Home DIY

What Drøn says. Then, if you want to go down the scandi route, paint with linseed oil paints https://swedishlinseedpaint.co.uk/

@not4sale I've not used it before but you might employ some wood hardener (snarf) if any of it is soft due to the dampness and you don't want to replace/repair.

Thanks for your replies - I'll strip it down to the bare wood which is dry at the moment .

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This thread shows that 'skill' in home DIY is subjective - there is some significant talent on display in here.

I don't have such abilities, but I'm proud of this after a lot of grafting in the garden:

Have used car body filler (polyester? two part filler) to fill and smooth the removed rot till I replaced the sections of the wood frame.

Top work there

Alcove shelving

A mere 8 months later...

This is now the second room in the house we can actually finish and repaint. Maybe book room red.

Shelves still need front strips and maybe false bottoms? Not sure how to go about the second most easily...

Anthing wildly wrong with the below plan to make under-stairs storage a bit more useful? I'm trying to do it on the cheap as it may all get ripped out in a couple of years time if we insulate / level / refinish the shit hallway floor. there is currently just some cladding on the back (external) wall of the space, so that will be taken out, then 3x2 verticals and 2x2 horizontals with a load of rockwool and some 12mm ply (in-between the verts so I can get 2 panels from a sheet) . Verticals correlate to the door frames so I can just put some shelf strips on both for shelves in the left two compartments. Should come in under £200 for materials. the horzontal line is a water pipe that I'll lag and leave relatively easy access to somehow.

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I’m quite pleased with my framing and less pleased with my plumber getting the hot and cold the wrong way round🙄

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FFS. Plumbers.

Anyone got any recommendations on where I can gat some PAR white american oak in a wide width - approx 600mm x 800 x 32. 2 pieces biscuit jointed would be fine if needs be.

False bottoms, the cheaper the better as they won't be holding any weight. Thin ply or MDF from B&Q with maybe a central baton (same width as the supporting batons) to hide/prevent any warping.

Where are you based?

If you're in West London try W. H. Hanson : The sales guys can get a bit arsey if you don't know exactly what your on about but they can machine timber on site for you and you can sometimes get a deal on white oak if they have offcuts.

Or Moss & Co Very professional, high-end and expensive timber merchants. I only really use these guys when I need to find exotic hardwoods in a hurry. But their products are fantastic.

Personally I would head for Surrey Timbers A very good timber merchant that caters for hobbyists better than most. You can select your timbers from a pile in the warehouse and some of the stuff they sell is proper wood porn. It's worthwhile taking a block plane with you as some of the stuff will be rough sawn and you can plane it to check the grain ask before doing this they can dimension it for you for very reasonable prices and I think they will also join boards if needed.

If you need to use a biscuit jointer or domino I might be able to help.

By the way if you can find a board in the dimensions you want it is likely to be through cut and (unless it's very well seasoned) susceptable to cupping / shakes / bowing etc. so you'll probably be best jointing boards to your desired width.

If that is for a shower mixer tap then you need to have clips supporting the pipes on the framing side. It's a no-no under building regs to have the weight of the mixer tap supported by the pipes your plumber should know this.

That top pic is the previous valve (with old framing removed). New one terminates to bar valve bracket, which is fixed to the framing.

Oh and I know the valves are the correct colour, it’s just the actual water which is wrong!

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Perfecto!

Realised that the top photo was old pipework but obvs couldn't see the bracket in the other one from your first post.

Ah yeah, I nearly attached the face on pic to the original but my plywood depth bodge is mildly embarrassing!

What's hot/cold left/right in UK, I forget.

Don't be embarrassed I've seen plenty of pros do much worse. As long as the framing is plumb, square and strong enough to do its job it doesn't need to be pretty because at the end of the day you're going to be covering it with wediboard and tiles (or something similar). No one will see it so you're much better focusing your efforts on making the finished product look good rather than the few bits of timber that hold it all up

Is anyone's into timber suppliers I can recommend the timber yard in Brentwood.. miles from me but worth it for the bargain offcuts.

Dramatic Hammer. Had fun with this on the weekend.
It was physically the hardest thing I have ever done. Hammered for about three hour and my arms felt like they were going to fall off. It looks so easy!

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That’s reassuring I suppose!
On the subject of wediboard, I have a 2600 x 1200 x 12.5 panel I need to make long straight cuts on with minimal waste... What’s the best way? I was thinking carbide scoring knife along a long spirit level but I’m not sure how neat that will end up. I’ve seen youtubers using craft knives and handheld circular saws (which I have) but I’m not convinced I can keep the line straight for the full length of the board (and also not fuck up the floor underneath).

Hot left, as you look at it. Our house is piped backwards (which confused said plumber, although we had previously discussed it).

Thanks, same as NA.