Welcome to the Blogs

According to a survey conducted by www.diyfixit.co.uk, attitudes toward DIY in the UK are shifting.

In the past, homeowners primarily cared about DIY jobs increasing the value of their homes. Now, many homeowners say that they are doing DIY not to increase the value on their property, but to improve their quality of life.

What happens when DIY makeovers are taken out of the home and into the streets? In this case, the result is community spaces filled with all the comfort and style of your living room at home.

A train station in Carlisle has been given an exciting new DIY makeover in preparation for the filming of a new television advert.  The station's bridge has received a stripy-coloured makeover, while one of the platforms has been transformed with turquoise paint, purple wallpaper and lampshades hanging from the ceiling.

Travis Perkins, the owner of DIY superstore Wickes, has revealed that it has seen an 11% drop in profits.

The builders' merchant had been hit by the slowdown in the housing market, with profits for 2009 down to £180m from £202.5m in 2008. The company has warned that trading conditions are still fragile and they are said to be "the most difficult in the group's history".

Recent articles:

It’s normally a tradition for a local celebrity to turn on a town’s Christmas lights, but this year Portishead has chosen to go against the grain to pick a local DIY store worker.

More good news for the DIY industry as figures released by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) have shown that the industry has seen a 2% uplift in shop prices compared to September last year.

A poll by DIY retailer B&Q has revealed that most over 50's are a lot more skilled than their children in matters of home improvements and repairs.

The survey of 2,500 people asked what range of simple DIY jobs they could perform and if they ever asked for help from a relative.

According to B&Q owner Kingfisher, there's been an increase of more than a third in it's half-year profits, signalling a "renewed consumer interest" in DIY.

The DIY giants saw sales up by 7% to £5.1 billion and a pre-tax profit of £288 million in the six months up to 1 August of this year.

Click here to see all the latest deals and discounts from B&Q.

Tools website Tooled Up have got a fantastic end of line sale on their garden tools at the moment. A particular highlight is this Ryobi RLT-30SESA Petrol Straight Grass Trimmer, reduced to only £89.95 - a saving of just over £100! So why not stock up the shed ready for next year.

Screwfix are offering a fantastic saving of over £100 on this Bosch 18V Combi Drill. Click on the image below to claim the offer.

A recent survey by FindaProperty.com found that 20% of Britons planned to do some home improvement over the bank holiday weekend.

This weeks website of the week is GoogleDIY.co.uk. It has all the information you need to get every DIY job done that you can think of such as, how to install a toilet, fixing a leaking shower, how to damp proof walls and how to plaster. The site also has a section where you can purchase videos and books to help you sort out your diy problems. You can even write in and send across your tips.

To find out more, visit www.googlediy.co.uk.

A 30 second commercial during tonight's The Home Show on Channel 4, will see duo Wallace and Gromit promote energy-efficient home improvements.

It will be the second nPower advert to feature the plasticine pretenders with the company's marketing director Keith Peake saying "We're hoping [Wallace & Gromit's] positive approach to energy efficiency will help people see how simple it is to make small changes and a big a difference to their energy bills."

Lucky staff at B&Q could share £12million under a new bonus scheme that is designed to boost profits for the DIY firm.

The 33,000 workers could pocket over £600 a year if their store meets targets set by management.

B&Q boss Euan Sutherland said: "We want to grow the business. We've got a plan but the workforce has a huge part to play.

"We hope this will mean they are really motivated to do everything in their power to help us succeed."

Big Brother winner and TV’s favourite builder Craig Phillips will teach ladies in London how to maintain and decorate their own houses in less than a weekend in July. Craig will be at Richmond College on 11-12th July and 18th-19th July.

Natasha Suliman, a B&Q worker from Llanelli, has reached the finals of Miss Wales after shedding 6 stone.

A report released today by the Energy Saving Trust says that UK households could save £220 million a year and 1.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide by making DIY improvements to their homes.

