Here are the surprising perks of having a Denver library card
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Illustration: Maura Losch/Axios
In honor of National Library Week, we're spotlighting under-the-radar resources your Denver library card can score you.
Here are more than dozen free services available to cardholders:
💻 Technology: Borrow a Chromebook laptop and mobile WiFi hotspot for up to three months.
- Check out a GoPro Hero 3 camera at any location for up to a week each.
🏞️ Recreation: Access bicycle repair kits for two hours to fix a flat or adjust your frame.
- Get a free pass to visit Colorado's 42 state parks or numerous city museums and cultural centers, including the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Clyfford Still Museum and Butterfly Pavilion in Westminster.
🔧 Tools: Use power tools, ladders, lawnmowers and more with a photo ID and signed safety waiver.
- Sewing machines equipped with prewound bobbins and spare needles are available at the Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales location for up to four weeks.
- Laser cutters and engravers in DPL's ideaLABs — free creative spaces for people to make music, videos and games — can be reserved for up to two hours, once a week. A signed safety waiver is required.
- 3D printers can also be accessed with a reservation in DPL's ideaLabs. Library staff must approve the design and materials being printed before access is granted, however.
🏠 For home: Borrow a draft check meter for up to three weeks to locate air leaks along walls, molding, ductwork and more.
- Meters that monitor energy costs and power usages are also available for as many as three weeks, along with indoor air quality monitors.
Editor's note: This story was originally published April 7, 2022 and updated April 27, 2023.