Home DIY

Too be honest £70 is about right.

I pay £90 ex Vat at Trade prices for the ones at work.

Stick to the 6x3 size unless you're a giant or have some experienced help. 8x4 doesn't float in the air very easily :)

Lath and plaster is a bitch, sometimes a sharp multitool will cut the lathe instead of just dislodging it from the plaster. Sharp box knife is your friend when cutting plaster especially if you don't have a multitool. Stanley Fatmax saw is quite useful, drill a hole and cut :-

https://www.toolstation.com/stanley-fatmax-jab-saw-scabbard/p11752?store=LA&utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googleshoppingfeed&gclid=CjwKCAiAlajvBRB_EiwA4vAqiIacafZy9oJVyQFn7bZW3SY3Q_5BAa9sKuyfOKeq6sqxABUeUTbdWhoCUigQAvD_BwE

It's a savage piece of kit, never let it near your skin.

Thanks for that. Will I need to screw say a 2x2 between the studs when I cut a patch out and replace with pb

Electric hob and oven - any reason I shouldn't fit them myself (like for like replacement)?

I.e. Is there any law stating they should be done by an electrician?

How should I fix this? I’m not really up for buying a load of kit to plaster <1m2 but I do have tiling/grouting tools.

1 Attachment

Sand it a little > mix up some tourpret filler > apply said filler thinly > sand back with fine-ish grit sand paper when dry > paint

Or a tub of no-nonsense ready mixed plaster from Screwfix and apply with a trowel

i believe you have to do sparky stuff like check your RCDs. I wouldn’t risk it myself, personally.

Spent the weekend sanding pine floor boards, it was very dusty

Bit late to the game with this but it's hard to tell from the picture if the white stuff is stuck on the plaster.

If the white stuff is some type of plater that's been used to stick something in place then use a very sharp blade to scrape it off as carefully as possible and use some toupret TX110 to fill any damage to the surface.

Scraper blades are great for this job but they need to be honed through use or by hand to work really well. There are cheap packets of scraper and filler blades available, often called euro style :-

https://www.screwfix.com/p/harris-continental-filling-knives-3-piece-set/41601?kpid=41601&ds_kid=92700047154135765&ds_rl=1243321&ds_rl=1241687&ds_rl=1245250&ds_rl=1245250&gclid=Cj0KCQiA_rfvBRCPARIsANlV66OPONhAypMrmf63Oyd6HSFhF7-MaN6Rn-VAzcpPbl8iIAdpwSsSBcsaAs0LEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

The scraper ones normally have a different colour handle and are slightly stiffer.

You're right that a load of kit would make this job easier but you should be able to manage it with some simple ones. It's one of those jobs where you try a few different tools to see what works best.

We've just had our house rewired with a brand new consumer unit and separate rcds per room (or something like that). Would we really need to get a sparks back in to wire up a hob and oven?

I could be wrong but like for like replacement shouldn't require any new testing of the existing wiring. Most professional electricians would carry out some checks because they are liable as professionals.

https://householdquotes.co.uk/electric-cooker/

You still have a duty of care to do the job safely and ensure that the installation is safe when you've done it.

There are 3 layers of plaster (brown, white, pink), then paint and then some white glue/sealant on top which is what pulled the layers off when I removed (smashed) the mirror that was previously there.
I was planning to scrape off the remaining sealant (top left), remove any loose pieces and the top pink plaster ‘islands’ in the middle, then have a go with that ready mix plaster @andos suggested. Turns out I have a big square trowel I’d forgotten about.
It doesn’t need to be perfect as we’ll put another mirror in afterwards but probably not a round one so I can’t just ignore it!

Try to get a blade underneath the white mirror adhesive and slice it off, then clean it with spirits or whatever takes it off (I would start with everbuild wonder wipes). If you've done all that quite carefully you should end up with a paintable surface.

First choice from my toolbox would be a 6" t bar scraper.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/no-nonsense-long-handled-scraper-6/87299

Thanks, I’ve been meaning to get something like that for a while - I’ve seen you recommend it for other jobs too.

I need to shift about 12 very heavy, muddy & slippery sleepers through my house at the weekend with help from a mate. Has anyone come across some kind of handled sling that will make carrying them any easier?

Hammer some cleats into the wood, run 1000kg rated webbing straps through them, then pull them out when you have stacked them at the destination?

or why not just two loops of webbing or just rope on either end of a sleeper?

If the sleeper starts to tip, with one person being higher than the other then it'll slip out of the webbing was my concern, hence wanting to secure it, but may well be overkill.

Like this but not from the bowels of hell :-

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lifting-Objects-Harnesses-2-Person-Shoulder/dp/B07DC6P5L4/ref=asc_df_B07DC6P5L4/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=309865130761&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=11442984657265339998&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9045907&hvtargid=pla-468588071965&psc=1

Are you calling Silly_Savage short? :)

I've not had call to use mine for a while, I've been avoiding the kind of jobs that need it!

There are more portable options :-
https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/scraping-tools-accessories/1261745?cmmmc=UK-PLA-DS3A--google-_-PLA_UK_ENTools--Knives_And_Scissors_And_Multi-Tools%7CScraping_Tools_AndAccessories--PRODUCT_GROUP&matchtype=&pla-393731456151&s_kwcid=AL!7457!3!243856858265!!!g!393731456151!&gclid=Cj0KCQiA_rfvBRCPARIsANlV66Ps4-d8L407FeOavJxp3Kf3mnkMRKLwS6f7Yh-PSM83TbAanvmWlO0aAleNEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Would take longer but it's easy to keep one in your pocket when you're decorating and the replacement blades are cheap and plentiful.

Yeah essentially, and maybe with some plastic handles to avoid webbing crushing hands, thinking about it though a couple of handles screw on handles will probably work ok and be more easily sourced.

just get one of these

Won't a 1-tonne builders bag wrap most of each sleeper,
and,
give you four handles to tie-up with and carry the weight?

Any guide costs on party wall surveyors?

Feel like we may have to knock through the top of a wall surrounding a door to a bedroom to have enough of a run-up for some stairs to the loft so the angle isn't too steep.

MS Paint drawing + mouse = pissed stairs.

Blue = new suggested route for stairs to loft.

1 Attachment