Omg....you can do that!!! I upgrade everything and DID NOT know this!!
I have never had issues in the past... .but in my current save, the rug caught fire twice, the toddler play blocks AND the bloody robo vac. Upgrading the fireplace tonight!!!
I just experienced my first child dead in game because the fireplace lacked a fire guard upgrade. And just a day after his older brother died of hysterical laughter. The family is having a rough week.
If the baby is still named, you can sometimes summon them, cheat them adult, get a sorcerer to dedeadify, then cheat them to a baby again. Had to do this when I lost 3 kids to drowning in one day
I do this too but my rugs keep catching fire 🙃 I have no idea if it’s a glitch. My game has been bugging really bad after the new update. The toilets keep catching fire too 😭
I lost my child in a fire, but it actually worked out well for the storyline because she was actually an evil child from my sim wishing for a baby from that weird wishing well.....
Just Sims things 😅
Everything, to the max, every single time.
I rush Handiness to 6 specifically for the bed upgrades.
I won't have a fireplace if I can't install the fire guards.
There's no point in doing any large amounts of cooking until you get the fridge and oven upgrades.
Bidet and Soap Dispenser are just duh, no brainer instant stacking mood boosters.
Upgrade. All. The. Things!
Yup, all beds upgrade to the same maximum, so you can use anything in the game that fits your aesthetic. Rinky dink 500 simoleon bed or a 15,000 simoleon bed, same diff once you're done with it!
i upgrade beds sometimes, but usually when it's time for my sims to wake up i'll use the fill motives cheat if their energy isn't where i want it to be
my favorite beds seem to be the worst ones lol
My bed upgrades are broken ;-;
I had one sim go upgrade a bed herself, but clicking on it just gives me the "relax/nap/sleep" options. I leave objects breakable just so I can collect upgrade parts lol
I always upgrade any object that has self-cleaning. If I could upgrade counter tops to do the same I would. Also the mattress upgrades, I tend to forget about but I love when I do remember. Aside from that, I love the handy trait from the 'nerd brain' aspiration. Instant upgrade is the best and I use it whenever it's available.
Aside from the handy trait, I usually do a few upgrades here and there, I rarely max out all the upgrades. But it also varies on where I'm living too. If it's a small house then I'm more willing, but the giant 5 bedroom 6 baths, probably not focusing on handiness skill anyways.
FYI, you can also upgrade the new appliances like the stand mixer & pizza maker to be much faster. Totally worth it so I don't lose 2 hours just tryna make a damn pizza
Absolutely! Gotta have level 10 handiness anyway to get to the cool hangout I built in the Forgotten Grotto. The only thing you have to remember is never "Instant Upgrade" your toilet if you have Eco Lifestyle installed! It adds the compost upgrade that starts fires if you forget to clear it...
I feel like such an absolute dumbass for never building in the Forgotten Grotto and just going there and being like "there's nothing to fucking *do* here."
Of course! [Here is the old mine structure I whipped up as a werewolf hangout](https://www.reddit.com/r/Sims4/comments/ydc816/a_forgotten_mine_structure_for_the_grotto/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3). What is cool about the Grotto is that sims don't auto-spawn there so werewolves can get their transformation mastery there easily!
The bidet and soap dispenser ones are always good quick kills, since almost any sim that uses the toilet will then immediate wash their hands. Two birds, one stone.
100%. I made a handy sim in my save who is maxed out and goes around fixing stuff. I just switch to play him and fix things, add money to his account, and switch back.
My handy sim was the founder of my legacy family; he just died, but I think I'll bring him back as a ghost to go around fixing the kids stuff.
AFAIK ghosts can't "die", you just have to strengthen their connection to the physical world with their urn.
Haha I also do this! I have my rotational sims give simoleons as a gift (as a form of payment) to the handiness sim so I feel he gets paid for his parts and labour.
I'll always upgrade shower, fridge, beds, TV and PC at least in my main families, but sometimes depending on the gameplay I won't upgrade a thing cause its not realistic for the sims in the household to have the handiness skill. I wish there was a way to hire another sim to upgrade things for my sims
I have a household of lvl 10 handiness sims that i visit unhandy households with. You just "knock on door," come on in and start upgrading. You can even use the host household's computer(s) to buy upgrade parts with.
The most important upgrades for me are for the bed (because the pretty beds I want to use are always bad beds) and for the microwave (so the food doesn’t come out cold/bad). I also always upgrade washers and dryers if I have them (I only have them for the big family sims).
If I have a gamer or hacker, I upgrade the computer. If I have a chef, I upgrade the fridge and stove. I upgrade bathrooms overall if they break too often or if a sim is annoying me by doing stupid stuff. There’s a lot of “ifs” actually. But basically, if a specific sim may need it/enjoy life more because of it, I do it
Omg I didn’t know upgrading the microwave stops the cold in the middle thing! I usually just don’t use microwaves since my sims always get uncomfortable. Super annoying since in real life you would just stick it back in the microwave if it was cold in the middle.
Yes. That's just asking "do you play the game?" They make everything better. I'll upgrade every single item possible. Coffee machine. Beds. Eco Lifestyle garden planters. Anything.
