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Baffled. Wall lamp, single 25W incandescent bulb. Controlled through nearby wall switch, one-way, not a dimmer. Been working OK for months. Switched it on one evening, bulb gave a little flash, then nothing. New bulb. Nothing at all. Dead. Checked new and old bulb, both OK. Yesterday...

Agree with Bosswhite. Just going to be a regular maintenance thing. I expect it's worse on the south side, where the sun gets on it? Don't let the frost get in the cracks over winter or it could deteriorate even more. If there are similar houses nearby, you might speak to the owners, see...

Didn't need sealant in our previous house, as the walls were quite flat and I scribed all the tops to the wall so there was no gap. Here in our 400 year-old cottage, the walls are anything but flat, and despite making a pattern, I know there are going to be some gaps at the back, and no I can't...

Thankyou. I used to live in Shepperton (says he, hurriedly editing his Profile), and now you mention the name I think that's where I bought the laminate in 1981. The showroom didn't exist then, as I recall. Amazing to see them still in business. Thankyou. Next problem, having found some...

Thanks. Didn't know one could buy the linings. I'll check the sizes. Mine will be imperial of course. Ivor

Not sure if this is the right forum... Been mooiching around a few kitchen showrooms, rather like the soft-close drawer runners. Blum seem to be the best make (?) Our kitchen fittings were made in 1972. Solid elm. The drawers are like the drawers in a Victorian chest of drawers, they sit...

Having trailed round all our local builders merchants, Homebase, Wickes - where the staff were amazed to hear that in the olde days we used to make our own worktops - I went into a local hardware shop, Millington & Ramsted, and behind the counter they had Formica's sample chart hanging up, and...

If the house has no dpc, a concrete floor would be a bad idea as it would send the damp into the walls. Uncover the original floor, see if you can clean it up. It may be a period piece. You might also try here for advice...

Surprised there's no kitchen forum..... Anyway, when I did the kitchen in our previous house I made all the worktops from 1" blockboard and laminate, made my own edging. That was in 1981. The kitchen in our current house has a free-standing cooker, which I'm going to replace with a built-in...

After the Ronson canisters ran out, I bought a Rothenburger, which was touted as the Ronson replacement at that time. No small nozzle, wouldn't idle, flaring, I think it went in the bin. That was a good while ago, are they better now? V8

Remember the Ronson? Small and large burners, a control knob that held its settings, steady at low-flame, didn't flare. Then the cartridges vanished... was it the EU idiots, or a family dispute, I never did find out. Anyway... since then I've tried various new cartridge blowlamps, and I have a...

Well, I seem to have got away with it. All heated up this morning. I did bend them very gently. Agree with the point about annealing if there's much bending to do. Ivor

Yes, I did. Then buzzed them, and they're OK. So tomorrow we should be warm again. I hope. Thankyou.

Thankyou. I posted it in Appliances now. Meanwhile, the eBay seller of the elements advises that I can indeed bend them. I was surprised, I expected him to sit on the fence or give no reply, so take a bow Spares4Homes. Off now to do some bending. Be interesting thugh to see what the...

Originally posted this in the Heating section: Creda storage heater with the kettle-type elements.... Heats up, but not very much. Took apart, buzzed the old elements, one is OK the other is bust. Very twisted and the outer casing is burned. The one that still works is also twisted. I...

Creda storage heater with the kettle-type elements.... Heats up, but not very much. Took apart, buzzed the old elements, one is OK the other is bust. Very twisted and the outer casing is burned. The one that still works is also twisted. I noticed that the old elements were too wide to fit in...

Good point, and that's fair enough, don't want to fry myself with outdoor electrics. Ivor

Depends on the boiler. Oil? Annual. Conventional flue, scope for stuff falling down the flue, maybe. Modern boiler with (excessive) electronic gubbins, probably. But my 1991 boiler which works or doesn't, and the flame colour can be seen through the little window, I don't think so...and...

Thankyou all. Many ways to skin the cat, it seems. We do have Economy 7, but no controller, just a (broken) time switch in the airing cupboard and only one top-loading immersion in a 48" tank. Well, the plumbing dates back to 1969... The main Sangamo timer is intelligently positioned in an...

In our present house we have gas heating. On the HW cylinder I have two stats, one near the top of the cylinder, one nearer the bottom, selected by a changeover switch. This gives the option of heating a full tank, or less water if no one is having a bath. This has worked well for 28 years...