Ken Richmond is the general manager of the 59th Street location of the home-improvement company Home Depot. His expertise in home renovation began while working on his own home, and now he helps guide Manhattanites through their projects. He recently spoke with the New York Sun’s Maura Yates about helping customers through their sometimes-daunting task of do-it-yourself projects in the city.

Q: What are the most common types of projects safe for people attempt to tackle themselves, and what projects are best left to the pros?

A: Flooring and painting are really the two big ones. Our customers are very receptive to the how-to clinics, and they’re doing a lot of laminate and vinyl floors, and trying Venetian plaster and faux finishes with paints. Some do bathroom projects, like cabinets, and reorganizing closets because of space constraints. If I was doing renovations, something I would not try to do are electrical projects. A lot of the new Manhattan apartments come with side-lights, but don’t come with ceiling lamps. People will call and say they want to put a chandelier over their kitchen table. A lot of them are interested, but it’s not something they should do unless they have an electrician.

What sort of questions are you asked most?

The biggest question is, “Can I get this installed?” Especially in Midtown, they ask, “Can you do it for me?” The do-it-yourselfers ask about flooring, like how much grout and spacers to use, or how to put lights under cabinets. But it can be as simple as hanging pictures into sheetrock. They will say, “Every time I hang a picture, there’s a hole, and it hangs funny.” It’s pretty interesting when people ask these questions, because we’ve been dealing with the suburbs for so long and no one ever asked that. We have to show them how, and tell them about stud finders, and toggle bolts to stop their pictures from falling down once they hang them on the wall.

What kinds of supplies are most frequently purchased for apartment renovations?

The biggest thing is cleaning supplies. That’s huge. But the other thing is storage solutions. Most Manhattanites are looking for ways to save space. They walk in and say, “Show me the vacuums, show me the Swiffers.” Another huge thing that people always buy are toilet seats. I wonder, where have people gone for toilet seats all these years? They probably had to ask their super, but in Manhattan, how long would you have to wait for that? And there’s a wide array of colors now to change the look of a bathroom.

Many people try to increase the value of their apartments by doing renovations before they put them on the market. What are some of the quickest and easiest ways to make an apartment look like a million bucks, without breaking the bank?

Automatically, they should accentuate the floors, and change to hardwood if the apartment doesn’t have them already. And state-of-the-art appliances change the whole complexion of the apartment. If you want to change the effect of your bedroom, or kitchen, change your light fixtures. Look how expensive a gold plate looks compared to plain white. It gives you a richer look. There are multiple options. Picture lighting makes it almost museum-like. I would concentrate on the living room and kitchen, because people spend the most time in those areas.

What are some of the unique challenges facing do-it-yourselfers remodeling an apartment in the city compared to a home in the suburbs?

First, people in the city are more highly fashion-savvy. They look for products that represent their unique style. Second, anything that you organize is a top priority in a small apartment. In small apartments, you put in less furniture to make it look like there is more space, but the pieces you put in have to be unique. Suburban homes might have multiple bathrooms, but in a one-bathroom apartment, you don’t want to put in a regular faucet. Every space is a challenging project. People with Manhattan style don’t want anything typical.

What can do-it-yourselfers do if they find themselves in over their heads in the middle of a project?

We have a list of all the classes and clinics that we offer, and we give them out all the time. If customers ever have a question, they can come right to us and we will solve it for them. A lot of these projects are not difficult. They just take practice. Once you do it the first time, the second time is much easier. We help them along the way.

You probably have a good idea of what styles are popular in Manhattan. What types of colors, designs, and looks are hot now?

Stainless steel appliances are number one. Anything chrome is big. And any organization unit is the first stop when people come into the store. Some of the popular things we carry are unique style lamps, spotlights, and track lighting with brushed nickel. I’ve seen some interesting paint colors come out of here. I think of the Jetsons when I think of Midtown. People are using a lot of 70s colors, like yellow and purple. I never thought they would do that.