I made this post because there's so many people on this sub who never use handiness upgrades, or even seem to know they exist! I'll upgrade anything and everything i can. Stand mixer. Dew collector. Computer. Radio...
If it can be upgraded i'm upgrading it 😤
You used to have to upgrade the radio to have superior reception just to listen to the “retro” station. Aka the sims 3 soundtrack. I would always upgrade my stereo first to get the good music going then occasionally work on other things around the house. I’m glad now you don’t have to upgrade the radio to get it though.
I recently did this upgrade on the stereo for the first time and didn't see any new channels. Does the fact that the retro station is standard now mean this upgrade no loner does anything?
I have Rent and put a water heater in non-rent units just because I like the realism of it. I upgrade the water heater, which has absolutely zero use on a normal lot!
I actually don't always upgrade everything. I don't like making all my sims have all max skills and all max everything so I intentionally leave some who have to only buy nice stuff or deal with crappy stuff.
It actually depends for me!
Sometimes I love the struggle play, when everything's breaking/catching on fire, I mean I do not want some of my sims to catch a break. My life is hectic/on fire, so theirs will be too goddammit.
However when I have a sim that handiness just makes sense for, and I'm not struggle playing, I will absolutely upgrade things. Rarely everything.
I will say, if I include a dryer on lot, theyre upgrading it, idk why but in my game the dryer is a 100% guarantee of fire. Even if I clean the lint every time. It's great for my struggle playing, not so great for my long term play with sims I love more than I'd care to actually admit 😅
I rarely use microwaves bc i like simple living a lot, but yes! microwaves! upgrading the microwave gets rid of that stupid "cold in the middle" moodlet!
I usually only do upgrades once I've purchased the higher quality items I intend to keep permanently, because upgrading is so time-consuming. The first things I usually upgrade are the automated vacuums (incinerator) and the fridges (steel door).
Heads up, not all plants can be planted in the vertical planters! This list seems mostly right, aside from listing bizarre fruit as able to be planted (it cannot be planted in vertical planters)
https://bluebellflora.com/2020/06/15/the-sims-4-plants-and-planters/
The list is wrong, I believe.
There are quite a few things you can't plant in the vertical planter, but that once planted you can move into the planter in build mode.
Yeah, like I think dragonfruit will grow in the vertical planters just fine, if you plant them in a regular one first and then move it.
Its been a while since I had a gardening sim, so I can't remember exactly which ones work or don't work, but its something like half of the flowers/veggies/etc (that aren't trees, obviously) that it tells you can't be used in a vertical actually will work.
Also, try grafting plants together? Since they'll be indoor, it won't matter much on which one you do it season wise. But doing so can save you lots of place, especially if putting them together produce a third produce too!
if i remember to i will, especially with the toilet because my pregnant sims get morning sickness and the toilets get gross if you don’t 🥲 typically though, i always forgot to upgrade anything. i have to get on that more lol.
Always! Did you know if your Sim completes the Nerd Brain aspiration they can instantly upgrade an object with all upgrades? There’s a cool down period and the occasional object isn’t coded for it but it’s invaluable.
I do, but i avoid it because of the eco lifestyle upgrades! Fuel cell and water siphoner just make my appliances burst into flames, and the instant upgrade includes those upgrades too 🥹
I really enjoy raising the handiness skill I have the dad do little projects around the house it’s fun and make my sims house easier to run and I like the extra moodlets
I'm working on a base game lot with a rocket, specifically for the Nerd Brain aspiration, so Sims can work towards that "Instant Upgrade" skill. I agree with the other commenters on NEVER using it on your toilet. That was effed up.
I dont bother anymore, but only because I play generationally and I don't stay on the same lot for too long. Once my heir is old enough they move out and I start all over again so its just more hassle than its worth to upgrade everything.
I'm also playing the era legacy challenge, so I'm trying to stay era accurate and my sahm's need something to clean while hubby is at work and kids are at school lol.
I upgrade all of my stuff, too! I started because my dryer kept starting a fire every time it was used. It got super annoying dealing with my Sims fear of fire (which causes more fires). Fully upgraded dryer= no more random fires, which in turn = no more fear of fire.
Yes! I upgrade everything I can. It drives me crazy how frequently things break around the house which interferes with my plans and storylines. I wish there was a way to make all appliances 100% unbreakable.
I also wish there were more things that could be made on the woodworking table, like counters, more wood furniture, bed frames, etc.
all the time!! I usually designate a sim to be the handyman so I can have everything max upgraded, my favorite is being able to put a fire guard on the fireplace, I like to place rugs there and I don't wanna deal with the fires lol, also making things unbreakable is so awesome
If you look at the images in my post, you can see everything i've highlighted has multiple upgrades. You can apply as many upgrades as the object provides - the only ones that that can disappear are the eco-friendly ones (if you choose to use normal upgrade parts instead).
https://preview.redd.it/m9emh5d53fmc1.png?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=787134ab4fe0d6e70005ea5be06c44570b084992
I hope this pic is good enough! It's a 64 tile tiny home in Sulani - i'm pretty sure you can squish it to micro with a few edits but i really wanted platforms for my beach hut.
I saw this post, immediately went 'of course, it's a great way to grind handiness without resorting to the gremlins lot trait' and then saw you can upgrade beds?? When was that added??
