Search results

Fixed! I'm posting a summary here in case anyone else happens to come along with a similar issue. First, the schematic for this shower valve confirmed for me that the tile backer board was concealing a grub screw (see "shower valve" image below). I used a dremel with a diamond cutting disc to...

Shower seems to have a stuck thermostatic valve alas. I've got the plate and handles off this shower valve, and removed the lock pin (I've put it back in place for the photo), but can't seem to budge the cartridge back out (it does push back into the wall about 1cm, somewhat alarmingly). Is...

In order to address damp walls (partially underground) in our kitchen at the back of the house, I've built a wall-in-wall using a steel track & stud system. This has done wonders for dampness in the room, however I'm now to the stage of closing up the various openings, particularly re-instating...

I've begun prepping our loft for boarding up, and have discovered much to my surprise a huge amount of sawdust underneath the insulation inbetween the joists. The attic is a large space, around 90m2, and is apparently full of the stuff. This seems problematic on a number of levels, so I'd like...

Yeah, I had noticed that each block technology does seem to have a particular sort of engineering that went with it - thus my search for testimonials. Just out of curiousity, when you say traditional masonry, do you mean a brick mass wall, e.g. double flights at the bottom working up to single...

I'll be excavating some soil from a hillside in front of our house in order to add a driveway in front, so will be installing a retaining wall to hold up the soil. After surveying various options, I'm leaning towards using pre-cast concrete blocks for the build, either in a cantilever style or...

It seems that the last aging length of rainwater guttering has now begun to come off the roof of our recently purchased (but very old) home. So now I've got to replace it before monsoon season properly hits us here in Wales. I'm very much hoping to keep fascia and brackets in place and simply...

Also curious to know why you've specified 1/2" BSP male to 22mm compression irons - isn't 1/2" equivalent to 15mm?

I'm optimising the heating loop a bit on our home as part of a larger renovation and wondering if I'm hitting any design limits on my system, or if this could be considered optimal. This will all be fed by a Nibe F2040-16 (16kw) air source heat pump. The feed/return loop runs as a U shape (22mm...

Thanks @oldbuffer - the rads are right next to one another (well, about 18" gap, mounted on opposite sides of a corner in the room), so your suggestion that I connect them up seems right. I should probably mention that the rads are K2 900x1200 & K2 900x900, so a total of just around 5kw...

I'm replacing radiators and plumbing throughout the house in anticipation of installation of an air source heat pump next week. There are two rooms which have double radiators, and especially because I'm using (expensive) smart WiFi enabled TRV valves, I'm wondering if it's possible to connect...

Aye, I'd definitely taken note of that - and that's why all the new rads are going in with 15mm. What I'm wondering here is whether I can get by without causing some kind of technical fault by using existing pipework (which will probably be replaced later in the future for the sake of low temp...

@lostinthelight thanks for the suggestion. Maybe I'm just being cautious, but it seems sensible to cover lime mortar, even in the late summer given winds, unpredictable temp (I'd been told it should be covered if temp gets below 15C) and other weather! Propping a bit of impromptu scaffolding...

I'm replacing boiler with an air source heat pump, and adding / replacing about half of the radiators in the house. The feed/return loop plumbing is all 22mm, but while old radiators are 10mm plumbing mostly off a couple brass manifolds, new rads are 15mm plumbing. Will mixing piping in this way...

I've installed a new soil stack and removed one from another location, and now it's time to repair the brickwork and plug the holes. Its all lime mortar, of which I've now got a bucket, and while I understand how to apply the mortar and help it dry properly, I'm trying to sort out how to cover...

I'm installing a 16kw air source heat pump next week, and need to put in a spot to anchor it. I'm wondering if people can comment on how they've installed them and what has worked? I'm aware this ASHP will put off a lot of water (60-100l a day) and there's an inlet for sewer/waste water (it's a...

I'm delivering water feeds (via Speedfit 22mm) for a newly installed unvented cylinder in a cellar under the front sitting room to a utility room in the back of the house also on the ground floor. This will involve four separate 22mm feeds (cold supply, hot return, and supply/return for...

Thanks @JobAndKnock for this really helpful input! Re: fixtures - I was originally assuming that the sill plate might just rest in place by gravity and pressure, but had a wobble and started wondering about nails etc. Based on what you've said, I might stick with my plans for just resting it...

I've got a small cellar under our sitting room (about 8' by 20'), floor boards are all still intact, but a number of joist ends are rotted, sill plate is seriously deteriorated with dry rot in several places and there are signs of localised woodworm infestation on a few beams. I'm going to pull...

Had a chat with a builder, and after thinking it out, seems best to just hammer out the existing concrete and lay down a new slab that is 1-2" lower. Benefit here is I can install it with a membrane underneath to manage dampness in the back wall (which is partially underground) which the...