Topic: General decorating and DIY thread indoor and outdoors.

[Filler.]

My dad showed me how to use a drill when I was about 5, and I do most DIY. Brother is an electrician, tho always too busy. We bought our house 10 years ago, I stripped it bare, knocked down walls, turned the cellar into a kitchen. We got builders we know to help remove a few chimney breasts, install an RSJ, pro electricians to install the lighting in the cellar and plasterers to do some walls, pro installer for the boiler, but I prep everything and am OK at plastering now. Basic electrics and basic plumbing. I enjoy plumbing. Laid patios and paths etc.

Never tho, do what we did... and that's move into a house, and live in it while you do it up, and spend years doing it (saving up money etc). Never ever again. Give me a house that I can go to and leave at the end of the day...fine. Live in it? No chance. And don't shack up with a bird who loves to change her mind! We didn't have a cooker for two years - barbequing in the snow anyone? But I did the whole kitchen myself; repaired/removed/slivered/sanded the floorboards (which look fantastic), laid all the wiring/cable, installed loos+sinks/dug out old brick stairs, underpinned the house - the jewson.

Putting up shelves tho is a fucking bitch in an old house. How many times does the last hole hit the underside of a brick and dives into the soft Victorian 'cement'!? Argh! And the curtains in the OP... installing blinds has always been a pain. For some reason the walls are made of porridge above the windows and a job that you reckon would take 30 minutes, takes two days, as you realise you have to dig out huge chunks of wall, cement, then hang.

I do quite a bit of tiling and painting/decorating for others as a side dish. Basically it's all done now, but it never really ends. I too have enjoyed a couple of holes thru water pipes... but on the 2nd one, I cleverly bought some emergency tape incase I did it again. Top tip.

[Red_Mist]

I'm okay, just very, very, very slow at it. Get there in the end though (except electrics, always get help with that, father-in-law usually).

Could never leave a job half finished though (Scorpio trait that).

[Big Red Richie]

Putting up shelves tho is a fucking bitch in an old house. How many times does the last hole hit the underside of a brick and dives into the soft Victorian 'cement'!? Argh! And the curtains in the OP... installing blinds has always been a pain. For some reason the walls are made of porridge above the windows and a job that you reckon would take 30 minutes, takes two days, as you realise you have to dig out huge chunks of wall, cement, then hang.

So now we all know why you're called.......... Filler!   


I don't suppose your wife is Polly Filler. 

[Doc Evil]

Used to be brilliant at it, done all sorts in my time, from covering a roof both bitumen sheets and tiles, odds and sods of carpentry (but won't have a go at a NEW door etc or joinery of any description), electrics are relatively common sense if it's small bits (such as adding a socket or replacing one) plumbing is the same, toilets, taps, washing machines, sinks etc, although I'd never do a whole house.

I've done floorboards and laying new flooring, patching of plaster, plasterboarding (inc full house ceilings etc) and all sorts of network cabling (I'm in IT by trade).

I've also done tiling, Brickwork and blockwork (and I'm relatively good at it now albeit very slow!!) laying foundations, concrete floors etc I've done the lot and all self taught and now have a dazzling array of tools to help me get most stuff done.

Buuuuut, these days I'm too lazy to do more than basic stuff or emergency repairs and just get an oddjob man to sort it as it works out cheaper than me taking time off work to sort it (and the arguments from the missus if I make even the smallest of messes or don't constantly tidy up AND finish dead quick!!).

[Surprise me.]

I like the idea of DIY when it comes to modelling my own home, would never do it as a job. I just like it as a hobby, making everything in my house perfect and then i can be proud of the fact that i did it all myself instead of paying thousands for someone else to do it. I would happily try anything.

[Cochise]

No, I'm shockingly bad at D.I.Y. One of the most stressful things in the world.

[Trada]

We are about to find out I'm about to do the bathroom.

Started it this morning first job was to take the old bath out.

My God it was heavy it must have been made out of steel or something I could hardly move it.

I was moving it on my own so must have took about 3 hours, I had to slowly move it out of the bathroom then I had to get it down the stairs so I slowly lowered it down a ladder I was using as a slide, nearly lost it once or twice that would have been fun it would have gone straight down the ladder and smash out the front door.