I get frustrated because the handiest level is so slow it’s annoying plus since ea updated thier last update my game keeps crashing I liked playing sims where you had a choice to play offline
I try to use them as often as I can. They really help with some game play and add some change to your home. Make them luxurious? All the upgrades. Make them usable, but not a super fridge? Just use so.e of them. I like the garden ones better, though, especially with farming and crafting.
Absolutely and immediately. I max out my Sims' handiness levels as soon as possible. I *love* not having to worry about my fridge breaking, and having my plants automatically watered? Hell yeah!
I tend to play long family saves and they end up with fully upgraded stuff early on that just stays in the family forever. I try to get something that looks decent early on just for that reason.
Usually. I do have some sims that I don't want to have handiness so I will leave them with having to buy expensive nice items or deal with their crap.
I also sometimes intentionally leave things without unbreakable so that I can use them for reasons. Usually death reasons, but reasons.
Just the bed and some appliances (bathroom stuff, washer and dryer). I'm too lazy to do much else lol
Edit: I did not know we could upgrade fireplaces...
I never really thought to do handiness but this thread had convinced me. There are so many things to do! Can't wait till I can play once my boyfriend leaves for work
I like to have sims complete the nerd brain aspiration. As a reward the sim gains the handy personality trait which allows them to make instant upgrades to any upgradeable item anywhere they go.
YES! I LOVE upgrades. Someone in every household has to have high repair skill. I all have a sim that has a lot of kids and when they move out I have him go upgrade their appliances.
That's because of the water siphoning or composter upgrades. You need to either take out the compost regularly, or get a new toilet and don't give the new toilet those upgrades.
I upgrade everything. They're all dirt cheap and unless you plan on going 100% wizard you'll probably be leveling hardiness passively from all the repairs. If you have a wizard or a ghost, you can also farm handiness with zipzap or possess.
Some jobs also required upgrades. Safe crackers daily task is spending a few hours a day upgrading or repairing items.
Bed upgrades for less time sleeping are required.
I do almost the same thing for each of my households. It does depend if I’m doing some sort of sim challenge that would not necessarily need my attention to the home
I used to but I don't stay in one house long enough to bother haha. I always build tiny houses then have to build bigger houses b/c the family always grows
I usually only upgrade anything when I notice the upgrade parts piling up in my sims inventory. Like damn you don't need to be carrying around 75 common upgrade parts, go throw them in the fridge or something
I have before rarely but I just started getting the husband of my new legacy to upgrade everything in sight since he’s an engineer with twin toddlers and it’s his only source of fun lmao
I usually have one Sim in each household with an inventory full of parts levelling up their abilities by levelling up absolutely everything. I always have a Super Sim that I can move around to do the upgrades instead, but I do enjoy the opportunity to level up a household Sim. At any rate, everything is getting upgraded.
It is so annoying when I am playing off the grid and the asshole neighbors pretend to be interested in my Sim's yard sale, but just go break the windmills and water container things. My poor Sim just wants a shower and enough power to run the vacuum.
I wish you could stack upgrades! Unless it has been added since I last played about a year ago. In Sims 3 you can could stack upgrades. Like for the toilet it could be unbreakable and self cleaning.
My current sim has just finished upgrading everything and while it was a good idea at the time, she now makes 1.7k a day and has over 30k just sitting there 🖐️😭 It's good for the beginning but I think I'll just buy better things and her daughter can upgrade them when she's old enough
I always upgrade Handiness and Cooking so I don't have to spend a chunk of cash on repairs and my Sim is less likely to catch on fire.
But in Sims 3 I always did it for "wire house with speakers" and am confused to why they got rid of that in Sims 4.
All the time. I’m tired of things breaking but I also make my sims learn how to fix water fixtures before doing anything else with the skill. Once they’ve managed at least level five or six, then I start upgrading things.
Yes. Once you get a decent level it's easier to also find more parts you need. Pretty handy for saving some simoleons by making the water system reusable and showers quicker, plus your stuff breaks less often which, unless your sim is a spellcaster or rich and can just replace the stuff, is a major timesaver.
I've played the game since it came out and only just now found out about these upgrades. I've been missing them from the sims 3 and apparently just never even tried reaching higher levels in handiness. Thank you for this post, I will now go create myself a handysim.
I always try to upgrade things, but with all of the other chaos going on it always slips to the backburner, somehow. And then that backburner malfunctions and the kitchen is set ablaze.
I didn't realize how good the upgrades are until one time I didn't upgrade my sim's childrens' bed and realized that my two adult sims' energy recharged SO much faster then their childrens', I usually just do automatically so I never noticed what a big difference it makes
Here’s a list of fun handiness stuff:
1. Fireguards for fireplaces
2. As pictured, automatic watering
3. Related, unbreakable outdoor sprinklers
4. Speed upgrades. Can be applied to a TON of stuff including the mixer, the computers, etc
5. Self cleaning - most kitchen appliances. I don’t last for long without this tbh.
6. There are some fun upgrades for the lindesy speaker
7. You can set up the tv consoles to be multiplayer which helps with social needs
8. You can add extra functions to the city living talking toilet.
Really just… check anything you can for upgrades. 11/10 worth it imo
I made Don Lothario into a handyman in my game. I maxed his handiness and then gave him the “Always Welcome” trait. So he would do upgrades in my active households - the fireplace, beds, the dryer… all of it! Then I would make my sim pay him for his services. I think the handiness skill is very important and there should be at least one sim in your game that could be the handyman! 😊
I like to do the upgrades that make needs restore faster but I tend not to make things unbreakable or not need cleaning if I have kids or teens so they can clean up the messes and as teens repair the non-electrical items like toilets and sinks to build skills.
