UKBouldering.com
the shizzle => shootin' the shit => Topic started by: Paul B on July 06, 2016, 09:22:44 pm
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AKA the Screwfix appreciation thread...
Usually I just hassle Jim for his expertise but he came up blank with this one.
I have to* re-paint my flaking, galvanised railings. My original intention was to wire brush them and re-paint with Hammerite 'straight to rust', or 'straight to galvanised' but I'm worried the brushing will ruin the galvanisation? Does anybody on here have the knowledge?
Apologies for the boring nature of the thread.
*I've committed to the railings, some exterior paintwork and re-roofing a shed. Perhaps the solution is to pay someone else ;)
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If it's flaking off then the galvanising is already knackered.
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If it's flaking off then the galvanising is already knackered.
The paint is flaking on the gate, wear points etc.
Do you still feel it's the galvanising? Generally the rest is in fairly good condition.
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Just brush them, or sandpaper, and use the hammerite. It's a fence or gate not a critical component for the space shuttle. You've mentioned the galvanisation is flaking I'm taking it you mean the zinc top coat and not the steel underneath is riddled with rust. Either way just paint it get rid of your dog and have a baby.
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Just brush them, or sandpaper, and use the hammerite. It's a fence or gate not a critical component for the space shuttle. You've mentioned the galvanisation is flaking I'm taking it you mean the zinc top coat and not the steel underneath is riddled with rust. Either way just paint it get rid of your dog and have a baby.
It's important I do it right as it's not getting done again; the paint is flaking not the zinc (that I can tell).
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Ffs man I'm committed to another thread! No just brush/sand it then paint it. All you need to do is think how long it will take you to do a good job painting it then multiply it by roughly 3. Wet your brush first then 'flick' off the excess water then apply paint ;) fuck me it takes ages to do!
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Dense is right, just paint it.
(My phone auto corrected dense to sense, is there a higher meaning in this...)
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I feel like you asked for advice in the wrong place.
I could tell you about decking-gate over here but, frankly, it's just too boring.
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Take it off. Get it shot blasted then powder coated in Fuck me red, to match the VRs :)
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I've just had some cast iron park bench ends sand blasted and powder coated at not inconsiderable cost. Gert big orange rust areas showing up already. Well disappointing. Wish I'd just used hammerite. Its always been pretty mega on the stuff I've used it on in the past and would have cost me 20 quid, not 300. :furious:
Avoid powder coating if I were you.
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(I was taking the piss by the way :) )
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(I was taking the piss by the way :) )
I suspected so 8)
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Just brush them, or sandpaper, and use the hammerite. It's a fence or gate not a critical component for the space shuttle. You've mentioned the galvanisation is flaking I'm taking it you mean the zinc top coat and not the steel underneath is riddled with rust. Either way just paint it get rid of your dog and have a baby.
+1 to this entire post. Particularly this:
It's a fence or gate not a critical component for the space shuttle.
Dense doesn't know jack shit about politics but he knows his gates.
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https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=aCbfMkh940Q (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=aCbfMkh940Q)
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I managed to cover myself in white primer earlier.
Dropped the can while painting my bay window, which, incidentally, also presented a "strip-it-or-sand-it" conundrum.
Now all my washing stinks of white spirit :slap:
Managed to remove most of the paint though.
This thread has legs.
By the way, I often try to stick to a routine of time spent on house = time spent climbing/training
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Now all my washing stinks of white spirit :slap:
I'll be wary of smoking near you later on then.
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Paul,
I'd use a stiff nylon brush, not wire, to protect the galv (I feel like I'm writing advice on brushing a hold....) and then use the Hammerite straight to galv.
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You COULD just leave it and go climbing... :devil-smiley:
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A sense loner, you lot are all just behind the times anyway. Give it 10 years and you'll all be worshipping me like a false idol, or I'll be known as the Oracle at Derbyshire. It's a simple choice you've got, oracle or god?
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I didn't know you were Jonny Vegas in real life.
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I feel about the same weight at the moment! :o
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Paul,
I'd use a stiff nylon brush, not wire, to protect the galv (I feel like I'm writing advice on brushing a hold....) and then use the Hammerite straight to galv.
Second this, the purpose of the zinc is not just a protecting layer but it will oxidise instead of the iron, thereby preventing the rust even if the zinc layer is compromised (if you happen to be interested see here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathodic_protection (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathodic_protection) ) So keeping the layer of zinc is pretty key.
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Hammerite has changed, it's not what it used to be!
http://www.theminiforum.co.uk/forums/topic/287610-hammerite-new-formula/
I've had really good results on doing the underside of my van using POR 15, which can then be over-painted. http://www.por15.com/POR-15_Rust_Preventive_Coating.
I don't know about galvinised - but I'm sure you can do some research.
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Good thread - speaking as someone with a) a house with loads needing doing and b) a two-year-old being significant barrier to getting it done.
Question for anyone out there who might know about this - has anyone got experience of installing or having a French Drain as a way of controlling damp / moisture?
Short story, despite my (Victorian terraced) house having a barrier damp course installed, the path / yard is concreted right up to the wall, thus breaching the damp course and rendering it useless. In addition, the entire front of the house has no damp course at all and as a result (I assume) there's significant damp / moisture in that area, coupled with the fact we've got a cellar.
Looking on a few period home forums, I gather a French Drain is one potential weapon in the arsenal, but mindful of kicking off a big bit of work for no benefit.
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Is a french drain really that much work? Is there a large amount of concrete to be broken out beforehand? Out of interest what's the wall construction?
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At the front of the house, it's whatever the original 1890s is - so a cellar in the ground with the house on top. Walls are brick with sandstone on front elevation, rendered on the side. The back's an extension built in 1990s /2000s but no idea as to the foundations or whatever.
I don't doubt that a French Drain would be a relatively trivial job for someone with experience, tools, knowhow and the time to do it - I've been doing odds and sods around the place but my expertise / confidence extends about as far as painting and decorating, resealing the bath etc.
My problem is that (I'm pretty sure but not 100%) the damp is getting in (there's actually water going into the cellar at one point where the course is breached) this way - i.e. there are no leaks or gutter problems from above. I have a feeling that source of our musty smells throughout the ground floor are the floorboards / joists underneath getting damp via this route.
As we'll likely want to move in the short to mid term I'm loathed to spend loads getting it sorted, but that's kind of the point - I've no idea whether it's a £500 job, or a £3000 one, or indeed what trade I need to contact to get quotes. I'm assuming it's just builders I should be calling - or something more specialised?
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Multiple quotes would help with the latter.
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I have a feeling that source of our musty smells throughout the ground floor are the floorboards / joists underneath getting damp via this route.
As we'll likely want to move in the short to mid term I'm loathed to spend loads getting it sorted, but that's kind of the point - I've no idea whether it's a £500 job, or a £3000 one, or indeed what trade I need to contact to get quotes. I'm assuming it's just builders I should be calling - or something more specialised?
I've recently been through a similar hassle with my crumbling Edwardian Leeds terrace house. After a few quotes I finally found a guy who seemed to know what he was talking about and came up with pragmatic (and one of the cheaper) solutions to sort. If you're based in Leeds he may be able to help. I can PM you his details.
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I'm about to go through the same possibly... The (probably Edwardian Leeds terraced) house I'm about to move back into used to have a very damp cellar but not sure what it's like these days. I'd ideally like to store a load of stuff down there, what's the best way of keeping it dry if it's still getting damp? I think the walls were recently repointed so I'm not sure if that's helped at all.
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From my various investigations, sub-floor dampness is somewhat of an area of expertise!
In terms of a cellar, first point is to check whether there is ingress of water, whether from a leak somewhere, or it can actually just be a rise in water table externally, and if your cellar is of Edwardian / Victorian age it's probably just a big hole in the ground with a single course of bricks / blocks lining it, so the moisture gets in from below / sides.
After that, the next option is I understand to improve ventilation, either via air bricks, ducting, fans - whatever.
You could of course start investigating the tanking / sealing route but you need deep pockets for that, though you would end up with a "proper" live-able space to use as an extra room, man-cave etc.
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Blimey a two page DIY forum where Jim hasn't waded in recommending use of unnecessarily large power tools. I'd better rectify that sharpish. Back to the painting/stripping, if you use something softish to strip the flaking paint it shouldn't damage the zinc too much, something like this in a drill...
http://www.toolstation.com/shop/p80410?table=no
Don't know much about French drains, but renting a BIG breaker (http://www.hss.com/hire/c/breaking-and-drilling/electric-breakers) would definitely make life a lot easier/more messy(delete as appropriate) if you need to dig out a load of concrete/undermine your whole house etc.
Grrrrrr :thumbsup:
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Interesting you mention undermining the house, that's one of my fears, and a reason why I'd rather have a professional do it!
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You shouldn't have any external finishes above the level of the underside of the floor joists, whether concrete, or gravel.
The robust old-fashioned way to ensure that your cellar remained dry, was to build a second wall a foot or so away from your house from cellar level up to ground level and span paving slabs between that wall and your house ( thinking about it that means a wall built right to your house as well to sit the other end of the slab on). The top of the slabs obviously also need to be below the underside of the floor joists.
Companies that deal with basements tend to let the water in, but trap it behind a membrane, then either pump it out, or let it drain away.
You can't undermine your house without going below the foundations, which have to be below the level of your basement, so don't be scared of digging down a foot or two externally.
You should however be aware of snake-oil welding charlatans, since there are loads around when it comes to damp proofing etc.
Bear in mind that an injected dpc will only protect the ground floor and not the basement, since it gives limited protection against rising damp, and rising damp only.
Feel free to pm me piccies or anything if you think I can assist
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From what I remember the cellar got tanked with some sort of thick grey paint, but it didn't solve the problem as all the water just pooled on the now-waterproof floor. I think the repointing work was to stop water coming in through that way but I'm not sure if this has stopped it. The ventilation had all been blocked up, I'm not sure whether it's been unblocked or replaced with air bricks, but I guess we'll see next week.
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apologies for my lack of appearance in this thread but am currently suffering with dog aids/chest infection/hedgehog leprosy. normal service should hopefully be resumed over the weekend.....
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From what I remember the cellar got tanked with some sort of thick grey paint, but it didn't solve the problem as all the water just pooled on the now-waterproof floor. I think the repointing work was to stop water coming in through that way but I'm not sure if this has stopped it. The ventilation had all been blocked up, I'm not sure whether it's been unblocked or replaced with air bricks, but I guess we'll see next week.
The one thing that made s big difference on a project I worked on was increasing the area and robustness of the hard landscaping next to the house, ensuring the water runs away.
They're ate plenty companies out there that can provide a pumped solution ( as in you have a pump installed in a small sump in the basement floor, rather than they pump something in), which, combined with the eggbox style membrane may be the only decent long term answer, especially if it just never stops raining.
Your new neighbors should be able to shed some light on whether damp had gotten worse for everyone, which will help narrow down the cause.
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From what I remember the cellar got tanked with some sort of thick grey paint, but it didn't solve the problem as all the water just pooled on the now-waterproof floor. I think the repointing work was to stop water coming in through that way but I'm not sure if this has stopped it. The ventilation had all been blocked up, I'm not sure whether it's been unblocked or replaced with air bricks, but I guess we'll see next week.
if you don't want to/can't afford to go down the cellar tanking route then all you can really do is increase air flow/ventilation with air bricks. Heating can also help ie. adding a radiator in the cellar.
Also what Rodma said above about ensuring the water runs away from the house
If water is pooling then that would generally indicate a broken drain close to the wall
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Next question:
Has anyone got experience of the cheaper end of laser levels? I've got a lot of photos to put up and as I've proven this weekend, nothing in this house is square or level so measuring and using a spirit level just doesn't work (and yes, I'm that fussy).
I've done a bit of research and this:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bosch-PLL-Laser-Spirit-Level/dp/B00B1QZ9IK
looks like a viable option?
It need to be mountable on a tripod (which I own) so I can use centreline level from wall to wall etc.
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We are experimenting at work with a laser levelling setup for some cutting alignment, and I think its a similar laser.
According to the boss, they are pretty good!
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Watch out for those cheap Chinese lasers.. They don't shine in straight lines.. :)
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if you're hanging photos in a house that isn't square or level (like most houses) than putting everything up perfectly level with each other generally means they won't look level. best off doing it by eye and saving the money IMHO
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if you're hanging photos in a house that isn't square or level (like most houses) than putting everything up perfectly level with each other generally means they won't look level. best off doing it by eye and saving the money IMHO
Agreed, i hung my degree show about 15 years ago without level.
Just used a tape measure for distances etc.
Only advice I got was to put centre of picture at eye hight.
I'm off to the Tate today if I get the chance will ask about how they hang pictures.
Expect they will use level, eyeballing would be just as good.
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I look forward to your critique of the alignments.
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I look forward to your critique of the alignments.
Straight up or on the level?
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if you're hanging photos in a house that isn't square or level (like most houses) than putting everything up perfectly level with each other generally means they won't look level. best off doing it by eye and saving the money IMHO
I'm with Jim on this one - if the floor isn't level then the ceiling is highly unlikely to be either. Having said that go and buy a laser level anyway - it will either a) prove that the ceiling and\or floors are seriously wonky b) make you feel more manly because you have more man tools (see Jim and drills) c) both. ;)
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if you're hanging photos in a house that isn't square or level (like most houses) than putting everything up perfectly level with each other generally means they won't look level. best off doing it by eye and saving the money IMHO
I'm with Jim on this one - if the floor isn't level then the ceiling is highly unlikely to be either. Having said that go and buy a laser level anyway - it will either a) prove that the ceiling and\or floors are seriously wonky b) make you feel more manly because you have more man tools (see Jim and drills) c) both. ;)
Been at Tate Modern all week an teacher course (#tatesummerschool) had to work with others to present exhibition that was open to public at the gallery today.
I asked about hanging photos/pictures.
Pros would use a level, if they can find a laser they would use that.
Low tech suggested way was to use string and measure.
In terms of height - no set height.
Each persons eye height being different.
But lowering height creates more intimacy and increasing gives piece "God" like status.
Hope this helps.
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On that basis, given they're my photos I'm butting them up to the ceiling!
...and Jim, I thought better of you, could be tooling up here!
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Not really in the spirit of the 'DIY' thread.. but has anyone got recommendations for a good builder/roofer in Leeds?
Got plans ect. just need the man power now!
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Not really in the spirit of the 'DIY' thread.. but has anyone got recommendations for a good builder/roofer in Leeds?
Got plans ect. just need the man power now!
Maybe you should start another thread 'It never starts...the builders' thread' ;)
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We had a new radiator installed in our front bedroom. Been having trouble with it since installation. It never gets really hot, and only the top half ever gets warm.
Radiators throughout the house have been bled and there's definitely no air in the system. Pressure seems normal (this is the furthest radiator from the boiler).
One suggestion we had was to turn all other radiators off and turn the heating up to full. Not sure what this is supposed to do but it has worked in the past. Radiator ran normally for a time. Tried again tonight (with system pressure topped up) and hasn't seemed to work. Top of radiator is hot but bottom half not. Any idea what to do?
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easy one this. not enough flow through it. should be 2 valves on either end of the rad, one a TRV probably set to 3? the other end is a locksheild valve. Take the cap off this and with an adjustable spanner or pliars, turn this valve 1/2 turn anti-clockwise. If its still not done the trick then another half turn. if this doesn't work the TRV is either set too low or isn't seated on the valve and needs unscrewing, setting correctly and rescrewing on. that will be £50 thanks :)
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Brilliant, thanks Jim. Will give that a go and report back.
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Some DIY advice from a clumsy punter...
When doing the simple, yet very worthwhile and effective job of insulating the loft of your rented top floor tenement flat, don't trip over -- not once, but twice -- resulting a a big hole and a big crack/loose bit of plaster in the lathe a plaster ceiling.
No, that would be stupid and lead to 3 days of plastering repair work (maybe 4 hours if you know what you're doing) and a LOT of cleaning.
In the plus side our heating is on around 1/2 the time it was before....
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couldn't remember whether I had linked this before
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=141&t=510782&i=0
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My kitchen is an off-shoot to the back of the house (stone construction, no cavity) with a single radiator at the end. It's not freezing in the kitchen during the winter but it's never going to be boiling. There's currently no extractor (the cooker hood simply passes through a charcoal filter and recirculates). I'd like to fit one but it'll involve coring or stitch drilling through the stone.
I've noticed that where the upper cupboards meet the end wall, there's a void (as the cupboard isn't full depth for some reason) where there's obviously been condensation and there appears to be some mold. If I dry out the area (I'm pretty sure it's not coming in) with a fan heater or similar, apply treatment to the mold, can I then simply fill the void with expanding foam?
Secondly (not quite DIY this one), when chopping wood, what surface are people doing so on? My patio doesn't seem like a wise choice.
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Secondly (not quite DIY this one), when chopping wood, what surface are people doing so on? My patio doesn't seem like a wise choice.
Another big log is what you need. Can be any sort of big log. When it falls apart get another big log and sacrifice the original big log on the fire.
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Sycamore makes a good chopping block Paul, once seasoned obviously. Tough.
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My kitchen is an off-shoot to the back of the house (stone construction, no cavity) with a single radiator at the end. It's not freezing in the kitchen during the winter but it's never going to be boiling. There's currently no extractor (the cooker hood simply passes through a charcoal filter and recirculates). I'd like to fit one but it'll involve coring or stitch drilling through the stone.
I've noticed that where the upper cupboards meet the end wall, there's a void (as the cupboard isn't full depth for some reason) where there's obviously been condensation and there appears to be some mold. If I dry out the area (I'm pretty sure it's not coming in) with a fan heater or similar, apply treatment to the mold, can I then simply fill the void with expanding foam?
Reckon so.. It's highly likely that since you don't have an actual extractor fan, any water vapour from kettles, boiling pans etc etc will just condense somewhere on a cold surface (in a poorly ventilated spot) like on a wall behind some cupboards. Mold will then grow.
Resolution would be as you suggest, to fit an actual extractor hood that vents to outside (part F building regs says it should be 30l/s extract rate for over hob hoods, or 60l/s if its just a wall extractor in the kitchen) to remove water vapour from the kitchen. Filling it with expanding foam will just stop any air getting to it, though that might not be necessary if you're removing the moisture in the first place.
And as above, big slice of tree trunk is what I use for splitting on. That said, I borrowed a hydrolic splitter for some particularly tricky knarled wood and it was awesome. Quite tempted if I had somewhere to store it.
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It's not a quick thing to get the extractor fitted (the walls a REALLY thick) so removing the place where the water condenses (it really is a trap) was my initial plan?
Peewee says he has a big trunk I can have (what?).
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We bought a 1 gang socket with USB sockets built in to it today.
The socket that we are replacing is a normal 1 gang socket. I thought it would be an easy switch, like for like, but the new one has an additional earth point. The wiring diagram says to have the normal wires going in and it seems to have additional earth wires labelled "from supply" and "to functional earth". The diagram is on the final page here: http://www.bgelectrical.uk/public/downloads/data-sheets/usb/single-13-amp-socket-with-usb-charger-900-series.pdf
The existing socket is wired like this (though without an additional earth coming out the side, I.e. Just the two earth wires coming in from the ring main): http://www.socketsandswitches.com/images/content-images/13-amp-single-socket-wiring.jpg
Not quite sure if I can easily change them. Does anyone has any thoughts or knowledge on this?
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We bought a 1 gang socket with USB sockets built in to it today.
The socket that we are replacing is a normal 1 gang socket. I thought it would be an easy switch, like for like, but the new one has an additional earth point. The wiring diagram says to have the normal wires going in and it seems to have additional earth wires labelled "from supply" and "to functional earth". The diagram is on the final page here: http://www.bgelectrical.uk/public/downloads/data-sheets/usb/single-13-amp-socket-with-usb-charger-900-series.pdf
The existing socket is wired like this (though without an additional earth coming out the side, I.e. Just the two earth wires coming in from the ring main): http://www.socketsandswitches.com/images/content-images/13-amp-single-socket-wiring.jpg
Not quite sure if I can easily change them. Does anyone has any thoughts or knowledge on this?
You can just wire like for like, i.e. wire it exactly the same as your original.
The USB socket makes no difference to the wiring, the additional earth connection is to earth your socket to the metal back box it sits in (there should be an earth point in there).
That said, I spoke to a sparky 6 months ago who said the earth to back box wasn't needed anymore..
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what changement said. just replace like for like.
some switches will have 2 different earth connectors but are both linked and are also linked to the back box via the screws that connect it to the back box - these are not always metal anyway ie dry lining boxes are plastic as are some pattress boxes
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Cheers both - it's a plastic backbox so I don't imagine it will have earthing capability anyway? Will get this changed later.
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Just a bit of learning from yesterday.
Had a problem with our UPVC back door lock - was getting increasingly tricky to get the key out of the outdoors side after I'd locked it, and then yesterday it was impossible to do so.
Great I thought, another callout fee, more expense...
However, had a quick Google and it's an absolute doddle to sort out. Literally undo one screw, pop the lock out, stick the other one back in and put the screw back. £25 for a new lock and 5 minutes later and it was sorted.
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you put in one of the modern anti bump/snap ones, yeah?
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Aye - a Yale one. There were some cheaper "own brand" options on offer, but figured home security is an area you really shouldn't cut corners with!
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Might not be in the right place but does anyone know a decent roofer in N.Wales- Bangor area?? Thanks
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Today my aim was to flush our heating system in the boat so we can fit a new central heating pump. So far I've:
Isolated both radiators and drained them.
Disconnected two pipes which lead to and from the wood burner (which heats the water) and managed to get all water out.
