Duct tape can be used to fix just about anything, including a garden tool handle. However, if a little too much pressure is applied, you could wind up flat on your back with half a handle in your hands. A broken garden tool handle is easy and inexpensive to replace.

A good garden tool will last for generations if properly maintained. And, such maintenance is easy. Just keep your tools clean, dry and well-oiled or painted.

One trick is to mix equal parts of linseed oil and paint thinner into a container and keep it in the garden tool storage area. Once every several months wash the handles with soap and water, and dry them in the sun for a few hours. Then use a rag to rub the mixture over the tool. The oil will reduce the chance of rust on the metal parts and will protect the wood handle from water damage. Oiling wood handles will prevent them from drying out, splitting, cracking and splintering.

Replacing a garden tool handle isn't difficult. First, use a hacksaw or other metal cutting device to remove the rivet that connects the wooden handle to the inside of the metal retaining sleeve. With the rivet cut, use a large nail or a pin punch to drive the rivet out. You won't need expensive, specially designed tools to reinstall the rivet when you replace the handle. With the rivet removed, there is only one thing between you and handle replacement driving it out of the retaining sleeve.

Removing the handle can be the most difficult part. Brace the footrest portion of the shovel blade against the edge of a solid wall or corner. Be careful here or you might damage the surface on which the shovel rests. It is wise to choose the hidden edge of the support you select. The handrail of a deck could work as a support, but might be damaged. Use a piece of hardwood (a dowel is good) and a hammer to drive the handle out of the blade sleeve. It is a good idea to get help with this part of the repair. One person should wedge the shovel against a support while the other drives the handle out with a hammer and wood punch.

Installing the new handle is really a breeze. Slip the blade sleeve over the tapered end of the new handle as far as it will go, and holding the tool with the blade up, strike the end of the handle against a solid surface like a concrete floor or walk.

Securing the shovel blade to the handle can be accomplished using a screw or a new rivet. A screw is easier, but might have to be tightened from time to time. The rivet takes a little longer, but is more permanent.

To hold the handle with a screw, drill an eighth-inch pilot hole through the rivet hole and about one quarter inch into the shovel handle. Then put a 8 x 3/8 inch stainless, self-tapping screw through the rivet hole and into the pilot hole. Repeat this process at the second rivet hole.

If you are more mechanically inclined, a rivet can be used for a more solid repair. First, drill a hole through the handle beginning at the rivet hole on one side through to the one on the other side. First use a bit that is smaller than the rivet to make a pilot hole. Then use a bit that is the diameter of the rivet for the final hole. A new rivet can be inserted where the old one was. With the rivet in place on the sleeve, lay the head of the rivet and sleeve on a solid metal surface such as a sledgehammer head or a bench vise. Then use a ball peen hammer to flatten the other end of the rivet. It is relatively soft and easy to form.