In my home (includes DIY) MoneySaving

Discussion List

• Size of boiler for a 4 bedroom house

  Hi there, we are in the process of buying a house built in 1998, it is 4 bed detached with downstairs toilet, main bathroom upstairs and an en suite. The combo boiler is newly installed last year and survey called out that it is not ideal as its in the loft, but seems mixed advice online around this and have several…

• Putting up curtain rails etc

  I'm in a new build and they have the wooden strip above the windows like my old flat. Trying to screw the nails into the wood for the curtain fixture but it isn't happening. I don't remember it being this hard before. Is it because I have a rubbish simple drill? What tool would you recommend? I don't have much use for a…

• countersink bit size for screws?

  hello i am hoping someone can help as i am rather confused. i am about to lay some chipboard flooring in the loft and am wanting to countersink the screw heads but i can not seem to work out which size countersink bit to get. i am thinking of using the 4mm screws - which i believe have a ~6mm head? and i think these are…

• Cast Iron Radiators

  Hi My husband and i are looking adding two cast iron radiators to our lounge to replace the standard radiators we currently have in there at the moment. Our house is a modern build (less than 20 years old).Our lounge will have a Moroccan theme. Does anyone know anything about these radiators? We have wooden flooring in the…

• Japanese knotweed has started

  Been here for 7 years, never been a problem. Now to present right now, in starting to see what I believe is Japanese knotweed starting to grow through the gaps of the paving slabs, roughly about 5 about an inch so far. Any ideas how to get rid safely?

• Material(s) for lagging a hot-air duct?

  We have a warm air heating system. Most of the duct work from the furnace is is flat and can be easily insulated with proprietary material such as Kooltherm Duct Slab, which we have used. The problem is that we have a circular duct/pipe which bends at all sorts of odd angles and so the flat slabs are not going to work with…

• Help me find a good washing machine?

  Can you guys help with finding a decent washing machine under £300? I thought I was looking for a 1600rpm one (currently have 1400) as I don't have a tumble dryer and thought this would get my clothes a bit dryer meaning clothes hanging around the house for less time. However what I have noticed from reviews on these…

• Outside flat rendering is bubbling

  Hi I live in a purpose built flat. Four Flat are in the building. It rendered from waist height up. It 10 years old and whoever did the rendering didn’t do a good job!! Apparently used too much water. Now on one side on my flat it bubblling. Only in 2 areas. What the best way to go about repairing this? I was planning to…

• Help to minimise noise from rainwater on the window sil

  Hi I live in a block of flats (1st floor) and whenever it rains water drips onto the window sil and the hollow material used means it causes noise and a disturbance. I was thinking of cutting some type of foam strip and sticking it on to lessen the noise, but unsure what material to use and how to stick it on. Also my…

• Rise Recliner Chair - reputable company?

  My mother needs a rise recliner chair but I do worry that many of these companies that sell products for older people are out to rip them off. Anyone know of a decent company that do armchairs that rise up to help people stand up? thanks

• New bathroom for lady with mobility problems

  Hi, Suggestions please for essential bathroom items for a previously active 86 year old lady now using a walking frame. OK. Our list at the moment is: * Non slip low level or flat shower tray * Non slip flooring * shower chair fixed to the wall * grab bars * fixed shower screens with a gap for her to enter the shower *…

• What to do before getting extension quotes

  we are going through the early stages of getting an extension. We are currently with the architecht who is drawing up plans. Looking ahead a few weeks to getting quotes from builders (going to get 4 quotes from recommended builders), i have a few questions (having never been through this process before) 1. should i write…

• Working out if i have a ' gravity hot water with pumped radiator' or 'fully pumped system'

  We've just moved in and I want to change the the programmer. At the moment, the manual states that if we have a 'gravity HW pumped CH, then this is known as 10 mode and we can only have CH when the HW is on. However, on the manual, the previuos owner made a note to say it's the 'fully pumped HW & CH' system which means…

• Painting costs?

  Hi, just wondering if anyone can give me a rough idea of what costs are for painter & decorator. We have just finished a loft conversion in a 1930s semi, and have a hall, stairs & landing (stairs x 2) with new banisters skirting etc, freshly plastered walls for most of this, plus the large loft bedroom & ensuite (approx 4m…

• Peeling paint on oven door

  Pl can somebody recommend a touch up paint to use on a cooker? Thanks

• Does lodger with ensuite buy loo roll?

  We have a medical student lodger staying with us for 8 weeks whilst on placement at a local hospital. He has his own en suite so I was wondering who buys the loo roll - him or us? I left 3 full rolls in there at the start of his stay. At the end of the day it's not a biggie as I got 9 rolls for £1.99 from The Range the…

• What to expect for replacing staircase?

  Hi, I'm going to be looking into replacing our steep straight flight of stairs with a single winder to make it less steep. We live in a 50s (maybe older, but the oldest title reg we can find is 56) mid terrace house so the stairs are really steep and I've slipped down them plenty of times. Just wondering how much I should…

• Waterlogged/standing water in garden after new garden wall

  Hi everyone, Last month we had an old, dangerous garden wall demolished and rebuilt. Since then we've had issues with our garden being waterlogged in certain areas when it rains. We had the builder out again to take a look and he says one part is because the builders compacted the grass and soil with their equipment and…

• Several cracks on internal walls, who do I contact ?

  I have several cracks on internal walls, which appear to be getting worse. I also have bulging concrete on the floor near to the cracks. Initially I thought this was caused by a long term leaking bathroom (which has finally been fixed), and a leak under the kitchen sink - a one off gush of water (which is directly under…

• Front of house lights

  Hi all, We're looking for some advice - for the front of our house we're looking for some spot lights looking down from the guttering. I've done some searching but seem to predominantly find solar powered ones in packs of 4. Has anyone fitted these to their guttering and have any suggestions? It's more for decorative…