Search results

I'm replacing my mother's temperamental thermostat with a Hive one. The boiler is currently being fed through the receiver (which is being fed from a fused spur a couple of inches away). I intend to put a new flex in from the fused spur direct to the hive L&N (doing away with the connectors) and...

Several years ago whilst having new central heating installed we had a back boiler removed from behind our surface mounted gas fire. A couple of year ago we had a new gas fire fitted inside the fireplace (similar style to a log burner). Since then, whenever we get heavy rain we can hear...

Hello, my son has just sent me some photo’s of some damp patches that have appeared in a cupboard under his stairs. It is an outside wall so I asked him to send me some pics of the outside wall too. I’m no expert but the damp patches look like they may be linked to dot & dab? The outside wall...

My daughter has recently moved into a newly refurbished terrace house with all the newly plastered walls painted in magnolia. She has just painted over the walls with a colour of her choice but she is finding that the paint is scratching off very easily. I asked her if it scraped off easily...

We are having a new floor fitted next week and in preparation for the screed I am removing the carpet etc so they have a blank canvas. Under the carpet, in front of the patio doors there was some pieces of laminate flooring screwed down. I removed these to reveal the cavity between the outside...

My son has just moved into a newly refurbished house. There is a twin coax from the satellite dish going through the wall which he had connected to the sky box. Coming out from the wall behind the TV is also another twin coax which has been snipped. As it's a refurb I am assuming there has...

Hello, not sure if this should be in this section or building. We had our old gas fire removed so we could see what was behind and what options we had for a new fire (ideally something inside the hole with no hearth). When the gas engineer removed the fire he said that it was pre-cast flue and...

Hello, I think I know the answer to this question but my wife has asked me to get confirmation if possible. There has been a single story extension built along the back of the house (before we moved in), accommodating an extension to the kitchen and a separate dining room. Where the cut through...

Hello, My daughter has just moved into a flat and there is a terrible smell of drains coming from the kitchen and she has also had dirty water coming back into her washing machine. I have had a look at the drainage pipes under the sink to see if there was an obvious fault and (although not...

You know those square white plastic back plates you can put behind switches to stop the wall getting mucky.. Has anyone heard or seen anything similar to go behind ceiling roses. I have just taken down two monstrous light fittings to be replaced with pendants. Unfortunately the ceiling had...

I am about to start a full re-wire of a small 3 bed semi. The DB is behind a kitchen cupboard (thanks to a kitchen extension) and so I am putting a new one in about 1 metre away to a more accessible place. There are the usual circuits (Ring, Light, Cooker, Immersion, Shower). I am interested in...

I have to install supplementary bonding in a bathroom for the first time. Despite reading lots of bumph on the subject I am still unsure as to where the best points to bond are without too much cable being on show. (I am assuming this is a matter of opinion). In my drawing the bath, toilet &...

I am re-wiring a ring main. I have a problem in that there is an extension at the back of the house with 2 sets of 2 sockets both sets fed from a single 2.5 T&E from the infamous octopus. There is no access to the roof void to the extension and the cables have been plastered over/tiled...

I recently changed a CU (LABC notified etc) in a bungalow. There were only 4 circuits – lights, sockets, Immersion, Cooker. Both the Immersion & Cooker were not in use any more so when re-connecting I just connected the lights & sockets. Because the light circuit had no cpc I re-wired that...

As a matter of interest has anyone every refused to do a job because there is so much junk in the attic?

I am fairly new to this game and whilst trying to trace a cable in the attic of a house I came across a metal box about 6" by 4" which it seems every cable in the house goes in and out of (its a bunglow and there are only 4 circuits). There are 4 banks of 4 terminals with the left hand 8...

I am one of these much maligned people who have just completed a 'part p' course. However I don't think for one moment I am in any way remotely qualified to call myself an 'electrician'. I have always been competent in DIY electrics and after a mid-life crisis wanted to have one last career...