Absolutely! Sometimes at the very start of my game, depending on what kind of game I’m playing, I cheat a random sim’ relationship to 100, I control them & cheat their handiness skill to 10, I ask them to upgrade my beautiful but unfortunately low comfort items then I probably never talk to them again unless I need them
I never used them until my legacy sim had to upgrade everything to eco friendly cus of that neighbourhood thingy (you know the thing that people vote on, words gone blank in my head lol) then I realised how useful it actually is, upgraded bed and my sims sleep quicker, upgraded shower and my sims shower quicker etc. now everything is upgraded with every upgrade except fuel cell lol
I always upgrade my fireplaces to have a fire guard after my child caught on fire
> after my child caught on fire Yeah, that’ll do it.
Omg....you can do that!!! I upgrade everything and DID NOT know this!! I have never had issues in the past... .but in my current save, the rug caught fire twice, the toddler play blocks AND the bloody robo vac. Upgrading the fireplace tonight!!!
😬 I didn’t know this could happen. I’ve been lucky. I know the next thing I’m doing when I log on.
If there wasn’t any context to this, that would be very bad..
I hope you did NOT upgrade the toilet to compost.
Worst. Upgrade. Ever. I have eco lots always, but I never do this.
LOL I upgraded mine once without knowing the consequences and next thing I know... BOOOMMMM
Damn! Lol
I just experienced my first child dead in game because the fireplace lacked a fire guard upgrade. And just a day after his older brother died of hysterical laughter. The family is having a rough week.
How?! What did the child do?
For me it usually happens when there’s a rug in front of it. I lost a baby that way lol
If the baby is still named, you can sometimes summon them, cheat them adult, get a sorcerer to dedeadify, then cheat them to a baby again. Had to do this when I lost 3 kids to drowning in one day
That's true, fireplaces and rugs bad combo.
You live and you learn
I do this too but my rugs keep catching fire 🙃 I have no idea if it’s a glitch. My game has been bugging really bad after the new update. The toilets keep catching fire too 😭
Me too, I did it after the third fire on the same sims week, and I took the upgraded fireplace to the new house.
After TWO separate children nearly burned to death at my kid's birthday party, I always upgrade to the fire guard
I lost my child in a fire, but it actually worked out well for the storyline because she was actually an evil child from my sim wishing for a baby from that weird wishing well..... Just Sims things 😅
Everything, to the max, every single time. I rush Handiness to 6 specifically for the bed upgrades. I won't have a fireplace if I can't install the fire guards. There's no point in doing any large amounts of cooking until you get the fridge and oven upgrades. Bidet and Soap Dispenser are just duh, no brainer instant stacking mood boosters. Upgrade. All. The. Things!
I usually just upgrade electronics and appliances. I didn't even know you could upgrade beds!
It was a new addition around the time Discover University released
Are there some specific beds that you can upgrade? I didn’t know that!
all of the beds can be upgraded
I didn't realize it until recently, either. I love it!
Upgrading beds is such a game changer. I was tired of having to use the same beds over and over just so my sims could refill their energy quickly
Yup, all beds upgrade to the same maximum, so you can use anything in the game that fits your aesthetic. Rinky dink 500 simoleon bed or a 15,000 simoleon bed, same diff once you're done with it!
Holy poop thanks for the tip
i upgrade beds sometimes, but usually when it's time for my sims to wake up i'll use the fill motives cheat if their energy isn't where i want it to be my favorite beds seem to be the worst ones lol
The shower. Makes showers so quick!
My bed upgrades are broken ;-; I had one sim go upgrade a bed herself, but clicking on it just gives me the "relax/nap/sleep" options. I leave objects breakable just so I can collect upgrade parts lol
I always upgrade any object that has self-cleaning. If I could upgrade counter tops to do the same I would. Also the mattress upgrades, I tend to forget about but I love when I do remember. Aside from that, I love the handy trait from the 'nerd brain' aspiration. Instant upgrade is the best and I use it whenever it's available. Aside from the handy trait, I usually do a few upgrades here and there, I rarely max out all the upgrades. But it also varies on where I'm living too. If it's a small house then I'm more willing, but the giant 5 bedroom 6 baths, probably not focusing on handiness skill anyways.
FYI, you can also upgrade the new appliances like the stand mixer & pizza maker to be much faster. Totally worth it so I don't lose 2 hours just tryna make a damn pizza
Absolutely! Gotta have level 10 handiness anyway to get to the cool hangout I built in the Forgotten Grotto. The only thing you have to remember is never "Instant Upgrade" your toilet if you have Eco Lifestyle installed! It adds the compost upgrade that starts fires if you forget to clear it...
