Home DIY

So the idea would be having c. 230 x 120cm of storage at a standard depth with two rails, etc.

Sort of like this;

(excuse the quick creative use of photo measurer the boxes represent draws)

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The shinto rasps look pretty vicious. Not sure I'd want one on site but as a workshop tool I might have to put it on the list.

It is. Just flies through material. They're double sided; one side is viscous, and the other ruthless.

Template done. I made life harder by using 9mm mdf (it's the thinnest I had lying around). However It's solid enough I don't think I'll bother with transferring it to a single piece template.
A few little sliver gaps I can slide a sheet of paper through, but life is too short to spend any longer on it, and I can always hit the final product with a big hammer to get it tighter right? Tonight I rout.

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There's an old, old light fitting in one of the rooms in our new (old) house. It's got an earth already going into it from the ceiling - i.e. not from the light pendant (which I'm replacing). Presume I put the earth wire from the new pendant to the earth wire on the light fitting? I'm not doing something stupid by having two seemingly earth wires connecting. On modern ones I've changed the earth has been a bit more obvious and 'built in'. Similarly on neutral / live - there's a mil or two showing after they're in the exchange bit. Should I trim or is a 1mm / 2mm OK? Slightly paranoid of house fires or live metals (metal pendant) now. I'll get someone in to fit consumer unit in a couple of weeks so i'll get them to take a look as well but just for peace of mind in the meantime.

It uses an earth as it's a metal body fitting, yes you connect the earth from the house wiring to the earth wire or earth terminal on the pendant. Trim the ends of the live/neutral so that there's no conductor showing, it's not super important but it's good practice. Live metals you should be paranoid about. House fires are less likely given the work you're undertaking. You are also supposed to check that the polarity of the pendant is correct after fitting it as following the colours of the wires is not a reliable indicator. Your electrician can do it for you and 99 times out of 100 it will be correct and a waste of time!

2-story 1950s semi with a loft.

Will the joists in between ground and 1st floor probably run the same direction and spacing as the joists between 1st floor and loft?

(photo of loft)
Cheers

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The answer is.... not necessarily.
What’s the floor plan of the ground floor?
Masonry spine running centrallyish across the house, staircase up against the party wall?
If so it’s very likely the joists run front-to-back. I’m assuming you’ve got carpet on the first floor so can’t see the floorboards?
Joists will be deeper than those in the loft, and not necessarily the same spacing.

Thanks for this - I'm not dead yet and the light is working so until someone comes around to do the consumer unit I think I'll leave as is. Basically, there's a kind of plastic bracket type thing that was stuck into the ceiling which has the house wiring and earth attached to it. The pendant we're using has a metal bar to support it which I'm supposed to drill directly into the wall (and is what I did last with it in the previous house) but I couldn't see a way to safely unattach all the gubbins, so have kind of drilled the metal bit OVER the plastic bracket thing. It means the pendant isn't flush to the wall on one side but it's the only way I felt was safe until someone can get around to look at it properly. It's about 15 feet in the air so presume on the live metal front I should be OK too unless it can find a way to conduct down the walls which I'd be less amused with.

Cheers.

Masonry spine running centrallyish across the house, staircase up against the party wall?

Close Staircase on the external wall. Would the central spine not make it more likely joists are front to back.

If so it’s very likely the joists run front-to-back.
:(

got carpet on the first floor so can’t see the floorboards?

Yep. Annoyingly we didn't take a photo of the floor boards when we redid one of the upstairs rooms.

Clearly I can’t say for sure how your house is built, but in all the ones I’ve ever worked on it’s generally the case that the joists run front-to-back, the shortest span usually being the distance to the spine wall.
Obviously my own house has to be the exception to this, being unusually narrow and long.

Trying to decide if I need a central vertical support inside my alcove cabinet. The worktop is solid oak, 32mm, over a span of 1200mm. It's supported on 3 sides. It will house a rather heavy TV and soundbar, maybe 40kg in total? It was mentioned the oak could warp due to one side being exposed to air and the other not, will the extra load in the middle exacerbate that?

I can easily put in a vertical dividing piece down the middle to support it, but it will obv make the cabinet space below more restricted. Should I?

Oak top not pictured but it exists.

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The Sagulator might help you decide :- https://www.woodbin.com/calcs/sagulator/

Might be wise to connect the rear MDF strip to the wall.

Sure you've thought about this already, but where's the sockets/cables going for this? if it were me I'd want everything hidden away inside somewhere...

A 3rd option would be a cutout vertical support.

Personally I'd add the support if there wasn't anything particularly you wantes there.

The Sagulator

Love this site.

I mentioned this a while ago, but I’m replacing / remaking shelves for a wardrobe. The plan was 12mm ply + edging/support, but only big sheets were in stock and there happened to be an off-cut of 20mm MDF for £3, plus cutting for free.

Should I treat the MDF with anything?

We’d like to keep it fairly natural and I have knocking around; outdoor varnish, indoor varnish, Danish Oil (although possibly not enough).

Cheers.

What will you be putting on it? I'd want to coat it in something just for the smell. Also its a bitrough to touch, I would imagine clothes will stick / catch on to it rather than slide around freely.

I normally paint MDF so can't comment on those other finishes you've suggested.

As an aside, if you plan on sanding or cutting it, try do it outside and wear a mask if possible, the dust is nasty and goes everywhere.

Sagulator thinks it will be fine, but I'm still nervous about it, so I've decided to put the vertical in and attach it with pocket holes from the inside so I can always remove it later. (If the counter hasn't warped so much that it's forever wedged in)

It will have clothes.

B&Q had a tonne of discounted wallpaper so I thought that could have looked smart - but my other half isn't keen on wallpapered / lined shelves.

I'm tempted by varnish, as it should serve the same function as paint (and I'd rather save the danish oil). But if it's just for surface feel, rather than any inherent protection then I don't need to do the underside.

Do you usually mix the paint with pva?

Don’t worry too much about movement - wood shrinks and expands across it’s width, not along it’s length (or what long grain movement there is is negligible).
And because only one edge is captive the other edge is free to move.
I doubt 32mm oak would sag in that scenario but a vertical underneath would probably be useful for the doors to close against anyway (if you’re having doors).

Our wood burner in Brockley cost us about £1700 all in.

• Stove unit
  
• Chimney lining and cowl
  
• Fireplace fitting amd regs sign off
  
  

Baby’s cot. Sometimes we want it positioned against the wall. Sometimes up against the bed. This involves sliding it sideways 1ft. When against the bed it needs to not move as it’s a stop the baby falling out our bed.
Any suggestions on what I could install to make this sideways slide and lock work nicely. Some sort of runner maybe?
This is one of the cot feet and direction of movement.

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4 of these screwed into floor with countersunk screws and a couple of pegs to stop it sliding back?

Can someone explain condensation and double glazing to me? Slowly?

It's that time of year.
We have blinds at each window, black out right, and the windows closed when we sleep. I'm guessing the condensation happens because breathing. And the glass stays colder behind the screen?

Am I destined to be wiping down windows all winter ?

Running a dehumidifier overnight isn't an option.

Do you usually mix the paint with pva?

Nope no need. Standard way to paint it is one coat of arcylic primer undercoat (I used Leyland), and then two coats of waterbased satinwood/gloss paint (I use Johnstones satinwood), making sure to lightly sand between coats. Cut edges need to be sanded thoroughly after the primer coat or they will be rough. Sometimes the edges need two coats of primer