Now the boat is a complete too but it's feeling close to done with only one pipe left to drain. However the liquid coming out was a real shitty brown colour so I'm thinking it might be worth flushing the system properly somehow...
For the radiators, it's it possible to fill a radiator from the top? Ie take the whole bleed valve part off?
And any tricks to flush a 15 meter, 15mm plastic pipe that's not congested m connected to anything?
Finally, it's there anything I can fit whilst the full system is taken apart that means I won't have to do this shit next time? It's been awful...
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We have a leaky ceiling in our kitchen. The problem first manifested as a bulge in the ceiling next to the exterior wall. We punched a little hole in this and drained the water out.
The roof above this section of the kitchen is a tiled bit of roof that runs up to the upstairs dormer. On looking at the roof, there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with it, though there was a crack in the flashing placed between the roof and the dormer. We've had that flashing replaced and for a while (when I suppose the weather was quite dry) we thought the problem was fixed.
Something is definitely still leaking as the holes in the ceiling (which we fortunately haven't got round to redoing yet) are now dripping again. It seems to be rainwater related as opposed to something internal: dripping is linked to rainfall; no pressure loss from the heating system; and I don't think there is any clean water plumbing in the upstairs of that bit of the house (the upstairs bathroom is in the front, kitchen in the back).
Any idea how I might find the source of this leak? It's problematic that what little roof space there is above the kitchen isn't accessible. My wife has mooted the idea of (since it will need replacing anyway) making the little drainage hole in the ceiling into a much bigger hole so that we can poke our heads into the roof space and have a look at what's going on. I'm loathe to do this as I'm not sure whether we'll have to make an enormous hole in the ceiling for it to be any use (there might be beams up there which restrict vision and access), and whilst the little drainage holes that are there at the moment aren't pretty, there at least isn't a massive gaping hole in the kitchen roof. I could get a roofer out to have a proper look at the roof but without being able to do an internal inspection it seems unlikely that they're going to find any leak from the outside unless it's really obvious.
Thoughts?
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Finally, it's there anything I can fit whilst the full system is taken apart that means I won't have to do this shit next time? It's been awful...
A magnetic filter?
Will - what's the roof construction under the tiles? and, has the flashing been done correctly? I ask, as ours (although not causing a problem), actually laps the wrong way.
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No idea on either of those questions if I'm honest. The flashing seems alright but I'm not really sure what I should be looking for to judge whether it's a well done job. It looks alright to me.
What should I be looking for to answer the roof construction question. Happy to post photos.
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Tracing a leak like that in a roof can be a nightmare,
The issue is water can leak in one spot, run along/down a rafter, then drip in an entirely different spot.
The only real way would be as you say - to bring down some of the ceiling till you can poke your head up into the space and then wait till it rains hard. Then you might be able to trace the leak. Sounds like your plaster is a bit shot anyways so perhaps not too much of an issue. its not too hard to put some plasterboard back in and plaster it back over yourself though clearly a professional plasterer will make a much nicer job of it.
There are 'endoscope' attachments for phones cheaply available from ebay that might be worth a shout. Never used one, so they may be shit.
:shrug:
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Tracing a leak like that in a roof can be a nightmare,
The issue is water can leak in one spot, run along/down a rafter, then drip in an entirely different spot.
The only real way would be as you say - to bring down some of the ceiling till you can poke your head up into the space and then wait till it rains hard. Then you might be able to trace the leak. Sounds like your plaster is a bit shot anyways so perhaps not too much of an issue. its not too hard to put some plasterboard back in and plaster it back over yourself though clearly a professional plasterer will make a much nicer job of it.
There are 'endoscope' attachments for phones cheaply available from ebay that might be worth a shout. Never used one, so they may be shit.
:shrug:
This, really.
The nightmare part at least.
I have inspection cameras and endo’s galore. Not much use for leak detecting.
There are methods, but they have major drawbacks.
Pick up some food colouring. Mix it up in water (not too much 2ltr max) and methodically pour onto sections of the roof. If you use two different colours you can shorten the process by doing two at once as long as you are careful not to overlap.
Down side one:
It might take minutes, hours or even days for the water to make it’s way from leak to drip point. So where I’ve had to do this in the past, I’ve used multiple colours, sequentially, until it shows up; so you know which pour is arriving.
Food colouring stains, a good painting will be needed after, but it shows the leak track well.
Down side two:
You might not have a leak at all. I had exactly this issue in the property we let out. It’s a two hundred year old cottage that was renovated in early 2000. The builder built a lean-to annex to house the kitchen and periodically the “new” roof leaked. After two years of chasing, we started monitoring the weather instead of looking for leaks. It turned out, a certain wind direction and force was blowing rain up under the eves and soaking the insulation under the tiles and capillary action was transporting it to a point where an errant screw diverted/coalesced it to drip onto the Gypsum board ceiling; several feet from the entry point and actually uphill.
On that note.
Check your eves, soffits and fascias. Also, gutters. Blocked and overflowing gutters divert water into odd places.
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Will have you got any felt?
The scopes aren't shit at all. A friend at work bought one after he plumbed/tiled his bathroom and then had a leak.
We subsequently used it at work to look down come core barrels we'd taken in an old structure. It was easily as good if not better than the hire alternatives.
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I have no felt but could acquire some. What would I be using it for?
It's an interesting point about the wind-blown problem. There was a time recently when I was out with the baby one windy day and I got a call from my wife to tell me that the ceiling had just dripped a few times in very quick succession. We hypothesised that some water could have been blown from the dormer roof and come through a gap in the roof in a hurry. It was a freak event that hasn't been repeated.
This side of the house faces east so is generally in the lee of the prevailing westerlies, though.
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Will have you got any felt?
The scopes aren't shit at all. A friend at work bought one after he plumbed/tiled his bathroom and then had a leak.
We subsequently used it at work to look down come core barrels we'd taken in an old structure. It was easily as good if not better than the hire alternatives.
If you’re following a pipe back, looking for a leak on that pipe, amen.
But hunting for a rain leak in several square meters of roof...
it’s not image quality, it’s field of vision etc.
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I forgot that I should really give an update.
We chopped into the ceiling and could see two little pipes that looked wet. A plumber was called who replaced the one that was leaking. It was a hot water pipe. How was it leaking? Picture this.
The pipe was running between joists and ceiling plaster. When the house was built (presumably) the pipe had been pinned to the joist by knocking a nail into the joist and curving it around the pipe.
There are two theories as to why this pipe has leaked - one is that a little hole was gradually rubbed into the pipe as the expansion and contraction (it's a hot water pipe) caused it to rub on the nail. The other is that the nail has galvanically (is that a word?) corroded the copper pipe which it was touching.
Anyway, pipe fixed and ceiling replastered. Sorted.
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Which brings me to my next question. I've now got to paint onto the bare plaster. What paints am I going to need?
Plain white emulsion, watered down to a mist coat - 1 coat of that?
Then a base coat? Just use un-watered down white emulsion?
Then the top coat.
God I feel stupid.
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On that note.
Check your eves, soffits and fascias. Also, gutters. Blocked and overflowing gutters divert water into odd places.
Random one - I think we definitely have at least one misaligned downpipe, and as far as I know nobody has checked the drains etc at our place.
Has anyone had this done? Does this get pricey having to get scaffold etc, or is it just "bloke with massive ladder and his mate"?
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There are two theories as to why this pipe has leaked - one is that a little hole was gradually rubbed into the pipe as the expansion and contraction (it's a hot water pipe) caused it to rub on the nail.
It will be this. Seen it before where the pipe ran through a brick wall and rubbed against the brick. if its a fairly long straight run, then the movement as its heats and contracts daily, is considerable, and over decades, can wear a hole.
As for paint, We've always used Wickes white 'Straight to Plaster' paint. Cheap and no faffing with watering down. Covers really well. Did all the rooms in our old house and most of the rooms in this one. Never had any issues.
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Thanks Sam. Did you then have to buy a separate base coat and a top coat? Or can you just paint top coat straight onto the straight to plaster stuff. I'm just thinking about how many tins of paint I'm going to end up bringing home (doing the walls and glossing at the same time)
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When did you realise you were old will?
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Will, after getting some ceilings re-plastered we were told to seal it with a PVA solution, I think 1 part PVA to 4 parts water. Then we just used a couple of coats of standard Dulux brilliant white matt paint. Seems to have done the job nicely.
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We've always just used a few coats of this - no pva. Then nothing else if its staying white. Or a couple of coats of a colour of your choice.
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When did you realise you were old will?
I've been old since I can remember. You on the other hand are a peculiar artefact. Ostensibly mid-twenties, unable to capitalise proper nouns, yet doing a PhD and with the grey hair of a wizened badger. How old are you?
Thanks for the suggestions. Think I'll slap on some straight to plaster and then get involved with the top coats.
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who knows? im just waiting for the day someone mistakes me for a professor or local wildlife
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Bare plaster can be dusty and is quite absorbent so I think PVA helps seal the surface meaning the paint sticks better and you need less. A watered down coat of emulsion does a similar job. Certain paints might not stick well to bare plaster.
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Bare plaster can be dusty and is quite absorbent so I think PVA helps seal the surface meaning the paint sticks better and you need less. A watered down coat of emulsion does a similar job. Certain paints might not stick well to bare plaster.
I understood that the PVA was for older plaster (usually looks grey) and watered down emulsion was fine for newer plaster.
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Certain paints might not stick well to bare plaster.
Which is why I assume the Wickes 'Straight to Plaster' paint has a bit of an additive to help it stick/bond the bare plaster.
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watered-down PVA is put over old plaster before a reskim to stop the new plaster soaking into it as quickly so the plasterer has enough time to work it when its on.
DO NOT put PVA over plaster before painting!
Put a coat of watered down emulsion on new plaster once fully dry and then 2 coats of normal emulsion.
Don't bother with all this one-coat and straight to plaster paint bullshit.
Do a job right first time, do it once
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How's that tiling coming on Ken?
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All done. Grouting tomorrow
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I may have just cut a 4" hole through the wrong wall. Great.
It turns out my preferred routing of a some new ducting for a combined bathroom/kitchen/toilet extraction system has a brick shaped wall in the road. Just before cutting the hole, I thought "should I measure this to confirm it's the correct place"....nah....it's the brick wall at the end of the loft, it must be the right place....
Anyway, other than fixing the extra hole (and now having to paint another room :oops: ), I now need to consider if I want to reconsider the central super quiet extraction fan in the loft, and going back to individual fans, or cut a 4" hole in the brick wall and try to push ducting through a 90 degree bend past the brick wall then a 1.5 m span to the end wall where it should meet an outlet on the shower room wall.
How hard do you reckon it will be to get the ducting through the void? (There's no access to that void without cutting some major holes in the plasterboard).
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_GetOS3atuOaH79vN3Y_BKWLhO0BROmQpZmhOzVcU_GAVmWGKHkwFPsNJ_qP5YJkxOmKclsgsQ=w327-h226-no)
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Ducting the Void 😂
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:lol: That's how this project seems at times...
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I forgot that I should really give an update.
We chopped into the ceiling and could see two little pipes that looked wet. A plumber was called who replaced the one that was leaking. It was a hot water pipe. How was it leaking? Picture this.
The pipe was running between joists and ceiling plaster. When the house was built (presumably) the pipe had been pinned to the joist by knocking a nail into the joist and curving it around the pipe.
There are two theories as to why this pipe has leaked - one is that a little hole was gradually rubbed into the pipe as the expansion and contraction (it's a hot water pipe) caused it to rub on the nail. The other is that the nail has galvanically (is that a word?) corroded the copper pipe which it was touching.
Anyway, pipe fixed and ceiling replastered. Sorted.
Before “retiring” (I fucking wish), I spent ~25years in ship building, engineering and the like.
There is a classic Flanders and Swan song, called “The Gasman Cometh”, Google it (assuming you don’t already know it).
My Grandfather introduced me to it (a lifelong Engineer himself), except he called it “The Engineers Theme tune”...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zyeMFSzPgGc (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zyeMFSzPgGc)
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Bit of a long shot but you never know.... one for the plumber or lateral thinker (possibly both):
Fitted a bathroom in my sister's house 3/4 years ago now. Shower is a standard mixer shower - hot and cold feeds pumped from airing cupboard (on landing) by one of these sort of pumps: https://www.screwfix.com/p/salamander-pumps-ct50-xtra-regenerative-twin-shower-pump-1-5bar/20423
Hot feed to pump comes from adjacent hot water cylinder, cold feed to pump from a header tank in loft. All standard install as I understand it. System generally works ok but occasionally pump won't kick in when shower tap is opened like it's supposed to. Initial and not altogether satisfactory solution is to crank the shower tap over to cold and open tap fully, this semi reliably brings the pump on and once it's going, tap can then be adjusted to desired temp. If that doesn't work, a second and considerably less satisfactory solution (only had to resort to this once or twice so far) is to unscrew the shower head and, with tap fully open, suck like a saigon special on the pipe. This is sufficient to get the pump to kick in - can then switch tap off, re-attach shower head and pump seems happier to come on again when it's been in action recently.
Potential solutions (in order of difficulty/expense):
-sensor adjustment on pump; don't think there is one unfortuately.
-raising height of header tank and/or increasing allowed volume of water in header tank *
-lowering height of header tank and/or decreasing allowed volume of water in header tank *
-install new pump (easy enough to switch but not convinced it'll be any better)
(* not sure which, if either of those would help as not entirely sure where/how the pressure sensor inside pump operates...eg. senses lower pressure on outfeed to come on? difference in pressure between infeed and outfeed? bit confused here...)
Any suggestions or ideas most welcome.
I think the original/underlying problem is that the plumbing from the pump to the shower mixer is quite long and convoluted..... :???:
Hate plumbing and hate attics.
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Hi Steve,
I presume you already have the instruction manual for the pump. But in case not here is the link
http://www.free-instruction-manuals.com/pdf/pa_1001698.pdf
On page 22 it suggest some potential remedies including checking that the flow switch doesn't have debris around it.
My only other thought is I would be surprised if it is the cold water pressure that is the problem (so I doubt adjusting the header tank will help), much more likely to be low hot water pressure form the adjacent cylinder. This why I expect your initial solution of cranking the tap all the way to cold works, since the pressure on the cold alone is sufficient to get the pump going, but not when mixing with hot. Is it possible you can increase the pressure in the hot water system? Also does it tend to struggle when other systems in the house are using water, washing machine, dishwasher etc?
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Limescale? If in a hard water area?
As the manual said maybe needs a good clean out? Attic tanks (why isn’t it fed direct from the mains supply) can accumulate gunk...
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The pressure should be the the same on both hot and cold, as this is only contingent on the height of the header tank.
and the hot water cylinder should be fed from the same header tank in the loft.
(http://www.ekmpowershop25.com/ekmps/shops/ekm_tiger/857d27ed-d14b-469e-8086-6796be82fc64/files/Website/Water%20Systems/LowPressure.gif)
(except instead of your shower there, you'd have your pump, then your shower.)
However, if your cylinder is fed from the mains water (unvented), the pressure of the hot will be much higher than the cold, which might cause issues. or visa versa if the cold is actually mains fed, and the hot from the header, again might cause issues with an imbalance of pressure.
"Flow rate" (rather than pressure) might be reduced through one side, if say the pipes take a long an convoluted route though narrower pipes 15mm as opposed to 22mm which I guess may cause an issue.
Could there be an issue with air locks in the pump, i.e. does the pump need bleeding of air, is there a mechanism for doing this?
As others have said, the flow switch might be dicky/gunked up.
Perhaps a straight swap out for a new pump, then take it back to screwfix if it doesn't work and argue for a refund?
Not much help I'm afraid.
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Thanks a lot for replies.
Will check but I'm pretty sure from memory that the hot cylinder feed and the the cold feed to the pump both come from the same header tank in the loft (as per SamT's schematic) so both feeds to pump arrive at nominally the same pressure. Which, as Sam says, is how it's supposed to be for this type of system. (Header tank also gives 'buffer reservoir' if your pump outstrips mains fill rate I guess)
Sorry should've mentioned the pump in question isn't exactly that specific pump I linked - just that style of unit but the troubleshooting advice from the manual is still relevant anyway, so thanks.
Is it possible you can increase the pressure in the hot water system? Also does it tend to struggle when other systems in the house are using water, washing machine, dishwasher etc?
Well, raising the header tank and/or adjusting ballcock to let more water in must increase the pressure a bit....perhaps not significantly though if you're just gaining a few inches of head....Can't see any other way to increase hot water pressure though.
Strangely, I've had reports that when water is being used elsewhere downstairs in the house it can actually help to get the pump to come on. This is counter-intuitive to me though - like you, I'd have guessed it would only struggle more.
"Flow rate" (rather than pressure) might be reduced through one side, if say the pipes take a long an convoluted route though narrower pipes 15mm as opposed to 22mm which I guess may cause an issue.
Could there be an issue with air locks in the pump, i.e. does the pump need bleeding of air, is there a mechanism for doing this?
As others have said, the flow switch might be dicky/gunked up.
Thanks, less confused about the nature of the sensor/switch in the pump now. Not sure why I'd assumed it'd be switched somehow by pressure sensors but it'll be flow rate sensor(s) as you and Jamie said. Bit simpler.
Don't think there are any airlock issues - pump seems to run well and consistently as soon as it starts.
So, I think first thing to look at is any de-gunking possibilities at the pump, flow switch (hopefully get-at-able!), header tank and shower head. (Tom - yes house is in beverley so rock hard limescaley water)
If that doesn't suficiently improve and remedy flow rate reliably, look at raising header tank level and see if that has any impact.
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Well, raising the header tank and/or adjusting ballcock to let more water in must increase the pressure a bit....perhaps not significantly though if you're just gaining a few inches of head....Can't see any other way to increase hot water pressure though
1m height increase will give you 0.1 bar increase in pressure (1bar = ~10m head)
I assume that's probably not going to be possible and it'll be a right plumbing faff to extend all the pipe work. Especially in the confined spaces of the loft.
More I think about it, sounds like the flow switch to be honest. i.e. the only way to get the pump to trigger is to massively increase the flow rate by either turning cold on full, or sucking like buggery. Limescale may well be the issue.
Can you recall if it used to work fine, and has got steadily worse??
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Is this in E Yorks Steve or elsewhere? If it is then limescale might be the issue?
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Beverley as stated in last but one paragraph.
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Beverley as stated in last but one paragraph.
My bad. Skipping posts... yes then - very hard water. Right up to the limits.
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Pressure switch would be my first instinct, given that it can be made to work by rapidly or greatly dropping the pressure by increasing either hot or cold flow.
Also, because experience has taught me to check the “On switch” first...
(Despite 30 years of being a Marine Engineer, I actually still forget).
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Had a quick look today. Thought I'd initially check what flow rate was like without power to the pump. Quite surprised to find there was plenty of flow, both hot and cold - almost sufficient to shower without the pump running really, certainly more than enough to reliably bring the pump on when powered. This, plus the intermittent nature of the problem, suggests it has to be a debris/blockage problem at either the pump or the shower tap? The only other (unlikely?) way I can see flow being occasionally inhibited so badly would be if the pump was designed in a way that the impeller blades can sometimes come to rest in certain 'unlucky' positions; semi-blocking the pump exit until it got going a bit in a sort of pump catch 22. Imagine these things don't have that sort of design flaw though so current best theory is bits of debris/limescale occaionally finding a configuration to all but block the flow. I'm starting to suspect the porblem is centred in/around the shower tap - I think it was pretty cheap from Victoria Plum or similar, feels inconsistently stiff and crunchy to turn and generally a bit buggered... relatively easy fix if it is just that so will focus efforts there initially.
Thanks a lot for the tips, they've definitely helped.
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This is a little above the average diy job but I feel ukb knowledge may come to my rescue. I'm building a wide toe raft foundation (https://heatonmanufacturing.co.uk/raft-foundations-uses-types-cost/) for a double skin double garage with big loft. Doing a raft as the back of it is next to big drop (10 foot virtually straight down to a stream) and the ground is a little soft. All is good and I'm confident in this logic.. but we had a minor f up whilst digging and the back toe is about a foot/foot and half deeper. So this puts the back at 3 foot and front less than 2. As the trenches are also sloped inwards I reckon there will be double the amount of concrete at the back compared to front. I'm concerned this will put foundation and building unevenly balanced. Does anyone have any experience with such structural shenanigans? :blink:
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I think this post is best placed here... feel free to move it if not.
I'm looking to cut a retired rope to make a TRX / Rings set up from a tree in the garden.
I'm pretty keen to not cock up the cutting of the rope bit:
I plan to wrap the rope in climbing tape at the position I intend to cut, cut it with a sharp knife (Read: my partner's best cooking knife :2thumbsup:), remove the climbing tape then seal the ends with a lighter or over the hob if aforementioned partner hasn't found out about the use of the knife.
Does that sound about right? Is there anything else I should be aware of that would be easy to cock up?
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I've always cut rope by heating up a knife and cutting by melting through it.
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I've always cut rope by heating up a knife and cutting by melting through it.
:agree:
Use your oldest, crappest knife, because it's going to look like shit afterwards and you won't want to use it on food again.
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Sharper the better, I use a stanley knife with a fresh blade. Cut down on a piece of wood rather than fold in half and cut in the air (if that makes sense) as if you do you can pull strands out the core that haven't been cut. Use a lighter outdoors rather than hob, smell is pretty foul and can linger, and you could drop blobs of melted plastic. You might need to squeeze burnt ends together to get them to stick, if you do this, expect to burn fingertips if you aren't careful.