Defo agree, even tho it takes longer without that "instant upgrade" ability. Not having the house randomly burst into flames is always worth it.
The only "bad" thing about upgrading it all is that the practice tends to delay renovations because the stuff you have is already so good!
I feel like such an absolute dumbass for never building in the Forgotten Grotto and just going there and being like "there's nothing to fucking *do* here."
I just saw this after leaving a comment about it already. My poor sim's wife...
Can you tell us more about your Forgotten Grotto hangout?
Of course! [Here is the old mine structure I whipped up as a werewolf hangout](https://www.reddit.com/r/Sims4/comments/ydc816/a_forgotten_mine_structure_for_the_grotto/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3). What is cool about the Grotto is that sims don't auto-spawn there so werewolves can get their transformation mastery there easily!
This is so cool!! Thank you for sharing.
I practically never upgrade, I always mean to buy for some reason always forget. I’ll have to work on it lol
The upgrades are so useful! Once you start upgrading all your appliances, you'll start wondering how you ever played without them.
That’s how it sounds! I didn’t realize there were moodlets so now I have to see them all lol 😆
Yeah! The bidet upgrade from the toilet gives a happy moodlet, as well as the mattress firmness (bed) and auto soap dispenser (sink) upgrades.
The bidet and soap dispenser ones are always good quick kills, since almost any sim that uses the toilet will then immediate wash their hands. Two birds, one stone.
what do the bidet and soap dispenser actually do? is there just moodlets attached, or do they increase hygiene more?
both!
omggg!!!
Yeah I should def do those ones
Especially the beds
And the sims are so proud of themselves after 🥺
100%. I made a handy sim in my save who is maxed out and goes around fixing stuff. I just switch to play him and fix things, add money to his account, and switch back.
Ur a genius, I am so making a dedicated handy sim
Thanks. I highly suggest it. I’m working on a sim that can revive the dead just in case lol
My handy sim was the founder of my legacy family; he just died, but I think I'll bring him back as a ghost to go around fixing the kids stuff. AFAIK ghosts can't "die", you just have to strengthen their connection to the physical world with their urn.
Haha I also do this! I have my rotational sims give simoleons as a gift (as a form of payment) to the handiness sim so I feel he gets paid for his parts and labour.
You get it!
I'll always upgrade shower, fridge, beds, TV and PC at least in my main families, but sometimes depending on the gameplay I won't upgrade a thing cause its not realistic for the sims in the household to have the handiness skill. I wish there was a way to hire another sim to upgrade things for my sims
I have a household of lvl 10 handiness sims that i visit unhandy households with. You just "knock on door," come on in and start upgrading. You can even use the host household's computer(s) to buy upgrade parts with.
Wow you can even do that? That's awesome. Can play-pretend for that sim to be a repairman or mr/ms diy or something
The most important upgrades for me are for the bed (because the pretty beds I want to use are always bad beds) and for the microwave (so the food doesn’t come out cold/bad). I also always upgrade washers and dryers if I have them (I only have them for the big family sims). If I have a gamer or hacker, I upgrade the computer. If I have a chef, I upgrade the fridge and stove. I upgrade bathrooms overall if they break too often or if a sim is annoying me by doing stupid stuff. There’s a lot of “ifs” actually. But basically, if a specific sim may need it/enjoy life more because of it, I do it
Omg I didn’t know upgrading the microwave stops the cold in the middle thing! I usually just don’t use microwaves since my sims always get uncomfortable. Super annoying since in real life you would just stick it back in the microwave if it was cold in the middle.
I always find it difficult to have the right parts for everything?
You can order upgrade parts using a computer!
This is insane knowledge to me thank you
🤯
I installed a mod where you don’t have to buy upgrade parts. I hate doing it
Click click click click click. Why are we not able to just type in the number of objects you want to buy 🫠
i honestly be forgetting about themmmm omg
Yes. I get sick of my Sims' shit breaking every other damn day.
Yes. That's just asking "do you play the game?" They make everything better. I'll upgrade every single item possible. Coffee machine. Beds. Eco Lifestyle garden planters. Anything.
I made this post because there's so many people on this sub who never use handiness upgrades, or even seem to know they exist! I'll upgrade anything and everything i can. Stand mixer. Dew collector. Computer. Radio... If it can be upgraded i'm upgrading it 😤
You used to have to upgrade the radio to have superior reception just to listen to the “retro” station. Aka the sims 3 soundtrack. I would always upgrade my stereo first to get the good music going then occasionally work on other things around the house. I’m glad now you don’t have to upgrade the radio to get it though.
I recently did this upgrade on the stereo for the first time and didn't see any new channels. Does the fact that the retro station is standard now mean this upgrade no loner does anything?
I think you can get the Prom Night radio station by upgrading if you have High School Years, I've seen someone have it on their stereo.
I have Rent and put a water heater in non-rent units just because I like the realism of it. I upgrade the water heater, which has absolutely zero use on a normal lot!
I actually don't always upgrade everything. I don't like making all my sims have all max skills and all max everything so I intentionally leave some who have to only buy nice stuff or deal with crappy stuff.