God knows how I'm going to get rid of it hopefully the local gypsies will nick it or something.

I am now totally fucked haven't worked that hard in ages.

But hopefully that's the hard part done now.

[The Gulleysucker]

My God it was heavy it must have been made out of steel or something I could hardly move it.

When I did ours the other year, I tried to get the wife to help getting it down the stairs but she just couldn't cope, way too heavy, and it seemed an accident waiting to happen with me on the lower half.
I ended up smashing it up on the landing with a sledge as it was just too heavy, made out of cast iron.
Even that was not as easy as it sounds, trying to swing a sledge around with enough force to start the thing to crack. I was knackered afterwards and everywhere was showered with shards of enamel as sharp as razor blades. Not nice.

...But hopefully that's the hard part done now.

Haha....that's what you think....
The fun of tiling awaits, with the associated flaming arguments, especially if the corners aren't true. No matter what you do, even if you do exactly as she says, it will always be your fault.
And wait till you try and screw down the toilet bowl and discover the floor has too much give and the supplied screws are too small and made out of cheap steel and there's not enough room to use a screwdriver. Oh great joy.
Have fun.

[Mark Walters]

When we bought our house 8 years ago it was uninhabitable.  We had to pretty much start from scratch with electrics, plumbing, plastering, etc.  All of those jobs were done by professionals but I also laid network and coax cables while the sparky had the floorboards up.  Pretty much everything else was done by me, my bro and my dad (RIP Dad!).

Since then there's nothing I won't do or attempt to do.  The basic stuff like painting is a piece of piss but I've also done tiling, laid floorboards, skirting, wallpaper, basic plumbing like replacing a tap, basic electrics like changing plugs, switches and light fittings I can do.  Fortunately I've never had any major mishaps...yet!

When it comes to decorating the devil is in the detail and the prep.  It's easy enough to paint over something, but you get a much better finish if you strip it back to bare woodwork or removing wallpaper before hanging new stuff, etc.

I thoroughly enjoy it though and it's a bit of a stress reliever for me.  My next couple of projects are to redecorate my hallway and convert my shed into a small office.  Looking forward to that.

[Sat1]

Im pretty good, just lazy.

[Trada]

When I did ours the other year, I tried to get the wife to help getting it down the stairs but she just couldn't cope, way too heavy, and it seemed an accident waiting to happen with me on the lower half.
I ended up smashing it up on the landing with a sledge as it was just too heavy, made out of cast iron.
Even that was not as easy as it sounds, trying to swing a sledge around with enough force to start the thing to crack. I was knackered afterwards and everywhere was showered with shards of enamel as sharp as razor blades. Not nice.

Haha....that's what you think....
The fun of tiling awaits, with the associated flaming arguments, especially if the corners aren't true. No matter what you do, even if you do exactly as she says, it will always be your fault.
And wait till you try and screw down the toilet bowl and discover the floor has too much give and the supplied screws are too small and made out of cheap steel and there's not enough room to use a screwdriver. Oh great joy.
Have fun.

I will do the tiling when Tracy is at work she's already driving me mad and I've only just took the bath out. I'm looking forward to it never done it before but did watch a video on youtube It looks easy but I guess I will soon find out.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/XizEuy1tq68?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/XizEuy1tq68?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0</a>

[reniformis]

When I did ours the other year, I tried to get the wife to help getting it down the stairs but she just couldn't cope, way too heavy, and it seemed an accident waiting to happen with me on the lower half.
I ended up smashing it up on the landing with a sledge as it was just too heavy, made out of cast iron.
Even that was not as easy as it sounds, trying to swing a sledge around with enough force to start the thing to crack. I was knackered afterwards and everywhere was showered with shards of enamel as sharp as razor blades. Not nice.

Had to help me brother do that once. He asked me to grab a sledgehammer and help. Neither of us had done it before so I googled for tips, like wrapping the bath in a sheet first to catch the shards, covering bare skin, wearing safety glasses and gloves and most importantly, as we found out, wearing earplugs because when you start hitting it's like fucking Bow Bells. I turned up to find him ready to start twatting the thing, wearing a t-shirt, shorts and slippers.

