How to repair tools, items, and buildings in Valheim

Valheim repair - a Viking is stood close to water with a sunset in the distance and tall trees to their right
(Image credit: Iron Gate Studios)

If you want to know how to repair in Valheim, you're in the right place. Iron Gate's Viking survival game doesn't make a point of highlighting exactly how to restore your items to their former glory. Thankfully, the process is a lot easier than you might think, and it won't cost you any resources, either. All you need is a hammer or a workbench, depending on what it is you want to repair.

Nobody wants to see their trusty iron axe's durability dip to dangerous levels while fighting skeletons in the Black Forest or watch their house crumble following a troll attack. So I'm here to help you avoid this situation in the future and keep your belongings in pristine condition. Here's how to do just that with this Valheim repair guide.

How to repair tools and gear in Valheim 

To keep your tools in good shape, you need to check their durability. Each of your tools has a tiny, white durability meter displayed in the top-left corner of your screen and in your inventory. If this bar depletes, you won't be able to continue using the tool.

Before you can repair your tools, you need to craft a Valheim workbench. If you're in desperate need of repairs while away from your base, consider chopping down some trees and building this small crafting station. Workbenches also need a basic shelter to protect them from the elements, so keep this in mind.

Once you have a workbench to hand, press E on your keyboard to open the workbench menu, and click on the "repair an item" icon on the left side (below). Strangely, there doesn't appear to be a way to select the specific tool that you want to repair, so just keep clicking the button until all your tools have been mended. If nothing needs repairing, the icon will be greyed out. 

Valheim repair: How to fix buildings and items

Repairing buildings require you to follow different steps, but it's still nice and simple. You can confirm that a portion of your building is damaged by checking to see if it has a vertical health meter when you hover over it (below). Equip the hammer tool and right-click (Mouse-2) to open the build menu. Position your cursor over the damaged tile and left-click (Mouse-1) to repair it.

(Image credit: Iron Gate Studios)

Can you repair carts and boats?

Once you have a workbench, forge and smelter, you can craft a cart (wood x20, bronze nails x10) to transport all your heavy items. Dragging this heavy item through the various biomes of the map naturally causes some wear and tear, which can damage the cart. I recommend using the hoe tool to create some roads first to minimise damage. That said, you can repair a cart by using the hammer (similar to building tiles) providing it's within the radius of your workbench.

The same rule applies to your raft, karve, and longship Valheim boat. So, consider constructing a dock to make these easier to repair.

Emma Matthews

As PC Gamer's guides writer, Emma is usually juggling several games at once. She loves competitive first-person shooters like CS:GO and Call of Duty, but she always has time for a few rounds of Hearthstone. She's happiest when she's rescuing pugs in Spelunky 2.

With contributions from