Better just replacing the glass via a glazer tbh, much cheaper in the long run.
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We bit the bullet and have booked in a local company to do our soffits and fascia’s.
Having had the guy round to do the survey its probably a bigger job than I have the will and time for.
Would have been a satisfying job to do but in the long run it’s an investment in the house. Hopefully be done late March.
What I do want to DIY is giving the roof a clean before the new bits - anyone got any recommendations for methods? Power washing is probably out as the roof tiles are original, so would want to do a chemical clean and rinse off with the hose.
You could give these guys a shout for a roof clean? I've used them for a couple of jobs before and they have been outstanding (and very affordable!
https://www.bdsproclean.co.uk/
Probably a wee bit more technical than DIY but I'll try here anyway. I'm looking to get new double glazing fitted with new front and side doors which should be simple enough bar finding the right company to do it but I've also got a very good set of Kloeber hardwood bifolds stored in my garage which I'm also looking to use to replace an old set of patio doors in the back. The bifolds are wider than the patios (240cm against 175cm approx) so I think I'll need a new lintel (steel?) unless I'm lucky and the original lintel is wide enough. How do I go about getting planning, is it architect and in turn structural engineer or structural engineer alone? Last time I went through similar when changing an internal single door to a double on a load bearing wall I paid some guy (sadly passed) £60 cash and he sorted everything.
The difference in the width will almost certainly mean you’ll need a new lintel, when the span of the lintel increases then I’d expect the depth of the new lintel to increase as well. So first port of call is a structural engineer to confirm what size of lintel would be required. If the new lintel is significantly deeper (height) then you’ll need to check if there is enough space from the soffit (bottom) of the lintel to the ceiling inside, as it may not be able to be fitted easily. A lot will depend on how much loading is on the lintel, upstairs floor, roof?
Electrics make me hella nervous, I like water cos at least you can see it.
Anyway, replaced an old light yesterday (earth, live, neutral wires in to old fitting), new light only had live and neutral.
Earth wire has nowhere to go in the new light, I've read online that it needs to be properly terminated.
There's a junction box in the ceiling, will there be a place for it to go in there or do I need to buy something else.
I was thinking about getting a set of Wago connectors anyway, and could use a single connector in the set to terminate the earth.
Chat GPT says this is the best option, what does Chat HFC think?
If the earth is not required for the new fitting, I'd isolate (a wago would work perfectly well) and tuck in to the ceiling for potentially future use.
However, some light fittings/roses have screw type connector blocks, there's usually spare points there that the earth could be secured in, again, for future use.
Edited to add, just be sure it's a separate "block", don't put it alongside the neutral or live even though those blocks might also have spare ports.
Cheers bud, turns out I can't use them anyway as my livingroom runs the full length of the house without supporting cross walls so taking more out the back wall will leave the side wall weaker to side winds etc. Steel goalposts were mentioned but it'll turn out more expensive just for the fitting than it would be to get new french doors supplied and fitted.
On the DIY front I bought a 4d laser level with a green laser on offer with a free tripod/pole, not sure if I'll use it more for its intended purpose or for Friday night parties, it's impressive.
Anyone any experience on wood flooring, engineered or solid? glue, floating or nailed? Underlay or no underlay? There's so much conflicting advice online. Also an expansion joint is always recommended but why would you need one if the floor is nailed or glued, I'm lost?
I've never laid it but had it done throughout my last two houses.
My preference is for real wood but engineered is OK. The guy that did it glued and tacked it.
Underlay keeps the dust from coming through in old houses and with the current concrete base on the ground floor of our new house provides much needed insulation.
Expansion will happen during the seasons. Not making an allowance could end up with the floor buckling and bending.
Ive done my own floors over the years, I started off with laminate but to be honest it was cheap **** and chipped over time as well as being a nightmare to lock in as it was crumbly MDF.
When I lifted it I put down a real wood flooring and the laying of it and finish was top quality, expensive but far less bloody stressful. I used 5/7 mm underlay to provide a “cushioning” as well as levelling off any imperfections on your floorboards. A good quality underlay can also preserve heat and absorbs natural moistures.
With regards expansion gaps remember wood is a hygroscopic material, meaning it absorbs and releases moisture, causing it to expand and contract.
Without an expansion gap your floor may not have enough room to adjust to these natural movements, leading to problems like cupping or bowing, even if tacked. I removed and replaced all my skirting boards too giving a neat finish.
I bought cheap **** from B&Q and had a fairly disastrous plumbing leak - we were doing a utility room, as much by ourselves as possible, so lifted the old floor, lifted the subfloor, insulated the rafters underneath, relaid subfloor then chucked down this laminate.
It was HORRIBLE to fit, we needed to get a whole line clipped together before we could fit it to the stuff already laid, it was impossible to do it on your own so my wife and I had to do it together.
A couple of weeks after that we had the leak - some plumbing had burst and we had mains pissing all over the floor - our fault. It warped to hell and is now horribly chipped.
Basically, don’t buy cheap.
Cheers folks, I think I'm going to get either 16mm or 20mm engineered oak, there's actually very little price difference between solid and engineered but engineered doesn't move with moisture apparently. I'm hoping to get the old skirtings off undamaged as they're oak anyway. It's a chipboard subfloor so I'll see if the local tool hire has a nailgun I can rent and I'll run glue down the tongues. Don't fancy spreading glue all over the floor to hold it.
I've laid loads of flooring in my various houses over the years. First one I went for real wood, thinking it would be the best. Can't fault it, but it was expensive, and quite frankly - unless you're going to be sanding/varnishing/sanding/varnishing over years and years then I don't see the need for it.
Since then I've always had engineered and never had a single problem with it. I always go for one that has a fairly thick top layer. I've avoided the 3-4mm top layer options.
I always screw mines down with this kind of screw (https://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Tong...All%20Products)
I've almost always removed the skirting boards first, as it just gives a better finish, but my current bedroom I just left an expansion gap and covered with some beading, looks absolutely fine to be honest.
Our Soffits and Facias have been completed and it looks night and day. A really top job.
I would normally would not hesitate in recommending a firm who does a job like this but something left a slightly bad taste. Payment was on completion of the work. We paid the invoice that evening at 8:30, but my father-in-law had received a message from the boss of the company asking where the money was. It went to him as father-in-law had put us in touch with him.
We didn't know when the job was going to be finished, so it took a bit of admin time to collate the money and send it across, coupled with kids bedtimes etc we got it paid up within 4 hours of completion.
So while they did a great job it was slightly perplexed at the attitude of the boss.
And he's a hun.
Is this normal practice? When I've had work done previously it's expected to pay for it within maybe 24/48 hours of completion, but I've never been hounded for money within hours of a job being finished.
Having spoken to the father in law he said it's because he pays his guys the day they finish a job, thats all well and good but hardly my problem if thats the way he does business.
Hope you're well mate, we are making progress and now I've reclaimed the garage from the joiners we should be able to get more done very soon - thanks again for your assistance :aok:
New product introduced by Watson in letterkenny that’s been selling well here over the last few years ..
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