The research also found that 53 per cent of the UK population are classified as "DIY shy" and are not confident enough to complete basic home improvement jobs.

Two-thirds of Britons have carried out DIY during the past year in a bid to save money, a survey has shown.

Painting was the most common task people undertook themselves rather than paying a professional to do it, with 51% redecorating their home, according to Sainsbury's Home Insurance.

Around 38% of people tackled minor electrical jobs, 21% turned their hand to plumbing and 15% tried tiling.

The latest figures from the BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor show stronger sales in March - mainly thanks to the weather.

The Easter weekend is traditionally known as an important time for DIY stores, and this year is no different.

Britons are collectively planning to spend £4.5 billion on home improvements over Easter, with many hoping to add value to their property, a survey has showed.

The average person will spend £181 on DIY projects during the Bank Holiday weekend, rising to more than £200 among people in London, according to research by The Co-operative Bank.

After the last party popper was popped on New Year's Eve, what resolutions have you pledged for 2009? According to the good people at propertyfinder.com, many of us are looking to make home improvements at the beginning of this year.

Here is their list of the top ten DIY resolutions:

Online retailer Amazon.co.uk added to its entertainment, fashion and electronics channels with the launch of its DIY and Tools channel today.  The 20" Jack 880 Hand Saw Twin Pack with 3 Pack of Sharpie Marker Pens

A poll carried out in the name of science by woodcare firm Sadolin has shown that 59% of women prefer men who can handle DIY tasks "to save cash". The poll also revealed that 95% of women find no DIY skills in a man a turn off and that 65% would rather date a gardener than a lawyer.

At my school, everyone was forced to do Craft and Design and nobody liked it and such was the apathy towards our GCSE course work, there were more shelf units and CD racks than you'd see in Ikea on delivery day.

But not Andrew Thompson. Andrew Thompson was a quiet guy, got on with his work, wore his rucksack unnecessarily high on his back - you know the type.

Swedish DIY retailer Clas Ohlson is to launch a small portfolio of DIY stores in the UK this year.

The cost of doing DIY has soared by 20% because of a shortage of tradesmen and the rising costs of transport.

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) has released the figures to coincide with the launch of its Property Makeover Price Guide, which gives homeowners an insight into how much a DIY project will cost them.

The 20 per cent rise has occurred over two years with the escalating price

As we head into summer, homeowners will be putting pocketing their wallets and pulling out their toolboxes - as a new survey from ProblemSolved.co.uk reveals 3 in 4 people would rather attempt DIY for home improvement projects than hire a professional.

And whilst the statistic may be a reflection on a general slowdown in spending, new research also suggests that many homeowners attempting maintenance work themselves aren’t covered against subsequent problems arising from bungled attempts..

Reliable and recommended builders, plumbers and electricians are all well and good, but when a homeowner attempts a DIY project themselves, there is always the chance that something could go wrong.

Dripping taps have annoyed us since the dawn of plumbing. That hypnotic drip drip drip can cause 5500 litres of wasted water in a year if untreated.  And it's usually all the fault of a little rubber washer. Here's a guide on how to fix a leaky tap:

Tools needed…
Adjustable spanner
Screwdriver
Pipe wrench
Cloth
Tap washer (1/2 inch)

According to new figures from Legal & General, Brits spend an estimated £7billion a year on help in the home such as cleaners, gardeners and the ‘odd job man’.

The research suggests that rather than a ‘Do It Yourself’, DIY culture, we’re now a nation of YDI, ‘You Do It’, by employing people to do household chores for us. 41% of Brits prefer to pay someone to do work around their home rather than doing it themselves, which is costing them close to £700 a year.

Old plastic guttering is easy to remove but cast-iron guttering is extremely heavy and the edge can be sharp, so it takes to people to remove it. Following the four easy steps below should help.

1. Drive large nails into the fascia board beneath a section of guttering at either end to hold it and prevent it falling.

