How do I bathroom / kitchen / extension? etc.

I'm tempted to get my mum's tiler cutter and do it myself. I did the kitchen splashbacks which were alright. Got 48 extra tiles from her estimation of what was needed. 48!!!

Fair enough, fucking shit though. That's why I hate trades in London, zero consequences for being shit.

If you've got extra tiles you could probably do it yourself as it'll probably be less hassle than trying to find someone to fix it.

Trades have had the absolute run of it the last few years - the chancers need to realise that times are changing. So short sighted as the good folks you use again and again and always recommend

I guess this partly shows the benefit of getting a builder in who hires the other trades (which we didn't quite do for our recent bathroom, as the electrician and plumber were people he recommended but we hired/organised).

It's definitely appealing that there's the extra level of accountability towards someone who they are getting paid by and might want to work for again.

When we get our extension next year I definitely want one person or company who can take care of all the elements.

the chancers need to realise that times are changing

Is it?

Not my experience, I just had arguments with a builder covering his arse to protect his profits when his shit tradesmen did shit work.

This is sensible, move on.

I would find it hard to be so sensible. I would want to not-pay her more than just the £100, and put it towards fixing it. I don’t think she has a leg to stand on that that was performed with reasonable care and skill. Depending on how belligerent she is I think anything up to £300-400 withheld is unlikely to be pursued very seriously.

[minor edit for clarity]

Nah. Get rid of them by paying them what you owe, less what it costs to have someone fix it.

Did they bond the tiles with cement?

Oh yes :(

will be getting a lump sum from my remortgage into my current account soon, and thinking about how best to store/spend this money ahead of spending on the reno

Aware there are savings accounts out there but also wondering about cashback offers, etc. Anyone had recent experience with this?

We had a fair wack from a remortgage for renovations now spent!
We invested £100k in premium bonds , other amounts in 1 year accounts and another amount in our savings. Needed quick access as we were paying the builder every couple of weeks.
Thought we were loaded for a while but skint again now!

Look on MSE.

Not to add pressure but in the last letter ML said that a lot of higher rates were ending soon, so I'd suggest going though MSE tonight and making a spreadsheet.

It begins. House is chaos after just four days.

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probably the best bet to do it yourself. I've just tiled our kitchen including a windowsill that slopes 5mm across the width.
packed it out with a bit of ply with a packer under one side to level it.
take your time and get it right, sounds like you've got plenty of tiles spare anyway!
for the side reveals I'd probably just do one tile vertically rather than have the small infill at the bottom.

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Pleasing to look at. Nice one.

That looks good, well done!

cheers. I've not done much tiling before but I'm happy with how it's turned out.
still got some grouting to do to finish it off then maybe I'll post another pic.

Bathroom is somehow going backwards rather than forwards. A ceiling tomorrow, then sort the walls, then the appliances.

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Looks grand! Is that tile edging at the bottom of the tile too where it meets the worktop?

thanks. I bonded a strip to the back edge of the worktop for the tiles to sit on as I didn't want to grout directly to the wood.
it's not tile trim, just a flat brushed strip.

👏 very clean finish indeed!

Ditto. That looks really well done. The detailing is spot on.

Jesus. That is scope creep.

I thought all you wanted was a new rad in the kitchen?!

We were planning on the doing the bathroom at some point in the future after the kitchen was done. The kitchen that's sat in boxes in the dining room. If I was being ungenerous I'd say my partner is more excited about the decorating than that building work and wants to push on to the bits that involve chosing paints and tiles before dealing the boring aspects of leveling floors and walls.

I find it disheartening that the majority of trades simply don't care about the quality of finish and the fact that someone can DIY it to a far higher standard says it all really.

Must be depressing going in to work each day and not giving a shit about anything you do.

Sad.