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Check out some of my old posts and photos. I've used 25mm plywood to repair chunks of broken floorboards. What i did was work out all the lengths and widths required, then went to a timber merchant, bought 1 sheet of 2400x1200x25 plywood and ask them to cut it up to my requirements and deliver...

Yes, I might do that. What product do I look for in the builders merchants? One reason I was using plywood was because I want to keep a section of floor that I can easily lift if necessary as it has a load of services underneath. I guess I could use 18mm ply for thy section, plus extra noggins...

Various reasons .... to allow space for sockets, and to provide easy fixing for future shelving etc.

In my case I'm fixing battens to a 100 year old, lime mortar, single skin brick internal wall, with old horsehair plaster on the other side, so I want to use as little force as possible. I'm also battening around two side-by-side doorways, so I'm wary of dislodging the brick column between...

i have an old Victorian double upper flat in Edinburgh. The joists run front to back, and the back of the property has a north facing coom ceiling joining up to a flat roof. There is no roofing felt. Tiles are nailed to wooden boards laid horizontally. So a lot of cold air comes through the...

ive seen this method mentioned a number of times, but one thing puzzles me ..... If your drill bit is say 6mm (for red plugs), and you are using 4mm screws, then what's to stop the screw head passing right through the batten?

Im planning on replacing the old split/broken/warped floorboards (approx 25mm thick) in a bedroom 3.6x4.5m) with either 32x150mm (28x137mm finished) PTG white wood floorboards, 18mm ply (shimmed up to 25mm), or 25mm ply. Floor joists are 457mm centres, and 83mm wide. I can't decide which to...

Why render the brickwork if you are battening the wall and fitting plasterboard? Just curious ... I'm currently renovating a bedroom. And I've got two walls taken back to the brickwork - one on the wall between bedroom and landing, and one on a party wall. I was just going to batten the brick...

id like to buy a good DIYer circular saw, but am a bit stumped in choosing one because of all the different blade diameters and bore sizes. What are the most common diameters/bore sizes, so that getting replacement blades is somewhat easier. I know you can get reducing rings to fit larger bore...

I had a much worse issue with notched joists. Two worst areas were the hall and living room. Hall had so many services going under the floor, that after a rewire it was impossible to get the floorboards back down. It was made worse by the old steel conduit sitting above the level of the...

I have this old boiler flue running from a flat roof down through a bedroom. Can you tell from these photos if it is asbestos cement ... ? I think I should be able to just loosen the straps and lift these out from above. Thanks Ian

Looking for recommendations for a small paddle mixer for paint and small amounts of mortar. Need it to work with an SDS drill, so advice on type of mixer and/or adapter appreciated. Thanks, Ian

Thanks! Never knew these existed ... the job just got a whole lot easier!

Hi, Whats the best method for fixing a, say, 2x3 frame to a brick wall? First of all, I assume I'd want the verticals to be at 600mm centers in order to make fitting the plasterboard easier. 1. What size of screws should be used? 2. How far into the brick to drill? 3. Best type of...

Thanks, there is a CCF near me (Edinburgh), so will try there.

Where is the best price for celotex/kingspan type insulation boards? Needs to be able to deliver nationwide. Thanks Ian

How long should I wait for the paint to harden on skirting board before I get new carpet laid? (The underside of carpet can be quite rough, and can damage new paint.) Its not new skirting .. its already been painted before. Thanks Ian

I also forgot to ask ... there is an 8mm gap between door style and frame, so the existing mortice deadbolt only just catches the strikeplate (sometimes it doesnt though!). Whats the best way to fix this? Pad out the hinges? Pad out the strike plate? New door? I might just get a new door...