The growth of online how-to guides are transforming the way people go about renovating their homes, it has been claimed.Alysia Maciejowska, founder of the DIY advice site BookshelfBoyfriend.com, told the Independent that online instructions can save homeowners a great deal of time and money by making formerly complex home improvement problems simple and clear.Why would you pay 80 to get a plumber out for a simple problem when you could just look something up online, get the information there and then fix it yourself? she asked.Ms Maciejowska explained that her inspiration for the website had come about when she started to hear a buzzing noise from the kitchen sink in her parents home.After struggling to find the cause, she phoned her father who revealed the problem could be solved by simply running the garden tap for ten seconds.Ms Maciejowska said she realised that a quick, informative online guide could solve such problems, adding I just thought, what I need is the perfect boyfriend that you get off the shelf, get all the answers, put it back again, no obligations. Just an answer machine.Writing for yourhome.ca earlier this week, design commentator David Ferguson noted that kitchen projects can be particularly daunting given the amount of factors that have to be taken into consideration.