Home DIY

There's a photo?

We've hung a bike shelf off a plasterboard wall with these http://www.ironmongerydirect.co.uk/products/screws_and_fixings/plug_and_plasterboard_fittings/387001/grip_it_plasterboard_fixing_yellow_13mm/796653?vat=1&gclid=Cj0KEQiAsNyxBRDBuKrMhsbt3vwBEiQAdRgPspLPpmJlySfk3zM7fiwq17kDVHOiRSDHtCEg_FHTsYYaAsQh8P8HAQ&gclsrc=aw.ds

This is exactly what we're doing, except we've had a system boiler fitted and our boiler house also has an expansion vessel and the manifold for our new underfloor heating in it.

Obviously check that there's enough space for your plumber to fit it but also check there's enough space around it for servicing. That should be in the manual.

As you've already figured the most important bit is keeping out the water. Our builders built a base from timbers with DPC membrane underneath on top of a concrete base and used marine ply, it will then be covered in larch cladding to match our fences and other stuff.

I'd worry about putting render over wood because the wood will expand/contract and as you've said it may well crack. I would also avoid a flat roof if you can but your diagram seems to show a pitch?

Also who will be responsible for making all the relevant holes for the pipes? This will need doing properly.

Flue has to exit at least 60mm from the house for building regs by the way. Ours goes straight out the top.

Yeah but they're gold-plated, you could trade them for thousands of torx derivers.

Find a light switch, unscrew the cover and take a look inside. You should be able to figure out what the wall is made of.

Cheers, I made a start on the weekend...

Obviously check that there's enough space for your plumber to fit it but also check there's enough space around it for servicing. That should be in the manual.

Check,

As you've already figured the most important bit is keeping out the water. Our builders built a base from timbers with DPC membrane underneath on top of a concrete base

Check

I'd worry about putting render over wood because the wood will expand/contract and as you've said it may well crack.

Good point I went with concrete board over timber frame. I think it'll take a render coat okay

I would also avoid a flat roof if you can but your diagram seems to show a pitch?

Yep shallow little pitch

Also who will be responsible for making all the relevant holes for the pipes? This will need doing properly.

Yeah good point the plumber will do all the drillings.

Flue has to exit at least 60mm from the house for building regs by the way. Ours goes straight out the top.

Do you mean 60cm? Ours will come out and along the wall a bit.

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^most worrying bit is that the garden wall forming the far side appears to be made of brick dust and woodlice, suspended between two skins of render :-/

See small hole where I explored a crack with a cold chisel, feels like it would take about three whacks of a sledge to bring the whole thing down.

I have nothing useful to add to this discussion but your watering can is aces.

Obviously there to hold the roof down

Have you destroyed/built anything yet?

I can't afford to destroy / build yet. Struggling to put curtains up. I still don't have a hob or stove.

I think I've asked this before but we are getting desperate...

We need a decent carpenter to do us some fitted wardrobes and alcove cabinets before xmas in SE4.

Does anyone have a recommendation of someone who is
a - good
b - reasonable
c - available.

This is no help to you at all, but we just got quoted for a couple of fitted wardrobes. Two thousand pahnds for two very unimpressive wardrobes. I think I might do it myself.

Got a morleys nearby?

What materials/finish/size were you looking at for that price?

2 grand, 2 wardrobes? Not surprised they were unimpressive...

yes

So, loft boarding.

Our house was built 1906 and last winter was cold as fuck. We have zero loft insulation, presumably because we had no loft access. We now have a hatch and ladder courtesy the chaps who did a nice job on our kitchen in April.

Scottish Gas are coming round in a week to assess if they'll give us free insulation.

What's the craic about loft boarding? My beloved wants to put all the things up there now. The rafters are about 170mm deep and 500-600mm apart. My googling suggests that I want to fill the rafter gaps with 170mm insulation, screw cross-beams down, then 100mm insulation, and finally board them.

I'm aware of loft legs, loft lifters, et al. but they look like they'll concentrate the load quite a lot? This thing http://www.loftzone.co.uk/storefloor.html looks better cos of spreading the load across the beams, but it's pricey.

So I'm back to my initial thought of timber. B&Q sell 45mm x 95mm x 2400mm softwood for £5.46 a pop, which looks suitable to me. They also have tongue and groove boards in two sizes (similar cost at 5.6-5.8 £/m^2). They will also deliver, which is a big help (we've got a tiny car). I'm medium DIY-competent, Ikea is easy, I can wire a new light in, connect a dishwasher and put up shelves but this would be the biggest job I've undertaken.

Is this sensible?

What spacing should I aim for between my joists? I'm guessing about 500mm, to make squares with the existing ones. I'll probably fine tune based on the length of the boards we pick.

The existing joists look pretty sturdy, but I REALLY do not want to collapse the ceiling! How can I tell without getting a structural engineer out? I can measure up of course.

Cheers!

Utter shite materials, I think that price was just white faced particle board. They did a few veneers but they were just not very nice. I was really unimpressed. They also said "because of the shape (one was going in a loft), you may well get some of the structure of the wardrobe in front of you when you open the door. This is obviously exactly what you don't want with a "custom" piece of furniture.

I think that they just had a lego set of components and did little more than a bit of customisation on the shape of boards etc.

Anyone know where's good to buy man made board online? I'm after nordic birch ply, and coloured mdf. time to build the wardrobe I've been promising for three years...

I was thinking of looking at these people

http://www.meyertimber.com/Products/Cut-Edge-Furniture-Panels.aspx

Not looked at prices yet

We had similar thoughts since the free insulation was laid across the beams rather than inside them. In the end we had the insulation relaid (and slightly squashed) and put loft boards back on top. The loft legs are lightweight which is why they are recommended but it looked a pain to actually put them down. Timber was out of the question due to the increased weight on the beams. Obviously we have lost some of the effectiveness of the insulation but it means we can use our loft for storage.

The loft boards aren't that big (due to having to fit them through the loft hatch) so you couldn't probably just stand them up in the passenger seat area.

Do the roof tiles have a liner or open to the air?

I can't remember. What difference does it make?

Squashing probably isn't good for the the >100 year old plaster. It's lath & plaster with a few "characterful" cracks visible underneath.

Boards are either 1.2 or 2.4 m long (probably the same as the car). The bigger ones mean less cutting and screwing, which is good. Only downside will be lifting the fuckers into the loft...