We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.
Having a workshop to call your very own can be a lot of fun, as it can serve as a nexus for your personal home repair and DIY projects, all from the convenience of your garage or backyard shed. However, not all workshops are made equal, especially if they’re personal ones. If you’ve got a workshop on the smaller side, you may not be able to fill it up with all of the massive, muscular tools that you’ve ever wanted, both due to space limitations and safety concerns.
Luckily, as with so many facets of technology these days, advancements in hardware have allowed for the creation of more compact, space-friendly equipment. The Ryobi hardware brand, in particular, makes various tools that are perfect for smaller workspaces in both its 18V ONE+ and USB Lithium battery power systems, using clever, streamlined designs that consolidate functionality without sacrificing power.Â
Ryobi 18V ONE+ Compact Glue Gun
Something every good workshop needs is a glue gun — a reliable means of dispensing heated adhesives for projects like woodworking, household repair, and DIY creation. Generally, glue guns aren’t especially huge as far as tools go, but it can be annoying finding a safe place for one, especially if you need to find a spot for it that’s close to an outlet. For a slightly more space-conscious glue gun, try the Ryobi 18V ONE+ Compact Glue Gun, available at Home Depot for $34.97.
This tool uses a two-piece format consisting of the actual glue gun itself and its companion charging base, which doubles as a drip tray. Just snap an 18V ONE+ battery pack onto the bottom of the base, then insert the gun on top to charge up. Remove the gun from the base, and you’ve got five minutes of hot glue action at 365 degrees Fahrenheit. With the base and gun working in tandem, you can use up to 100 mini glue sticks before the battery pack needs to be swapped.
Users on Home Depot’s website have given this glue gun an average 4.6 out of 5-star rating, with several praising its compact, ergonomic design and generally easy use. One user was specifically having trouble finding a good spot for a corded glue gun in their workshop, which this tool solved rather succinctly.
Ryobi 18V ONE+ Heat Pen
Speaking of heated implements, many crafts and DIY projects require some form of concentrated heating, whether you’re curing resins, heat-transferring designs onto T-shirts, or trying to remove some misplaced adhesive. Rather than holding your projects under a bulky heat lamp, you may find the Ryobi 18V ONE+ Heat Pen to be a more user-friendly option. It’s available at Home Depot for $64.00.
In a similar vein to the glue gun, this tool consists of a charging base and the heat pen, though in this case, the pen is connected to the base with a cord. Plug an 18V ONE+ battery onto the base and turn the temperature dial on top, and the pen begins emitting concentrated heat ranging from 450 to 750 degrees Fahrenheit. The middle of the pen has a tapered grip to make it more comfortable to hold while you work, and it comes with deflector and spreader nozzles to change how the heat is distributed and help with tough-to-reach spots.
Home Depot shoppers like this tool for their precision heating needs, giving it an average 4.4 out of 5 score. Users like how portable this tool is, even with its two-piece design, making it easy to carry around a workspace and use on various projects. Several users were also pleasantly surprised by how quickly the pen heats up, though one user notes that it’s a bit power-hungry and goes through batteries quickly.
Ryobi USB Lithium Soldering Pen
When you’re working in small confines, and especially if you’re using potentially dangerous tools, an optimal tool design is one that combines portability with efficiency. For a tool that effectively utilizes these design sensibilities, there’s the Ryobi USB Lithium Soldering Pen, available at Home Depot for $69.97.
This standalone soldering device, unlike many soldering irons, doesn’t require a stand to heat up. Just slot in one of Ryobi’s USB Lithium battery packs, flip the switch, and in less than 2 minutes, you’re at ideal soldering temperature of 900 degrees Fahrenheit, perfect for joining circuit boards, making jewelry, and repairing and working with electronics. There’s even a small work light right behind it to illuminate your project. There are also two built-in fail safes, including a tip cover that shuts off the pen when put in place, and an automatic 10-minute shutoff.
Home Depot shoppers who have used this compact soldering iron are generally positive about it, giving it a 4.4 out of 5-star average thanks to its comfortable, ergonomic design and effective, quick heating. One user noted that their normal corded soldering iron can be hard to keep stable, but this one is much easier to use thanks to being cordless.
Ryobi USB Lithium Rotary Tool Kit
In spite of everything we’ve covered so far, there are more than just heating tools to use in a personal workshop. Any number of tasks could occur in a personal workshop, from carving to sanding to polishing. Rather than using individual tools for all of these tasks, a great idea for space saving would be to consolidate all of those functions into a single tool, such as the Ryobi USB Lithium Rotary Tool, available in a kit at Home Depot with various accessories for $59.97.
This pen-style rotary tool can be used for all kinds of workshop tasks, including carving and engraving, cleaning and polishing, grinding and sharpening, and sanding. These functions are facilitated by the various included heads, which can be swappedgs, as well as a dedicated fuel gauge for showing how much charge is left on the USB Lithium battery pack
This compact rotary tool has earned a 4.5 out of 5 average rating from Home Depot users, who cite a multitude of different uses and applications ranging from fine-tuning 3D printing projects to even trimming a dog’s nails.
Ryobi 18V ONE+ Cordless Compact Workshop Blower
Having a smaller workshop does not preclude it from getting dirty. There will be plenty of sawdust, metal shavings, and other assorted debris produced by your work, and the fact that your workspace is smaller just means all of it is going to get stuck more firmly in tight spaces. If you need a little help keeping your smaller workshop clean, there’s the Ryobi 18V ONE+ Cordless Compact Workshop Blower, available at Home Depot for $64.97.
This cleaning tool is exactly what it sounds like: a compact, one-handed air blower designed for use in a workshop. Snap on an 18V ONE+ battery pack and choose between the three available speed settings to blow away dust and debris, manageder produces air speed of up to 160 MPH. It’s also got an integrated rubber nozzle that’s safe to run along surfaces without marring or scratching them, and without getting damaged itself
This compact blower has proven surprisingly popular with Home Depot shoppers, earning its healthy 4.6 out of 5 average rating for its dust-displacing ability built into a remarkably small size. One user loved it for cleaning their workshop, particularly because it’s good at working dust out from around tight corners.
Smaller tools, bigger value
As nice as compact, functional tools sound on paper, you do need to be careful when shopping in this particular niche, as there are many products out there that purport to offer a lot of functionality in a small package and end up falling well short.
This is why, in order to ensure consistent quality in our recommendations, we focused on compact Ryobi tools available at Home Depot with an average user score of at least 4 out of 5 stars. Additional preference was given to tools that can be operated with one hand for additional space-saving convenience.