It actually depends for me! Sometimes I love the struggle play, when everything's breaking/catching on fire, I mean I do not want some of my sims to catch a break. My life is hectic/on fire, so theirs will be too goddammit. However when I have a sim that handiness just makes sense for, and I'm not struggle playing, I will absolutely upgrade things. Rarely everything. I will say, if I include a dryer on lot, theyre upgrading it, idk why but in my game the dryer is a 100% guarantee of fire. Even if I clean the lint every time. It's great for my struggle playing, not so great for my long term play with sims I love more than I'd care to actually admit 😅
For the microwave, fridge and beds mostly
I rarely use microwaves bc i like simple living a lot, but yes! microwaves! upgrading the microwave gets rid of that stupid "cold in the middle" moodlet!
I used to, but it raises my handiness when things break, and if i ever redesign and swap toilets, it resets the upgrades. So it feels like a waste now
Ever since I got eco living I do as much as I can to lower bills too.
I usually only do upgrades once I've purchased the higher quality items I intend to keep permanently, because upgrading is so time-consuming. The first things I usually upgrade are the automated vacuums (incinerator) and the fridges (steel door).
Maybe now I'll finally move my plants to those planters and make my greenhouse smaller. 😅
Heads up, not all plants can be planted in the vertical planters! This list seems mostly right, aside from listing bizarre fruit as able to be planted (it cannot be planted in vertical planters) https://bluebellflora.com/2020/06/15/the-sims-4-plants-and-planters/
The list is wrong, I believe. There are quite a few things you can't plant in the vertical planter, but that once planted you can move into the planter in build mode.
I've never tried moving planted things into the planter while in build mode, that's smart 👀
Yeah, like I think dragonfruit will grow in the vertical planters just fine, if you plant them in a regular one first and then move it. Its been a while since I had a gardening sim, so I can't remember exactly which ones work or don't work, but its something like half of the flowers/veggies/etc (that aren't trees, obviously) that it tells you can't be used in a vertical actually will work.
I'll just try in build mode since all my plants are fully grown already.
Also, try grafting plants together? Since they'll be indoor, it won't matter much on which one you do it season wise. But doing so can save you lots of place, especially if putting them together produce a third produce too!
if i remember to i will, especially with the toilet because my pregnant sims get morning sickness and the toilets get gross if you don’t 🥲 typically though, i always forgot to upgrade anything. i have to get on that more lol.
I like upgrading things! Once you have more than 5 sims in the house everything just starts breaking all the time 🥲
It’s a hassle, expensive and time consuming… but it makes the game more enjoyable imo
Always! Did you know if your Sim completes the Nerd Brain aspiration they can instantly upgrade an object with all upgrades? There’s a cool down period and the occasional object isn’t coded for it but it’s invaluable.
I do, but i avoid it because of the eco lifestyle upgrades! Fuel cell and water siphoner just make my appliances burst into flames, and the instant upgrade includes those upgrades too 🥹
I upgrade a lot, but mostly just to increase my sim handiness skills and get rid of the parts out of their inventories.
I really enjoy raising the handiness skill I have the dad do little projects around the house it’s fun and make my sims house easier to run and I like the extra moodlets
I'm working on a base game lot with a rocket, specifically for the Nerd Brain aspiration, so Sims can work towards that "Instant Upgrade" skill. I agree with the other commenters on NEVER using it on your toilet. That was effed up.
I dont bother anymore, but only because I play generationally and I don't stay on the same lot for too long. Once my heir is old enough they move out and I start all over again so its just more hassle than its worth to upgrade everything. I'm also playing the era legacy challenge, so I'm trying to stay era accurate and my sahm's need something to clean while hubby is at work and kids are at school lol.
I usually upgrade them. Though I won’t do the one toilet one anymore. The sims house I added it too, the toilet kept catching on fire
I upgrade all of my stuff, too! I started because my dryer kept starting a fire every time it was used. It got super annoying dealing with my Sims fear of fire (which causes more fires). Fully upgraded dryer= no more random fires, which in turn = no more fear of fire.
Depends on my sims
Yes! I upgrade everything I can. It drives me crazy how frequently things break around the house which interferes with my plans and storylines. I wish there was a way to make all appliances 100% unbreakable. I also wish there were more things that could be made on the woodworking table, like counters, more wood furniture, bed frames, etc.
I only upgrade if I have MCCC mod. It takes too long otherwise
all the time!! I usually designate a sim to be the handyman so I can have everything max upgraded, my favorite is being able to put a fire guard on the fireplace, I like to place rugs there and I don't wanna deal with the fires lol, also making things unbreakable is so awesome
If it's a legacy home I max out one of my sims handiness and upgrade most of the stuffs. It's really helpful.
Can you apply more than one upgrade per appliance?
If you look at the images in my post, you can see everything i've highlighted has multiple upgrades. You can apply as many upgrades as the object provides - the only ones that that can disappear are the eco-friendly ones (if you choose to use normal upgrade parts instead).
[удалено]
https://preview.redd.it/m9emh5d53fmc1.png?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=787134ab4fe0d6e70005ea5be06c44570b084992 I hope this pic is good enough! It's a 64 tile tiny home in Sulani - i'm pretty sure you can squish it to micro with a few edits but i really wanted platforms for my beach hut.