[The Gulleysucker]

I will do the tiling when Tracy is at work she's already driving me mad and I've only just took the bath out.

Best idea, they do like to play the foreman sometimes and not enough of the teaboy.

Are they smooth or rough tiles? My wife chose rough ones for some inexplicable reason, perhaps to drive me mad. She muttered something about Mediterranean effect at the time. (I hate these fucking home makeover shows glibly coming out with those sort of statements and not showing the grim reality of trying to achieve it)
Now they were not bad going up as they take out any imperfections in the plaster, but grouting was a sod though it improved as it went along, practice makes perfect and all that.
If you've not done it before, probably best to start somewhere out of sight like behind the door then if you make a mess, ie wobbly or sloping, it won't be so obvious.
My problems were compounded by the previous owners tiling over tiles(!), lazy sods, and the original tiles being set in the cement rendering.
I ended up buying a huge kango to do the job, hiring became a bit expensive. Needless to say, it ate the specialised tile chisels like they were made out of butter and at Ł20 or so a pop, it started to become expensive and they were not particularly good anyway, weak design at the SDS spigot, three snapping during the job. Probably fine if someone had put the tiles up using flour paste, but the cement used to attach the tiles in our bathroom was more akin to the stuff used in constructing Hitlers Atlantic wall defensive pillboxes.
Anyway, finally got the old tiles off but with huge holes in the rendering back to the brickwork which then needed plastering before the new tiles could go up. Fortunately I'm ok with that, needs must and such, though would baulk at the idea of plastering a complete bare brick wall from scratch. I think you have to be doing it on a daily basis to get the required skills to result in a perfect finish.
Anyway, it was worth it in the end, the Wife was happy, but it took far longer than originally anticipated.

[Fanxxxxtastic]

Best idea, they do like to play the foreman sometimes and not enough of the teaboy.

Are they smooth or rough tiles? My wife chose rough ones for some inexplicable reason, perhaps to drive me mad. She muttered something about Mediterranean effect at the time. (I hate these fucking home makeover shows glibly coming out with those sort of statements and not showing the grim reality of trying to achieve it)
Now they were not bad going up as they take out any imperfections in the plaster, but grouting was a sod though it improved as it went along, practice makes perfect and all that.
If you've not done it before, probably best to start somewhere out of sight like behind the door then if you make a mess, ie wobbly or sloping, it won't be so obvious.
My problems were compounded by the previous owners tiling over tiles(!), lazy sods, and the original tiles being set in the cement rendering.
I ended up buying a huge kango to do the job, hiring became a bit expensive. Needless to say, it ate the specialised tile chisels like they were made out of butter and at Ł20 or so a pop, it started to become expensive and they were not particularly good anyway, weak design at the SDS spigot, three snapping during the job. Probably fine if someone had put the tiles up using flour paste, but the cement used to attach the tiles in our bathroom was more akin to the stuff used in constructing Hitlers Atlantic wall defensive pillboxes.
Anyway, finally got the old tiles off but with huge holes in the rendering back to the brickwork which then needed plastering before the new tiles could go up. Fortunately I'm ok with that, needs must and such, though would baulk at the idea of plastering a complete bare brick wall from scratch. I think you have to be doing it on a daily basis to get the required skills to result in a perfect finish.
Anyway, it was worth it in the end, the Wife was happy, but it took far longer than originally anticipated.

Ya cheeky bugger! 

I've been waiting like 18 years for him to sort that fucking bathroom out.  We bought a peach corner unit bathroom suite back in 1993.  The fucking thing is still in my back bedroom.  Of course, he's now doing it, as he's gone past the point of no return, but we are now going to have a brand spanking new corner shower unit.  He's seriously under pressure.

The tiles we've purchased are pretty easy, but I want a bit of texture to my floor tiles. 

I'm just shitting myself about the plumbing side of it.  As he's on about taking up the floorboards in the bathroom.