2. Cut through the bolts joining two sections of gutters with a hacksaw then tap them out with a nail punch and hammer.

3.

It is possible to mount cables on the surface of a wall with clips, or run them through plastic trunking nailed or screwed to the wall – some types are even self-adhesive. You should route them along skirting boards and around doors and window frames to make them less conspicuous. However, if you are looking for a neat and polished finish you should try to conceal these cables.

A study conducted by Yell.com has revealed that Britain is a nation of DIY disasters.

The study of 1,300 people showed that UK adults spend on average one year of their lives carrying home improvements with almost a third admitting to starting jobs that they aren’t equipped to tackle.

Rising energy prices, mortgage premiums on the up and inflation creeping up to 2.5%. Homeowners are counting the pennies and rightly so. But for all the talk of cutting back, there has never been a better time to sit tight and invest in your home - assuming you know where to find the best deals.

And there are few people better placed than local builders - who know the merchants by name and get the mates rates that we don't - a fact not lost on Wickes - the leading supplier to the trade.

What you need...
Fine-tooth hacksaw, craft knife or file, pencil, ruler, power drill with masonry drill bits, screwdriver, curtain track and fixings, wall plugs.

What you do…

Screwfix.com has recently listed a limited amount of clearance stock on its website for selected items.

It’s a handy place to pick up a quick bargain on kitchen and bathroom accessories, power tools and electrical items.

What you'll need...

Craft knife, sandpaper, plasterboard, a drill, string, a nail, dry wall adhesive, interior filler.

What you do...

1. Firstly neatly trim the hole in the plasterboard into a square and tidy up the edges and surrounding rough patches with some sandpaper.
2. Using an off cut piece of plasterboard, cut a patch which is the same width as the widest part of the hole though 2 inches longer than the height of the hole.

This week from Northern Tool & Equipment’s Christmas discounts, up for grabs is a Makita 18V Combi Drill for only £119.99, a saving of £50 from its usual retail price. A great gift for DIYers of all levels and experience, the drill also comes with an extra 2 x 2.0 Ah Ni-CAD batteries, a 27 piece quad driver bit set and free delivery direct from the manufacturer in approx. 2 working days. An easily sorted and much appreciated Christmas present, its perfect for any one of your handy men or lady relatives.

Tools and Material
Screwdriver, matchsticks, wood adhesive, mallet, wood chisel.

1. Firstly check to see if any of the hinge screws are loose. If so tighten them up.
2. If the screws will not tighten, you will need to plug the existing screw holes for reinsertion of the old screws.
3. With a screwdriver, remove the old screws from the hinge which will not tighten and put to one side.
4. Fold the metal hinge part back on to itself to expose the screw holes on the bare wood behind (either the door or doorframe).

A spluttering tap may not be the worst plumbing situation to arise but it is annoying, especially when coupled with clanging pipework and spitting water. Luckily, resolving the issue is just as simply as the problem. With a few basic things you can find in the garden shed and an extra pair of hands to help, free flowing water can be a quick 10 minutes away. 

Before starting:

It’s not fun to walk around your house, and be able to hear every moment due to a few central positioned squeaky floorboards. Easy to repair as long as you don’t have carpet (sorry), creaking floorboards generally occur when some of the fixing nails worked them selves loose from the joist below causing the board itself to become loose. To ease the squeak and be able to stealthily move around your home when needed, just follow the simple guide below.

Tools and Materials:

• Pincers
• Pencil

Sometimes in the home you will come across electrical appliances or lights which aren’t working due to an electrical fault, through finding exactly where this fault has occurred can be a bit of a challenge. As with all things there are a number of reasons why a fault can occurring so to shed some light on the problem (mind the pun) follow the below links to try and trace the electrical fault, and then deal with the problem.

Click here if a plug-in appliance doesn’t work.

N.B. Before proceeding with any electrical work in your property, click here to read about the current regulations regarding electrical work completed in the home.

