Search results

Hi, I have a hand-held (not table) router and it came with a parallel guide. Dumb question, but how is it best to use this? Let's say I am routing the edge off a plank. If I butt the parallel guide against the opposite edge, then I need to be very sure that I keep it pressed hard against there...

Hi, I would describe myself as a reasonably accomplished DIYer - not professional. I have a C/S drill bit - can't see how to insert a picture but it's 5 fluted and with a 'barrel body' - so behind the fluted part it widens to a smooth 12mm diameter body. [Edit - managed to attach an example...

Hi, I have two wooden outbuildings with apex roofs, so 4 sides/lengths of guttering to fit. So far I have only done 1. The fascia boards are not vertical, instead they are at 90 degrees to the rake of the roof. The angle is only slight, and the fact that the gutting also slopes slightly (the...

General query. I have owned a few stand-alone electric heaters in my time - eg oil-filled, convector and fan. They all have a thermostat to limit the upper temperature (a lot of the time this regulates the temperature of the heater rather than the room, due to its proximity to the heating...

Hi, I have an electronics background so I understand the principles, and used to do my own house wiring before the regulations changed. I now employ an electrician, I'm renovating an old cottage, and we work side by side (I'll drill holes for him and he does the fitting etc). So all the wiring...

Hi, We've got an Ariston 15L 2kW under-sink water heater. A couple of years ago it started tripping the RCD, and was found to be leaking around the element gasket. Nice dripping wet electrics! I got help from a plumber and we replaced the element, gasket and anode. I't now started leaking...

Hi, I am having a 4kW solar PV system professionally fitted. I have a degree in electrical engineering which is sometimes a curse. Whilst I don't have much knowledge of household electrical practices and regulations, I have enough theory to question what the installers are doing. I asked today...

Hi, We had our bathroom completely demolished (it was an extension to the original cottage) and rebuilt to modern standards in 2014. The contractor fitted a blow heater just above the door. I had concerns about this from day 1 because the door opens inwards. There was no problem when the door...

Could someone who is well up on the UK electrical regulations help me with this please? I believe that fitting a light switch to the wall outside an en suite toilet satisfies the regulations, since it is outside the room. However the en suite room is tiny, so it would be perfectly possible for...

Following a garage flood, I was lucky that most tools and materials escaped unharmed. However I have some chisels (average quality) and some files (really good ones) that are now rusty. Do I write these off or can they be saved? The files do still function but they don't look very nice and they...

Is there a need for a Fused Connection Unit (as opposed to unfused) for hard-wired appliances which have their own dedicated (and correctly protected) radial circuit? I am doing my own house wiring (I have an electronics background), and a qualified electrician is giving guidance and...

Hello, We had major plumbing work carried out last year. Mains pressure is very high here (10 Bar I think) so the contractor fitted a 3 Bar limiter after the stopcock. I would have expected (possibly incorrectly) that this would 'regulate' rather than 'limit' the pressure to 3 Bar. I come from...

Hi, I have a wireless (433MHz) alarm system. The PIR sensors this came with are prone to false triggering. The alarm manufacturer does not supply any active IR sensors that are compatible, however I do have the technical know-how to buy an active transmitter/receiver pair and link it to a...