The Sims 4: Handiness Skill Guide
There are so many skills in The Sims 4 that your sims can explore to learn things like painting, comedy, and of course, handiness. The handiness skill is all about upgrading and crafting objects that can improve the quality of your sim’s lives. They can also use this as a way to earn an income through creating different woodworking projects and selling them!
How to Gain the Handiness Skill
There are a number of ways that you can gain the handiness skill in The Sims 4, the first one is to purchase handiness skill books from any bookcase. However, reading these books is the slowest way to gain any skill in the game and isn’t really worth it when you can do things like woodwork to make the skill gains quicker.
The second thing you can do is repair objects that break inside your home, or when you get a higher level of the skill you’ll be able to upgrade objects like your plumbing, electronics, and kitchen appliances.
The third and final way to gain the skill is to purchase a woodworking table for §1,800 simoleons. On this table you are able to create statues and decor items as well as furniture. I’d say this is the best way to do it because you are able to earn money by selling the items you create.
Handiness Skill Levels
Handiness Skill Level 1
When your sim starts gaining the handiness skill they are able to craft a knife block or a horse sculpture on the woodworking table. They will also unlock the ability to look for upgrade parts from piles or stuff left over after an item is repaired in your home.
Handiness Skill Level 2
At level 2 of the handiness skill your sim is going to unlock the ability to create the bar stool, as well as the garden pot or garden planter if you have The Sims 4: Outdoor Retreat. They will also be able to create emotional sculptures on the woodworking table.
Your sim is also going to unlock the ability to talk about handiness with other sims when at level two and unlock the ability to purchase different upgrade parts on the computer.
Finally, your sims will be able to do a few plumbing upgrades including:
- Add Superior Flush on Toilets
- Add Sturdy Faucets on Sinks
- Add Sturdy Faucets on Bathtubs
- Add Water Flow Regulators on a Shower
Handiness Skill Level 3
When you have a sim reach level 3 of the handiness skill they are going to unlock three new sculptures to make on the woodworking table. The bunny, dragon and elephant. Also, if you have Outdoor Retreat your sims will now be able to craft a mirror. Also, sims will be able to find more kitchen and electronic upgrade parts when salvaging from piles.
Handiness Skill Level 4
At level four of the skill your sims are going to be able to craft the end table on the woodworking table, or a wall shelf if you have Outdoor Retreat. Your sim is also going to unlock a whole bunch of new upgrades that they are able to do:
- Upgrade Fireplace to Add Auto Light
- Add Fireguard to Fireplace
- Add Auto Soap Dispenser to Sinks
- Add a Bidet to the Toilet
- Add Self Cleaning to Toilet, Sink and Shower/Tubs
- Add Clean Coat to Bathtubs
- Add Pulsating Massage Jets to a Shower
Handiness Skill Level 5
When your sim reaches the fifth level of the skill they are going to be able to craft a large bear and lumberjack sculpture or a wall hanging. They are also going to get a new social interaction where they are able to brag about handiness. You are also going to be able to add the following upgrades:
- Add Coated Exterior on Stoves
- Add Reinforced Door to a Fridge
- Add Stick-Free Pot to the Tea Brewer
- Add Coated Interior on a Microwave
Handiness Skill Level 6
At level 6 of the skill your sims are going to be able to craft the dining chair and dining table on the woodworking table. Your sims are going to be able to find electronic parts when salvaging from garbage piles which are the most rare ones to find and the most expensive to purchase.
