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Thanks JohnD, Big-all. It didn't seem likely I would miss something as dramatic as no longer recommending mineral wool insulation, but you never know. My number is already registered with TPS. I've got theirs now having 1471'd it, so I'll try making a complaint.

Over the past few weeks I have been bombarded with calls by various people from an organisation called Coastal Efficiency who insist that: (a) mineral wool loft insulation is no longer recommended by 'the government' as it is an irritant and doesn't work (!) (b) that they have been asked by...

My 1960's house has a small (2.5m x 2.5m) upstairs bathroom built as an extension in the 1980's I think. The room is very cold in winter. It has 3 external walls, and a pitched roof. There is no access to the roof space above the ceiling, though I know the hot/cold supply pipes for the shower...

Thanks for the replies, all. I should have mentioned there is a low-wattage electric heater in the room that keeps it above freezing according to the thermometer, though last winter it was down to about 5C for extended periods. I understand that insulating one wall won't be enough by itself to...

Our utility room was created decades ago by previous owners who flat-roofed the gap between the side of the house and garage and filled in each end with a door. Not surprisingly it's very cold in the winter, so insulating the garage wall seems an obvious improvement to make. Any advice on how...

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions and advice, guys - been away from my PC at the w/e, only caught up this morning. Yesterday afternoon, as a start, I added 2x500ml Fernox leak sealer + 4 ltr MB1 protector to the system, draining off and returning a bucketful of the water a dozen times...

Thanks for the idea Alfredo, I'll give that a try.

1960's house, Potterton Profile boiler 13 years old, mostly original pipework. The central heating pipes are buried in concrete floors downstairs. The expansion tank in the loft has been filling at a steady trickle continuously for several months, but there is no sign of leaks anywhere in the...

Thanks noseall. As I said, there seems to be a draught blowing though the flat roof void - the soffits at either end of the area are uPVC with the continuous slot vents along them. Wouldn't that be sufficient to prevent condensation in the roof? If not, can you give me an idea of the kind...

My utility 'room' is a roofed-over enclosed gap between the house and garage, done many years ago. I'm pretty sure there's no insulation between the plasterboard ceiling and chipboard/felt roof, as the wind blows dust and grit out of small gaps where drainage pipes, cables, go through it. The...

I've hung about a dozen new doors in our present house, and it's a different experience each time. Some have been perfect first time (modest, huh?), and some right *&##*s! I'd go along with all the tips offered so far, and also add that when you cut the rebate for the hinges in the frame or...

I want to install an extractor fan (100mm) in a utility room, and the best position for it is in a narrrow-ish top-opening window. Has anyone used one of those circular glass cutters? Any hints or tips on avoiding disaster? Or would it be more sensible to take the complete window down to the...

Tonysab, I've got a Mountfield M4PD with a 4-stroke Tecumseh engine. I acquired it 2nd hand from my father-in-law in 1987. I last had it professionally serviced in 1988. Since then, I've changed the oil about every 2 years, and the spark plug 2 or 3 times in total. I've always used unleaded...

Thanks all, advice appreciated. Think I might wimp out of the horizontal bit and do the lining paper vertically. Zampa, I'll pm my email to you when I've figured out how! johnf

I want to wallpaper a room which has one recent plasterboard/skimmed wall (smooth as the proverbial virgin's thigh), the rest are bare '60s plaster on solid walls. All the plaster is sound, but different lots of building work have left uneven areas where a newer surface joins old - plus dozens...

Probably a bit late in the season now, but it occurred to me :idea: as I struggled to control the weeds growing through my gravel driveway this summer as I do every summer, that instead of pouring on more and more toxic chemicals or nuke-ing them with a weed-wand (very therapeutic, but only...

I fitted one of each a few months ago (following the discussion above). I managed to squeeze a Torbeck valve into the cistern. It's pretty good, though not as silent as claimed, as a little water trickles out of a hole in the side of the valve body when it's filling. It appears to be the way...

OK, thanks I'll give that a try at the weekend. I should clarify that the flickering occurs when the light is OFF, not (as far as I've noticed) when it's on. Don't know if that makes any difference...

Strange but true. The overhead lamp in the hallway of my 1960's house flickers occasionally when someone walks underneath it. It's switched by two 2-way switches at either end of the hall, and my impression is that it happens more when one switch is used to switch the lamp off rather than the...

Thanks Mandate. So are you saying it's OK to fit a high pressure valve, even though the cistern is fed from the cold water tank in the loft?