Of course, if and when he completes this, we've still got that peach corner bathroom suite in the back bedroom

[Roady]

im shite at it.I can do little things but when it comes to anything relatively large i swerve it.Got mates who are plumbers,electricians,tilers etc...I just get them to do it.My lsat major DIY experiment is still sitting in the garden,Granted i started it when pissed.Needless to say its not likely to get fixed so itll lie there in the garden and be destroyed by the weather

[lainey]

I want to chuck my useless washing machine outside - if I take the water pipe thing out of the back will it flood my kitchen?
ta

[Big Red Richie]

The water connections to the back of the machine should be connected to isolation valves with red abd blue indicators (hot and cold). (see picture No. 1)

When the colour indicator is running in line with the valve, the water is on. When you turn the indicator so it's facing across the valve and not in line, the water should be off.


If you turn off the valve or valves ( sometimes it's just a one pipe fill, sometimes a hot and cold two pipe fill) you can then disconnect the hoses to the machine.



Does the waste outlet ( the ribbed pipe) go into the top of a waste pipe, is it connected under the sink, or over the top into the sink. Let me know and I'll tell you how to disconnect it safely without flooding your kitchen.

[NotAsBigDanno]

I want to chuck my useless washing machine outside - if I take the water pipe thing out of the back will it flood my kitchen?
ta

You need to turn off the mains water supply before disconnecting the water pipe or yes it will flood your kitchen

[Big Red Richie]

You need to turn off the mains water supply before disconnecting the water pipe or yes it will flood your kitchen

She doesn't have to turn the mains off at all, if there are isolation valves.

[lainey]

ok - yes it's just cold fill and the other pipe goes straight into the pipe thing under the sink

[Big Red Richie]

So as per above, isolate the water via the isolation valve.

the waste pipe needs to be disconnected from the white trap, under the sink.

For a short/stop gap way of disconnecting it, without flooding your kitchen, make sur the sink is empty of water. Put a bucket or bowl in the cupboard under the trap, and unscrew the big white nut on the side of the trap ( 2). A little bit of water will come out.

Now disconnect the hose from the waste inlet (1).

Now as a stop gap, put a dit of plastic bag over the end of the outlet (1), and secure in place with an elastic band.

Now screw the waste inlet back onto the side of the white trap with the big nut (2). Making sure you do not cross thread the plastic thread.

Hand tighten it, as tight as you can. Wipe off any wet bits with some kitchen towel, so it's dry, then run some water through it, to make sure it's not leaking.


The hose to the washing machine can then be pulled through the cupboard towards the washing machine and removed.  Usually you would have some water escape, but only about half a pint or so.

[lainey]

done - thank you

I can now drag it outside and give it the thrashing that it deserves

[Big Red Richie]

Think of it something like this,....... in reverse.

http://www.juliancassell.com/394/plumbing-in-a-dishwasher-or-washing-machine

[Big Red Richie]

done - thank you

I can now drag it outside and give it the thrashing that it deserves

That'll be Ł345 consultation fee, plus treble time because it's Sunday.   

[Ginamos]

I like to think I'm reasonably competant at most things though my wife is probably a better judge on that but she seems happy and I've truly saved an enormous amount of money over the years with DIY.
Mostly, it's a matter of commonsense, reading up, planning and patience, lots of it to start with, and getting the right tools for the job, and the more you do it, the better you can become.
...

Here we go, Gulleysucker introducing smut to the thread. 

[Surprise me.]

I look up everything online and everything seems possible, i like to think i can do it but i've never tried. My dad insists on paying someone else and it ends up being one of his mates so he pays and gets a shit job. Oh well, his problem. Get my own house and i plan doing most of it myself. I think i could do it in such a way that i plan on building my own house.. Cheaper and you put a lot more effort in when you know its for you and you will reap the benefits rather than like a builder who does it for someone else. I think i have OCD in that sense, with certain things i just have to do it myself and know its being done exactly how i want it, or at least be around when someone else does it.

[TepidT2O]

I get my DIY talent from my dad....

Which is why I'm so terrible at it.

I remember as a kid that he built a brick wall that was L shaped to shelter our bins in.

May I say, that this was the worst built bit of shit wall that has ever existed in the world ever, or in fact any other wall.

It started to fall to pieces a matter of a few short hours after it was built and after a couple of weeks was in effect just a pile of bricks balanced on top of each other.


