Q. What kinds of home projects are appropriate for the do-it-yourselfer?

A. There are a lot of projects around the house you can do if you have basic tool skills and a good tool set. You can't have the skills without the equipment. Your local home center can put together a good all-round package of tools for basic carpentry and basic plumbing. You don't want to get involved with electrical right away.

Plumbing can be tricky, but if you make a mistake, you just get wet. With electrical, if you make a mistake, then you can get yourself into trouble. You could also cause a lot of damage. You could short some things out and really mess up your house and start a fire. So stay away from all electrical unless you really know what you're doing.

One project that you can do as your initiation is changing a toilet. People think that it's very difficult to change a toilet. A toilet is really only held down by two bolts and a water line connection. If you have basic tool skills, you can put a toilet in yourself.

There are limitations to what you can do yourself, though. If you take the toilet off the floor and there are broken pipes and the floor is rotted, then call in a pro. We do need contractors.

The time is right to change your toilet to one that uses less water. A standard toilet can use two to three gallons of water with each flush. Now you can get a water-saving toilet that only uses 1.4 gallons and that flushes just as well as the older ones.

If you start by replacing your toilet, then you'll be ready to change the floor in the bathroom. You'll know that you can change that floor because you know how to remove the toilet. You don't want to change your bathroom floor out without removing the toilet first. If you cut around the toilet, water can get underneath the flooring and cause problems later.

Another project you could start out with is putting crown molding in a room. That can add a lot of value to your house. Some people worry about getting the 45-degree angle in the molding. Trying to measure and cut that from scratch could get tricky. The molding is already cut with that angle so you don't have to do that part yourself.

Manufacturers have caught up with the do-it-yourself craze. They keep improving their products to make them easier for do-it-yourselfers to use. There are now special lines just for do-it-yourselfers.

Installing an instant hot-water dispenser in your kitchen is another easy project. ... Just make sure you have an electrical plug underneath your sink. You can get a unit that just plugs in.

Years ago, equipment like that had to be hard-wired, but nowadays a lot of these appliances come with plugs. You just plug them into the wall and that's the electrical work.

You could also pour your own cement steps. If you have a step that's messed up or broken, you can frame it up and mix up premixed concrete in a wheelbarrow and pour your own step.

Q. What jobs are best left to contractors?

A. If you have to start opening up walls or tearing up floors, that's when you need to call in contractors. If the project you have in mind has to do with the surface, that's usually a good indication that you can do it yourself. Also, as I said before, you should stay away from electrical jobs.