
Tool libraries and free exchanges are just one facet of the sharing economy, which is evolving to include platforms for almost every need:
You can share your car using Turo or share your time and car by driving for Uber or Lyft
You can share your skills by becoming a Tasker on TaskRabbit
You can share your pets using BorrowMyDoggy (if you’re in the UK)
Creating Change in Your Community
What if there's no tool library near you? You can start one! Begin by posting the idea on Nextdoor, Facebook, and other social media, then hosting a community meeting at your local library to gauge interest. Start small with tool donations from your own home and those of willing neighbors. You can store your tool library in an enclosed trailer, which you might take to a public parking lot a few hours each week to lend out and check in tools. Reach out to local contractors for skilled volunteers who can help with training and tool maintenance. Connect with local realtors to find a garage or other permanent space.
Keep in mind that there are likely already tool rental businesses in your community. Find out what they offer, and try not to take away their customer base—especially for the small, independently-owned rental companies in your community. Consider what you can offer that meets needs that the current for-profit businesses cannot serve.
One Step This Week
Ready to dip your toe into the sharing economy? Here's a challenge: identify one item you need and commit to borrowing instead of buying it. It could be as simple as asking a neighbor for a ladder or as significant as carefully planning your trips so you rent a car a few days each month rather than owning a car you don’t drive every day.
References and Further Reading
Looking Forward: Measuring Success
As you embrace the sharing economy, you'll likely notice changes beyond your bank account. You can track:
Your growing network of community connections. Many tool library members report that the relationships they build are more valuable than the tools they borrow.
The space you're saving. Could you convert your cluttered garage workshop into a home gym?
The skills you're learning. Through tool library workshops and community connections, you might discover talents you never knew you had.
Remember, every item shared is one less item that needs to be manufactured, packaged, shipped, stored, and eventually discarded. By participating in the sharing economy, you're helping create a future where more community resources are available to more people and where sustainable practices are just the way things are done.
What's your experience with sharing economies? Have you ever borrowed tools or participated in community sharing? Share your stories and tips in the comments below.
I like these ideas, in theory. I am active on nextdoor, freecycle, and the buy nothing projects. I was also a founding member of a tool sharing workspace here in Indianapolis
I guess you might say my Outlook on tool sharing has diminished with experience, because a common outcome is that my tool is returned to me broken or damaged somehow. I don't know if it's me having unreasonable expectations, but if I get something back that is caked in cement or paint, or has the blades hopelessly dulled, or has the electric cord sliced off of it, I'm not so eager to lend it out again after repairing it. I think people tend to take better care of their own stuff. I would really only lend tools to trusted friends who know how to use them and return them.
Piero
I think a church community would be an excellent place to start a tool library. The tools and appliances would be stored in the owner's home.