The DIY Network’s first free preview may be ending tonight, but the channel is keeping its promotional momentum alive with a new big-money contest with Home Depot called ‘Canada’s Ultimate Do-It-Yourself’er.’

Starting April 1, Canadians are invited to submit their before-and-after pictures of a home renovation project to DIY.ca, along with a reason as to why they should be crowned the best DIY’er in the country. A Home Depot DIY expert will choose the winner, who gets a $15,000 prize for their skills. Prizing includes a $10,000 Home Depot card and tools from contest partners Milwaukee Electric, Ridgid and Ryobi Tools.

The contest will be promoted in over 150 Home Depot stores using 390,000 contest postcards and on-air with 30-second spots on the DIY Network and Canwest specialty channels. Online, the media strategy includes a rich media ad on Facebook (homepage and secondary pages), the AOL network, NHL.com and affiliate team websites and on the VideoEgg network. Mentions will also be included in the HGTV.ca newsletter and the channel’s social media pages.

The campaign was timed to keep excitement about the channel high with the end of the free preview period, Solange Bernard, director of marketing, lifestyle channels, Canwest, tells MiC.

‘We felt that a contest celebrating DIY’ers was a great way to build brand awareness, keep the excitement up about the channel and hopefully encourage people to subscribe,’ she says.

The contest closes April 30, and the winner will be announced in May.