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I have just spent all day plastering a small porch about 1.5 x 1.8m. This porch is then divided into 2 areas, one part is going to have a toilet fitted?????????? the other is the porch I suppose. Anyway this small area had a total of 21 different faces that needed plastering/beading plus the...

Hi, my Dewalt 18v cordless circular saw has given up the ghost - I got it in 2004 so can't complain. Anyway I'm looking at what to buy as a replacement, I don't use it every day (or the saw) but I want something that will perform well and be reliable. Maximum price £400.00. Looking at the...

If a customer says they have received other quotes do you ever ask them how much those quotes. Are there any unwritten rules about this?

I'm thinking of building a set of bookcases with the carcases made from 18mm mr mdf, but not sure of the material to use for the shelves. I was hoping for a 800mm span and a depth of 200mm. These shelves would need to be adjustable probably set on pins. The books on the shelves would be...

After a pint or two the other day (well it is half day on a Friday) we were discussing how many quotes we submitted were actually accepted. Going round the table and averaging up we reckoned that about 50% were accepted. The sparks seemed to have the highest conversion rate about 70% with the...

A question to all the plasterers on this forum who plaster for a living (as I do). When plastering a ceiling for instance would you drop down/disconnect any downlighters, remove light pendants or any other lighting, or remove ceiling or wall mounted extractor fans prior to starting. Also would...

Can anyone recommend a sonic measurer. I had an old Ryobi which worked well but has now been dropped too often and is now unreliable. Are there any new ones on the market that any of you guys use. Cheers

Hi, I was hoping to get some advice with regards to building a porch. Have had a look through but can't seem to find the answers I need. It will be built onto two adjoining walls with the two new walls of the porch both being 2m long and approx 2.5m high. One door (obviously) and one window. As...

I know from the forum that advertising is one of those subjects that splits peoples opinions but.......... rightly or wrongly I'd like to get some feedback on this subject concerning my company. I've been advertising each year with Thomsons directory in the Bucks area, the budget has...

Has anyone had any experience with a tile backer board for floors, the one i've seen is called 'no more ply'. I normally overboard with ply but this stuff is like a cement board, very rigid, you glue then screw as with ply. The good thing is its only 6mm thick, the bad thing is its about...

Hopefully someone can help me on this one - I've been asked to tile a bathroom floor that has been fitted with underfloor heating. Normally I'd put a screed on top of matting and then tile onto this. However the underfloor heating matting has been laid on top of what appears to be some sort of...

Need a bit of help here chaps - about to install a bathroom, one of the things changing is the position of the bath and therefore the bath waste pipes. Is there a minimum distance from the wc pan connection with the soil pipe to the point where I can connect the new bath waste? At the moment...

After years with a Natwest business account and paying their extortionate charges I want to make the move to a different account. Have tried looking on the web and they all seem robbing bu--ers to me, but there must be one out there thats better than my present provider. So the question is...

Ok, this has happened a few times over the years and I still don't know the right way (if there is one) of letting a customer down. You price the job, they accept the quote, you're stacked out with work and you've only priced it in the first place as a mate has recommended you. Now in the...

Has anyone else experienced this - went into my local B&Q warehouse and found myself a Makita palm finishing sander for £39.99, looking at the same product in Screwfix it was nigh on £60 with vat. I've often looked at the the prices of some of the B&Q Dewalts and Makita and been amazed at the...

Can anyone help with a problem with rattling/knocking on our rising main. To give a brief layout - rising main enters house, to main stopcock then onto an 'electrolyte' scale inhibitor, after about 70 cms takes a sweeping 45 degree left turn. The rattling seems to be in the actual scale...

Hi, hoping I can get some advise on the following. I've looked thru old threads but can't find anything about this - I want to convert single skin garage to an office. My main objective is to reduce the acoustics from the garage, so therefore would like to have acoustic graded insulation all...

Wonder if anyone can help out on this one. I'm repairing the sash windows of a property that is being refurbished by a couple to sell on and make lots of money ala Sarah Beeney. One of the jobs undertaken by Mr couple was fixing Aquapanel to existing stud work, trouble is its out of line and...

Hi' hoping some of you guys can help with what may seem an obvious question. I'm in the process of pricing up a job, one of the things the customer has requested is the isolation and removal of their intruder alarm panel. The customer has lived at the property for 6 years and has never armed the...

Hi I want to buy a planer thicknesser and was wondering if anyone had any views or advise about them and also any recommendations. It will be for workshop use only and used mainly for my own private projects so doesn't really need to be trade performance. Saying that I've got a budget of...