DIY sites: instructions you can actually follow

The gap between a DIY guide that works and one that does not is visible before you start, if you know what to look for.

A usable guide states the tools and materials with quantities at the top, so you find out about the missing part before you have taken something apart. It photographs the work in progress rather than only the finished result. It gives an honest time estimate, including drying and curing time, which is where most weekend projects actually fail. And it says what happens if you get it wrong.

The warning worth repeating: guides covering electrical work, gas, structural alterations and roofing are subject to legal requirements in most countries, and the requirements differ by jurisdiction. A guide written for one country's wiring regulations can be both technically correct and illegal where you live. Anything notifiable needs a certified tradesperson, regardless of how straightforward the video made it look.

Where a guide is sponsored by a tool or material manufacturer, expect the method to be shaped around that product. That does not make it wrong, but there is usually a cheaper way that the sponsor had no reason to mention.