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Seems like you've all saved me from getting in a unseen shitstorm of trouble. Many thanks!
UKB Hive Mind wins again. :beer2:
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We’ve just done a big refurb of our bathroom, all the plumbing is new. Just fitted a new basin and tap but every morning and bed time (or anytime the tap hasn’t been used for a good few hours) the water runs a sport of slight orange/brown colour. I’m suspecting the tap, but anyone got any other ideas? Or if it is the tap solutions of how to stop it happening?
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If it’s the tap I’d have thought it would only be discoloured for the first half a second or so... anything else would reflect water in the pipes?
Are you in a hard or soft water area?
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Hot, cold or both?
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Sorry, should have said: it’s a mixer tap so difficult to tell (as there’s already water in the tap) and the discolouration only last a second, maybe two. We’re apparently in a “soft to moderately hard water” area
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Just goop inside the pipes I recon. Run it through for 10-20 secs before using. Should clean up. In hard water areas after a while a teeny layer of scale builds inside pipes that stops any of that too.
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It’s been in about a week, so we have run the tap, and I gave it another good run earlier but it’s still happening. It’s weird because all the plumbing in the bathroom is brand new so there shouldn’t be any goop in the pipes, that’s why I’m thinking it must be the tap :???:
The basin is also “downstream” of a brand new shower (which we fitted about a month ago) and the toilet and there’s been no issues with those.
(Thanks for the help/ideas though)
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Yeah - weird.
I worked with a prof of water quality once - and he would always run his taps for 30 secs to one min before using them!
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That’s a little concerning ;D
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Prob overkill (lead pipe concerns) but if you don’t visit your house or use your water for a few days it’s probably sensible just so you get fresh stuff coming through from the mains etc..
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Is it just that one tap in your household?
Turbidity issues can come from the wider network for a variety of reasons (incorrect connections :sick:, work upstream, deterioration of the pipes themselves etc). Sheffield University worked on a project called PODDS that predicts such issues.
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All the plumbing in the house is new (we had central heating installed when we bought the house last summer and also moved the kitchen sink, and now we’ve just re-done the bathroom).
Never noticed any discolouration issues until I installed the bathroom basin and tap about 2 weeks ago.
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My trusty £30 angle grinder has bitten the dust. Replacement options are
£40 bargain bucket jobbie (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Grinder-Meterk-Grinding-Abrasive-Cutting/dp/B07F1RRP25/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=angle+grinder&qid=1587043010&sr=8-5)
£60 slightly less cheapo option (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bosch-Professional-7-115-Corded-Grinder/dp/B01D9QAG9G/ref=sr_1_9?dchild=1&keywords=angle+grinder&qid=1587043010&sr=8-9)
£120 cordless deluxe version (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bosch-Professional-Cordless-Grinder-Without/dp/B00ABOAEAQ/ref=sr_1_8?dchild=1&keywords=bosch%2Bangle%2Bgrinder&qid=1587042835&sr=8-8&x=0&y=0&th=1)
The previous one died trying to wirebrush some some thick paint off a cast iron bench so whatever I go for it'd need to finish that off without dying. Leaning towards the mid-range option for that reason.
Is there any advantage to going with a cordless one? I've got some bosch batteries already so it's kind of tempting, but it seems a big premium to pay and I've never felt the need for a cordless grinder. Perhaps I just don't know what Im missing out on though?
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If you are working at home then I doubt it makes a difference. I use battery powered for cutting up rocks in the middle of nowhere. Not sure it is the exact same model, but we do rinse through the batteries in about 10 minutes of cutting. Definitely last <15 mins. Cutting limestone is probably more taxing for the battery than wire brushing stuff though.
Cordless things are nice though :wub:
I'd get a decent tool. If its good it will last and I think bosch have good a good guarantee. It is probably better balanced without the battery, but don't know this for sure, definitely lighter.
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Good knowledge, sounds like corded is the way then. I was at the wire brushing for 30mins and only got ~1/8th of the way through so can't be fucked recharging the batteries 10+ times.
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Depends how often you use it... I’ve an aldi/Lidl mains one that was £20 or less. Does me fine for the once a year on average I use it.
I might be tempted to a cordless one if I used it more often now I’ve bought into a power tool/battery ‘system’ though. Bike thieves tool of the trade nowadays - so expect they can perform quite well!
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The middle one.
For angle grinders, unless you have a very specific battery only requirement, then cordless is an “as well” option.
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Anyone have any carpet fitting experience?
I'm planning to instal a door in a carpeted hallway in the house and can't work out how to set the threshold. I'll have to cut the carpet to fit the door casing/jambs but I don't know what to do with the carpet.
The other doors on the same floor have Carpet-to-Carpet brass carpet joining bars like this (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Carpet-Threshold-Brass-Double-Joining/dp/B004ZPROLE/ref=sr_1_10?crid=29F32287PDREW&dchild=1&keywords=carpet+to+carpet+threshold&qid=1587548231&sprefix=carpet+to+carpet+thres%2Caps%2C143&sr=8-10), but I've also seen these (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Threshold-Carpet-Effect-Length-Thresholds/dp/B01H2T9GF6/ref=sr_1_7?crid=29F32287PDREW&dchild=1&keywords=carpet+to+carpet+threshold&qid=1587548231&sprefix=carpet+to+carpet+thres%2Caps%2C143&sr=8-7) brass plates you can just screw into the floor without cutting. I don't know whether to cut the carpet fully and instal the carpet-to-carpet plate, or to screw a plate on top and give the effect of a threshold. Anybody know?
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Are you Shauna and can I claim my £20? Sorry, I can't help with the carpet.
I was hoping to get UKB's opinion on lawnmowers. Years ago I burnt out my Dad's Flymo reluctantly cutting his lawn whilst listening to overly loud music (he still hasn't forgiven me). Still a decent time ago I helped him assemble a self-propelled petrol (Mountfield) that is still going strong. The new house has a decent amount of lawn (~350sqm; I think this dictates the size of the mower as ~46cm upwards). I'm not looking for something that gives a manicured finish, more something that'll require the least amount of effort for the mower to keep working reliably and takes as little time as possible to do. The neighbour has a ride-on (and his son has a John Deere electric kids toy that he follows his Dad on) but I think that's getting a bit silly!
I think realistically it's between petrol 4-stroke units such as:
https://www.screwfix.com/p/mountfield-hp185-46cm-125cc-hand-propelled-rotary-petrol-lawn-mower/202kg
https://hyundaipowerequipment.co.uk/garden-machinery/petrol-lawn-mowers/electric-start-petrol-lawnmowers/hyundai-hym460spe-self-propelled-electric-push-button-start-4-stroke-139cc-petrol-lawn-mower/
and also Honda's (which seem well reviewed but are quite a LOT of FAs):
https://www.lawnmowersdirect.co.uk/product/honda-hrg416sk-izy-self-propelled-petrol-lawnmower/
and something such as the Erbauer battery:
https://www.screwfix.com/p/erbauer-36v-5-0ah-li-ion-ext-brushless-cordless-46cm-lawn-mower/158fy
The only li-ion battery system I have currently is Bosch (blue) and they're not particularly large (1.5Ah perhaps). The reviews of the Erbauer include people saying they're better than their past self-propelled petrol mowers. This confuses me greatly.
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I'd ask someone who really knows. Who services the Mountfield, for example? Mountfield were bought out years ago and the quality dipped, so if you want top quality, you'd go for Hayter now. i'd imagine the Hyundai and Honda would be reliable based on their cars. Saying that, you'll need to service them regularly, unlike the Erbauer. It costs about £90 to get my 40 yr old Mountfield serviced every couple of years, though every year is the recommendation.
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I'd ask someone who really knows.
I was hoping on a friendly UKBer having the knowledge but I take your point. I asked my boss who likes to tinker in all things petrol powered and wished I hadn't as he went on a rant about Mountfield (the buy-out as you mentioned) and also declining quality of Briggs and Stratton. It was all a bit :tumble:.
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All the gardeners at work use(d) battery mowers. My dads switched to them now as well. He’s got a 48v set up...
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My lawn mower knowledge is nil, however, I have several power tools (drill, grinder, circular saw) in that same erbauer EXT range (ie with the same battery system) and they are all awesome. I expect a traditional preference for petrol lawn mowers is not that dissimilar to a traditional preference for cords on some power tools - you will see a lot of people swear that battery powered drills and grinders are a shit idea - but in my opinion with things like these it is no longer warranted.
Obviously worth looking at reviews of the actual lawn mower in question though.
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Apart from my big MacAlister drill, that comes out for thick concrete orLimestone walls, we use all battery kit. From impacts and drills to circular saws etc. Erbauer are perfectly adequate, if you spring for the brushless versions. Swap out the 2Ah batteries supplied with them for the4Ah version and you’re laughing. We started out with a few brands, DeWalt and others, but over the last eight years realised the Erbs were lasting and performing as well as the more expensive models.
Also, cheaper to repair and buy accessories for.
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My lawn mower knowledge is nil, however, I have several power tools (drill, grinder, circular saw) in that same erbauer EXT range (ie with the same battery system) and they are all awesome.
We started out with a few brands, DeWalt and others, but over the last eight years realised the Erbs were lasting and performing as well as the more expensive models.
Also, cheaper to repair and buy accessories for.
I'm aware I'm going to need a few other bits soon enough (including a strimmer) so that's why leaning towards Erbauer. Funnily enough my father in law has a battery powered mower currently and the batteries are specific to the mower rather than a system. That seems pretty nuts to me.
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Our dishwasher has started playing up. It seems to heat up too much as if the sensor isn't working properly. Then when it stops you just get wall of steam emerging when you open it. It does this on shorter 30 degree washes too when you shouldn't really be getting steam like that.
It's returning an error which isn't in the manual but it sounds like this is the issue (taken from an espares.co.uk website):
We believe E60 is a heater fault and the description you have given suggests the module is not being informed of the water temperature. This sounds like the sensor or NTC has failed or unplugged or possibly the heater relay on the board has welded contacts.
Sometimes it does work fine sometimes but I'm not really sure what this means. Maybe a dodgy connection rather than a broken part?
Could possibly be the thermostat or maybe something is up with the PCB? The thermostat is cheap to replace (c.£25) but the PCB is pricey.
Any thoughts would be welcomed.
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Not helpful, but depending on how free your time is these days, it is worth having a look to see if you can spot any obvious dodgy connections. Not sure how easy it is to replace the sensor, but an hour or 2 and £25 would be worth a punt (for me). If you make a proper hash of it you can always get someone to come and fix it! I'm sure there will be a youtube viddy out there (there are some really boring but informative channels out there!)
I had a problem with ours (pump messed up) and didn't manage to fix it or make it worse, but it was a vaguely interesting way to spend a rainy morning taking it apart and re-assembling it.
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I changed the ecu / pcb n a washer drier with an Espares exchange part (60-70 quid) and it worked a couple of times then sealed the door and went on a boil wash until it had boiled off all the water 😱
I binned it. Well it’s still in the kitchen.., anyway - £25 punt on a sensor is worth it.. much more less so etx...
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Any thoughts would be welcomed.
My thoughts are I've got a whole range of kitchen white goods in the garage as the lunatic we bought off left them all (despite saying she wasn't going to). I'll do you a good price. :tumble:
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Our dishwasher has started playing up. It seems to heat up too much as if the sensor isn't working properly. Then when it stops you just get wall of steam emerging when you open it. It does this on shorter 30 degree washes too when you shouldn't really be getting steam like that.
It's returning an error which isn't in the manual but it sounds like this is the issue (taken from an espares.co.uk website):
We believe E60 is a heater fault and the description you have given suggests the module is not being informed of the water temperature. This sounds like the sensor or NTC has failed or unplugged or possibly the heater relay on the board has welded contacts.
Sometimes it does work fine sometimes but I'm not really sure what this means. Maybe a dodgy connection rather than a broken part?
Could possibly be the thermostat or maybe something is up with the PCB? The thermostat is cheap to replace (c.£25) but the PCB is pricey.
Any thoughts would be welcomed.
Mum's machine had a similar issue (well, heating related), in that as soon as the heater came on during the cycle, the circuit breaker would trip. Assumed it was a short in the heater element (should have checked with a multimeter (better a megger if I could have borrowed one)) and bought a new one for £75 of eSpares. Many....many months later I got it fitted, was all proud of myself for being the good son...started it up....seemed to be working...then BAM....breaker tripped.
What model is yours? We've got a spare out the back now with 2 working heaters and a (presumed) dud PCB. In hindsight it's probably a dead relay or Mosfet or whatever they use to switch on the heater circuit.
You might be able to test the existing temp sensor... A multimeter might do it, or a wee arduino circuit. What's the make model and temps sensor model?
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We’ve been given a bunch of ceiling lights from family but they were all purchased in continental Europe and therefore don’t seem to have an Earth cable.
Is there any issues fitting these in the UK where, I assume, the ceiling lights will be earthed?
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Also, if anyone could recommend a roofer in the Skipton area it would be much appreciated!
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We’ve been given a bunch of ceiling lights from family but they were all purchased in continental Europe and therefore don’t seem to have an Earth cable.
Is there any issues fitting these in the UK where, I assume, the ceiling lights will be earthed?
The fitting is usually earthed, but the bulb won't be. Most LED/halogen spots aren't "earthed" as such, but you just terminate the earth wire in the body of the fitting somewhere.
[note, I'm no sparky]
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We’ve been given a bunch of ceiling lights from family but they were all purchased in continental Europe and therefore don’t seem to have an Earth cable.
Is there any issues fitting these in the UK where, I assume, the ceiling lights will be earthed?
The fitting is usually earthed, but the bulb won't be. Most LED/halogen spots aren't "earthed" as such, but you just terminate the earth wire in the body of the fitting somewhere.
[note, I'm no sparky]
Cheers - good to hear that it'll be possible before we put lots of though into where they'll go etc.
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Canal boat matt was putting a velux in so may know a roofer.
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What've people got in terms of garage security (also ground anchors for bikes)?
We had an attempted break-in through the slate roof of the garage the other weekend as it runs to ground level. One will soon have a board running end to end which won't present a very appealing prospect if they do tear through the roof but the other (albeit closer to the house) has our bikes in it and also my Dad's whilst they move house. Currently it'd be pretty easy to just wheel these out which needs to change.
I was thinking CCTV but then it was pointed out to me that the local farm has some great footage of someone pushing their quad bike out of a shed then up their drive and it's effectively useless.
You can get wireless alarm kits such as these:
https://www.screwfix.com/p/yale-hsa-essentials-alarm-kit/344jf
Are they useful?
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When I was a student in Nottingham we got some 40mm rebar bent up into rectangular hoops, set them in a couple of 100kg of postcrete, cut holes in the shed floor and put the shed on top. Our bikes were locked to the rebar hoops with Kryptonite New York locks and chains and were not defeated despite a few break in attempts over 3 years.
Admittedly this was in the era of boltcroppers before thieves got tooled up with battery powered angle grinders.
I live in rural NE Scotland now and bike theft is pretty much unheard of, I see ££££ bikes left unlocked outside the local supermarket and they are still there when they come back. Locking the garage door is the only security I've needed in 13 years.
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The wireless alarms work -as in go off and make a din - and will let you know if someone is burgling your garage while you are in...
Anti theft measures come in two types
1. Deterrent. Dog, security lights, CCTV, alarms etc.. Makes someone else's place an easier proposition than yours...
2. Time. Anything can be taken if you have long enough - but the longer it takes the (a) harder it is to take and (b) less attractive to the robber as they will be vulnerable to being caught for longer.
3. Concealment. If they don't know its there - they can't nick it. Though if they have enough time they can cause alot of damage looking - or have seen you riding in on your spangly carbon bike they'll know its there....
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Locking the garage door is the only security I've needed in 13 years.
Folk don't even bother with that. Our neighbour over the road in the cul-de-sac we lived in in Muchalls never even closed the garage door, could see bikes and snowboards propped up at the back.
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When I was a student in Nottingham we got some 40mm rebar bent up into rectangular hoops, set them in a couple of 100kg of postcrete, cut holes in the shed floor and put the shed on top. Our bikes were locked to the rebar hoops with Kryptonite New York locks and chains and were not defeated despite a few break in attempts over 3 years.
Admittedly this was in the era of boltcroppers before thieves got tooled up with battery powered angle grinders.
The garages were originally car ports and it looks like whoever poured the slab did a decent job so it's going to be a post-fixed (drill and fix) type solution. Thanks for the chain beta. Currently they could just wheel the bikes out if they so wished which needs to change ASAP. It didn't bother me so much when there weren't any of ~high value but now I'm babysitting my Dad's I'm a little more conscious of the £/kg sitting there.
It's the first issue the others that have lived here have experienced in 15 years and from all of the surrounding farms having thefts the same night they clearly knew what they were doing (fencing equipment, pick-ups and quads stolen). However, the neighbor is sticking a PIR light on the back where they got to the roof and he's also going to board the eaves with something substantial. I think he realised that a roller shutter door isn't very secure when there's an open button on the inside!
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Having had a few things nicked over the years I would say CCTV is very useful, but only if you are interested in the grainy footage of how they actually stole your pride and joy. Otherwise its useless as even the stupidest thieves tend not hold their passports / driving licence up to the camera. Getting a dummy one can't hurt though.
If you have a solid slab then there are loads of options for ground anchors. Cheapest is a simple chunky galv u-bolt resined into two holes, up to hardened steel motorbike jobbies for big money. Whatever fixing you use make sure its either resin or has a "security" feature e.g. ball-bearing smashed into allen bolt head, or ones with slots that shear when tight, otherwise they will just undo them. Finally make sure you get a "system" i.e. ground anchor, chain, and padlock that are equally secure. Its no good having a hardened steel ground anchor and hardened 12mm chain if you then get a pink locker padlock from Virgin gym. Motorbike ones are better than bicycle ones and generally come with some kind of rating. All this is available from Screwfix or Toolstation for not much money. Get a long enough chain to lock through the frame and the wheels if possible.
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Did you have any Screwfix chains in mind Nige? I've been looking but there seems to be a big bump between £30 (don't appear to be welded) and £90+ and I'm going to need at least 2 x 2m and a couple of anchors.
They're all mounted on hooks (dead cheap from Planet X if anyone is looking) so it'll be pretty tricky for me to secure the front wheels, chains will just have to pass through the rear triangles.
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You could get a bank of these, pir activated or similar, inside the garage. They'd soon scarper. :spank:. :lol: Might wake the neighbours up mind you.
https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/electronic-sounders/6221310?cm_mmc=UK-PLA-DS3A-_-google-_-PLA_UK_EN_Automation_%26_Control_Gear_Whoop-_-Sirens_Whoop+(2)-_-6221310&matchtype=&pla-340824423096&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIq6aGjZP27AIVWuztCh25swwBEAQYESABEgIMN_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
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I’ve got one of these: https://www.toolstation.com/oxford-chain-lock-mini-shackle/p46243?store=KV&utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googleshoppingfeed&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIrcLFrZX27AIVxu3tCh15KAC9EAQYECABEgJo8_D_BwE#full-desc
Threaded through one of these: https://www.toolstation.com/oxford-ground-wall-anchor-kit/p42141?utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googleshoppingfeed&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIrpSx05b27AIViK3tCh2tIAg6EAQYAiABEgINH_D_BwE
which is bolted into the brick wall of the garage (expansion bolts supplied). It comes with ball bearings that you hammer into the Allen key holes to stop them being unscrewed, as per Nigel’s post above.
Seems pretty solid, but I’m pretty confident it wouldn’t stop anyone other than a casual opportunist. Someone who has spotted your bike, decided to nick it and comes tooled up when everybody is out will get it whatever you do.
With that in mind, have a check on what your insurance policy says, and buy what will make sure they’ll pay out if your bikes do get had.
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I've heard of people having the full setup, CCTV, ground anchors etc., and someone just came along with a multitool and stripped the bikes of all the bits, leaving just a few useless bits of frame (full suss mountain bikes).
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Seems pretty solid, but I’m pretty confident it wouldn’t stop anyone other than a casual opportunist. Someone who has spotted your bike, decided to nick it and comes tooled up when everybody is out will get it whatever you do.
Yeah, I'm under no illusions that if someone wants a bike or anything else for that matter and comes prepared almost all measures are going to be overcome. Things are just a little lax ATM with respect to that garage and it's an easy enough fix. My bikes were all bought used so they're not outrageous in value, my Dad's makes me a little nervous whilst I have custody (shame it's too big to ride).
With that in mind, have a check on what your insurance policy says, and buy what will make sure they’ll pay out if your bikes do get had.
:tumble:
You could get a bank of these, pir activated or similar, inside the garage. They'd soon scarper. :spank:. :lol: Might wake the neighbours up mind you.
Well, they're bigger than me :shrug:
The shed/garage alarms on the market seem to be pretty much that TBH (they vary in sophistication but they're not too many FAs). I'm hoping the Crusher board will present a wall of spikes to them and confuse them enough to go elsewhere or perhaps they know the value of matting ;D
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I’m surprised your insurance doesn’t say anything - the last few home insurance policies I’ve had have been pretty specific about how much they’ll cover for without the bike being listed as a separate item (I’ve seen this as low as £250). If it is listed as a separate item they have stipulated what type of door & window locks the building it’s in needs without needing to be locked with a bike lock, and what standard the lock needs to be - usually a “sold secure” rating (bronze, silver or gold) which is why I went for a bike lock and anchor rather than DIYing something cheaper and probably sturdier. You might want to check if your dad’s bike is covered either by your or his policy - again, my home insurance says what visitors’ possessions are covered at my house, and only applies if they’re not covered by another policy, so if your dad has insured the bike, but it’s not locked up to the spec on his policy, you might find it’s not covered by his and over the limit on yours.
