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I want to remove an outside toilet and replace it with a sink, and drain the sink into the toilet waste pipe. The toilet waste is cemented into a vertical underground pipe. What I want to do is remove the toilet at this point and somehow fit a 40mm waste pipe. Are there any 'WC' connectors...

First of all, Happy New Year to everyone, I hope you had a good break. Anyway Christmas is over so it's back to the jobs. I did the first coat this morning. Got rid of the soot and as much of the old render as possible (it is difficult to tell where render stops and the old mortar begins!). I...

My mother-in-law seems to have the same problem in her outhouses as the OP, and again has only recently moved in and so does not know what to expect in them wrt dampness. The house is a circa 1950 ex-council house and the buildings (coal shed, outside loo and toolshed) are all covered by a...

Would something like this http://www.british-gypsum.com/products/plasterboard___accessories/gyproc_fire/gyproc_fireline.aspx or this http://www.british-gypsum.com/products/glasroc_specialist_boards/glasroc_multiboard.aspx be suitable instead of render in a fireplace that will have a...

I'm going to fit a woodburner and have had an installer round to quote for the job. The fireplace is opened up, and is stripped back to the bare, but sooty, stone and bricks. The installer reckons the best finish on them would be render. I have done rendering in the past but always outside in...

Job done, thanks for all the suggestions and comments. The brick arch was very loose and there is a crack running up through the middle of the chimney breast so I'm glad I put a lintel in. A few scary moments and rockfalls removing several unsupported brick courses inside the original chimney...

Thanks for the reassurance that it can be done! I want to put in a lintel because there is no guarantee of the strength of the brick arch and the walls that bear the sideway load of the arch are in poor condition. Now's the best time to do it rather than plaster and decorate then find it...

The house is late Victorian with 18" thick solid stone walls (sandstone/lime mortar with no cavity). We've knocked all the plaster off the walls as it was poor condition. In two areas there was evidence of damp which coincides with damp areas that we had believed was due to condensation as they...

Is there a reason for putting the lintel above the arch? I was planning on putting it below, on the basis that the arch will support the wall above while I do it. I'll lose a bit of the opening height, but that should be ok. As I want to fit a wood burner I don't want to brick up the opening...

That's what I was thinking, but thought I'd ask in case I'd overlooked something. BTW I put the wood in as there was nothing supporting the bricks apart from some loosely stacked bricks which could be removed without tools! It may have been like that for 20+ years but had I known I would have...

The house is late Victorian. As can be seen by the size of the spirit level in the photo, the original fireplace opening is about 4 ft high and would originally have had a cooking range in it. Over the years there have been several different fires and the fireplace has been modified several...

I see what you mean. However, in my case it's not a cottage and the walls are fairly straight - undulations would look like a mix between an attempt at adding (out of place) character and incompetent plastering!! Pretty sure it will be drywall for me, thanks for the comments. Cheers, Mike

That's what I thought. I would like to go for render as it's more in keeping with an old house, but the cost may be prohibitive, and I accept that drylining will give the feeling of hollow walls and a slightly smaller room, but if there are benefits from insulation this may be worth it. What...

We've got a late Victorian house, external walls are 18" thick stone, internal walls single skin 4" thick brick. We've knocked off all the original plaster and render from the walls in the dining room and have two options: Cement render with damp proofing additive or Dryline (with vapour...

Not sure it should be under 'DIY disasters' as it concerns a professional installation and it fortunately did not end in a disaster. However, it may be of interest... We've just discovered the cause of the 'damp' smell in our dining room. The gas pipe under the floor was joined with an...

I’m replacing a suspended timber room floor due to rot and have uncovered the copper gas and CH pipes. I cannot recall seeing any supplementary bonding anywhere in the house, and have an opportunity to do so now. Should I link all three (gas/CH feed/CH return) together and is 4mm cable adequate...