Handiness Skill Level 7
At level 7 of the skill your sim will learn how to craft the camping mascot sculpture if you have Outdoor Retreat. Your sim will also be able to do all of their upgrades more quickly and the following upgrades will unlock:
- Add Heat Sensor on Oven
- Add Fresh Maker on Fridge
- Add Fridge of Steel on Fridge
- Add Flavor Enhancer on Microwave
- Add Self Cleaning to Any Kitchen Object
- Add Infuser to Tea Brewers
Handiness Skill Level 8
A sim at level 8 of the skill will now be able to craft instruments if they are at level 8 of the musical skills. For example, at level 8 of the violin skill they will be able to craft a violin and at level 8 of the guitar skill they can craft a guitar. They are also going to have the following upgrades unlock:
- Upgrade Your TV with Better Components
- Upgrade Stereos with Better Components
- Add Reinforced Telescopic Pivots to Observatory
- Add Robustify Inner Workings to Microscope
Handiness Skill Level 9
When at level 9 your sims are able to craft a bathtub on the woodworking table and can do the following upgrades:
- Add Firaxium Wiring on TVs
- Add Super Reception to TVs
- Add ECC Ram to Computers
- Add IP Spoofer to Computers
- Add Video Card to Computers
- Add Perfect Inner Workings to Microscope
Handiness Skill Level 10
At level 10 of the skill your sim will be able to craft a toilet on the woodworking table and can mentor other sims on the skill. Your sims are also now able to upgrade kitchen objects twice as quickly.
How to Cheat the Handiness Skill
Sometimes we don’t want to just work to get our sims to have skills, so thankfully we can cheat it. Before you are able to cheat the skill you need to enable cheats by hitting ctrl + shift + c on your keyboard and type in testingcheats true and hit enter.
Then you’ll want to type in the handiness cheat which is, stats.set_skill_level major_handiness 10 the number 10 can be replaced with whatever level of the skill you would like your sim to have.
Upgrading Items
A great way to improve your handiness skill while also making your life better is to upgrade items around your house. Upgraded items are going to give your sims stronger positive moodlets while making objects self cleaning or even unbreakable.
There are numerous upgrades for items like sinks, toilets, showers, kitchen appliances and electronics.
Upgrade Parts
Before you are able to upgrade any item in the game you are going to need to have certain upgrade parts in your inventory. There are 4 types of upgrade parts:
- A common upgrade part costs §10
- A plumbing upgrade part costs §30
- A kitchen upgrade part costs §90
- An electronic upgrade part costs §120
You can get upgrade parts by purchasing them on the computer (but this is a very expensive option) or by salvaging parts from garbage piles that appear after you fix an object. You will also be able to break down electronic items for parts once you’ve gotten a high enough handiness skill.
If you have The Sims 4: Eco Lifestyle, you’ll even be able to find different upgrade parts when dumpster diving which is a great and free way to collect them.
Making Objects Eco Friendly
If you have The Sims 4: Eco Lifestyle your sims are going to be able to upgrade any of your appliances and plumbing items to reduce power or water consumption. These require eco upgrade parts which can be crafted on the fabrication table.
Woodworking
Woodworking is a great way for your sims to gain the handiness skill while also earning money since they are able to sell all of their creations for more money than they cost to create. To be able to start woodworking you are going to need the woodworking table on your sim’s lot.
You are going to want your sims to be in a good mood before you start woodworking so you can have the best skill gain and craft higher quality items. The best mood for woodworking is going to be focused which you can get by browsing simpedia on the computer or by pondering moves on a chess table.
A sim with a high handiness skill that also does their woodworking while feeling focused they are going to be able to craft excellent quality objects that will sell for more money.
When your sim reaches level 2 of the handiness skill they are going to unlock the ability to craft emotional items. If your sim is feeling sad, playful, flirty, or angry they are able to craft an emotional item. These are going to give off an emotional aura that can help your sims stay in that desired emotion when in a room.
Accessing Forgotten Grotto
There are actually a few hidden locations in The Sims 4 and there is one that is only accessible if you have level 10 of the handiness skill. This location is called forgotten grotto and is found at the back of the oasis springs park or down the hill at the Landgraab mansion.
At this location you are able to go fishing, find rare collectibles and so much more. These locations are fun and tons of people don’t even know they exist!
Final Thoughts
Handiness is a skill that pretty much every sim is going to learn a little bit of at some point in their life, whether it be through fixing objects around the house or deciding to pursue woodworking. It’s a great skill to have and learn in The Sims 4 and can really improve your sim’s lives. Happy Playing!