Sorry for making this about insurance - we got burgled a few years back without cover, it was shit.
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Don't apologise!
What I meant by the emoji was that my insurance specifically excludes the bikes as far as I'm aware. It was something i was relatively happy with given the value of ours (...less so now).
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Ah ok. I was surprised at how little it cost to add my bike to the house insurance (few quid a year). It's basically worthless as it's old and battered, but most home insurance is new-for-old.
Like you say, deterrent is a much preferable option.
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Hey guys - can you help a DIY noob out please?
I really like the idea of getting some Olympic rings in my garage but am not 100% sure how much weight the beams in roof can take. I'm pretty convinced they should be fine but have no experience with these kind of things - so would appreciate any advice/opinions. I've taken a couple pics and added them to imgur:
https://imgur.com/a/UBdDOqW
The beams are about 15" apart, and 4x2" thick. My plan was to attach one ring to each beam so the load would be split between two beams. As of yet have not really thought about the best method for attaching to / through the beams. Perhaps something as simple as drilling down through the beam, then passing a U-bolt (https://www.screwfix.com/p/rawlplug-bright-zinc-plated-steel-u-bolts-m10-x-100mm/8176r - this isn't actually long enough but first example i found) up from below and securing it with a plate/washers and nuts to hold it down?
Thanks - hope my lack of DIY knowledge wasn't too painful to read.
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Few things to consider. Any movement of the ceiling joists will cause the plaster to crack below. It'll only be hair line cracks, which you might not be fussed about.
You might want to spread the load over all the beams. So lay a bit of timber (3"x2") or some such (could be a metal bar) perpendicular to the ceiling joists. then just feed your rope up through a hole and tie round that beam.
Might be a but crude where the ropes go though the hole though.
Look to spread the load between all the joists. you could screw some ply across the top of all the joists, to tie them all together, then use some long eye bolts up through the ply and a couple of big washers on the back.
Just food for thought
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I first set mine up with the straps directly over the joists, this was not good abrasion started to wear the straps and made the webbing fluff almost immediately.
I would not want be drilling holes, big enough to fit the U-bolts you linked to, through the beams holding up my roof.
My current set up is a piece of 2x4 fixed perpendicular to the topside of the rafters, the ring straps are threaded through some eye plates similar to these, https://www.screwfix.com/p/marine-eye-plates-x-2-pack/22320 that are screwed to the underside of the 2x4 at shoulder width. Seems bombproof and I'm happy to invert on them,
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SamT and Ballsofcottonwool - thanks for the replies, super useful. Fortunately there is no plaster below. Its just a (ply-wood i think?) boarded roof in the garage so that isn't a worry. Your suggestion to place a timber / bar over the beams to spread the load is a great point makes much more sense than drilling through the beams - probably should have thought of that one myself :facepalm:
The added benefit of attaching to a bar across the beams is I can choose the exact width apart I'd like the rings to be.
I can proceed with a little more confidence now, thanks again all!
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We're finally in our house ;D
We got some hefty ceiling lights to install. One big adjustable one (two large pendants which move up and down), and three big pendants which we might hang off a piece of driftwood we found (unless it looks shit).
I'd happily change a fitting, but unsure about these given they will need to be well secured, into the ceiling joists etc.
Is it a job that's easier than I think, or would it be easier to just get a sparky in?
The pendant ones are kind of like the 2-light version of this: https://www.wish.com/product/598b7d495c88ac2def4a8191?hide_login_modal=true&from_ad=goog_shopping&_display_country_code=GB&_force_currency_code=GBP&pid=googleadwords_int&c=%7BcampaignId%7D&ad_cid=598b7d495c88ac2def4a8191&ad_cc=GB&ad_curr=GBP&ad_price=48.00&campaign_id=6493229882&exclude_install=true&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7t_mt4-07QIVgbTtCh0xrAQCEAQYBSABEgKWqPD_BwE&share=web
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diy chat on a wet friday, why not....
If the joists in the floor/ceiling above are running at right angles to the 'fixing bar' on your lights in its desired orientation then the issue you'll have is that the attachment points very likely won't line up with the ceiling/floor joists and you won't get a secure enough fixing just into the plasterboard ceiling especially as far as the pulley uppy and downy lights are concerned. Two options then:
(i) reinforce above the finished ceiling surface with timber between joists, located so your light fitting holes line up with your new reinforcements and screw up into them. Unlikely to be a particularly attractive option unless the floor above currently doesn't have finished flooring down and the floorboards lift easily.
(ii) locate where the joists in the ceiling are (typically 40cm spacings) then fix with screws going well into the joists a suitably sized piece of timber (or your driftwood) to the ceiling (+mastic/glue). Now easy and secure to fix your lights to this.
If the joists in the floor/ceiling above are running parallel to the 'fixing bar' on your lights in its desired orientation then you'll still need to find joists. You might be lucky and decide the position of the light is satisfactory directly under a joist so you can just fix directly into it. Or you might be unlucky and desired position is in no-mans-land somewhere between two joists. If you're unlucky then it's back to some similar version of (i) or (ii).
Either way, it's not really a job for a sparky. Competent handy man type task.
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Thanks for that - much appreciated!
If the position works with the joist running parallel to the fixing bar - are they generally strong enough to hold? I'd assume so but who knows...
Is it difficult to locate the joists?
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Do you know the ceiling construction (plasterboard, lathe & plaster)? I assume it's ground floor? Is there a floor above or loft space you can get to? If there's a floor above, any floor covering?
I'd take off the existing fitting and have a look at how that has been attached, might be into something solid already. If not, a stud detector could help you find where the joists are in relation to the existing fitting. The length of the light unit might be able to span across and attach to two joists depending on the joist spacing (if oriented perpendicular to the joists), but that would depend where the mounting holes are inside the light unit.
If you can get to the topside of the ceiling (e.g. in a loft space or by taking up floorboards on the floor above) you can add a piece of timber or two between the joists for the lighting fitting to be screwed in to - this is easier if there's an accessible loft space as you can just roll back the insulation, trickier if you've got to remove floor coverings and floorboards.
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If the position works with the joist running parallel to the fixing bar - are they generally strong enough to hold? I'd assume so but who knows...
Provided you get good screw fixing a decent depth into them, then yes.
Is it difficult to locate the joists?
without making lots of little holes in the plasterboard or trusting a joist finder (sketchy) then it generally is, yes. For the right-angles case, you can be careful so that all your little joist finder holes get covered up. Worth noting you want to make sure your fixing screws to be hitting joists centrally(ish) for strength.
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couple of other ideas:
mod the light fitting (ie. drill more holes in it) to fit existing joist locations.
cut away plasterboard section and reinforce as necessary from that side, then put plasterbaord back and tape and reskim. not a very attractive solution in terms of amount of work required.
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If it's a plasterboard ceiling, and you just bought the place....don't be scared! Small holes are easy to fill, s you can just do a grid pattern of small holes until you hit a joist.
We got a £20 stud/joist finder, which is very hit and miss in our place as it's been modified and plastered so many times, and it's old fashioned lathe and plaster! That said, the few times I've used it, I did hit wood! I'm sure someone on here could lend you one, I would but I'm in Glasgow.
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Not quite DIY, but need to remove some monitoring equipment from a river. Basically bits of rebar and shelving uprights (the metal ones with loads of double slots) which were hammered well into the bank of a river tributary 4 years ago.
They are going to have about 10-20cm submerged at the base so I cant just angle-grind it to a stump if one won’t pull out - though there should be 50cm or so exposed above the waterline. Last option will be to angle-grind at the water line and try to sledge-hammer it sideways (or further into the ground) to avoid anyone injuring themselves on it.
Any tips welcomed. It’s a bit remote so would prefer to go armed and ready if there’s something useful I could take with me.
Also - not really used an angle grinder before. We got one of these (https://www.screwfix.com/p/makita-dga452z-18v-li-ion-lxt-4-cordless-angle-grinder-bare/89836) which I’m assuming will be enough to get through rebar? Unsure if a specific disk is needed?
Edit - I’m not certain how deep into the ground they go, but I suspect up to about 50cm.
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Anything you can winch them out with/against?
Be careful with angle grinders; get some PPE.
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I'd be careful with angle grinding rebar if you're inexperienced. Because it's not fixed in a vice or whatever, it could jump about a bit and getting the blade caught is the one thing that can cause things to go awry.
You want cutting discs, not grinding.
Could you fix a ratched strap or winch / chain block (beg/borrow/steal) to the bars and pull them out from the opposite bank?
Or get a long scaffold tube and slot it over them, allowing you to give it a really good wiggle?
Hammering isn't a terrible idea, but you might need something to slide over to extend it out of the water once it starts to get driven in. Hammering under water will be nigh on impossible.
I guess a hacksaw would work...
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Or get a long scaffold tube and slot it over them, allowing you to give it a really good wiggle?
This, or a piece of steel water pipe over the top, good old wiggle around then try lifting out with a sling or something tied as low as possible on the bar and connected to a car jack on some solid bricks / breeze blocks.(might be fiddly to connect), or a hire a high lift farm jack or something like that?
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Thanks for the replies. Maybe angle grinder isn’t the way too go then… Or at least not on the first attempt.
Chain block or winch look like a good option - though no idea who would have one locally. Few people I could ask maybe unless anyone around Skipton happens to have one?
Winches would work in some areas (most are near tree cover so some good anchor points - but a few are out in the open).
Maybe the best option is for me to go up for the day, dismantle what I can with a big hammer (or scaffold piece - I like that idea) and then make notes of what’s remaining and have a better idea of what’s needed on the next trip. It’ll takes at least 2 trips I think as there’s about 12 stations to take down which are pretty spread out.
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Or get a long scaffold tube and slot it over them, allowing you to give it a really good wiggle?
This, or a piece of steel water pipe over the top, good old wiggle around then try lifting out with a sling or something tied as low as possible on the bar and connected to a car jack on some solid bricks / breeze blocks.(might be fiddly to connect), or a hire a high lift farm jack or something like that?
Car jack and some locking pliers could work too. Possibly not that much effort to do either. Or even some good locking pliers and a piece of 2x4 to wedge under and lever with.
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"Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world"
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Thanks for the replies. Maybe angle grinder isn’t the way too go then… Or at least not on the first attempt.
Chain block or winch look like a good option - though no idea who would have one locally. Few people I could ask maybe unless anyone around Skipton happens to have one?
Winches would work in some areas (most are near tree cover so some good anchor points - but a few are out in the open).
Maybe the best option is for me to go up for the day, dismantle what I can with a big hammer (or scaffold piece - I like that idea) and then make notes of what’s remaining and have a better idea of what’s needed on the next trip. It’ll takes at least 2 trips I think as there’s about 12 stations to take down which are pretty spread out.
A 2t chain block and some strops. Very cheap and easy to pick up via Amazon. Or, for a little more, Toolstation/Screwfix. Very useful thing to have around (esp. in the boot of your car), if you can stretch past the cheap Chinese option.
Back during lockdown 1, having ordered a new bathroom about a month before we heard of Covid, I installed an all new family bathroom.
I had to do it, because we couldn’t change the delivery date, had nowhere to store an entire bathroom in boxes etc.
If you recall, during LD1, everything was closed. So when I ripped out the old fixtures and flooring and discovered how rotten the flooring underneath was (chipboard), there was nothing I could do except dry it and treat it with thinned varnish or white glue solution (stuff from the back of the shed).
Didn’t F’ing last. Just had to pull out the toilet which was rocking and rolling all over the shop, because the chipboard below wouldn’t take a screw and (because everything else is fitted now) had to raise it onto an 18mm pedestal of new flooring. FML.
The cubical shower, which didn’t get changed, suddenly decided to leak a couple of days ago, straight through the spotlights into the dining room below. I knew the drain fitting was iffy and the plastic aged, but when it was installed, the wanker that put it in, tiled over the frigging tray in such a way that the only way to access the trap below was to smash the tiles out (which I’d been avoiding for the last 10 years since I first realised). Anyway, given the bastard leak, I now had to do IT.
BEHIND THE FUCKING TILES, THE SHOWER TRAY IS SITTING ON A STEEL RE-ENFORCED CONCRETE FUCKING LINTEL AND THERE IS NO SODDING WAY TO ACCESS THE UNDERSIDE OF THE PIGGING SHIT MONKEY SHOWER TRAY WITHOUT SMASHING OUT ALL THE DAMN CUBICAL TILING AND EVEN THEN, I’M TWATTINGWELL SURE THE AFOREMENTIONED PIGGING SHIT MONKEY SHOWER TRAY IS CEMENTED THE FUCK IN.
I AM NOT OK.
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Chain block or winch look like a good option - though no idea who would have one locally. Few people I could ask maybe unless anyone around Skipton happens to have one?
There are plenty of places to hire such things near Skipton:
https://www.shc.co.uk/?post_type=product&s=chain+block
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.....I AM NOT OK.
The fucktitude of the logic of some house building work just defies belief. Hope you get it sorted.
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BEHIND THE FUCKING TILES, THE SHOWER TRAY IS SITTING ON A STEEL RE-ENFORCED CONCRETE FUCKING LINTEL AND THERE IS NO SODDING WAY TO ACCESS THE UNDERSIDE OF THE PIGGING SHIT MONKEY SHOWER TRAY WITHOUT SMASHING OUT ALL THE DAMN CUBICAL TILING AND EVEN THEN, I’M TWATTINGWELL SURE THE AFOREMENTIONED PIGGING SHIT MONKEY SHOWER TRAY IS CEMENTED THE FUCK IN.
Got told the other night that the shower hose attached to the bath has a leak. No big problem you say? Well, apart from the fact whoever did the bathroom tiled it all in. There are no signs that there's a removable panel.
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The joys of water lego.
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How would you know? Last time your plumbing went wrong I had to pop round and sort it out.
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You said we wouldn't tell anyone about that.
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As an update, I went out on Friday and managed to get pretty much all the equipment out. I went with an easier version of some suggestions (some decent locking pliers and a heavy duty spreader clamp).
Many of the equipment stations just pulled out - I think they decent storms helped as they had taken a right beating! Others I had to pump out with the clamp/pliers combination. One I managed with a bit of scaffold pole (happened to be there - didn’t fancy carrying one it).
One was stuck and in water too deep for my clamp so I didn’t manage to get that one. Another had been completely covered by big rocks (up to washing-machine size - the strength of water is crazy!). I managed to get the logger out after moving a few smaller blocks, but didn’t bother trying to get the rest of the kit out. I imagine it’s bent a lot the waterline given the number of rocks settled on it.
Think we’re going to to leave those two and maybe go back when the river levels are right down. Thanks for the advice - it really helped having a bunch of options when I got to each one.
Was a knackering day - 6 hours of trudging up steep, muddy tributaries with about 10kg of kit on my back and carrying loads of rebar, shelving uprights, tubes and fittings miles back to the van. Had a well deserved beer when I got home.
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Our lodger just messaged saying there had been a power cut. The electric oven isn’t working, but the grill goes on fine.
I’ve asked him to make sure the clock is reset (apparently one of the most common problems when this happens).
If this doesn’t work, any ideas what could be the problem? I assume that they have the same fuse with it being a combined unit? The hob is a separate gas one.
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Maybe the heating element has gone. I’ve had to replace ours before.
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Maybe the heating element has gone. I’ve had to replace ours before.
I missed this, sorry! But yeah I think that might be the problem. Grill works, light works, just no heat.
Was it a big thing to change?
The oven is at least 10 years old so the other option is to replace it with something newer.
We’re not at home which makes it harder (friend is living at ours). He seems fine without it at the moment but harder to get someone in to fix it as he’s out during working hours..
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Maybe the heating element has gone. I’ve had to replace ours before.
This was the issue in the end, thanks! Got one for a tenner online and took 5 mins to fit.
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Energy question… our gas meter measures in m^3, we’re charged in kWh.
Are these one and the same or would I need to convert it? Had a quick Google but wasn’t sure.
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Energy question… our gas meter measures in m^3, we’re charged in kWh.
Are these one and the same or would I need to convert it? Had a quick Google but wasn’t sure.
No they're not the same. The kWh per m3 will depend on the calorific value of the gas. This is a useful resource: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/gas-meter-readings-and-bill-calculation (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/gas-meter-readings-and-bill-calculation)
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As Nutty says they're not the same. kWh is a unit to measure energy, whereas m^3 is a unit of volume.
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Further more,
Your meter measures the volume of gas you've used - in m3,
The utility company will convert that into kWh , i.e. the amount (units) of energy you've used and charge per unit of energy.
The conversion should be on your bill. The calorific value of the gas has some corrections made to it, depending on how far away you are from the main gas input point, (probably pembroke) since its loses some calorific value on its journey through all the gas pipes by picking up moisture along the way.
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OT, but it's very unlikely to be Pembroke
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Yeah - soz.. that's the main docking station for Liquifed gas - 9% of UK supply.
Natural gas piped from the North Sea and the East Irish Sea to refineries on land makes up 44% of the UK’s gas production.
Around 47% of the UK’s gas supply now comes from across Europe - predominantly Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, and Russia - through long distance pipelines.
While 9% of the UK’s gas is imported as liquid natural gas transported around the world in tankers at temperatures below -160C by ship, mainly from Qatar.
So you're right - I was just thinking of this in my head..
https://www.statista.com/statistics/467240/ranking-of-ports-by-liquefied-gas-tonnage-transported-united-kingdom-uk/#:~:text=In%202020%2C%20the%20leading%20three,2.7%20million%20metric%20tons%2C%20respectively.
but yeah.. :off:
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Thanks everyone! I assumed they weren’t the same but couldn’t find anything to be certain. Will have a look through the links properly tomorrow and try to work it out.
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One Brand to Rule Them All! And in the garden, power them.
Makita, Ryobi, DeWalt....?
I've acquired a garden, which ties in with a portable wentilater. I need a strimmer, Mower, Hedge trimmer, portable wentilater, drill.. etc.
Which cordless brand is best? Any thoughts and advice welcome.
yrs tly
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Surely Milwaukee for a man of your taste and refinement.
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Makita to be compatible with your cordless fan surely?
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Surely Milwaukee for a man of your taste and refinement.
I've no idea if this is a serious suggestion. the NOTHING BUT HEAVY DUTY line doesn't scream suburban garden.
Is the makita fan better than one by the other brands? Also not sure the fan should be starting point, bearing in mind how much actual climbing I do and lack of home set up.
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Pff, Milwaukee...the discerning carpenter should opt for Festool!
I always thought they were much of a muchness. Hard to go to wrong with Makita I think.
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The Makita fan is just near ubiquitous as I think a lot of people had Makita batteries already and they are east to get hold of. Milwaukee do a v nice fan too
https://uk.milwaukeetool.eu/en-gb/m18-air-fan/m18-af/
They are the ‘nice but pricey’ end of the spectrum with festool and hilti sitting somewhere above!
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Also not sure the fan should be starting point, bearing in mind how much actual climbing I do and lack of home set up.
Sorry, made in jest. All the wads seem to have the Makita ones hence the comment.
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I've used Makita and Dewalt at work. Not much in it, but Makita does throw out a few duds in the very cheapest end of the market. All of the "better" stuff I have has been very good, but I have a shit drill that's been back to Toolstation once for a wobbly chuck and developed another one fairly quickly again but I just never got round to fighting that fight, so it just annoys me all the time. The batteries seem strongly resistant to degradation.
Would avoid Ryobi based on the one sander and jigsaw I bought (mains powered) both work, but are just a bit annoying with some obvious bits of value engineering (i.e. cheap shit bits).
WTF is a portable Wentilator?!?!
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I've got 2 identical Makita electric drill / screwdrivers (one bought second hand on here, from underground?), one of the chargers and one battery are duff. Had them 10 years though, of intermittent use.
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My strimmer and hedge trimmer are both cordless Makita. No complaints with either of them, but I've also got nothing to compare them to... hope that helps :strongbench:
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I'm hoping that the intermittent use aspect will be evened out by just getting one or two batteries that will serve mower, strimmer, drill, fan, hedge, etc.
The guy in screwfix suggested Titan. Ryobi seem to have a bigger range of consumer orientated garden products which is appealing.
A lot of people seem to be saying, Makita, cant go wrong etc.
'Portable Wentilator' is Martin Keller as 'Keto' is Dave mcloed. I listened to a podcast wherein he used the phrase portable wentilator every thirty seconds for two hours. He also said he'd spent the regulation 10,000 hours not in training overall but just on one problem.
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I've got 2 identical Makita electric drill / screwdrivers (one bought second hand on here, from underground?), one of the chargers and one battery are duff. Had them 10 years though, of intermittent use.
just checked, they are Hitachi! sorry.
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The guy in screwfix suggested Titan.
Titan stuff is pretty cheap and cheerful, has some flimsy bits, but works ok for casual use. I think it comes with a 2 year warranty as standard. I had one of their cordless combi drills, the drill and batteries were fine over nearly 2 years of pretty heavy use, but the charger stopped working. Screwfix replaced the whole thing under warranty. I think MacAllister is the same stuff but in different colours.
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The guy in screwfix suggested Titan.
Titan stuff is pretty cheap and cheerful, has some flimsy bits, but works ok for casual use. I think it comes with a 2 year warranty as standard. I had one of their cordless combi drills, the drill and batteries were fine over nearly 2 years of pretty heavy use, but the charger stopped working. Screwfix replaced the whole thing under warranty. I think MacAllister is the same stuff but in different colours.