1. If the circuits of your home are protected by an RCD (residual current device) within the consumer unit, check to see if it has tripped. If so reset it.

N.B. Before proceeding with any electrical work in your property, click here to read about the current regulations regarding electrical work completed in the home.

1. For a plug-in light appliance try changing the light bulb first. If this doesn’t work proceed to step 2.

A dead circuit can often be caused by over loading the circuit with too many appliances or too many light fixtures.

N.B. Before proceeding with any electrical work in your property, click here to read about the current regulations regarding electrical work completed in the home.

1. Turn off all the lights and unplug all appliances on the affected circuit.

A consumer unit may need resetting due to a power surge through one of the property’s circuits.

N.B. Before proceeding with any electrical work in your property, click here to read about the current regulations regarding electrical work completed in the home.

Before trying to reset this circuit, check to see if any of the appliances on the circuit are causing it to trip. Unplug all appliances and check to see if they work on a circuit which still has power.

A fuse protects a circuit from the damage of excessive current overload which can generate overheating within the circuit and lead to the start of a fire. Know as current protection devices, fuses contain a metal wire which melts when there is too much current flow. This separation of the wire breaks the circuit connection, thus protecting the rest of the circuit. The wire in a fuse can either be exposed in the fuse carrier or contained within a cartridge in the fuse carrier as commonly seen in plugs.

N.B. Before proceeding with any electrical work in your property, click here to read about the current regulations regarding electrical work completed in the home.

Tools and Materials:

A torch, screwdriver, wire cutters, correct amperage fuse wire.

1. Locate the consumer unit which is usually situated near the electricity meter.

N.B. Before proceeding with any electrical work in your property, click here to read about the current regulations regarding electrical work completed in the home.

Tools and Materials:

A torch, fuse tester, screwdriver, correct fuse rating cartridge.

N.B. Before proceeding with any electrical work in your property, click here to read about the current regulations regarding electrical work completed in the home.

Tools and Materials:

A torch

1. Locate the consumer unit which is usually situated near the electricity meter.

Handy for all home owners, below is a brief guide to fuse ratings, their amperages and typical uses.

N.B.

A simple battery powered tool, a continuity tester is used to check whether a circuit is continuous.

N. B. You should always use a continuity tester on a DEAD circuit i.e. with the power switched off.

To use a continuity tester, test the questioned circuit through the neutral cable cores (click to read more about cable cores colours) by touching the individual probes of the tester to each core simultaneously.

A socket tester is a handy device for quickly checking the connections of a socket. It has three pins which plug into the socket and three neon lights on the face of the tester. These neon lights light up in different combinations to indicate whether or not there is a fault in the connections of the socket and if so where it is situated.

Need a socket tester? Try these useful DIY supply sites below:

• Maplin.co.uk

A fun and surprisingly handy website, Yahoo! Answers provides an interactive platform to indulge in one of man’s best virtues; curiosity.

With helpful categories such as the home and garden, health and computers to the more adventurous and opinionated such as politics, social sciences and parenting, Yahoo!

Did you know up to 25% of heat in an un-insulate house is lost through the roof? By laying down insulation in the loft you could save as much as 20% off your energy bills, and it’s really easy to do. So just follow the simple steps below and look forward to a having a cosy warm home for this and many other winter seasons to come.

Preparation:

• Firstly you will need to measure the area of your loft in square metres to calculate how much insulation is required.

It seems some of the simplest household tasks are costing Brits up to £26* billion a year according to a recent survey compiled by Yahoo!

It’s not fun to walk around your house and be able to hear every moment due to a few central positioned squeaky floorboards. Easy to repair as long as you don’t have carpet (sorry), creaking floorboards generally occur when some of the fixing nails worked them selves loose from the joist below causing the board itself to become loose. To ease the squeak and be able to stealthily move around your home when needed, just follow the simple guide below and hopefully those late night nags will just slip under the radar from now on.