Homebase, B&Q, Wicks, Focus....

Swipe

Yes, Wilkos, screwfix and toolstation. You can't go wrong for great prices. I also frequent a unit on my local industrial estate too for nuts, bolts and fixings which tends to be very reasonable i.e. trade prices.

ormus

wickes, screwfix and toolstation. for 95% of my needs.
homebase are a complete joke. ok if you have money to burn.

wallbash

homebase are a complete joke.

Homebase does not try to compete with the likes of B&Q , its much more household based , soft furnishings / furniture , Its building range is very small but ok for wallpaper / paint .

DogsBody

Agree that Homebase are not the place to go for actual materials - in my experience our local one is overpriced, poor quality, and the staff, while helpful, are not particularly knowledgeable. Of the nationals, I like Screwfix (quality not brill but price pretty good) and Wickes (better for the heavy stuff than the other sheds). Can't beat my local indie builders yard tho!:D Actually we have two handy for us :D

Made_Without

Thanks all!

I'm super green - just bought a place and would like to attempt the small cosmetic things myself so you'll probably be seeing a lot of posts from me.

First mission is operation Wallpaper Stripping

Today I went to Homebase to get:
- tarpaulin
- scraper
- sponge
- sugar soap

I've borrowed a wallpaper stripper and have a step ladder

I couldnt find a wallpaper scorer, so am hoping that I will be ok without!

C*F

olias

Just use the edge of the scraper to score the paper in a criss cross pattern, it doesn't have to be pretty, you're only breaking the seal to allow the water to penetrate underneath. Just make sure not to score too deeply and gouge into your plaster.

Olias

macman

No-one want to put in a plug for their local builder's merchants? Mine even opens on Sunday mornings now.
They don't do soft furnishings yet though...

wallbash

Builders merchants ! whats with the discount???? no one seems to pay the full price , and then its ex VAT , its not virgin friendly !!

Mine even opens on Sunday mornings now.

Same time as a B&Q is open , sorry wrong , the superstore is still open in the afternoon.

A.Penny.Saved

I like Toolstation and I highly recommend them. I order most of it over the phone and when I have a question they have always done everything they can to find out about what I want to know and phone me back with the answer. A no quibble returns policy and free delivery if you spend £10! So you can order very small amounts and get it delivered free which can save a lot of money and time, there's no spending £45 to £100 to get free delivery like many such stores. Unfortunately the local branch is difficult to get to for me.

Wickes is pretty decent and I get a fair bit from there, especially large things that need delivering. The local branch is only about a mile or so away. The prices and item quality are often better than B&Q IMO. They have short time deals which can be fairly decent if they arrive at the right time so it is worth signing up for their newsletter. They have a 10% off deal on Quinn radiators ATM and the full price is quite good, beating most other places I have seen so the extra 10% also helps. I will order some in the next few days.

Homebase prices are high and range limited but my local has one nice old man who is always helpful and knowledgeable but the others know sod all about anything. Although to be fair some of them do try and help when asked.

B&Q I dislike with a passion. It's just not a nice place to visit and I avoid it as much as possible. I went in there one night to check something I was interested in and one of the security personnel stop me and demanded to search my bag which was in the trolley I was using. He did so and found nothing! Then didn't even bother to apologise, just shrugged it off and walked away. I take such things as a big insult on my character especially as they did not apologise, so I take my business, which involves refurbishing the home I purchased, elsewhere! So they have lost a lot of business.
On other occasions B&Q staff are as helpful as a heater in the desert, totally F'in useless!

Poundland/99p Stores? I had to add this one for DIY mainly for one thing. They sell (or sold??) some nice wallpaper scrapers like the harris ones but only £1. They have a longish handle with rubber grip and a blade that can be unscrewed, this is to distinguish them from the shorter moulded handle scrappers which get sticky wallpaper over your hands. I picked up a pile of them and they are very useful for strapping off wallpaper and they can just be thrown away when they get in a mess. No paying £6 or more for a Harris version or even £4 for an unbranded version from B&Q. Most of their other DIY is crap, although I got a 60cm/24" metal ridged ruler which wasn't too bad and is useful.

Swipe

macman wrote: »

No-one want to put in a plug for their local builder's merchants? Mine even opens on Sunday mornings now.
They don't do soft furnishings yet though...

I find my local buildbase expensive for most stuff. It only seems cheaper for stuff like flagstones, cement and sand. Although Wolseley is pretty good.