I have a Ryobi driver and an extendable hedge trimmer both battery. I bought a second battery when I took my board down so I would always have a charged battery.
Used them both last year when I put the current board up however when I tried to re charge the newest battery early this year it wouldn’t charge. I probably only used it 4 or 5 times but with months between use. Whether that effected it I’ve no idea but I would be a bit wary of buying more of their stuff now.
The old battery is still fine.
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Titan's a screwfix own brand I think.
Lots of setters have Makita as they do a hydraulic impact driver that's much quieter than normal impacts.
Haven't had any issues with any Makita's I've had beyond normal wear and tear. Out of warranty repair was straight forward if expensive (though pretty much all the internals got replaced).
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As a DIYer rather than a pro I’ve always been happy with own brand stuff (McAlister, Ryobi and Ebauer) but my Ryobi impact driver seems to blow the last battery and when I bought a replacement it did the same again in a very short space of time. I’ve since bought some DeWalt stuff which seems good and reckon earns me more kudos from visiting trades people so I don’t get so ripped off!
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Oh, further thought...
I do some volunteer work for the Glasgow Tool Library - we see all sorts of donations and have to try to get them into serviceable condition.
I order of the most commonly donated AND most shit to fix / adjust / sharpen / find parts for are:
- Parkside : Just don't, they're shit out the box, do you a few jobs and then sit around rusting. When do you do go to use it, it'll be out of adjustment, the switches will break and the plastic will go gummy/sticky. Utter shite.
- Titan : marginally better, but still are built to cost. Fine for the odd mains corded tool, but I wouldn't invest in them as a brand.
Powercraft - they seem marginally less of a PITA to fix than Parkside, but still - I'd put them in the "might use them 3 times a year" category.
Einhell: Hmm, seem ok when new, but they also seem to be a fiddle to adjust and find spares for. Possibly one notch better than the above.
We've seen quite a few broken Ryobi petrol garden tools.
Clarke's can be hit and miss, but they do usually seem somewhat fixable and adjustable. If you get them from Machine Mart they're pretty good on warranty etc.
On the "nice to repair side":
Ancient Makita - pop out the brushes, pop in new, tweak a few things, clean and bingo - another 10 years of service. I know brushless is generally better, but once you're fried those IGBTs (power circuit) they're gubbed. Advice for anyone with brushless tools - never keep the trigger pulled when they're stalled out....
Also, we have 4 brand new and various second hand Dewalt tools - drills, SDS hammer etc. Their boxes/carry cases are usually nicer than Makita (my pet hate with Makita is the really annoying plastic clips on the tool boxes - you need a screwdriver to prize them open!!) and the drills get used all the time and just keep on trucking - seemingly indestructible!
I'm not sure I'd personally bother with battery garden tools, but that's maybe just me. Can you share/borrow from neighbours or a tool library? In fact, if there's a local tool library, they're probably overflowing with donated Flymo's, so maybe just get down there and offer them a donation to relive them off one?
As per Teaboy - Erbauer seem to be at the upper end of the home-gamer market. I've got a sander my dad bought a few years back and it's taken a pounding, but still working ok.
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Thats useful cheers. Our street has a tool share type thing but its more for unusual items like very tall ladders. Its a lot of old folks who likely have a cable version of all of these things but I guess I'm thinking more long term, and ive already cut the grass once with cables, extension lead etc. Thats the catalyst.
Ryobi and Milwaukee have the same parent company.
Couple of longish (american) comparisons ive read say Makita is a bit better, but the bundles and offers on Ryobi make it five times cheaper or whatever so it becomes the winner.
While i'd love to say I'm driving a Raptor to site everyday, growing a beard, eating omlette and chips, smashing 10 hours of raw man xtreme power tool work; were actually talking about light domestic use. Even 'Prosumer' is stretching my ambition.
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Push mower?
Every time I use mine I wish I had a bigger lawn. Lovely bit of kit.
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Where do the bits go? My grandad had one. Anyway I need the other stuff more really.
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https://www.wilko.com/einhell-hand-push-lawn-mower/p/0534849?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIpZO50peX-gIVcoBQBh2K0Ak7EAQYASABEgJddPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds (https://www.wilko.com/einhell-hand-push-lawn-mower/p/0534849?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIpZO50peX-gIVcoBQBh2K0Ak7EAQYASABEgJddPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds)
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I've been pleased with my Erbauer EX range. I've got sanders, a track-saw, their brush cutter, SDS drill and most recently a small hoover to try and make my car less like a bin after site visits.
I've got a reasonable amount of strimming to do as the garden is bounded by drystone walls and one 5ah battery just about does the job.
I didn't buy their lawnmower as at the time you couldn't buy a replacement blade which you now can
It's also worth remembering that you can now buy converters to fit various batteries onto different manufacturers.
I'm still very underwhelmed by my Bosch Blue hammer drill and impact driver set. I used Probes' DeWalt and it was in a different league.
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We got a Makita SDS recently, amazing easily to drill solid walls, and makes me wonder why I wasted so many years pressing a cheap hammer drill into the wall!
Also used a Ryobi Impact Driver 18v that did good when building a woody. Although I need bigger battery than the 1.5ah.
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We've got a bit of an odd one in the kitchen. 4 x 230v LED spots (so no transformers, just mains wired). They're wired up in a ring (parallel if I remember correctly)
One of them recently went dim and flickery. When we turn them off, it stays on marginally longer than the others before fading. Check voltage L-N across the fitting and it's 23v...
Not really sure what the craic is. Tried 2 new bulbs and they're both the same.
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Does the wire to the fitting run next to another live wire? If so it could be capacitive or inductive coupling between the wire to the fitting and the other wire causing you to read a voltage. If your meter has a low impedance mode (or if you can borrow another meter that has a lower input impedance) try testing with that. If it’s coupling from another live wire the voltage should disappear when measured across the lower impedance as there will be very little power being coupled in. If this is the case the voltage is nothing to worry about and is unrelated to the bulb issue.
For the flickering/slow turn off, I’d guess at corroded contact in the fitting (most likely given it’s in a kitchen so humid) or a poor/loose connection at the switch or fitting. They’re not on a dimmer are they?
Obviously usual health warnings apply.
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Anyone good with boilers? We've just had ours checked as it was dropping pressure over time, but recently got a bit quicker. It's now settled again...
So, here's what we know and symptoms.
No radiators have leaks or air.
We don't typically see any signs of water coming out the overflow*
I checked and adjusted the expansion vessel (it was at 0.7 bar, upped it to manuf. Spec).
Pressure drop usually takes a month or so, but happened twice in a week during the cold spell.
Gas/boiler engineer thinks it's the PRV...but....I'm not so sure....
This is where my lack of understanding of the system and how they relate to the symptoms comes in.
If it were the PRV, why does it only open when the cold water filling loop is open? When it's hot and running at 2.3bar, the PRV is closed and no water comes out the overflow. Is that system separate? Is there a non return valve between the hot side and filling side? If so, is that not the issue?
Or, is it always expected that there will be a bit of pressure loss past the NRV, but the PRV will stay closed up to a higher set point than the expected system pressure when hot? What am I missing?
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Has anyone replaced a lock on a PVC door?
We have a normal lock on our back door and I’d like to change it to a thumb lock so it’s only got a key for the outside.
Changed the front door myself a while ago (mortice lock) after a locksmith said it was easy and not worth paying his call out fee (very nice of him). But he said that the PVC door ones are more difficult and maybe not one to attempt on my own.
But if it’s not that bad I’ll maybe give it a go…
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I did the one on our old house in the time it took to boil a kettle, but that was a normal Yale one with a key on both sides. From memory it was 3 screws, absolute piece of cake.
Only thing I'd bear in mind is to make sure you get a non-snap / more pricey one.
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:worms:
I did the one on our old house in the time it took to boil a kettle, but that was a normal Yale one with a key on both sides. From memory it was 3 screws, absolute piece of cake.
Only thing I'd bear in mind is to make sure you get a non-snap / more pricey one.
This is a normal Yale one too. I’ve not looked at it yet but will have a play around today to work out what size it’ll need.
Thanks! Doesn’t sound like a bad one to do 👍🏻
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I did the one on our old house in the time it took to boil a kettle, but that was a normal Yale one with a key on both sides. From memory it was 3 screws, absolute piece of cake.
Only thing I'd bear in mind is to make sure you get a non-snap / more pricey one.
Just took ours apart and measured up. Only difficult part was finding the right size one on Amazon that didn’t look like a knock-off.
Got a decent one arriving on Wednesday for £30. Saves the £100 call-out fee! Thanks for the tips
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We’re trying to increase the pressure of our shower and after taking the head off we’ve found that the head it the problem (pressure drops 75% vs not having the head on). We’ve tried cleaning the head thoroughly but think it’s likely got many many years of build up inside which we’re struggling to budge.
Our local plumbers/builders merchant said they didn’t have anything to fit the wall-mounted outlet and suggested we contact Grohe to see if we can get a replacement.
Grohe got back saying we can buy a new head (£160 from amazon) but they also said:
Remove the neeple with 10mm Alan key and you will havethe standard hole of Female 1/2inch. This will fit any shower arm.
From the photo it looks like the darker bit of the fitting (with the rubber washer on) has an Allen key fitting within the outlet so I assume we can take just this bit off. If we do that, would that likely mean there’s a female 1/2” thread which can then be changed to fit a different shower arm? And are these fairly universal?
It’s mounted high up (mixer taps are lower down) and I’m reluctant to start taking old bits of pipe off in case I break anything!
Few pics below for reference. And this is the shower head we have - but it would be nice to get one which sticks out a bit more.
Any experience welcome!
(https://i.ibb.co/MnZzSjt/058-BB032-670-A-48-BC-8-D4-D-A226-EF840-FC7.jpg) (https://ibb.co/F6mQ3fy)
(https://i.ibb.co/D8QgxX2/5517102-C-E1-A4-4-FF1-AB70-032-D01-F4156-C.jpg) (https://ibb.co/yYqBwTj)
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Leave your shower head in a container full of white vinegar over night.
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It looks to me like that nipple is just treaded into some 22mm plastic water pipe?? (bit dodgy in itself).
And if so, I'd be loath to unscrew it, as instead of a nice brass female thread to connect something new to, you'll have a bit of bodged 22mm thread that will be difficult to get anything to fit to it again. :-\
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Neeple? Are they really writing in a comedy German accent?
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then it would be zee neeple.
I reckon they are going for Glaswegian
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Leave your shower head in a container full of white vinegar over night.
I put a load of drain unblocked through it the other day but took it off again after you mentioned this and then looking it up online.
This time I actually managed to see some build up in the pipe with a tactically aimed headtorch. After a lot of faff I managed to get it out. This alone increased the pressure by 2-3 times!
I’ve got the full thing soaking in vinegar now so hopefully that will unblock any remaining bits and add a bit more pressure too.
Thanks for the tip! Saved a £160 new head!
It looks to me like that nipple is just treaded into some 22mm plastic water pipe?? (bit dodgy in itself).
And if so, I'd be loath to unscrew it, as instead of a nice brass female thread to connect something new to, you'll have a bit of bodged 22mm thread that will be difficult to get anything to fit to it again. :-\
It looks a bit weird, but the whole thing is done with expensive materials etc and it’s been in there for ages (based on old rightmove adverts) so I’d hope it was done properly.
But that’s the kind of thing which made me not want to try changing it….
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Our local plumbers/builders merchant said they didn’t have anything to fit the wall-mounted outlet and suggested we contact Grohe to see if we can get a replacement.
Grohe got back saying we can buy a new head (£160 from amazon) but they also said:
Remove the neeple with 10mm Alan key and you will havethe standard hole of Female 1/2inch. This will fit any shower arm.
From the photo it looks like the darker bit of the fitting (with the rubber washer on) has an Allen key fitting within the outlet so I assume we can take just this bit off. If we do that, would that likely mean there’s a female 1/2” thread which can then be changed to fit a different shower arm? And are these fairly universal?
Sounds like you’re sorted with the vinegar suggestion, and I’d trust your instinct not to take any of the plumbing apart unless you need to.
In case you need to change things around in future, it’s possible/likely that the thing the “neeple” is screwed into is just a male-to-female coupler (something like this: https://plumbing4home.com/1-2-half-inch-tap-pipe-thread-extension-female-x-male-chrome-brass/ ) to extend the original fitting which is buried behind the tiles just a bit too deep for the shower head to attach to.
If you decide to mess with it for any reason, be aware that the thread will be straight, not tapered, so will leak if you just screw something into it with a bit of PTFE tape. You need pipe sealing cord (looks like dental floss).
In case you need any bits, I’ve found national shower spares to be really good (had an issue with plumbing for a Grohe shower a while back and nobody had the right parts locally).
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Our local plumbers/builders merchant said they didn’t have anything to fit the wall-mounted outlet and suggested we contact Grohe to see if we can get a replacement.
Grohe got back saying we can buy a new head (£160 from amazon) but they also said:
Remove the neeple with 10mm Alan key and you will havethe standard hole of Female 1/2inch. This will fit any shower arm.
From the photo it looks like the darker bit of the fitting (with the rubber washer on) has an Allen key fitting within the outlet so I assume we can take just this bit off. If we do that, would that likely mean there’s a female 1/2” thread which can then be changed to fit a different shower arm? And are these fairly universal?
Sounds like you’re sorted with the vinegar suggestion, and I’d trust your instinct not to take any of the plumbing apart unless you need to.
In case you need to change things around in future, it’s possible/likely that the thing the “neeple” is screwed into is just a male-to-female coupler (something like this: https://plumbing4home.com/1-2-half-inch-tap-pipe-thread-extension-female-x-male-chrome-brass/ ) to extend the original fitting which is buried behind the tiles just a bit too deep for the shower head to attach to.
If you decide to mess with it for any reason, be aware that the thread will be straight, not tapered, so will leak if you just screw something into it with a bit of PTFE tape. You need pipe sealing cord (looks like dental floss).
In case you need any bits, I’ve found national shower spares to be really good (had an issue with plumbing for a Grohe shower a while back and nobody had the right parts locally).
Cheers, that’s good to know!
Had a shower this morning and it’s worlds away from how it was. The extra cleaning of the head last night seems to have made a bit more difference and it’s now got the same pressure as the taps. Basically just over 3x faster at filling a jug. Don’t have to stand right up against the wall now :2thumbsup:
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Had a shower this morning
That's good to know.
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Basically just over 3x faster at filling a jug. Don’t have to stand right up against the wall now :2thumbsup:
If you want a chuckle then we actually issue people "jugs on a stick" at work for measuring flow in hard to reach places (rather than having them lean over a railing or something equally dodgy). They are literally jugs from the local kitchen shop lashed to broom handles (or similar) with jubilee clips!
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Definitely not one for DIY, but does anyone have an idea how big a job it is to move internal walls if they’re just stud walls?
We’re thinking about moving and one place we saw has a really weird upstairs.
It would need lots of fitted furniture ripping out, full redecoration and carpets, so it would be back to bare bones anyway.
It needs:
- archway joining two rooms sealing up
- new doorway installing (where there would originally have been one that has since been blocked up)
- 3 stud Walls taking out and moving by a metre or two.
None have any light switches or anything on them, but maybe there’s some electrics within them?
We would obviously get a builder in, but have no idea how big a Job things like that would be… any ideas would be welcome!
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If its genuinely a stud wall, it's a piece of piss. Day to remove and couple to put up new wall, doors etc.
We got a builder to rip out a stud wall, build a kitchen including bar (after ripping out old bathroom) and built a bathroom where the old kitchen was. All in it was 8 weeks but he was a one man band.
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If its genuinely a stud wall, it's a piece of piss. Day to remove and couple to put up new wall, doors etc.
We got a builder to rip out a stud wall, build a kitchen including bar (after ripping out old bathroom) and built a bathroom where the old kitchen was. All in it was 8 weeks but he was a one man band.
That’s useful thanks!
Pretty certain they are just stud. Sounded very very hollow and they aren’t part of the original structures.
The house basically had an extension and they chose to make lots of weird shaped rooms in - joining the old house with the new part. But the extension is offset and has steps down into it which makes lots of odd rooms. I think we would put the Original House back to how it was and then re-jig the extension.
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Few more house questions…
One place we’re looking at has an under ground garage/workshop (under the summerhouse).
Would be a cool place for a board, but it’s got a leak. Nothing seemed to be damp so I guess the raised floor must allow it to flow through with some kind of outlet.
It’s breeze block and fully underground (surrounded by soil) so I imagine it might be hard to fully seal (unless there is just the one leak).
Any idea on how such a room could be made leak Free? Would you have to dig it out and seal the outside? Photo of inside is below…
The second photo shows the main leak at the bottom of the ladder (which has water damage). Water was just flowing through when we visited.
The stuff at the top could be solved a lot more easily I think as that’s all surface level.
(https://i.ibb.co/pQg0C7s/B290581-B-785-A-4-CC5-BBAC-67-B9010-D3555.jpg) (https://ibb.co/xYyCVkc)
(https://i.ibb.co/wQP6L2T/87-BA7-DDF-2-DAE-4076-88-C8-34-D904-FEEABF.jpg) (https://ibb.co/8xf8BQJ)
Also any idea how to rip out a resin floor? Photo below…
(https://i.ibb.co/8rR6Bgb/686-A9627-5872-43-C1-83-DF-BD6-D84-CB08-A7.jpg) (https://ibb.co/dP3Gc4t)
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Since the other walls are dry, it’s a good bet that there’s a damp proof membrane in or outside the walls. I’d guess that water is getting over the top of that at ground level (causing the leaks at the top), and the water that doesn’t leak through at the top is running down the inside of the membrane and accumulating at the bottom, then leaking through the wall there.
It’s possible that there’s a hole in the membrane at the bottom, which is letting groundwater in, but I’d have thought that the easiest way to find out would be to fix the issue at the top and see if the leak at the bottom dries out (the drying out could take quite a long time).
We had a similar issue in our garage (built on a slope so one wall is below outside ground level but above inside floor level). I made a channel on the ground outside to stop rain water accumulating against the wall and send it down an existing surface water drain, which was quick, easy and fixed leaks coming through the wall at outside ground level and at inside floor level. This was good, not least because I didn’t need to find out how to fix a leak in a damp course that I assumed was present somewhere in/around a partially buried wall, which I was dreading.
Never ripped up a resin floor, but I’d expect it to be difficult. I’d also be a bit circumspect in case it was covering something someone else didn’t want to deal with (e.g. old tiles containing asbestos). Depending on what you want to replace it with, you might be better off just putting new flooring on top.
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Since the other walls are dry, it’s a good bet that there’s a damp proof membrane in or outside the walls. I’d guess that water is getting over the top of that at ground level (causing the leaks at the top), and the water that doesn’t leak through at the top is running down the inside of the membrane and accumulating at the bottom, then leaking through the wall there.
It’s possible that there’s a hole in the membrane at the bottom, which is letting groundwater in, but I’d have thought that the easiest way to find out would be to fix the issue at the top and see if the leak at the bottom dries out (the drying out could take quite a long time).
We had a similar issue in our garage (built on a slope so one wall is below outside ground level but above inside floor level). I made a channel on the ground outside to stop rain water accumulating against the wall and send it down an existing surface water drain, which was quick, easy and fixed leaks coming through the wall at outside ground level and at inside floor level. This was good, not least because I didn’t need to find out how to fix a leak in a damp course that I assumed was present somewhere in/around a partially buried wall, which I was dreading.
Never ripped up a resin floor, but I’d expect it to be difficult. I’d also be a bit circumspect in case it was covering something someone else didn’t want to deal with (e.g. old tiles containing asbestos). Depending on what you want to replace it with, you might be better off just putting new flooring on top.
Thanks a lot for the response.
On the flooring, it’s in a newer (relatively - last 30 years say) extension so I think it’s just a weird choice from them rather than covering anything worrisome. The owner was in it for a long time. But as you say we would probably Chuck some vinyl on top of it in the short term until the kitchen was changed in the future.
And the part about the garage makes sense, thanks. It’s a house we’re weighing up at the moment. So one to Worry about once we are in (if we get it) but it puts my mind at ease though.
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No worries, good luck!
I've got a job coming up that i'm not sure about if anyone can advise - our UPVC windows have a sill on the outside that is about 50mm wider on each side than the rest of the opening. The sill is about 20mm deep, but the gap it fits into is one brick high. To cover the remaining gap, whoever fitted the windows just bunged a bit of mortar in, which has unsurprisingly worked loose or fallen out over time. I'm confident that if I do the same as they did, the same thing will happen again. I'm tempted to try trimming the sill down to the same width as the rest of the window frame and putting in a bit of brick to fill the gap completely. Can anyone with more knowledge of UPVC windows than me (which will be most people) think of a good reason not to try this? I need to do something about it before the starlings start nesting in the holes again! Thanks.
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Photos?
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Sorry, this should show what I mean. I want to replace the big chod of mortar with something that won’t fall out. Any suggestions on the best way to do that much appreciated.
(https://i.ibb.co/zZhq4xL/EE6-E2876-9-F56-49-B8-BA9-E-AC5-C6-B0-B6-EE3.jpg) (https://ibb.co/zZhq4xL)
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Thanks, much easier to visualise now.
I'm no expert in...much...but if it were me I'd say the best thing to do would be try to get some matching brick, cut to size and mortar it in?
If nothing else, this might prompt someone to disagree with a better answer!
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Thanks, that was my initial thought, and I have some matching bricks. My concern is that the different thermal expansion of the brick and mortar and sill will cause the mortared in brick to loosen and fall out - I’m pretty sure that’s what has happened with the mortar that’s there at the moment. Anyone have a method for avoiding that? Something flexible between the sill and the mortar?
