Cary Libary has plenty of do-it-yourself books for home improvement

You know you want to do something different in the way of a home makeover, but not sure just what to do?
How about some research to get the creative juices flowing. That’s right. Check out the nearest public library and see what it has to offer.
    “We have a large section devoted just to home improvement,” said Librarian Linda Faucher.
Cary Library in Houlton has five shelves of about 45 books per shelf pertaining to home improvement. The area covers building homes, post ‘n beam, small barns/outbuildings, timber framing, log cabins, solar, decks and patios to fences.
The library also houses “fix-it” type books covering plumbing, drywall, floors, stairways, masonry, windows and doors, insulating to weatherproofing.
Home improvement also includes books on building cabinets, shelves to furniture and upholstering to cane seat repair.
“Home improvement also bleeds into remodeling, as well,” said Faucher.
Cary Library also has a collection of “how to” books to help in remodeling a kitchen, bath, home office or even text on wallpapering.
“All of our books are kept up-to-date as new or revised editions come out,” explained Faucher. “We do keep some older ones that circulate well as they seem to be ageless.”
Another subject closely related in the home improvement category has to do with home décor.
“We have many books covering this topic, as well,” Faucher added.
Faucher said the library does have a limited supply of VHS tapes on drywalling, however, the library does own a series of DVDs covering framing, drywall, plumbing, electricity, floors and ceilings, exterior projects, kitchen remodeling, woodworking to just the basic home repair.
Faucher finds even though many don’t think about using the library as a source that “home improvement and remodeling books are very popular,” she said. “For the last two years, yearly circulations have shown that these type of books have been out over 3,000 times.”
Summer tends to lean toward books being lent out on decks, fences, outside buildings, garden structures or adding an addition. Winter on the other hand finds insulation, solar and inside repair books more often are checked out.
Books can be taken out on loan from the library for two weeks at a time, said Faucher.
“They can be renewed over the phone,” she added. “We renew as long as no one is waiting for it.”
When the time strikes and a change is in the air, don’t hesitate to get out your library card or sign up for one to see what you can come up with for your next project.
“If we don’t have books covering a topic someone is interested in, we can always interlibrary loan it,” Faucher noted. “This expands our collection immensely by allowing us to borrow from any library in Maine and we can even extend the search to include participating out-of-state libraries, as well.”