Home DIY

Yes. Special dimmer and dimmable LEDs.
Varilight do a programmable range that can do 3 different dimming modes.

The bulbs I just bought from screwfix say dimmable. I've jsut replaced it as the one before flashed when dimmed. The noise is coming from the switch rather than the bulb.

Searching for Varilight has given some promising looking options. Thanks.

Ours definitely needed a dimmer switch made for LEDs. You may know this already but I've found they seem to have a narower range of dimmability than incandescent.

The noise is coming from the switch rather than the bulb.

Some dimmable lamps/switches use horrible switch-mode power supplies that whine like mad at lower than maximum throughput.

I put an LED bulb in my dimmable bedside lamp and there's a definite whine there, luckily Mrs GB can't hear it and it doesn't bother me enough to do anything about it.

(I definitely have the most sensitive hearing in the house, surprising as that includes my 10yo who hasn't had a chance to ruin her hearing yet. Had a 3 night stay in a holiday cottage earlier this week and I was the only one that could hear the chirp every 30-40 seconds from a smoke alarm with a low battery.)

The bulbs I just bought from screwfix say dimmable. I've jsut replaced it as the one before flashed when dimmed. The noise is coming from the switch rather than the bulb.

That just means the bulb has a circuit in it that detects what the dimmer is trying to do and adjusts its brightness to match.

The problem is most dimmers are simple cheap circuits that need a minimum load (i.e. number of watts) to work properly. LED bulbs can't compensate for that.

You either need to get a different dimmer that's happy driving a small LED load or resign yourself to app-controllable bollocks.

The wide and shallow slot looks like it has been cut for a seal carrier and brush pile.

Brush is available in different height pile and base width, but here's an option

https://www.mightonproducts.com/brush-preinserted-into-flat-carrier-5-5mm-1

Dimmers & LEDs.

You need trailing edge dimmers, and dimmable LEDs.

Even then, you may need to play around with different combinations to see which ones don't buzz or flicker.

Varilight V-pro switches and megaman dimmable bulbs do it for me.

Varilight v-pro are no longer 1 option though. They have an increasing number of dimmers varying in the wattage they can handle.

Some people struggle with the programming which is usually just a question of timing the on off presses. Once you have them programmed they are very reliable.

I think I'll investigate the moulding option - I need to strip and repaint the door anyway, just hoping for some dry weather!

As far as I can tell, water is blown up the cill and pools behind the inner brushstrip, eventually dribbling over the threshold. There's a relatively large gap between door and cill at the front.

You either need to get a different dimmer that's happy driving a small LED load or resign yourself to app-controllable bollocks

There’s the halfway house of app controlled bollocks with a hardware switch set up for the settings you use most often, which is what we have.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Philips-Wireless-Lighting-Dimmer-Switch/dp/B0148NMVX8

Bonus of app controlled bollocks : turning all the lights in the house green and hanging silhouette bats in the windows for Halloween

This is all sounding a bit of a pain. I might just get some lower watt bulbs and a few lamps.

Honestly the Hue stuff is really easy, pretty much plug and play.
It's just a bit spendy compared to unsmart switches and bulbs (but a LOT cheaper than rewiring and replastering)

Remember you can keep your existing faceplate and knob and just replace the dimmer block inside (depth permitting)

New floorboards expose a gap between the hearthstone and board in my kitchen. There is a traditional joinery method to solve this, photo attached of my living room. Is an easier solution to fill the gap with a wood filler, especially if I'm to tile the hearth since the tiles could dress over the edge?

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Id like some hive mind advice please.

My front 'garden' is basically a pit surrounded by a hedge on 3 sides and the front of the house. From street level you go down 3 steps but then 2 steps up into the house. I'm mid terrace with everyone else leveled for parking.

Before I get 'professional' help, is there a quick way to fill it up? I want to fill it up with stones. Use the plastic water permiable sheets against the wall, maybe an upright pipe for the drain the corner. Or should it be impermeable against the wall of the house to stop water getting in? I'd don't have drainage issues at the moment, how do I keep it that way?

Also, the hedge needs to go. I fucking hate the bastard. I'm thinking a small wooden fence a foot high.

Red hot info cheers dude

We now only have one room to paint after this weekend though :)

Beading/trim/scotia/strip wood will do the job of bridging the gap.

Yeah we've been left with a bit of that in places where there was a more obvious gap, e.g. because removing the door framing and cement skirting wasn't an option. I am 99% sure I'm ripping this straight back out and installing something better myself.

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Fuck me, that's the worst attempt at a mitre I think I've ever seen.

I'm not even going to mention the poor pin placement, or the fact that your not meant to pin MDF Scotia...

If you are going to try to cover up poor workmanship like that at least clean the excess caulk off.

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Oh and why does the bead just randomly stop in the middle of the wall?

Not even an attempt at a stop mitre.

Getting stuff that’s wood rather than painted mdf will make a big difference!

I mean that bead will end behind a washing machine.

But yeah. I'm not exactly happy with the finishing. However I am happy the new boards are in and it was all done quickly.

I can't get angry about bits like this as it won't achieve anything. I've learned a lot. Just need to figure good ways to do the edging myself now. Kinda leaning towards replacing the skirting throughout the flat as an option. It wasn't exactly pretty before.

I say I'm not going to get angry about it; I am having a moment of crisis where I question why I bothered if having boards replaced to save DIY effort actually introduces more DIY effort. Spending money to convert one type of problem into another type of problem...

When (if?) visiting in people's homes is allowed again I've no doubt my furniture maker father in law can assist in remedials.

Tbh, finding tradespeople who do good finishing work can be tough. Finishing things well takes a lot more skill or time, and for a lot of trades the optimum balance of price/speed/quality means that things get done to an OK standard and often not much more. The last 10% of finishing always takes disproportionately longer than the first 90%, so it makes better sense to do more jobs quicker rather than doing a better job for a bit more cash.

I hate to think how much it would have cost to get someone to do the floor I laid, considering all the little problems that needed sorted to get a good result. My neighbour spent months looking for people to lay his new floor properly as most of the joiners he approached just wanted to lay the new floor straight on top of the old - as this would be the easiest and quickest way, and thus most profitable.

Makes me a bit sad tbh, my mum and dad used to use an amazing decorator (one that I'm really starting to notice the quality of the work every time I visit), but they recently had the 2 bathrooms done by a different lot and the finishing is just nowhere near as good. Shame really.