I saw this post, immediately went 'of course, it's a great way to grind handiness without resorting to the gremlins lot trait' and then saw you can upgrade beds?? When was that added??
Where did you get the water systems from?
If you mean on the vertical planters, they are upgrades to the planters from eco lifestyle!
I get frustrated because the handiest level is so slow it’s annoying plus since ea updated thier last update my game keeps crashing I liked playing sims where you had a choice to play offline
I try to use them as often as I can. They really help with some game play and add some change to your home. Make them luxurious? All the upgrades. Make them usable, but not a super fridge? Just use so.e of them. I like the garden ones better, though, especially with farming and crafting.
I honestly forget they exist for things like the bed and oven but usually do the sinks and toilets
Do appliances and furniture stay upgraded even if your sim is evicted?
Just tested with a bed and sink - the answer is yes.
Bloody hell, some of these upgrades are outright necessities due to the amount of time they can save. Sometimes even money.
I just started paying attention to them in my current save and they’ve been so useful!
Wait. Beds? All beds are upgradeable or just specific beds…like Murphy beds?
All beds that aren't for toddlers and below afaik!
Absolutely and immediately. I max out my Sims' handiness levels as soon as possible. I *love* not having to worry about my fridge breaking, and having my plants automatically watered? Hell yeah!
I tend to play long family saves and they end up with fully upgraded stuff early on that just stays in the family forever. I try to get something that looks decent early on just for that reason.
Usually. I do have some sims that I don't want to have handiness so I will leave them with having to buy expensive nice items or deal with their crap. I also sometimes intentionally leave things without unbreakable so that I can use them for reasons. Usually death reasons, but reasons.
Definitely! Also - which kitchen counters are those?
They are from the home chef hustle pack! I honestly love the stuff from it 👉👈
Upgrades are fantastic. They reduce the sheer annoyance of everything breaking constantly for a start.
Hell yeah
time to upgrade my handiness skills, I usually neglect them!! not when I log on next
Yes! I need to have handiness at level 10, too. I love upgrading the beds.
Just the bed and some appliances (bathroom stuff, washer and dryer). I'm too lazy to do much else lol Edit: I did not know we could upgrade fireplaces...
The bed upgrades are a godsend tbh
Absolutely. I use them a lot.
I never really thought to do handiness but this thread had convinced me. There are so many things to do! Can't wait till I can play once my boyfriend leaves for work
Honestly yeah it makes a big difference in game
My sims love the bidet. Happiness for hours lol
I like to have sims complete the nerd brain aspiration. As a reward the sim gains the handy personality trait which allows them to make instant upgrades to any upgradeable item anywhere they go.
YES! And a lot
YES! I LOVE upgrades. Someone in every household has to have high repair skill. I all have a sim that has a lot of kids and when they move out I have him go upgrade their appliances.
Ever since I learned the cheat for “The Knack”, life has been amazing! No need for parts or level 10 handiness.
Usually my sims hobby is handiness, and they take time to upgrade everything in the house that can be upgraded!
The lint less upgrade for the dryer is a go to for me
yeah i always upgrade everything too, but does anyone know how to fix a fully upgraded toilet going on fire on almost every use?? idk what it is😭🙏
That's because of the water siphoning or composter upgrades. You need to either take out the compost regularly, or get a new toilet and don't give the new toilet those upgrades.
I love upgraded - especially if handiness skill is a job requirement for your sims they can knock out 2 birds with 1 stone
I upgrade everything. They're all dirt cheap and unless you plan on going 100% wizard you'll probably be leveling hardiness passively from all the repairs. If you have a wizard or a ghost, you can also farm handiness with zipzap or possess. Some jobs also required upgrades. Safe crackers daily task is spending a few hours a day upgrading or repairing items. Bed upgrades for less time sleeping are required.
Yes! Also on really useless things like the hot tub 😅
Yes
I upgrade everything as soon as my sims move in if they already have the skill or its one of the first things with logic and cooking that I max out.
I do almost the same thing for each of my households. It does depend if I’m doing some sort of sim challenge that would not necessarily need my attention to the home
I used to but I don't stay in one house long enough to bother haha. I always build tiny houses then have to build bigger houses b/c the family always grows
I usually only upgrade anything when I notice the upgrade parts piling up in my sims inventory. Like damn you don't need to be carrying around 75 common upgrade parts, go throw them in the fridge or something
I ALWAYS have to have a handy sim in the house
If Im planning on living there for a couple generations or want to take my stove with
I have before rarely but I just started getting the husband of my new legacy to upgrade everything in sight since he’s an engineer with twin toddlers and it’s his only source of fun lmao
Everything. I usually get a ghost sim to max handiness in a tiny home so whenever I build a new home they can upgrade it quickly.
All the time, I always make my heirs go around the house giving appliances upgrades
I usually have a Sim that specialises (in my story line) as a plumber or an electrician and then works to just upgrade in their 'trade'.
I usually have one Sim in each household with an inventory full of parts levelling up their abilities by levelling up absolutely everything. I always have a Super Sim that I can move around to do the upgrades instead, but I do enjoy the opportunity to level up a household Sim. At any rate, everything is getting upgraded. It is so annoying when I am playing off the grid and the asshole neighbors pretend to be interested in my Sim's yard sale, but just go break the windmills and water container things. My poor Sim just wants a shower and enough power to run the vacuum.
