How do you cut the cost of home improvements?

skips-gumtree-freecycle-look in front gardens etc etc

Ebay is still a wonderful thing. I have driven a very long way to save money on items. I've had a very expensive kitchen, ex-photoshoot, for £500. A brand new wooden front door for £1 for one house, another bespoke made wood heritage front door worth well over £1000 for £200. We adapted the opening instead of trying to find a door to fit exactly into the existing space.

I don't stick local for the big things. The best bargains are still bargains when you factor in petrol and a daytrip to somewhere random. Sometimes I look for things locally to when we go away for breaks or the husband is working away, if it's an affluent area

It costs time but the satisfaction is immense.

Ebay is a good source of stuff if you're prepared to be patient and wait for the right thing to come along.

I bought my kitchen on ebay, units and appliances for £1500. It was pristine, having been fitted three years previously in a barely used "weekend home". Omega (Mackintosh) units with beech worktops and Neff appliances, plus miscellaneous bits like low voltage lighting, sink, taps etc.

I had to shorten one worktop, rout grooves for the worktop joiners in one place, but largely it went in with very little modification. Ended up buying a couple of matching units new to allow me to get everything exactly as I wanted, and had one 300mm wall unit left over from the original, but reckon I saved about £10k on the total cost of units and appliances. Obviously a lot of checking of unit sizes, measurements etc was done before I bid. The seller helped me load it in my clapped out VW van, I had to unload it alone at the other end (two 60 mile round trips required, so about £30 in petrol)

I did all labour myself, except for things I'm not allowed to do (electrics, gas) and plastering, as that's witchcraft. Not employing people to install units, or lay the floor tiles and UFH, or paint etc saves a bit. Don't know how much as I didn't get quotes for all the labour I did myself, but it was probably a couple of weeks' worth at minimum. Plus, if you do the work yourself there's huge satisfaction when it's all done.

Teacher2 wrote: »

E-Spares can be a cheap way of undercutting trade shops but I recently found Ransome spares a tenner cheaper than E-Spares for a fridge hinge.

^^ I'd Second That !!

Hi There

Recently had to move my parafin tank away from the prying thieving hands of those swarthy unlicensed caravan dwellers, I did a spread sheet of materials and quantities fom local builders and DIY merchants with VAT, transport and special deals etc included, the cheapest was Br

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ds @ £117:17 and the most expensive T

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P

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a difference of £142ish.

Well worth it for half an hour on the phone/computer, now i use it every time.

Regards

Mal P