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Hello, My parents had a Wickes twin impeller, 3 Bar shower pump installed about 2 years ago. It's only used now and again when they have guests, and surprise surprise, has seized. When there's a call for water, it buzzes and gets warm but doesn't actually run. The showers "work", but the flow...

Hi everyone, My parents' house was built 20 years ago, the incoming water pipe is blue plastic (MDPE?), and the rest of the system 15mm copper. The main stop valve hasn't been touched in 20 years and is well and truly seized. It's cheap and nasty too and I think I'd be better replacing it...

Our end-of-terrace house has Baxi back boiler & gas fire (Bermuda 45/4M with GF3 Super fire) installed in 1999. I know 15 years is considered old, and that they’re inefficient, but it is serviced regularly and has never let us down. We moved out a few years ago, and the house is now let. I...

Hello, My 240RSF has been misbehaving for the past two days. DHW starts hot, then goes rather lukewarm. Sometimes it gets hot again, sometimes not. I did notice the rads getting slightly warm too while the taps were running (as opposed to afterwards because of the pump overrun). I presume...

Just had a quick look at the boiler at work which is refusing to fire-up when there is a DHW demand. The black plastic disc on the plunger on the diverter valve assembly moves towards the microswitch when a hot tap is opened, but doesn't quite touch the button, let alone actuate it...

I've just had my bathroom re-tiled with semi-gloss ceramic tiles. I want to put up a mirror, about 2' wide by 1 high, but am reluctant to drill the tiles just in case I change my mind about the size/position one day. I've bought some mirror adhesive (Geocel Trade Mate Mirror Fix...

Hello, What are the recommended way of finishing the edges of a laminate flooring in a bathroom, please? I fitted glued-together water-resistant laminate in my old bathroom and it was great, surprisingly durable. But I was never happy with the edges. I fitted a skirting board and...

I'm looking to buy a programmable room stat to replace my separate timeswitch and room stat. The house is hard to heat (entirely flat roofed!), and it often gets too cold at night with the heating off. It would be nice to have a controller which can keep the house at, say, 21 degrees when...

My parents are buying a new house, built early 1990s at a guess. The boiler is a Baxi Solo 2 (80PF) and was last serviced 5 years ago, though it does seem to basically work. When they eventually move in, I will insist that they get an RGI to service it. But in the meantime, what's...

Hi everyone, I have an old BT Diverse 3010 DECT phone. The trouble is the previous owners changed the base PIN from the default 0000. Is there any way to re-set it? Nothing in the manual, and it's useless without this! Thanks

My parents let out a flat built in the mid 60s. The main stop valve looks like it has been attacked by previous owners armed with Stillsons over the years and only just shuts off if you use a lot of force. It's not leaking around the spindle (yet). Could I install a full-bore, lever ball...

I have a Bristan “Jive” thermostatic mixer shower bought about 5 years ago and fed from my Worcester 280RSF combi. I bought it end-of-line in one of the DIY sheds for about £50, allegedly reduced from about three times that figure. It was very easy to install and worked perfectly for a year...

My parents live in a big detached house built in 1940, steel Crittall windows with sinlge-glazed leaded glass throughout. They look great but let out a lot of heat in the winter. A year or so ago, mum had one of the biggest windows (in the hall) replaced by a double-glazed, powder-coated...

I opened up my boiler (Worcester 280RSF) today to change a cracked spark electrode which was stopping the pilot lighting reliably. Nice easy job, and it lights instantly now instead of after a minute of trying. But after removing the inner casing cover, I spotted large droplets of water...

Hello, My 1995 vintage Worcester 280 RSF stopped working (pump runs but not fan and so no ignition), and I've found that the overheat thermostat had tripped. Resetting it got things working, but I have a feeling it will trip out again unless I find the actual cause. Are there any stock...

Hi everyone, My 1930s ex-council house had an early 1980s makeover with silver-coloured anodised aluminium double glazed windows and front door. I can live with the windows, but to be honest, the front door looks hideous and I want to replace it with something more traditional and in-keeping...

My house was built in 1950, and has ungalvanised, steel "Crittall-style" windows which are generally in good condition and which suit the style of the house so well that I've kept them even though all the neighbours are on their 2nd, 3rd or even 4th lot of uPVC replacements. Unsurprisingly...

Hello everyone, Just a quick query regarding expansion vessels as used in a pressurised CH system with combi boiler, in this case, an Ideal Classic Combi FF280. The 8L vessel should have an initial charge pressure of 0.75 bar. The system design pressure is 1 bar. I suspect the...

Hi, My 1994 Worcester 280RSF has started playing up. When a hot tap is opened, the demand light comes on, the fan and pump run, the pilot gas valve opens, the ignition sparks and the pilot lights and stays lit. So far so good. BUT the sparking just carries on and the main gas valve...

Hello! I'm looking for some advice regarding improving the performance of my shower. It's only a simple bath/shower mixer, and works OK, but it's VERY hard to set it for a sensible temperature. Even when the hot tap is on full, the cold tap only has to be almost closed otherwise the water...