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I would like to reduce solar heating of the south-side of the house but only during summer (most of the time solar heating is an asset) so I was thinking the easiest thing to do would be to apply some of that solar reflective film to the inside and remove it once summer ends. Obviously...

I was wondering whether solid insulation board could be cut to fit into a window and then removed and replaced every day (to insulate a window overnight) or would it fall apart after a few weeks/months from being handled so often? I realise they're only intended to be put somewhere and then left...

A pipe in our house just burst! Remembering my training, I ran downstairs and turned off the main stop cock under the sink. We were lucky that it was caught so quickly or it could have done a lot of damage. The linoleum has been pulled up and the area is being dried (it didn't spread very far -...

I will get an extension for the drain hose. They seem easy enough to fit. The supply hose was already kinked like that inside the bag, inside the drum. I haven't yet pushed it back against the wall because it's clear enough that the drain hose isn't long enough. The transit bolts were removed by...

I unscrewed the handle (which had cracked) and used an adjustable wrench to turn off the valve. Success! Thanks! Unfortunately, the company that delivered the washing machine and were supposed to install it have some kind of policy that says they can't install it when the valve doesn't have a...

Our washing machine needs to be replaced but in order to do that, we need to disconnect the water inlet hose of the old one. The deliverers of our new washing machine were meant to do that today but could not because they reckon that the valve is broken and although in the closed position, they...

My mum's washing machine (Beko WM5100W) stops early on in the cycle and pressing the pause button twice (to pause and immediately unpause it) gets it going again. It does this two or three times about five minutes after starting and then functions normally for the rest of the wash. Does this...

Why do I have to argue every time I come here for help? You really need me to explain the purpose of a desk lamp? What the hell are you talking about "wastes overhead space"? Since when was overhead space in short supply? Forget it.

I want to slide it so it can light up a task anywhere on my desks without taking up desk space. Without the rail, it will be limited to a smaller area. The wiring will be managed with one of these. I'm thinking something like this would work but what's the cheapest option to get a square tube...

I would like to mount a lamp on a rail underneath a loft-bed so that lamp can slide on the rail. What hardware would allow me to mount a lamp like this and move it back and forth on the rail? Thanks.

Regarding those big industrial round plugs, are 16 A plugs/outlets the same size as 32 A plugs/outlets (i.e. would it be possible to plug a 32 A machine into a 16 A socket or are they incompatible)?

The sound needs to be reflected AND absorbed. The 30 mm foam I mentioned in the first post is there to absorb the sound; I need to keep the sound bouncing around inside the box until it's been absorbed as much as reasonably possible. The computer looks like this; what case would I change that...

I want to build a sound-proof box for a loud computer (a cryptocurrency ASIC). The box will be lined with 30 mm closed-cell sound-deadening foam marketed for use in vehicles. I've built one already from 25 mm MDF (£36 for 1220 mm x 2440 mm at B&Q) but I would like to know whether there's a...

I live in an apartment building which I guess was built around 1980 and I'm wondering what the total rated power draw is for the circuits. When I was at school, I thought that I was taught that every socket could provide 3000 W but at some point I think I read that each circuit only needs to...

It's not just £10; it's £10 per portion; £10 every time we hear a scratching/gnawing sound. They're going to keep coming back because, I presume, the neighbourhood has a reservoir. It's a much more frequent issue than wasps. The mind boggles that you don't realise that one visit from pest...

We've used rat poison in the past but it seems it's no longer effective (possibly not being eaten). My mum says that the pest control guy from the council says that this is normal but it costs £10 for this guy to come out and put down some of his special (irresistable?) poison. Is it not...

The combi boiler in my mum's house outputs hot water which is not hot enough (despite being set to maximum) unless you close the tap a bit to reduce the water flow. This is fine upstairs but in the kitchen, the flow reduces on its own, perhaps due to expansion of the tap parts which means the...

But some of them aren't? Have I not explained the situation sufficiently? Are you confused as to the purpose of reversing a the direction of a wire brush?

I disagree. I'm not an interior designer but I think that a kitchen with 50 shades of green won't look as nice as everything (or at least as much as possible) using the exact same colour. Mum has started painting the scales, has already painted some wooden salt and pepper grinders and is going...

How is it a strange question? Is it strange to want to use a rotary tool to scour surfaces with a wire brush attachment?