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Yeh if that was me I’d cut a brick down and mortar it in as neat as possible to match in with the joint lines, then mastic remaining gaps between the sill and brick (presumably there’s already mastic down between the frame and brick? so can match it with that colour).
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Agree with the above, and on the point of expansion, some external Frame sealant, between sill and brick should give you that flexible joint to allow for expansion.
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Yeh if that was me I’d cut a brick down and mortar it in as neat as possible to match in with the joint lines, then mastic remaining gaps between the sill and brick (presumably there’s already mastic down between the frame and brick? so can match it with that colour).
This. That corner of mortar was always going to crack off.
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Thanks all, much appreciated. I’ll go with cutting brick pieces to shape and mortar to brick, sealant to sill as suggested as plan A.
While I’ve got the mortar out and everything cleaned up I think I’ll still have a good look and see if trimming the sill looks viable though - I‘m pretty poor at brickwork so there’s a reasonable chance I can do a neater job of cutting the sill and working with square brick pieces than leaving the sill as-is and cutting the bricks. I think I also stand a better chance of keeping all my fingers that way - I’m a bit of a liability with a grinder :'(
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The sill should cut fairly easily, a fine hacksaw blade should do it, and a craft knife to trim the burrs. The little 'end cap' which is usually glued in, might be able to be re-used and re-inserted into the now open sill, if its not been glued in well.
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Thanks Sam, I hadn't though about the end caps. They'll be crucial as as I won't have a surface to seal against the brick without them. I'd imagine they'll be pretty brittle and it'll be hard to find replacements
if when I inevitably I break them trying to get them out.
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Has anyone ever had a resin floor removed? Looks like it would be a pain in the arse…
Edit - I think it’s called Pebble Epoxy and it seems to be used on driveways and garages. Here they decided to put it in the kitchen and dining room…
(https://i.ibb.co/KLy5N5t/E194-D5-FF-882-B-4-A98-9-E78-A8-C03-D5108-FA.jpg) (https://ibb.co/QCmJ8JW)
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They also use it in bathrooms. How hard to remove might depend on what it’s laid on. If it’s on concrete it might be a nightmare but if it’s laid on plywood it might not be too hard get up. You would get down to plywood and rip them both up.
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They also use it in bathrooms. How hard to remove might depend on what it’s laid on. If it’s on concrete it might be a nightmare but if it’s laid on plywood it might not be too hard get up. You would get down to plywood and rip them both up.
Cheers - I didn’t find any companies offering it internally. But that’s useful to know, thanks. You can get under the floorboards via a crawl space so might be able to work out what it’s laid on from underneath.
Hadn’t realised it could be put on ply - I’ve only seen concrete mentioned.
Short term we might try to lay some Lino over if it looks like a pain to take it up.
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Why not just vinyl over it and save yourself the graft? Sounds like a pig of a job with no real payoff?
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Wondering if anyone has any thoughts on a leaking retaining wall…
As per diagram below we are looking at a house which has a garage/celler built into a hillside. It’s at the bottom of the garden so not close/joined to the house and has been there for about 10 years and all seems pretty solid (had planning permission to put in after an old one burnt down).
Summerhouse/veranda is on top which keeps it mainly weather proof from above).
Front (on left of diagram) is fully exposed. The back wall (on the right) is fully underground against the garden.
The sidewalls are fully covered at the back but go to being uncovered by soil at the front (left side of image).
It’s got a leak where I’ve marked and has water coming through the wall.
I assume that sealing it from the inside is possible but would be a temporary fix.
Best option would be to excavate it and fully reproof it somehow. But the back wall is about 3.5m wide and 2.5m tall so it’s a hell of a lot of soil to move (which may impact the integrity of the wall too?).
Does anyone have any idea how big a job that might be (likely for a professional)? Or anything that we should consider?
What kind of person would we even be looking for to do the work? :lol:
Would be great to have a board in it but there’s no way to keep it dry in there at the moment….
If anyone needs architectural diagrams then I’m happy to help..
(https://i.ibb.co/Y8mgtNJ/image.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Np5RLFf)
Additional photo. Blue line shows approx location of the cellar.
(https://i.ibb.co/6y5Zt4B/6-D803-ACF-1972-4-F14-9663-5-B3-F86-D195-AE.jpg) (https://ibb.co/9pjv4qt)
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Does the retaining wall have any drainage? Has the drainage being rodded recently? I would start here. If someone hasn't installed any drainage then they're a pillock.
PU grouting is one method of plugging such leaks. Other options would be to accept water is very persistent and find a way of dealing with the leak/water.
I'd also be having a damn good stomp around the ground above and look for any depressions or soft areas. Water like this transports fine material, gradually at first but with increasing speed and you can end up losing material quite readily (internal erosion). It's probably not the biggest concern from what you've described.
Remember that even a 1mm slither of water at the back of a retaining wall is the same as having a lake behind it in terms of the pressure exerted on the wall. If you did seal a mid height leak and end up retaining water to ground level this would potentially be detriment against the existing condition.
Grouting will obviously push the water elsewhere.
(STD. DISCLAIMER: please don't take ANY of this as a professional recommendation/or otherwise).
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A drain (plastic pipe with holes in it to collect water) about 1m down (ish - +/- 30 cm) across the back of the garage then bending 90 degrees to emerge from the soil slope next to the garage might help. Easiest way would be a bloke with a minidigger (£300-500 a day).. You'd need a load of crushed rock/gravel to stick on top of the pipe before putting the soil back on top.
Or tank the garage - with a drain running out of the garage door.
Or cut a small drainage runnel around the perimeter of the garage floor and let it drain out the front.
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Does the retaining wall have any drainage? Has the drainage being rodded recently? I would start here. If someone hasn't installed any drainage then they're a pillock.
PU grouting is one method of plugging such leaks. Other options would be to accept water is very persistent and find a way of dealing with the leak/water.
I'd also be having a damn good stomp around the ground above and look for any depressions or soft areas. Water like this transports fine material, gradually at first but with increasing speed and you can end up losing material quite readily (internal erosion). It's probably not the biggest concern from what you've described.
Remember that even a 1mm slither of water at the back of a retaining wall is the same as having a lake behind it in terms of the pressure exerted on the wall. If you did seal a mid height leak and end up retaining water to ground level this would potentially be detriment against the existing condition.
Grouting will obviously push the water elsewhere.
(STD. DISCLAIMER: please don't take ANY of this as a professional recommendation/or otherwise).
Thanks, Paul. I’m unsure about drainage but I’ll ask (or get someone out to check). It’s a house we are negotiating a final price on and it’s the owners children dealing with it as the owner has gone into care, so I suspect the answer will be “we’re not sure, sorry”.
Would the drainage for such a wall likely be something external (like TT has described) or something which drains through the wall (into garage/cellar). If it’s external we might be able to snoop around and look as it would drain onto the footpath at the front of the space.
PU grouting could be a good option assuming the integrity of the wall is fine. We’re not sure how it’s actually built (and to what standard). There’s a photo of the inside below. Most of the space is actually really dry (i.e. other 3 walls are spotless). The top of the wall has some leaks but that’s due to a bad design letting water in which we would change. It’s the bit at the bottom of the ladder which is the main concern for us as it was like a little river the other day.
We assume the wall is made from blocks as it looks too coursed to be poured concrete (but I don’t actually know).
(https://i.ibb.co/HTHCYnq/2-EAC8-CC3-DD11-4902-917-E-520-D0813-D8-AB.jpg) (https://ibb.co/PG6M4wg)
A drain (plastic pipe with holes in it to collect water) about 1m down (ish - +/- 30 cm) across the back of the garage then bending 90 degrees to emerge from the soil slope next to the garage might help. Easiest way would be a bloke with a minidigger (£300-500 a day).. You'd need a load of crushed rock/gravel to stick on top of the pipe before putting the soil back on top.
Or tank the garage - with a drain running out of the garage door.
Or cut a small drainage runnel around the perimeter of the garage floor and let it drain out the front.
Is tanking basically cleaning and painting (but not with paint) to provide a new waterproof layer?
Drainage channels could work well too.
If we could get it sorted for, say, £2k then I’d be pretty happy with that. Assuming the wall is structurally sound etc. Even if it meant keeping on top of a bit of water every now and then. The floor is raised so everything is actually dry in there (just some bits have suffered from damp. But the main concern would be the foam under the board as it could get really grim really quickly.
The house has had a big extension, the guy was hugely into his gardening and maintenance. Boiler has just been replaced, the kitchen is an expensive one, there’s thousands and thousands of (ugly) fitted furniture. So, I feel like he was the kind of person who wouldn’t have skimped on getting this built which gives me some confidence that the wall was okay and it is (hopefully) just a recent issue which hasn’t been sorted as he went into care last year.
But it is all built up above a public footpath so we’re also quite cautious that we don’t want it to collapse!
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Yes, typically you'd lay drainage at the rear toe of the wall, as Tom describes, the construction would be half perforated pipe (perfs up), granular surround and some geotextile to stop the fines moving from the retained fill into the voids in the granular fill. If it's there it'll need to come out somewhere. As I said, have a stomp about above and see how wet things are (and if there's any evidence of the granular material near the surface).
If you're not sure how it's built (and you REALLY want to know) then a couple of trial holes behind the wall might give you a clue but it's not uncommon for people to build walls that are thinner at the top. You could also try sinking a long SDS drill through the back at various heights if you're confident there aren't any services although I'm not sure I'd let a prospective buyer loose drilling things prior to exchange! This is loosely what we do with masonry bridge abutments when assessing them with the bridge deck/beams removed but the SDS drill bit is usually an 80-100mm core instead.
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Yes, typically you'd lay drainage at the rear toe of the wall, as Tom describes, the construction would be half perforated pipe (perfs up), granular surround and some geotextile to stop the fines moving from the retained fill into the voids in the granular fill. If it's there it'll need to come out somewhere. As I said, have a stomp about above and see how wet things are (and if there's any evidence of the granular material near the surface).
If you're not sure how it's built (and you REALLY want to know) then a couple of trial holes behind the wall might give you a clue but it's not uncommon for people to build walls that are thinner at the top. You could also try sinking a long SDS drill through the back at various heights if you're confident there aren't any services although I'm not sure I'd let a prospective buyer loose drilling things prior to exchange! This is loosely what we do with masonry bridge abutments when assessing them with the bridge deck/beams removed but the SDS drill bit is usually an 80-100mm core instead.
Thanks again!
So (assuming the wall is built properly) the worst case would likely be excavating, installing proper drainage at the toe of the wall, and filling it in properly. Along with perhaps PU Grouting the known weaknesses and then cleaning/repainting?
If we wanted to get a specific survey for someone to come and check this out, do you know the type of company/contractor we would need to get in contact with? I think a standard building survey wouldn’t cover this?
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I think your best bet, if you're concerned would be to get a one-man Civils company with a good reputation to site and ask them how they'd achieve what you want (getting rid of the leak) and the method they'd use.
If it makes you feel any better, I've got zero idea of how my garage is built and it retains fill on two sides and it doesn't lose me any sleep.
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I'd maybe just look at tanking first. Sure, drainage will help, and is probably a bit of a diy job, but you'll still have damp walls.
Google "tanking a cellar" for ideas. Its lining the walls with a water proof membrane, having a channel at the bottom to take the water way, then lining with a nice new plasterboard wall in front (you wont really need to insulate it unless you want it all gucci warm/heated).
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I'd maybe just look at tanking first. Sure, drainage will help, and is probably a bit of a diy job, but you'll still have damp walls.
Fair comment, and not something I know much about.
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I'm in the process of planning a french drain (what TT and Paul are talking about) at my new place - I'm building a timber garage in the back field and want the ground around it to drain better than currently before I lay a concrete slab. Cost involves one man plus mini-digger (could be a woman but what are the chances). My neighbor apparently knows a local farmer who'll do it for £140 per day inc. machine. 1-2 days to dig the 2 trenches I require but it's a fairly large area. Perf pipe. Aggregate. Some solid pipe for the outflow part, a few connections, maybe a point catch drain. I'll be doing it myself except the mini-digger.
Plenty of youtube vids of french drainage if you're curious to see some interesting French Drain beef - of course, this is social media-world - between the drainage contractors of Florida (sandy soil) versus North Carolina (clay soil) on type of pipe, geofabric v non-geo fabric, and grass cover versus exposed aggregate. I like the 2nd vid below, he's like the Tiger King of drainage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEVBOEIktr4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRL_5G9c08s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRDArxPmK88
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Plenty of youtube vids of french drainage if you're curious to see some interesting French Drain beef
I'm not going to lie, a trigger warning would've been nice ;D
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We did an ‘on the cheap’ half tanking job on one cellar room. We were fortunate as the house is built on loose sand so free draining*. This involved ripping up the existing concrete floor. Laying a new one with a damp membrane (plastic sheet) under it then running up the bottom 10-20cm of the wall. 10cm of kings pan was also out under the concrete (above the membrane obvs). Then for the damp walls we used a membrane (looks like bubble wrap but is harder) with special sealed plugs that you use to fix it to the walls. The membrane then goes inside (wall side) of the floor sheet so anything that drips down the wall goes into the soil/sand.
For the full buiding regs way of doing it you should have drainage channels - a sump and auto pump around the walls.
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From what James has described though, a sump/pump wouldn't be needed as the channels could just drain freely out the front of the garage non?
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The algorithm is always listening, YouTube just presented this video (although I do rate Roger Bisby and the SkillBuilder channel)
https://youtu.be/yTAyE8Wz9es (https://youtu.be/yTAyE8Wz9es)
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Thanks for all of the advice! I’ve learned loads from it (and getting into a YouTube hole…).
It was all for a house we were just agreeing a final price for. But another person who offered 2-3 weeks ago just came back and beat our offer (we were about 25k above them) and we weren’t given the chance to counter 🤦🏻
I hope the wall falls down now!
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I hope the wall falls down now!
If it’s next to a footpath you could go for a daily walk past the house and slowly undermine it.
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Wear old school diving boots
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I’m making some outhouse and back yard doors. Everything is cut to size and now fully treated.
Main panels are going to be tongue and groove with a frame support on the back.
The current gates are all just glued together with the only screws being for hinges. I guess there’s no real reason not to add some screws to hold it together?
Any tips or wisdom before I start sticking it all together tomorrow….
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Anyone got some glue knowledge? I want to save a body board that the skin is starting to peel off. The middle is polystyrene foam, the rail and upper are some sort of closed cell foam, and the bottom is some sort of shiny plastic. So the glue needs to be waterproof, flexible, and not dissolve the plastics. Any tips?
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I've had good success with West System G-Flex for ski repairs (I used the thickened version, with black pigment to match the base) but I don't see why the non-thickened version wouldn't be perfect.
According to this: https://www.boardcave.com/the-surfers-corner/pu-or-epoxy-which-one-is-best Epoxy Resin is the only thing you can use with expanded polystyrene.
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Anyone ever had a floor levelled? It's a single room in a first floor flat, big bow (4-5" in middle) and a slope one end to other (very historic movement).
Not sure if we're best getting it done with packers, getting the floor pulled up and joists repaired / lifted?
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I levelled on of our first floor rooms a few months ago that had a similar amount of bowing / slope. Sistered the joists using 6x2s screwed and carriage bolted to the originals. Took me a couple of days and a couple of hundred quids worth of wood.
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I levelled on of our first floor rooms a few months ago that had a similar amount of bowing / slope. Sistered the joists using 6x2s screwed and carriage bolted to the originals. Took me a couple of days and a couple of hundred quids worth of wood.
I had wondered if that would be the best method. Did you lift and re-use the original floorboards, or make a new ply floor?
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Are you still in the same flat in the old building from 15 or so years ago?
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I had wondered if that would be the best method. Did you lift and re-use the original floorboards, or make a new ply floor?
[/quote]
Nah they were pretty knackered and had been cut in loads of places for services so we put P5 down, which seemed a shame but it's carpetted anyway. If you're reusing the boards, bear in mind that if they've been cut for pipes etc., the cuts won't line up with the new joists.
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Are you still in the same flat in the old building from 15 or so years ago?
Nope, been in this place around 5 years now.
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OK.
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I recently replaced one of the bulbs in our fridge as it was no longer working. Today I noticed a burning smell in the kitchen and discovered that the other bulb was stuck on, even with the fridge door closed, resulting in some melted and scorched plastic around the fitting (and melted chocolate :'().
I replaced the bulb (I'd bought two spares but only replaced the broken one) and now it turns off ok when the door is closed.
I had a quick look online and couldn't find an answer. How can a bulb be stuck on even when the switch that turns it off is working? Although it seems to be working fine now I'd like to know what's going on as I'm concerned at how hot the bulb managed to get. I'd rather not have a house fire because of a dodgy fridge.
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Maybe you should do what Joe P did when I lived with him. De-ice the freezer compartment by spearing through the whole thing with a large kitchen knife, replace it with the cheapest model- preferably Czech- available from Curry’s, then accept that phone conversations will be barely audible in the adjacent room once the motor starts up due to the noise it produces when circulating coolant.
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resulting in some melted and scorched plastic around the fitting (and melted chocolate :'().
Nothing helpful to add, but what are you doing keeping chocolate in the fridge?!?
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resulting in some melted and scorched plastic around the fitting (and melted chocolate :'().
Nothing helpful to add, but what are you doing keeping chocolate in the fridge?!?
What kind of maniac doesn't keep chocolate in the fridge?!?
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resulting in some melted and scorched plastic around the fitting (and melted chocolate :'().
Nothing helpful to add, but what are you doing keeping chocolate in the fridge?!?
What kind of maniac doesn't keep chocolate in the fridge?!?
Unless you live in the tropics, I disagree you MaDMAn
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I recently replaced one of the bulbs in our fridge as it was no longer working. Today I noticed a burning smell in the kitchen and discovered that the other bulb was stuck on, even with the fridge door closed, resulting in some melted and scorched plastic around the fitting (and melted chocolate :'().
I replaced the bulb (I'd bought two spares but only replaced the broken one) and now it turns off ok when the door is closed.
I had a quick look online and couldn't find an answer. How can a bulb be stuck on even when the switch that turns it off is working? Although it seems to be working fine now I'd like to know what's going on as I'm concerned at how hot the bulb managed to get. I'd rather not have a house fire because of a dodgy fridge.
That's a bit weird. I'd be surprised (and dismayed) if the damage was directly from the bulb. Surely a fridge would be designed to cope with the possibility of constant bulb operation (especially in a chilled, well ventilated environment)?
I've seen similar seeming, not from heating by the surface of a light bulb, but from nearby control switches - where the contact pads have welded together, so it remains closed ("on"), even if the switch has been put into the "off" position. But if that had happened, it probably would not be "working fine now" - unless there was a resistive heating fault at the contacts that had temporarily welded closed and parted later?! Bizarre. Impossible to say anything meaningful without taking it apart.
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Is there any way to tell if this is Asbestos? There are a few bits on our allotment which we don't want to touch until we’re sure.
(https://i.ibb.co/jWp32j2/IMG-9844.jpg) (https://ibb.co/dLhkqHq)
html how to link a website (https://imgbb.com/)
(https://i.ibb.co/G24KZ4m/IMG-9845.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Njd80dR)
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Probably is based on a look but I don't know how you'd confirm. There's no/very low risk unless you start snapping it up. It's certainly not a problem to touch it, or to stack it in a corner somewhere. Just wear gloves and a mask if you want to be sure.
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You can get testing kits off the internet for about 10-20 quid, they have sample bags, disposable gloves, overalls, mask and pre-paid Jiffy bags in them. You suit up, break off a bit and bag it up, then send it off. The lab will send you the results in a few days.
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Actually a quick google suggests it’s now more like £30-50 for a single sample kit - either my memory is poor or they’ve gone up in the last few years.
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As per others I'd assume it's asbestos. Looks like it but you can't be sure without sampling. Depending how many panels you have it could be worth paying for a sample - if you have lots of them and the sample came back as not asbestos you then have piece of mind and could re-use the panels for something else on the allotment or dispose as standard building waste at your local recycling centre. If it came back as asbestos, handle accordingly and take to your local council recycling centre after booking it in as asbestos waste - there'll likely be a payment to be made for them to accept it.
If you only have a few panels it's probably not worth getting a sample. Just assume they're asbestos and handle accordingly.
When handling the panels you'd be sensible to first damp them down with water by hose/spray bottle, wear a hooded paper suit, gloves, a disposable P3 mask, and non-laced boots or wellies if you have them. Double wrap the panels in polythene. Put the used paper suit/gloves/mask in with the panels for disposal as asbestos waste, and wash the boots.
Try not to break any of the panels while handling as that's how the asbestos fibres would be released, but don't worry about it if you do as it can be hard not to end up breaking anything. The amount of fibres released would be v.small and damping the panels, working outdoors and wearing suit/mask/gloves would v.likely prevent you being exposed to anything.
https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/public-health/asbestos-home-removal#:~:text=Ensure%20that%20any%20asbestos%20cement,Beighton%20Road%20HWRC
Alternatively stack in a corner for someone else to have to deal with in future, who'll contemplate the same things you're contemplating.
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Thanks for the responses. There isn’t much that we can see (one area which we need to go through could be hiding more) but its only the panel shown and one other smaller piece.
It’s reassuring to know that it’s likely to be fine if just left for now as long as we don’t break it. We want to have a big clear out this summer so we will take care around it.
