Get down and dirty with new network

November 21, 2009 Jennifer Wilson-Speedy
YOURHOME.CA EDITOR

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It's time to toss a TV remote into your toolbox. The newly launched DIY Network Canada is the latest resource for do-it-yourselfers looking for a little instruction or inspiration.

Launched on Oct. 19, the channel showcases "hardcore home improvement TV," explains Karen Gelbart, senior vice-president, Lifestyle Content at CanWest.

"We thought that (the network) is just the perfect service for now – it's a great time to save money, learn a skill and invest in your home," she says. It "helps people in a really practical way learn to cut costs."

The new network complements sister station HGTV, says Gelbart. HGTV has evolved to include a lot of story-driven programming, she explains, leaving room for the DIY Network to become the go-to place for how-to shows.

Gelbart, who has been tuning in for both professional and personal reasons, says that even though she's not a diehard DIYer, she's still getting lots of ideas for her new home.

And, with 24/7 programming, much of which is new to Canada, there are a lot of learning opportunities. Gelbart's favourites include Wasted Spaces (weekdays, 4 p.m.), which takes viewers under stairs and through walls and ceilings to reclaim extra space, and From Junky to Funky (weekdays, 5 p.m.), which goes dumpster diving for sweet decor finds. In the same vein is Junk Brothers (weekdays, 6 p.m.), also on HGTV, where Ottawa-based brothers transform furniture tossed curbside into amazing pieces and return them to their shocked owners.

Renovating? Sweat Equity (weeknights, 8 p.m.) looks at projects that offer the most bang for your buck – like how installing hardwood floors can increase your home's value by 6 per cent – while Renovation Realities (Wednesdays, 9 p.m.) covers the speed bumps of reno projects, from blown budgets to flaring tempers. Contractor Jim Caruk shares what happens when the homeowners aren't watching in Real Renos (weeknights, 6:30 p.m.), another show from the HGTV Canada roster.

Room by room inspiration is offered in Kitchen Impossible (Fridays, 10 p.m.) and BATHtastic! (Fridays, 9 p.m.) while Man Caves (Tuesdays, 9 p.m.) embraces the trend of luxe basement retreats.

There's even a show devoted to paint, Fresh Coat (weekdays, 4:30 p.m.), tackling everything from technique to painting unusual surfaces.

For the handyman or handygal in your home, there's Cool Tools (Thursdays, 9 p.m.), which shares that WD-40 has more than 2,000 uses, along with a look at all the latest gadgets.

The network doesn't forget about the exterior work, either. Desperate Landscapes (weeknights, 8:30 p.m.) makes over the ugliest yard in the neighbourhood while Yard Crashers (Mondays, 9:00 p.m.) has the host picking up weekend warriors who are out shopping and goes home with them to complete a landscaping project.

The DIY Network is available on free preview on Bell TV (Channel 607), Shaw Direct (565 Classic/196 Advanced), and Rogers (89, until Nov. 23). For more information, visit www.diy.ca.

AIRING THIS WEEK

Sunday: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (8 p.m., ABC), My RONA Home (9 p.m., Citytv).

Monday: For Rent (8 p.m., HGTV), Income Property (8:30 p.m., HGTV), House Poor (9 p.m., HGTV), Love it or List it (9 p.m., W Network), Yard Crashers (9 p.m., DIY) My First Place (9:30 p.m., HGTV), Take This House and Sell It (10 p.m., W Network), Save Us From Our House (10:30 p.m., W Network).

Tuesday: Pure Design (9 p.m., HGTV), Man Caves (9 p.m., DIY), Dear Genevieve (9:30 p.m., HGTV).

Wednesday: Real Estate Intervention (8:30 p.m., HGTV), Property Virgins (9 p.m., HGTV), Renovation Realities (9 p.m., DIY), The Unsellables UK (9:30 p.m., HGTV).

Thursday: Holmes Inspection (8 p.m., HGTV), Family Renovation (9 p.m., HGTV), Colour Confidential (9 p.m., W Network), Cool Tools (9 p.m., DIY), Divine Design (10 p.m., W Network), Love it or List it (11 p.m., W Network).

Friday: House Hunters International (8 p.m., HGTV), Relocation Relocation (9 p.m., HGTV), BATHtastic (9 p.m., DIY), Kitchen Impossible (10 p.m., DIY).

Daily: Wasted Spaces (4 p.m., DIY), Fresh Coat (4:30 p.m., DIY), From Junky to Funky (5 p.m., DIY), Carson Can (5 p.m., HGTV), Junk Brothers (6 p.m., DIY), Real Renos (6:30 p.m., DIY), House Hunters (7 and 10 p.m., HGTV), Sweat Equity (8 p.m., DIY), Desperate Landscapes (8:30 p.m., DIY).