5 Accessories That Can Make Your Ryobi Tools More Useful

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The Ryobi hardware brand offers quite the extensive catalog of different tools and handy implements. Of course, in a perfect world, you'd be able to use just a handful of different tools for every job, but unfortunately, life isn't that accommodating. It is possible to expand your tools' repertoire of functions through the use of particular add-ons and accessories.

With the right accessories, your tools may be able to better handle more specific types of work, like cutting through tile with a rotary tool. You can even enable entirely new functions they previously couldn't perform at all, like turning a power drill into a water pump. Some accessories may also make your existing tools a little more user-friendly, like alternate attachments and nozzles for a pressure washer. You can find all of these accessories for sale at Home Depot, where they're backed up by average user ratings of at least 4 out of 5 stars.

A power drill is the optimal way to either secure or loosen fasteners like bolts and screws. However, the obvious problem with a power drill is that its powerful drill bit juts rigidly forward. If the fastener you're trying to work on doesn't have sufficient clearance around it, such as with the various fasteners in your car's engine, you're not going to be able to fit the drill and its bit where it needs to go. This is where the Ryobi Flexible Shaft Bit Holder comes into play, and it's available at Home Depot for $15.87.

This special attachment can be slotted into any Ryobi power drill compatible with 1/4-inch hex shank bits, with the actual bit you were planning on using attaching to the other end. When you run the drill, the rotational force is transferred through the 11-inch shaft, spinning the bit on the other end without spinning the shaft itself. Not only does this add an extra bit of clearance away from the drill proper, but the shaft can bend up to 90 degrees, allowing you to snake it into tricky spots and work on fasteners the drill can't reach.

Home Depot shoppers have given this attachment a respectable 4.0 out of 5-star average rating, with several users appreciating the shaft's flexibility and build quality, though one user cautions against using it with an impact driver — which is not always the right tool for the job anyway — as it's not rated for that kind of force.

Ryobi's various rotary tools are already fairly multifunctional in nature and design, with their spinning heads making them great for cutting, sanding, and other small-scale jobs. That said, the most common useful accessories may not cover all circumstances. For instance, if you were looking to cut through tile for home improvement or D.I.Y. purposes, a regular rotary tool may need a little help from the Ryobi Tile Cutting Rotary Kit, available at Home Depot for $18.43.

This attachment will fit most standard Ryobi rotary tools, adding a 1/8-inch tile-cutting bit to the tip of the tool, as well as a cylindrical cutting guide on top of it. The depth of cut can be adjusted on the cutting guide by turning the dial on the side. Then, just start up your rotary tool and guide it along the tile you want to cut and the bit will slice right through it. The side of the cutting guide also has a small visibility cut-out, so you can clearly see what you're doing while working.

This nifty little attachment has earned a 4.6 out of 5 rating from Home Depot's shoppers, with one particular user praising its ease of use and general strength when cutting through tile, especially when compared to other tile-cutting attachments they'd tried previously.

The rotational force of a power drill can be put toward a variety of helpful purposes beyond driving things in and yanking things out. All you need is the right means of harnessing it. For instance, if you needed to move water in and out of a particular container like a home aquarium, a power drill could facilitate that. All you need is the Ryobi 1/4" Hex Shank Drill Pump, available at Home Depot for $39.97.

This clever gadget can be plugged into any Ryobi power drill or impact driver via the small slot on the back. Once it's attached, simply plug the included intake hose into one of the side ports, and a regular hose attached to a water source into the other port. Run the drill, and water will start flowing from one end into the other at a rate of 10 GPM, with a 10-foot lift height and 35-foot head height. You can quickly transfer water between containers like fish tanks, washing machines, bathtubs, and more, which is helpful for various cleaning and servicing jobs in and out of the house.

This attachment has earned a 4.1 out of 5 star average rating from Home Depot shoppers, the majority of whom have made use of it to transfer water through various buckets and containers. Some users note, however, that it works best for low-impact jobs, as the pump doesn't handle dirty, debris-filled water as well.

A pressure washer is a great tool to have in your arsenal, particularly for cleaning the sides and walkways around your home. Pressure washers are also quite handy for cleaning cars, though if you're only using the default hose, it might produce too much or not enough pressure to get your car properly clean. If you're looking to specifically do some automotive detailing, consider the Ryobi Automotive Pressure Washer Accessory Kit, available at Home Depot for $49.97.

This five-piece accessory kit is designed for use with Ryobi's cordless and electric pressure washers to give you a greater degree of control for automotive work. The focal point is the shortened trigger handle, to reduce vibration and make the washer more comfortable to use one-handed. It includes four different overmold-protected, swappable nozzles for different types of spraying: three of the nozzles change the spray focus between 15, 25, and 40 degrees for more or less-concentrated washing, while the fourth is designed for soap-spraying. Finally, it comes with an angled spray wand attachment to give the stubby trigger some extra reach and flexibility, onto which you can also attach any of the other four nozzles.

This kit is very well-liked by Home Depot shoppers, who have given it an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 stars. Users enjoy the extra comfort and functionality these accessories bring to the automotive detailing experience, with some extra praise for the guarded nozzles helping to prevent accidental marring.

In addition to pressure washers, Ryobi also sells a wide variety of cleaning tools including wet/dry shop vacuums, perfect for cleaning up messes in the workshop or around the house. However, depending on what you're trying to clean, a big vacuum nozzle might not provide the kind of nitty-gritty cleanup you're looking for. That would be a job for the Ryobi UniversalFit Wet/Dry Vacuum Micro-Crevice Tool, available at Home Depot for $19.97.

This specialized hose attachment can fit not just most Ryobi wet/dry vacs, but even those from other brands as well. As long as the hose is within 1.25 to 2.5 inches, it'll plug right in. Rather than a single vacuum hose, this tool redirects the suction force through 16 individual suction straws, each measuring 6 inches in length. These straws are designed for precision cleaning, capturing the smallest particles and particulates in particularly tight confines like the inside of a desk drawer or a corner behind a table. The straws are flexible, too, so you can really work them in there.

Users have given this cleaning accessory a 4.0 out of 5-star rating on Home Depot's website, praising its ability to clean tight spots like dryer vents, the crevices in car cabins, and even grills. The only real complaint is that the "universal" nature is perhaps a bit exaggerated, as it may not fit all non-Ryobi vacuums, even if they're within the measurement range. So, maybe keep the receipt, just in case.

As nice as improved or additional functionality in your tools sounds on paper, those qualities are contingent on the assumption that the accessories you're using actually function as advertised. It wouldn't be especially helpful if those specialized drill attachments failed the first time you used them, after all.

To ensure consistent quality for all of the preceding products, we focused on Ryobi tool accessories available at Home Depot with an average user rating of at least 4 out of 5 stars, with a particular emphasis on accessories that added or improved a particular function rather than all-purpose accessories like bit sets.