Our local council wast recycling place does allow small amounts to be taken for free (didn’t even think of that, thanks Pete)
Alternatively the council allotments does have money for some onsite work so i might ask if they could do anything to remove it.
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Not sure what the rules are in the UK. But if you get a company to so it the have to take a lot of measures for safety, but if you do it yourself it isn't too much of a hassle. Don't wait to long before removing it as it will only decompose even more and make it harder to remove.
Doas described above, wear mask and suit and throw them. Don't break stuff. And being exposed once won't give you cancer either. It's the working day in day out with it that has been problematic.
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Anyone got any experience of retrofitting a dry ridge system to replace a mortared-on one?
From the instructions available online for various kits it looks pretty straightforward, but I will only have the scaffolding for a limited time and have a few other jobs to do on the roof, so if anyone has any tips, recommendations for good brands etc that’ll save me time and unnecessary screw ups I’d really appreciate it.
It’s an artificial slate roof in generally good shape (apart from the ridge, which has lost a tile at one end and the mortar is falling out for most of the rest) re-covered about 10 years ago. It’s just a straight ridge with no hips etc. and concrete tiles. I’ll have scaffolding from one side.
Thanks in advance.
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Have you considered a zinc ridge?
Easy to fit, light and simple?
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I haven’t - I wasn’t aware they existed. I’ll have a read up. Thanks!
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We have an area of plasterboard (about the size of an A4 sheet of paper) which has, at some point become damp and swollen up. It doesn't seem to be a progressive thing as it's been like that for a few years and doesn't seem to have become worse. We're decorating this room so need to fix the shonky plaster (I've already poked a hole in it).
An inch or two behind the plaster is breeze block exterior wall. Our neighbour (who I don't really trust) has told us that the plasterboard is fixed to this via dot and dab and that we can cut out the area of damaged plaster (A4 sized), squirt expanding foam into the hole, saw off whatever protrudes from the wall, then cover with poly filler.
As I said, I don't really have complete faith in this guy, so wondering if anyone can offer advice on whether this is a good fix. Any suggested expanding foam products or any reasons not to do it like this? It sounds straightforward - is it simple enough to do?
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We have an area of plasterboard (about the size of an A4 sheet of paper) which has, at some point become damp and swollen up. It doesn't seem to be a progressive thing as it's been like that for a few years and doesn't seem to have become worse. We're decorating this room so need to fix the shonky plaster (I've already poked a hole in it).
An inch or two behind the plaster is breeze block exterior wall. Our neighbour (who I don't really trust) has told us that the plasterboard is fixed to this via dot and dab and that we can cut out the area of damaged plaster (A4 sized), squirt expanding foam into the hole, saw off whatever protrudes from the wall, then cover with poly filler.
As I said, I don't really have complete faith in this guy, so wondering if anyone can offer advice on whether this is a good fix. Any suggested expanding foam products or any reasons not to do it like this? It sounds straightforward - is it simple enough to do?
It's one way of filling holes. I did exactly that to fill the joint between the top of my board and the ceiling so I wouldn't keep catching my fingers at the top when throwing for a hold. It's not completely trivial to achieve a good finish with polyfilla, but can be done with a bit of care and a filling knife. Youtube will show you how.
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As I said, I don't really have complete faith in this guy, so wondering if anyone can offer advice on whether this is a good fix. Any suggested expanding foam products or any reasons not to do it like this? It sounds straightforward - is it simple enough to do?
Really terrible fix/idea. Assuming you could somehow cut/saw an area as big that of expanded foam flat ( you can't) slapping some poly filler over it won't really cover and will def be visible (ie. look awful) and crack.
My advice - carefully and neatly cut out the a4 size square. Carefully and neatly cut out a new piece of plasterboard at same size. use plasterboard adhesive to stick it in the hole and tap carefully until flush on all sides. tape the joints and then use a sandable filler ie. not plaster (assuming you're a plastering novice) skim and sand until you're happy. Not using plasterboard tape on the joints makes filling/skimming/sanding much easier to get a good result but the joints might be prone to cracking...
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Ok, thanks. This seems similar to what you describe but the wooden battens should help keeping it in place while skimming over. Are you saying not to use polyfilla to cover the whole area, just to fill the joins? If I wanted to cover the whole area I'd need to get some sandable filler? Any product recommendations?
https://youtu.be/JmcR9TW4mM0?si=tMo8Hv8YiQtxJYvP
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yeah that's the sort of idea. You might be able to use slim battens but if the existing is dot dabbed, there might not be sufficiant gap to fit battens in the gap between the back of the plasterboard and the breeze wall....In which case you'd want to glue (dot dab) your new piece in place with this sort of stuff :
https://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense-plasterboard-adhesive-10kg/168RT?tc=CB2&ds_rl=1249416&gclid=Cj0KCQjwiIOmBhDjARIsAP6YhSXboBg6AW3Hs1M4Q9zVp_TqiJ9Nt81x65zwN3RRBTXNnFWR-ELuZq8aAuQvEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
For a sandable filler this sort of stuff:
https://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense-joint-filler-10kg/223rt
(Or polyfiller or whatever if you already have some)
Trouble is, it's a bit crazy to be buying 10kg sacks of the stuff if you're only doing an A4 sized bit plasterboarding!
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Just put a picture over it ;)
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What Steve said.
In the video, it looks like the wall is just painted plasterboard, so his patch is flush with the original wall and he only needs to fill the joints. Yours will most likely have a 3mm or so layer of plaster on top, so your plasterboard patch will be recessed relative to the surrounding wall. You’ll want to fill this recess, and the joints. I’ve had good results for big patches with gyproc easifill: https://www.diy.com/departments/gyproc-easi-fill-quick-dry-two-coat-filler-jointing-compound-5kg-bag/143937_BQ.prd
Whatever filler you use make sure you mix it really really well. Over fill, then sand back to flat.
It will be much quicker and easier to get a good finish if you have a sander. Even a cheapo one will do a much better job than you can by hand. Make sure you wait until the filler is fully dry before sanding (drying times on the packet tend to be optimistic).
It will be horrifically dusty, but the alternative is being skilled enough to do it without needing to sand or paying someone who is to do it. If possible take the dust bag off the sander and bodge your hoover onto it with duck tape.
Edit: Chris’s suggestion is also a good one.
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It's a bit outside the scope of this thread (but not worthy of a new one).
Can anyone recommend a glue for repairing a head unit where the rubbery buttons have started to peel off? I've seen some people mention superglue but was a bit wary of that being quite viscous and setting the actual underlying buttons hard. For now it's just mummified in electrical tape. I tried shoe goo as I had a tube handy but that just balled up and wouldn't adhere to the rubbery material (with zero surface prep admittedly).
(it's one of these: https://uk.wahoofitness.com/devices/bike-computers/elemnt-bolt-buy)
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Thanks for the plastering advice, everyone.
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Can anyone recommend a glue for repairing a head unit where the rubbery buttons have started to peel off? I've seen some people mention superglue but was a bit wary of that being quite viscous and setting the actual underlying buttons hard. For now it's just mummified in electrical tape. I tried shoe goo as I had a tube handy but that just balled up and wouldn't adhere to the rubbery material (with zero surface prep admittedly).
(it's one of these: https://uk.wahoofitness.com/devices/bike-computers/elemnt-bolt-buy)
Would a wide strip of electrical tape over the whole button work? Hold it in place, but still be flexible? Might not be a permanent solution, but easy enough to replace when needed.
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That's what's there as a temporary measure but others who have had this issue report catastrophic failure of the screen when water gets in. I was hoping to glue it and get a silicone cover to try and extend its life until the newer versions are cheaper (Wahoo have kindly offered a 20% discount voucher when I asked about a repair but that's still £200 and I'm really quite tight).
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We’re having plans drawn up for an attic conversation and the architect is recommending we re-roof (as there are just exposed slates with no felting etc).
He also recommends upgrading the rafters, which are currently 65mm deep, to fit thicker insulation in. Though we can get more expensive insulation which will work with the existing ones which i would probably prefer given head height is already going to be tight.
I wondered if anyone knows:
1) if we decided to re-roof, how much extra work/cost might we expect to upgrade the existing rafters too? Would you generally basically make a new roof or just screw some on to the existing ones?
2) the builders who came around, who basically just do conversions, said we wouldn't need to re-roof. So it it necessary to have all the felting underneath if converting? I guess it just covers potential leaks?
I think they basically said you could just do that in the future if the roof eventually needs re-doing.
We’re likely to be in the house for another 5 years or so and i don't think we will get it classed as a bedroom due to head height (might just get it but it will be very tight). As such I’m a little reluctant to do everything perfect for building regs if we don't really need it…
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I haven't had to do any work to my house's roof but have done endless research into insulation for floors walls and new flat roofs, so take following with some caveats.
Are you doing this under permitted development (no planning permission required)?
Building regulations will specify a u-value that you'll need to hit. Current one I think is 0.16 or 0.15 for a roof. Has your architect specified what insulation they are proposing to hit that within the rafters? Normally it's around 150mm of PIR insulation to get in that region.
Building regulations changed in June last year so make sure builder / architect is up to speed on the new u-values.
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I haven't had to do any work to my house's roof but have done endless research into insulation for floors walls and new flat roofs, so take following with some caveats.
Are you doing this under permitted development (no planning permission required)?
Building regulations will specify a u-value that you'll need to hit. Current one I think is 0.16 or 0.15 for a roof. Has your architect specified what insulation they are proposing to hit that within the rafters? Normally it's around 150mm of PIR insulation to get in that region.
Building regulations changed in June last year so make sure builder / architect is up to speed on the new u-values.
We are pretty sure it is just under permitted development (standard velux loft conversion). There is a complication that we are in a conservation area but we are pretty sure this just means we cant have any windows on the front.
Our friend did the same a few years ago and had confirmation it was fine.
Annoyingly, despite the gov/council website saying there should be detailed information on what constitutes permitted development, there’s no such thing. And as our council structure has changed, planning won’t answer anything over email - they just say to submit an application (to answer any hypothetical question). The good thing is that there hasn’t been any applications for velux conversions in our area listed online - but there’s loads of them. So we’re assuming it is still fine.
On the insulation, the architect would prefer to use PIR board (unsure of thickness at the moment - he is just finalising the detailed plans). Though he came up with a solution using foil insulation which would get the minimum PIR value needed.
I’m minded to just upgrade the roof and get it all done to the best standard we can (or at least base our quoted on that) and then worry about cost later! It will all probably make the sale process easier when we come to sell…
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If you're in doubt you can usually go for a certificate of lawful development (the name might be slightly different). A lot of companies I do work for use this approach as a record they're within their PD rights (which are often greater than for a private property e.g. for operational requirements).
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Ooof. Where to start.
So firstly, you need to differenciate between 'Planning Permission' and 'Building Control/Regs'
Two separate things. So all the talk of 'permitted development' etc etc falls under planning permission, and is concerned with the outside look/appearence of the finished things, such as ridge height, dormers, roof lights etc. They don't really care what goes on inside, or the thickness/type of your insulation.. that's building controls concern.
With regards building control, there are a multitude of things as play.
Firstly, you initially talked about not getting it 'classified' as a bedroom.
Well this is a bit of a grey area that's not clearly defined. You have to decide if its going to be classed as a 'habitable space' (forget bedroom/not bedroom).
'Habitable space' was not that clearly defined when we did ours a few years ago. From my googling at the time, it depended on a few factors.
A few obvious ones are.. if there are stairs up to it (rather than a loft ladder) - then it'll definitly be classed as habitable in the eyes of building control. will it be plastered out, is there lighting and sockets etc etc.
If it is going to be habitable, then you're definitely going to have to do it to current building regs standards, i.e. head rooms, means of escape (usually this means replacing all your doors that lead onto the stairs/landings with fire doors as they don't allow escape velux's anymore and the route of escape has to be down the main staircase). And is the central heating getting extended up there.
Moving on to insulation and U values. If you're going to extend the houses heating system into the loft, then you definitly fall under the building regs for that. (regardless of the classification of the room) since you are making a previously unheated space, into a heated space, and extending the thermal envelope of the dwelling.
This will be latest Part L building regs.
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1133079/Approved_Document_L__Conservation_of_fuel_and_power__Volume_1_Dwellings__2021_edition_incorporating_2023_amendments.pdf
See 4.11-4.13 and 11.2 to 11.4
For the roof you'll need to hit a U value of 0.16
Usual way is to put some PIR between the rafters, what ever will fit and still leave the 50mm gap required up the back.
Then under draw with some PIR backed plasterboard. (which invariably causes issues with head room etc).
Be wary of multifoils. I'm not saying they're complete bunkum, but they are certainly not 'space saving' because in order to actually get any of the claimed U values, you need to have a decent air gap either side, and usually its in conjuction with some PIR between the rafters too. They are also a complete pain to work with (feed back from builders). Counter battens one way across rafters, then the foil, which needs nailing, as screws twist it all up, then counter battens the other way. Its more work than you may imagine and builders time costs money! PIR backed plasterboard is quick and easy to work with.
You want to aim to get as much PIR between the rafters really, to minimise the thickness of the underdrawn stuff, to give you more head room, hence the suggestion of thickening the rafters to accomodate.
PIR generally has a conductivity of 0.022 (Xtratherm, Unilin, Celotex, Ecotherm, Recticel etc).
Kingspan has a slighly lower (better) conductivity at 0.018, but is suitably more expensive.
To hit a U value of 0.16, with standard (0.022) PIR, then you'd need 120mm between your rafters and 50mm PIR underdrawn (ends up being a 62.5mm board with 50mm PIR and 12.5mm Plasterboard).
Thus your rafters would need to be at least 170 deep, to allow for the 120mm + 50m air gap.
For what its worth, I took a different approach with ours. Its a hobby room/store room, albeit a very nice one. Just got a loft ladder permenently bolted to wall up through a hatch. This will get replaced with a folding loft ladder when we sell and we'll not be able to advertise the loft room. As its not habitable.
Heating system was not extended up into the loft, so just occasionally use an electric heater up there. There was already a socket up there, so just extended the ring main with a couple more sockets (my understanding is that you can extend an existing circuit yourself, but need a Part P electrician to install an new circuit). The ceiling is insulated right across the horizontal, like a normal loft. then boarded over the top. So the loft room is not part of the thermal envelope. However, we had 75mm rafters and I elected to put 50mm PIR between them, with a 25mm air gap. I've justifed this lesser gab to myself on account of there being no felt and the gap behind is extremely well ventilated (you can see sky through a lot of it!! but doesn't seem to leak). Roof/slate will get replaced at some stage in the future I'm sure and we'll address this then.
Anyhow, good luck with it!
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I’m putting some shelves up into a plastered brick wall. Shelves are 5kg and will have books on so could be fairly heavy when loaded.
Brackets fasten above the shelf so any torque would be pulling out rather than pushing into the wall. Like this: https://bensimpsonfurniture.com/products/rustic-inverted-lipped-metal-bracket-thin-shelf-22cm-depth?variant=32641156579409¤cy=GBP&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gad=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw06-oBhC6ARIsAGuzdw35sy6a14LxcuYbDfmTWAwb0gEqWy_On9m7NPl1A68C4KEEjbX7bdAaAhdNEALw_wcB
I’ve only got yellow 5x24mm universal Rawl Plugs. Would you recommend something a bit beefier?
It’s going to be above my desk so I’d rather it doesn't rip out!
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I would say bigger diameter and longer.
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Any way to work out what would be best? I’ve never really used them before? Or just biggest i can get away with?
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What diameter screws came with the shelf brackets? Or what size screw fits the holes?
I get completely paranoid about things like this so always err on the side of caution. Nothing worse than worrying they’re gonna fall off. Worth paying more for decent plugs IMO. Plus sods law wherever you drill you’ll hit a crumbly mortar joint instead of into brick. And you want to go deep enough to get through roughly 15mm of plaster before you hit anything solid (possibly more in an old house that might’ve had a few skims). Basically just get biggest screws and appropriately sized plugs you can get away with!
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After our book shelf had pulled off the wall twice. I think I went for about 35mm x 10 mm and I had to drill the holes out on the brackets to get the screws in. Mind there is a lot of books on the shelves.
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What diameter screws came with the shelf brackets?
I just checked the box and there are some big 4mm screws and 8x39mm Rawl plugs with instructions.
Standard me just opening the box, grabbing the thing and just set off trying my own way :spank:
Thanks for the advice and sorry for being an idiot! One day I’ll learn…
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Even though they’re the screws and plugs that came with the brackets it’s still worth thinking whether they’re fit for purpose.
I used similar brackets for our open shelves in the kitchen which have heavy plates and pots/pans etc on them. The screws and plugs that came with them just didn’t ‘feel’ adequate and it would be a disaster if they fell off. So I got really beefy screws and plugs. Think they were 6x60 or 80mm screws and 10mm plugs. Also depends what length shelves and how many brackets on each shelf to distribute weight.
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We've just had the bathroom redone and unfortunately the shower screen (one that sits on the lip of the bath and swings back and forth) is leaking. I suspect it wasn't installed properly but it's also a crap screen - water also escapes through gaps that are inherent in the design of the screen. We need to get another one and wondered if anyone had recommended brands that are reliable. Also, if it means getting a watertight screen I'd be willing to put up with the hassle of a fixed-position screen, though you would need to get into the bath to turn the taps on to run a bath - is it worth it?
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Don’t know if it’s what you want, but I got one of these for our bathroom: https://www.screwfix.com/p/aqualux-semi-frameless-polished-silver-splash-guard-190-200mm-x-1400mm/7064t
It’s not a full screen, it just covers the gap between the wall and the shower curtain at the shower end. It’s fixed, but only 140mm so you can easily reach past it to get at the bath taps. It was easy to install (even though our walls are pretty wonky) and doesn’t leak, but it’s only any use with a shower curtain.
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Even though they’re the screws and plugs that came with the brackets it’s still worth thinking whether they’re fit for purpose.
This. We're talking less than an original UKB FA to remove any concern whatsoever.
Screws and plugs that come with furniture are usually terrible quality too. Save yourself/future self some unnecessary pain and use something better!
PSA: don't buy shit tools.
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Agree with all the above. Go beefy, you won’t regret it. I also tend to clean out the dust from the hole and put some adhesive in (No more nails type stuff) before sticking in the plug. Extra insurance.
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Went down to the local building merchant today and got some beefier kit based.
Everything is up now and looks good. Hopefully it all holds. Thanks for all the advice 🙂
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We've just had the bathroom redone and unfortunately the shower screen (one that sits on the lip of the bath and swings back and forth) is leaking.
Are there any that aren't shit? We had one in our flat in Sheffield and tried changing the slide-on seal but that was still terrible. I think I ended up botching a sealant dam (taking measures so it didn't bond to the screen's seal) which still allowed the screen to be swung outwards (useful for getting in and out of the shower ...with a broken leg for instance).
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Just leave it, sell the house, let some one else sort it. Or get the people who did it back to fix it.
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We've just had the bathroom redone and unfortunately the shower screen (one that sits on the lip of the bath and swings back and forth) is leaking. I suspect it wasn't installed properly but it's also a crap screen - water also escapes through gaps that are inherent in the design of the screen. We need to get another one and wondered if anyone had recommended brands that are reliable. Also, if it means getting a watertight screen I'd be willing to put up with the hassle of a fixed-position screen, though you would need to get into the bath to turn the taps on to run a bath - is it worth it?
We have the one at the bottom of p. 138 in this brochure. Seems fine so far, been in a few months.
https://www.bathroomstolove.uk/brochure/#page/138-139
My dad is always going on about how a slimline fixed screen is a better bet than a bigger swinging one, his argument being that water gets on the floor no matter what screen you have so it's better to just accept it and use a bigger bathmat. I was unconvinced and went for a swinging one this time.
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Just leave it, sell the house, let some one else sort it. Or get the people who did it back to fix it.
Going to do the latter. I suspect they fucked it up a bit but it's definitely also just a leaky screen. The plastic seal that runs along the bottom of the glass doesn't actually meet the vertical mount that you attach to the wall. Water that gets into the mount escapes from seams on the other side. It's a shitshow.
Also going to do the former but need to shower between now and then!
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We want to install an extra socket in a room. Best option seems to be go back to back with the one on the opposite side of the wall as it’s in the right place and the electrics would all be there - so minimal mess.
We got a quote to put in two sockets right next to each other which came out at £320. So maybe £50 of materials and the rest labour.
Does anyone know if this seems reasonable? I thought about doing it myself but i can imagine there being unexpected faff and having to bodge things. So getting it done properly is more appealing…
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Not so much a DIY question, as there's no way I'll be doing it myself but....
Moved into our house 3 years ago. The electrics have always seemed a bit dodgy; lots of instances of the fuse box tripping, seemingly being overloaded if lots of appliances on. Certain appliances (e.g. a kettle) didn't work at all without tripping the fuse box! Ended up returning it.
Anyway, the other day it went again, and the master fuse simply would not come back on while the switch for the plug sockets was on. Unplugged everything, nothing doing. Ended up getting an emergency electrician out as we'd lost the boiler and fridge.
The diagnosis seems to be that there is a short somewhere in the circuit, but because it's all under solid floors and due to it not being set up in a proper circuit (as in, it's not on a continuous loop instead there are different branches off it at random) the diagnosis is that a full rewiring of the sockets is required.
The good news is it only affects about half or two thirds of the sockets; the ones in the hallway, landing and loft conversion all still work.
Firstly does that sound right? Any red flags I should be thinking about?
And secondly what should I expect to pay roughly? Given it's not the entire house that needs doing?
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We want to install an extra socket in a room. Best option seems to be go back to back with the one on the opposite side of the wall as it’s in the right place and the electrics would all be there - so minimal mess.