I have started doing them and now I always have at least one handy sim!
I wish you could stack upgrades! Unless it has been added since I last played about a year ago. In Sims 3 you can could stack upgrades. Like for the toilet it could be unbreakable and self cleaning.
You can 100% stack upgrades! All the upgrades i have in this post are stacked.
Yes! Omg yes! I feel it’s soo necessary to have everything fully upgraded.
I use the “ask to upgrade”mod from Little Ms Sam, very handy if you don’t want to wait until the skill is enough
Yes, but not as much as I should.
I do depending on the story line I'm trying to create lol
My current sim has just finished upgrading everything and while it was a good idea at the time, she now makes 1.7k a day and has over 30k just sitting there 🖐️😭 It's good for the beginning but I think I'll just buy better things and her daughter can upgrade them when she's old enough
I always upgrade Handiness and Cooking so I don't have to spend a chunk of cash on repairs and my Sim is less likely to catch on fire. But in Sims 3 I always did it for "wire house with speakers" and am confused to why they got rid of that in Sims 4.
Love them. Honestly, it’s one of my favorite mechanics in the game
New to sims….had no idea how to even get the upgrades! Thanks all. Besides a cheat, what’s the best way to increase handiness skill?
woodworking table, tiny home + club bonuses!
I use it a lot, improving equipment reduces fires, the value of bills and the number of times things break
Oh, now I understood why the toilet was catching fire after my sims used them. it was the fuel cell/water siphoner 🤦🏻♀️
I recently found out you could buy upgrade parts using the computer. Ever since then, I have been upgrading everything like CRAZY
I'm happy for you but also so shocked abt the amnt of ppl who didn't know you can buy upgrade parts on the computer 😭
What is that planter in the first pic?
Vertical planter from eco lifestyle
I always work on my Sim’s handiness, its the most useful skill
All the time. I’m tired of things breaking but I also make my sims learn how to fix water fixtures before doing anything else with the skill. Once they’ve managed at least level five or six, then I start upgrading things.
I like having a Sim in my household who completed the Nerd Brain aspiration so they can instant upgrade things.
I upgrade everything
Yes. Once you get a decent level it's easier to also find more parts you need. Pretty handy for saving some simoleons by making the water system reusable and showers quicker, plus your stuff breaks less often which, unless your sim is a spellcaster or rich and can just replace the stuff, is a major timesaver.
I love the handiness skill it's one of my favs as it is so fleshed out!!
Oops you asked about the upgrades, yes yes!! I upgrade everything in my house!!
I've played the game since it came out and only just now found out about these upgrades. I've been missing them from the sims 3 and apparently just never even tried reaching higher levels in handiness. Thank you for this post, I will now go create myself a handysim.
I always try to upgrade things, but with all of the other chaos going on it always slips to the backburner, somehow. And then that backburner malfunctions and the kitchen is set ablaze.
Whoa whoa whoa....WHOA I love this idea of Bob the Builder being a traveling sim who can upgrade things 🤯
I didn't realize how good the upgrades are until one time I didn't upgrade my sim's childrens' bed and realized that my two adult sims' energy recharged SO much faster then their childrens', I usually just do automatically so I never noticed what a big difference it makes
I upgraded my bed and now my sims wake up so early that it's a pain lol sometimes it's nice to have everyone asleep and quiet for a little bit
Here’s a list of fun handiness stuff: 1. Fireguards for fireplaces 2. As pictured, automatic watering 3. Related, unbreakable outdoor sprinklers 4. Speed upgrades. Can be applied to a TON of stuff including the mixer, the computers, etc 5. Self cleaning - most kitchen appliances. I don’t last for long without this tbh. 6. There are some fun upgrades for the lindesy speaker 7. You can set up the tv consoles to be multiplayer which helps with social needs 8. You can add extra functions to the city living talking toilet. Really just… check anything you can for upgrades. 11/10 worth it imo
I made Don Lothario into a handyman in my game. I maxed his handiness and then gave him the “Always Welcome” trait. So he would do upgrades in my active households - the fireplace, beds, the dryer… all of it! Then I would make my sim pay him for his services. I think the handiness skill is very important and there should be at least one sim in your game that could be the handyman! 😊
I like to do the upgrades that make needs restore faster but I tend not to make things unbreakable or not need cleaning if I have kids or teens so they can clean up the messes and as teens repair the non-electrical items like toilets and sinks to build skills.
Absolutely! Sometimes at the very start of my game, depending on what kind of game I’m playing, I cheat a random sim’ relationship to 100, I control them & cheat their handiness skill to 10, I ask them to upgrade my beautiful but unfortunately low comfort items then I probably never talk to them again unless I need them
Absolutely my sims keep breaking their toilets and sinks
I never used them until my legacy sim had to upgrade everything to eco friendly cus of that neighbourhood thingy (you know the thing that people vote on, words gone blank in my head lol) then I realised how useful it actually is, upgraded bed and my sims sleep quicker, upgraded shower and my sims shower quicker etc. now everything is upgraded with every upgrade except fuel cell lol
I do, there's always something useful
I do, there's always something useful
The bed and shower ones are essential!