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Hi all, I have a radiator in my bathroom that's seen better days - the paint is peeling in places and I can see rust underneath. I've attached a picture so you can see. I know that at the very least it needs a new coat of paint. But I'm not sure if it's too rusty to get away with that. I'd...

My electric mower has started working intermittently. Sometimes it turns on ok, but sometimes it either refuses to turn on or cuts out during use. It seems like holding the power cord at a specific angle can help get it to run, but that only works some of the time. The probem is definitely the...

Thanks for the advice! Just a few questions please: 1.) If the white plastic connector is stiff, is it ok to use a monkey wrench to loosen it, or will this just crack the connector and necessitate a new hose? 2.) When I'm screwing the connector back on, how tight should it be tightened? I've...

Hi, novice here. Yesterday evening I discovered that a valve underneath my kitchen sink is leaking. To give an idea of the leakage rate, I dried off the valve and the area underneath it last night, and a puddle a couple of inches wide formed over 12 hours or so. I've attached a couple of...

Thanks for the advice! What would getting worse realistically look like - is there a chance of the tap starting to leak in a way that causes damage if I'm still using it? E.g. leaking under the sink If I do end up having to replace it, is there any kind of tool designed for getting at nuts like...

Hi all, I have an old mixer tap. A nut around the central spout has a chunk missing from it, but I've been ignoring that since the tap will be replaced when the whole kitchen is refitted in a few months. However, when turning the spout today I felt something 'give', and it bent at a slight...

Hi all, On Saturday I replaced the silicone sealant around my bath/shower. Neither have been used since, but when I looked at the sealant today a small hole has appeared with water around it, just under the shower (see picture). There was a small amount of water produced when I removed the old...

Hi all, quick question: I'm planning to paint a bathroom ceiling with Dulux's easycare bathroom emulsion paint. However, there's a bit of old staining that I want to cover with Zinsser bullseye 123 first. Do you know if these two products are compatible or not please? The ceiling is plaster, if...

The house used to be a rented property, and the extractor fan was only upgraded to be powerful enugh for this sized room a couple of years ago. I suspect that mould formed previously due to excess humidity and the tenant or landlord just painted over it without actually removing it, which is why...

Hi all. I have a patch of mould on my bathroom ceiling that I want to get rid of and prevent coming back. However, there's a few things I'm not sure about. I'm planning on doing the following: 1.) Cleaning off the existing mould with an anti-mould spray 2.) Applying a stain sealer to stop any...

Hi all just a quick question for you. I'm a first time homeowner and I've noticed that the wooden items in my garden (fencing, shed, double gates in the driveway) look worn down and in a couple of places have a little bit of light green mossy stuff on. I know none of it has been treated for a...

From the survey we had done before purchasing: "The walls appear to be of 225mm solid brick. These are assumed to be solid walls with no cavity between the inner and outer layers." I've never laid a brick before, to be honest with you! Those are the only picture I have. For context, the damage...

Hi all, I have some crumbling brickwork on my house (see pictures) that I want to do something about before it worsens and weakens the wall/lets in damp. However, not having any experience of this sort of thing, I've got a few questions: How urgent does the issue look? Is it something that I...

Here you go. I've also just noticed that on the glass end of the bulb it says "220-240v 100w". Does this mean I'm good to go?

Great, thanks for the advice! Apparently the JQP401W is rated 1-120w so I should be fine there. Will do; I'm trying to get to a point where I can just swap the old bulb out for the LED equivalent. I just want to make sure an LED-compatible dimmer will be safe to use first!

Yep, it's a regular ceiling light with a single regular 100w halogen bulb hanging down (i.e. not a mini spotlight). I'm not sure what the voltage is as it doesn't say on the bulb and I was daft enough not to keep the box! Is this likely to be a 230v light? And is there a way I can test this...

Hi, apologies for what may be a dumb question! I'm planning to upgrade a broken dimmer switch which was rated up to 250w with an LED-compatible one (the Varilight JQP401W), which is apparently only rated up to 120w. I initially assumed this would be fine as the switch only controls a single...

Apologies if this is a dumb question! I need a new dimmer switch, and figured I may as well upgrade to one that's compatible with LED bulbs (the previous dimmer was used with halogen bulbs). The Varilight V-Pro JQP401W seems to have good reviews. However, when checking the specifications I...

Hi all, I'm attempting to replace a 1-gang dimmer switch that broke. I wired up the new switch and switched it on to test, but when doing so I noticed a buzzing noise coming from the black box at the back of the switch that holds all the electronic gubbins. Is this cause for concern? I'm very...

Excellent; thanks for the advice!