We got a quote to put in two sockets right next to each other which came out at £320. So maybe £50 of materials and the rest labour.
Does anyone know if this seems reasonable? I thought about doing it myself but i can imagine there being unexpected faff and having to bodge things. So getting it done properly is more appealing…
That seems way over what I'd be expecting. Electricians rates anywhere from £250 per day upwards. Can't see a double socket taking a day. I'd have thought £100 max if it's straightforward. For reference, as part of full house renovation / extension our sparky charged £58 per twin socket installed.
Technically I believe adding a socket to an existing circuit is something you're allowed to diy and not need Part P certification.... But do check.
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If you've been given a silly quote it might be that the job is too small to be worthwhile. Get a second quote from a smaller outfit. You can make it a more attractive proposition if you've got other stuff that needs sorting to turn it into a half/full day's job.
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Firstly does that sound right?...
It sounds reasonable?
In the previous house I came to change the cooker (who builds a kitchen around a 50cm hob!?) and was really happy because on the consumer unit I found something labelled 'cooker' with a beefy rating. I was less pleased when I turned it off to find that it'd been used for the ring main in the extended bit of the house. Likewise, this one has an extension that was a spur from the kitchen, which was then spurred again etc. and had a washer, dryer and electric heater on it. I found this out by turning on the coffee machine and watching the plaster crack behind because of the load on the ring main and the heat this was generating.
It's a minor thing but I'll be replacing the kitchen sockets with faceplates containing USB ports when I get round to tiling behind the kitchen worktops.
I can't remember the cost of fixing the issue but I've used a local electrical contractor quite a bit since moving in to replace external lighting, finish running electric to a garage, installing a new ring main in said garage and external sockets in the garden so I seem to be getting a good price as he prices the job and only comes when he's got an appropriate gap (this can take a few months).
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If you've been given a silly quote it might be that the job is too small to be worthwhile. Get a second quote from a smaller outfit. You can make it a more attractive proposition if you've got other stuff that needs sorting to turn it into a half/full day's job.
This. They will often charge a full day for any job regardless of size, as it is unlikely they will find another to fill the rest of the day. Worth looking around for more quotes.
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If you've been given a silly quote it might be that the job is too small to be worthwhile. Get a second quote from a smaller outfit. You can make it a more attractive proposition if you've got other stuff that needs sorting to turn it into a half/full day's job.
This. They will often charge a full day for any job regardless of size, as it is unlikely they will find another to fill the rest of the day. Worth looking around for more quotes.
Thanks!
To be honest, I think that I might just do it myself. As TK421a said, it’s fine to do as a DIY job and I’m confident I can do it (have worked with mains electric before for this kind of thing). It’s mainly the prep and time it takes, and also I’m not quite sure what I’d attach the back box to - but if I take the opposite docket off then I can probably just mirror what’s been done for that.
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Would imagine theres numerous handymen out there who would happily do it for you for a reasonable price if you don't need it signed off.
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A few more DIY questions for the ever growing jobs list…
1) I need to re-seal our bath.
I’ve got it nice and clean down to plastic and tile, but there are a few bigger gaps that I’m not sure how to deal with.
In the below photo the vertical gap is about 10mm, and it goes about 20mm back from the tiles. This is the worst one.
I’m assuming this will need some kind of filler adding before using silicone sealant. Any tips on how to approach it?
(https://i.ibb.co/Jnkn9jq/IMG-0679.jpg) (https://ibb.co/fM0Msd9)
2) Our outhouse roof needs re-doing.
We’re getting some water ingress where our washing machine is which is causing the plaster to come away. Had a roofer out yesterday and he recommended stripping it, replacing the smaller horizontal pieces of wood (main joists are fine), felting and re-tiling. But the quote was £2,000 which we don’t really want to be spending right now - we’ve baby coming soon so it’s been an expensive few months!
How hard is it to re-lay a roof? It’s 2m x 3m so nothing massive. I can get local re-claimed slates and would be happy to give it a go, but not if it’s going to be a massive pain in the arse!
I imagine it is a case of taking the top bits off. Stripping tiles from top down, replacing broken ones, put new wood and felt on and then nail the tiles back on in the same order….
(https://i.ibb.co/PwYRtH4/IMG-0678.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Hn20X8Y)
3) some of our back yard need re-pointing.
I did brick laying in school (got an A at GCSE :punk: ) but haven’t done anything like that for 15 years or so!
Exiting stuff looks like this. Some bits are cracked - other sections are completely missing it.
Any ideas on the work involved in re-doing it? I guess removing anything which is dodgy. Clean out any mud/weeds. Wait for a dry weekend and get cracking?
(https://i.ibb.co/gvW6DMq/IMG-0677.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Xy5VzZ0)
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Would imagine theres numerous handymen out there who would happily do it for you for a reasonable price if you don't need it signed off.
That’s true. I’ll drop a few a message and see if anyone can fit it in :goodidea:
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Problem with gaps around a bath is unless the bath is rock solid it can move considerably between full and empty. 1m3 of water = 1 ton. I have had a frustrating time with a bath moving between empty and full because supports were not set up right and the sealant splitting due to movement. you can make some pencil marks and check between empty and full. If it's OK, you should be able to use expanding foam in the big gaps, cut it back where needed and go over with sealant.
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What Chris said and I also think I read that you should half fill the bath when you do it?
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Bath I was trying to do moved a full inch or so at one side between full and empty. It had a proper botch job putting the supports in, had to get panel off and sort them out before resealing, after 3 or 4 tries to fix it.
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Problem with gaps around a bath is unless the bath is rock solid it can move considerably between full and empty. 1m3 of water = 1 ton. I have had a frustrating time with a bath moving between empty and full because supports were not set up right and the sealant splitting due to movement. you can make some pencil marks and check between empty and full. If it's OK, you should be able to use expanding foam in the big gaps, cut it back where needed and go over with sealant.
Just measured at 4 points when full (to overflow) and empty. Might be about 0.5mm of movement but hard to tell. Basically nothing anyway :2thumbsup:
I’ll aim to do the expanding foam option this weekend unless there’s any better ways to do it. That was my first thought as it looks like ether might be some there already from when it was originally done. Almost regretting doing it - it was such a pain to remove all the old stuff it’s taken so much longer than I expected.
It was probably fine - but I expect the sides will get a lot wetter once there’s a child splashing around in there…
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Did you use silicone remover? Score it, apply and leave then scrape it off (repeat a few times).
https://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense-sealant-remover-100ml/88987?tc=OB4&gclid=CjwKCAjwyNSoBhA9EiwA5aYlbzmssh6vCGM7vuGGxEd-UmTNN0tjDInl38euXslF3plm7kHmW8OIYxoCynkQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
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Did you use silicone remover? Score it, apply and leave then scrape it off (repeat a few times).
https://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense-sealant-remover-100ml/88987?tc=OB4&gclid=CjwKCAjwyNSoBhA9EiwA5aYlbzmssh6vCGM7vuGGxEd-UmTNN0tjDInl38euXslF3plm7kHmW8OIYxoCynkQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
Would have been sensible! I used a kitchen knife before moving to a Stanley Blade…
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For the bath, I’d use foam rod, like this stuff: https://www.sealantsupplies.co.uk/products/foam-sealant-joint-backer-rod-2/ - expanding foam as per Paul’s post would also be fine, but I never fail to make a horrific mess with foam. If you go the exp. foam route, get a gun not an aerosol with a push button on top, it’s way easier to control. Also half fill the bath as Paul says and hope it doesn’t move as much as Chris’s! Use good quality, mould resistant sealant (Dow is good) or you’ll be re-doing it in a few months. I use masking tape, otherwise I make a mess with the silicone, lots of people do a good job without though.
For the roof, can you work out where the ingress is? It might be something simple and easier than a re-roof. I’d look at the flashings, verge, the ridge (can see some of the mortar has come out in your pic) and the gutter - it looks like the existing felt doesn’t lap over the back of the gutter in your pic, and it should, otherwise water dripping off the roof can blow behind the gutter. You can get plastic felt support trays that just slide under the existing felt to remedy this, like these: https://www.wickes.co.uk/Premium-Felt-Support-Tray-1-5m/p/169557
If you do re-roof, the doing is straightforward and very satisfying, but I’ve only ever done it when someone else had done all of the thinking. It’d be easy to screw up and only realise when it’ll be a lot of work to fix.
For the pointing, just go at it. Raking out can be a ball ache if the old mortar hasn’t all turned to weetabix. Rake out an inch deep, mix a lot dryer than for bricklaying, measure your mix amounts carefully so it’s all the same colour and start out somewhere inconspicuous, as it’ll probably be a bit messy at first.
Good luck!
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Get this or one of the cheaper versions when you do the silicone. I hadn't realised these existed till recently. It's self explanatory but there's YouTube videos to show you what to do.
https://www.screwfix.com/p/cramer-profiling-tool-kit-10-pieces/656fn
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of all the tools i bought/used for my kitchen rebuikd by far the most satisfying and time saving was a profiler tool like Will posted.
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3) some of our back yard need re-pointing.
I did brick laying in school (got an A at GCSE :punk: ) but haven’t done anything like that for 15 years or so!
Exiting stuff looks like this. Some bits are cracked - other sections are completely missing it.
Any ideas on the work involved in re-doing it? I guess removing anything which is dodgy. Clean out any mud/weeds. Wait for a dry weekend and get cracking?
Is this just a garden wall, or part of your out building? If the former I'd be tempted to leave it. It's a ball ache to grind out the old stuff without damaging the brickwork. Just patch up the worst bits where it has fallen out. Try a few different sand:cement mixes to get a similar match. Don't do it on too hot/sunny day as it may dry out too fast and crack, shouldn't be a problem this time of year though!
Congrats on the little one!
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For the bath, I’d use foam rod, like this stuff: https://www.sealantsupplies.co.uk/products/foam-sealant-joint-backer-rod-2/ - expanding foam as per Paul’s post would also be fine, but I never fail to make a horrific mess with foam. If you go the exp. foam route, get a gun not an aerosol with a push button on top, it’s way easier to control. Also half fill the bath as Paul says and hope it doesn’t move as much as Chris’s! Use good quality, mould resistant sealant (Dow is good) or you’ll be re-doing it in a few months. I use masking tape, otherwise I make a mess with the silicone, lots of people do a good job without though.
For the roof, can you work out where the ingress is? It might be something simple and easier than a re-roof. I’d look at the flashings, verge, the ridge (can see some of the mortar has come out in your pic) and the gutter - it looks like the existing felt doesn’t lap over the back of the gutter in your pic, and it should, otherwise water dripping off the roof can blow behind the gutter. You can get plastic felt support trays that just slide under the existing felt to remedy this, like these: https://www.wickes.co.uk/Premium-Felt-Support-Tray-1-5m/p/169557
If you do re-roof, the doing is straightforward and very satisfying, but I’ve only ever done it when someone else had done all of the thinking. It’d be easy to screw up and only realise when it’ll be a lot of work to fix.
For the pointing, just go at it. Raking out can be a ball ache if the old mortar hasn’t all turned to weetabix. Rake out an inch deep, mix a lot dryer than for bricklaying, measure your mix amounts carefully so it’s all the same colour and start out somewhere inconspicuous, as it’ll probably be a bit messy at first.
Good luck!
I’ll see if i can get some of the foam rod locally - i would only need about 50cm of it so hopefully one of the local plumbing merchants will
Sell it in smaller quantities. If not I’ll maybe try the expanding foam route, thanks.
With the roof, there’s quite a lot of broken tiles, moss growing which is raising some tiles (and holding water in place). There’s no felting - its just exposed slates when viewed from the inside - so any ingress is going straight onto the back of the plaster board.
I think if i went for the re-roof I’d just replace like for like, other than adding felting. I wouldn’t touch the flashing at the side. To be honest it’s definitely something we could live with and sort out next summer when theres a longer dry spell because, as you say, i imagine things will go wrong and take longer than expected so trying to do it on an autumn weekend probably isn’t ideal…
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3) some of our back yard need re-pointing.
I did brick laying in school (got an A at GCSE :punk: ) but haven’t done anything like that for 15 years or so!
Exiting stuff looks like this. Some bits are cracked - other sections are completely missing it.
Any ideas on the work involved in re-doing it? I guess removing anything which is dodgy. Clean out any mud/weeds. Wait for a dry weekend and get cracking?
Is this just a garden wall, or part of your out building? If the former I'd be tempted to leave it. It's a ball ache to grind out the old stuff without damaging the brickwork. Just patch up the worst bits where it has fallen out. Try a few different sand:cement mixes to get a similar match. Don't do it on too hot/sunny day as it may dry out too fast and crack, shouldn't be a problem this time of year though!
Congrats on the little one!
Cheers! Going to be quite a chance but I can’t wait. Looking forward to lots of family Font trips :2thumbsup:
Yeah the house is fine - just the yard walls. It will probably end up being left due to timing - but will make some plans to do some bits when there’s a free weekend or dry spell.
Good point regarding matching the colour as I’d say 50% is probably fine to stay and the rest is all
Crumbling or already fallen off.
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Get this or one of the cheaper versions when you do the silicone. I hadn't realised these existed till recently. It's self explanatory but there's YouTube videos to show you what to do.
https://www.screwfix.com/p/cramer-profiling-tool-kit-10-pieces/656fn
This looks magical. Much easier than using a wet finger which was the approach we used when trying to seal our ever leaking shower on the boat!
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I’ll see if i can get some of the foam rod locally - i would only need about 50cm of it so hopefully one of the local plumbing merchants will
Sell it in smaller quantities. If not I’ll maybe try the expanding foam route, thanks.
With the roof, there’s quite a lot of broken tiles, moss growing which is raising some tiles (and holding water in place). There’s no felting - its just exposed slates when viewed from the inside - so any ingress is going straight onto the back of the plaster board.
I think if i went for the re-roof I’d just replace like for like, other than adding felting. I wouldn’t touch the flashing at the side. To be honest it’s definitely something we could live with and sort out next summer when theres a longer dry spell because, as you say, i imagine things will go wrong and take longer than expected so trying to do it on an autumn weekend probably isn’t ideal…
I've got some foam rod kicking about in the garage and can drop a bit in the post if you want to give it a try, PM me you address if you want any.
No felt on the roof makes it quite a bit easier to spot where the water is getting in, which could help. If it's near the gutter line, i'd try the felt support trays - they don't actually need any felt, they just push under the bottom course of tiles from the outside so they're sandwiched between the top of the rafters and the bottom surface of the tiles and cover the gap between the end of the tiles and the gutter. Might improve things until you re-roof next summer if nothing else.
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This looks magical. Much easier than using a wet finger which was the approach we used when trying to seal our ever leaking shower on the boat!
Dipping your finger in white spirit makes it a lot easier
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This looks magical. Much easier than using a wet finger which was the approach we used when trying to seal our ever leaking shower on the boat!
Dipping your finger in white spirit makes it a lot easier
I've always used water with a small amount of fairy liquid in it for silicone, and just water for caulk.
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I went into the loft to get the Christmas decs down and discovered (along with loads of dead wozzas) a wasps nest the size of a beach ball. In finding it I accidently damaged it and revealed a number of sleepy wasps crawling around inside, none of which could get it together enough to fly or attack me.
My understanding is that all the wasps will die off over winter and they won't return to this nest. It isn't blocking any ventilation. Sooooooo, I should just leave it?
I've found and removed a failed golf ball-sized starter nest before in the past. So I guess I should just go up next spring and remove any new starter nests if any have appeared?
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Can anyone recommend a sealant to fill the annulus gap between a cable whereby power has been taken from an existing internal switch to add an external light? It's going to need to be suitable to apply wet!
I've just had a call from my MiL and she's sent photos of water running out of a light switch directly behind a light my FiL added a few years ago. My guess is that he didn't seal the gap or whatever he used has perished.
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I've not tried this myslef, but I would imagine something like ti's would do the trick: https://guglue.com/product/adiseal-adhesive-sealant-ultra-clear-290ml/?gclid=CjwKCAiAp5qsBhAPEiwAP0qeJgyF1_rBeEhz3wUYr8rRZM06wWo2C-drBpEJEwoQOsbQ0QZfcnJzdBoC2fUQAvD_BwE
Standard sikaflex also does quite well in the wet.
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CT1. Supposedly can be applied underwater…
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Thanks both. Another contact came back with CT1 too.
I actually remembered I had a tube of roofing sealant from when my utility room roof was letting in water on the day we moved in so I slung that in the car.
On arrival it's clear the problem isn't from the light, although it wasn't sealed and the hole doesn't appear to be angled correctly. The problem is the roof and there are stains that makes me suspect there's a problem with the flashing. The flashing on the actual roof isn't very well fitted to the tiles as it flies over the ~10mm steps. There's also a dark spot on the stone too where the gutter is offset about 25mm and the flashing is directing some of the flow past the start of the gutter. I've filled every gap I could get to with the sealant so we'll see if that does enough to carry me through to Spring when I might find a dry day (/ pay someone else).
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Hi mate, it looks like you've got it sorted, but yep CT1 would be the way to go with sealing in wet. Geocel adhesive sealant is another goodun, probably better sticking and holding power than CT1, harder to work with though.
If you need me to cast an eye over it, give me a shout, no probs, only 10 mins down the road etc :thumbsup:
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Cheers. I'll find out if it's improved matters later today.
You're correct as well, the Geocell wasn't easy to work with and the mastic gun even pushed through the tube (my grip strength is clearly still acceptable).
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Any good carpenters in the house?
We're about to fit a 3m long x 480mm wide solid wood ash shelf (3 planks edge glued) on top of a 5 unit wide, plywood construction "Base unit" that will form the bottom part of a built in shelving setup.
Do we need to consider expansion in the top? Or just fix it to the base and hope all the woods expand at the same amount...
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Ideally you’d fix the top to the base in such a way that the front edge is held in place where you want it to stay and you leave a small expansion gap at the back for the woods to move.
Sounds complex but basically screw in at the front like normal but use small slots the screws can ride in on the back.
The plywood won’t expand and contract anywhere near as much as the top obviously.
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Can anyone confirm that this is the correct wiring for a hive thermostat?
It is on the youtube of “North west gas certificates” so i assume it is legit.
We have the same wires going to our current thermostat that needs replacing.
Edit - it is for a Combi boiler
(https://i.ibb.co/gdLMrT3/IMG-1846.png) (https://ibb.co/ypcnNyX)
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Can anyone confirm that this is the correct wiring for a hive thermostat?
It is on the youtube of “North west gas certificates” so i assume it is legit.
We have the same wires going to our current thermostat that needs replacing.
Edit - it is for a Combi boiler
(https://i.ibb.co/gdLMrT3/IMG-1846.png) (https://ibb.co/ypcnNyX)
I went for this after seeing the same diagram a few times and it all seems to be working fine 👍🏻
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Can anyone confirm that this is the correct wiring for a hive thermostat?
It is on the youtube of “North west gas certificates” so i assume it is legit.
We have the same wires going to our current thermostat that needs replacing.
Edit - it is for a Combi boiler
I went for this after seeing the same diagram a few times and it all seems to be working fine 👍🏻
Sorry, meant to get back to you yesterday but didn't have a chance to get the overs of the boiler - glad you got it working!
Bookshelf DIY project nearing done. :2thumbsup: (middle gap is for a bit of art and a projector screen - and yes, still a few finishing touches to do :lol: )
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/ABLVV86RAgkKorwkTkkNPqTxjwrF2dzkRM4M5ufVjbVmjLx5uzDXZn69A1B33H1kyarzQnRf71_992vxzkeimzr85ML-zlOnYdV6sBOLeHGC3W7o-hNAX3t4-ev9W--96IiIh6BI0DpCHGJ3YAZj0QADbsR76NVZHVexJe5Ud-j2rr-ny_YC4Vgdjd2FR8Sao3gb9GpAnhvcnHC3sXJ32k9IY_9h1bsmz5KeTNEECFMHL0vp1S1srViu0PHUcQSSh6FgwsAY7X-zECim9t80ycrPNEu5vgSpDx_dNjLTlUgca6bWiytZdTO5qcDxYDlafoFDv_WGUuwFbj1ggYUDB06ezTmID__luaeBpOJI5Yn01RxEI_2-ZjHI2O40GIGWenyZ9iJm7IOMJzmW2TZlS8RtwYy9hEZSYNadgz55_bvR0cfd9cg3fMs5NNl2vO1Ryx4Rl3vt50yxeCS-wLSq84jfJydkZHJDqSDucRCNTvo8PO7T4RG-K9MlXbXJiQXRkQWCTRZL0VU_Tkjl571LbgpOE4A6T_ZYd73kYq9g10uR7ODLyrGWrlPPh0IxjJVHnmQgF7NQGWWXpBR1AgquqoLKEdXiuDGZIUvVRHxiCX6vWdytNiGiB_2YD3BVawK00lkc4Fg3hQg-9L31z6swtKxUE0S4vaILOwKpV11eemyiCJyERE9cFxNX_H0s-ln9DKnKegcMg8bVp3r7fH3woPO7taHJOzjIONbIl-pExINfNihl8sNy1gtMIlcqxwHRiTcXuWqps6NXm1sMDu2s356eMsf7s-z5CVqBSfsEfyQkcW3d7QVEoPNJimOr_lcfaacsWm4NJHdv5BJXLZQxTpFt2NrFYwgn6QT_kk-oaepO620phpbQMqjeQmp6cs7E9hlJyV-zPps5sLAYpUwGwlZ9yefN=w1725-h922-s-no-gm?authuser=0)