Anyway, he struck it lucky as a car crashed in to the house and wiped out his bin sanctuary, the insurance only paid to have a lovely bin shelter built from scratch by a pro. How we laughed!

[NotAsBigDanno]

She doesn't have to turn the mains off at all, if there are isolation valves.

That's what I meant :-)

[Barneylfc∗]

Need a bit of help. Not sure how this is going to turn out as I'm about to post a pic from my phone. Basically need to know how this can be fixed as cheaply and quickly as possible. Pic to follow

[Barneylfc∗]

Here's the pic. This pillar is in the middle of my living room

There are cracks in the plaster the whole way round the pillar so may have to remove all the plaster

[Mumm-Ra]

Does everyone still plaster in the UK/Ireland? In the states its all drywall - aka gypsum wallboard. 4' x 8ft sheets of the stuff and its dead easy to work with and ket a smooth finish. Well not dead easy but better than plaster surely.

For Barney's thing I'd try to attach thin strips of wood (a 1" x 2" furring strip) to the pillar, running vertically, then screw drywall panels to the wood.

[Barneylfc∗]

Think our house is pre 1945 mumm ra. Would reckon that plaster was done at least 25/30 years ago. Those strips you mention, would they attach to the corners yeah? Am looking the cheapest  and easiest way to fix it

[Mumm-Ra]

Think our house is pre 1945 mumm ra. Would reckon that plaster was done at least 25/30 years ago. Those strips you mention, would they attach to the corners yeah? Am looking the cheapest  and easiest way to fix it

Yeah you'd put them vertically at the edges I reckon. So on each face of the pillar there'd be 2 strips, 8 in all. You'd need an impact drill and special screws to attach to concrete though.

Finishing the corners would be the tricky part. For drywall corners you get these metal corner things:



attach them over the drywall panels then smear the drywall compound over it, get it smooth, sand it, prime it, paint it



To be honest I'd get someone in to do the finish part, but that's just because I know someone who'd do it for a few bucks if I prepped it all for him.

[Mumm-Ra]

Check this out: http://www.ehow.com/how_12014786_hang-drywall-basement-cinder-block.html

It's for a full wall but the same principles apply.

Then check out http://www.ehow.com/how_7679336_install-drywall-outside-corners.html

[Barneylfc∗]

Cheers will have a look at that later

[Filler.]

Does everyone still plaster in the UK/Ireland? In the states its all drywall - aka gypsum wallboard. 4' x 8ft sheets of the stuff and its dead easy to work with and ket a smooth finish. Well not dead easy but better than plaster surely.

You still have to plaster over the wallboard - unless you're a landlord owning a property for students.


Have you thought about removing all the plaster and giving the pillar a good 1/2" skim of cement? You could get away with some 'poor' plastering techniques like that perhaps.

[Barneylfc∗]

I'm almost certain I will have to remove all the plaster. I'll post pics of the other 3 sides when I get home.

[Filler.]

Unfortunately, there is no quick fix remedies to these things. You WILL have to remove all the plaster. If you go with the cement idea... best to size the breeze block surface with a 1/6 PVA/Water mix first, and let it dry. You can do the wallboard thing, but you will need a plasterer to finish it off, especially if it's anywhere near a kitchen/bathroom etc.

[Enemy]

Think I might put down some laminate wood floor panel things in the bathroom soon. Will have to rip up the cheap crap in there first and then learn how to use a jigsaw. Can't be that hard.

[Mumm-Ra]

Unfortunately, there is no quick fix remedies to these things. You WILL have to remove all the plaster. If you go with the cement idea... best to size the breeze block surface with a 1/6 PVA/Water mix first, and let it dry. You can do the wallboard thing, but you will need a plasterer to finish it off, especially if it's anywhere near a kitchen/bathroom etc.

Are we talking about the same thing? Because there's no need for total plastering over drywall - you just need to mud (aka smear drywall compound paste) over the seams and the screw holes. Like so:

http://topsandmore.com/images/drywall010%20an%20attic.jpg

In his case it would just be the corners and the screw holes. Paint over the rest with a thick primer and you're done. 

If it's in a wet area you just get moisture resistant drywall.

Like I say, I'm in the States so I'm just assuming you have the same products over there, I might be wrong though