building

Hi all - first post on here so go easy on me. In the process of refurbing my living room and want to reinstate the hearth. It's mainly for decorative purposes but would also like the option of installing wood burning stove further down if possible. I've already opened up the fireplace and...

Hello! I own a house that is end of terrace (but not end of the street) with an alley between myself and the next house, my neighbour. I've double checked land registry and the line of ownership shows approx 1/2 of the alley. The neighbour has referred to it as a shared alley; it's not as I own...

Hi all, I'm about to lay the 110mm soil pipe needed to route my kitchen sink, washing machine etc. to the main drain, before pouring the slab for the base of my new floor. I was planning on having bends vertically up through the slab in order to connect to 40mm waste pipe etc. Would welcome...

I want to build some pillars for a wooden patio roof cover to rest on, about 2m high. I could build brick ones but want to render to match existing features. Can lightweight blocks on end be used ? I was thinking I could put mesh between courses for added strength. I have stacked as example in...

Hi All, So nice to be part of such an informative site. This is my first post in these forums. Last week I have completed a project for insulating the conservatory ceiling-all for under £491. With a view to help other DIY ers this is a step by step video for the DIY project from last week...

Hi, hope everyone is well. I want to build a shed at the end of the garden, you can see the area where the concrete pad is already down in the photos. Shed will be timber. Does anyone have any recommendations for how to deal with the dodgy patchwork brick wall on the left and back before I...

I'd like to add a couple of roof windows to the pitched roof above our kitchen to let more light in, as well as a window on the external wall but that is more straightforward. The kitchen is a combination of an old off-shot kitchen (half the width) plus a later (but still old) addition to make...

Hi all, Just after a bit of advice/help at the moment. Our staircase comes down into the living room, it is a 1980's house and all in our area seem the same. The staircase in the living room makes the room feel very small and hard to heat as all the heat goes up the stairs. We would like to...

Hi there, just need an opinion. My garage was pebble dashed about 15 months ago. I will hopefully attach pictures but it is coming off in large patches, the builder has said the frost must have got behind it but he currently doesn't seem to be accepting responsibility. The stuff coming off it...

In what order would you create a wet room? Renovation. I have stripped the old wet room back to brick. I just want your guys opinions on what order you would do things from materials used to completion. I will have concrete block benches, screed slope floor to the drain, and shower head mixer...

I have stripped the old wet room back to brick. I just want your guys opinions on what order you would do things from materials used to completion. I will have concrete block benches, screed slope floor to the drain, and shower head mixer etc... but as for everything, what order and how would...

Hi, I'm building a workshop at the top of the garden..it's 6x3.5m. the slab has been poured but due to a mess up on my part it has a 0.5⁰ slope from the back to the front, putting the front around 50mm lower than the back. It will be a timber framed workshop on a single course of bricks (which...

After posting yesterday regarding height of wall,I'm slightly concerned with the 90mm blocks on opening to bifold doors.please see image,I'm not a bricky by trade but was wondering would the 90mm end blocks be ok. Totally my fault was feeling positive,but a little concerned now

Hello everyone, There is no mention specifically about SLC over polyethylene paints. The general consensus of leveling over paint is a no no as the adhesion is not there. I have a large area of floor that needs levelling out slightly to get rid of the ridges in the laid concrete. The concrete...

I’m looking for a little advice re; the construction of mine and my neighbours terrace of houses. In the last year or so we’ve started to suspect that rats have accessed our cavity walls and are moving between the properties. We have each noticed burrow holes coming out from close to the...

Hi all I’m hoping somone can give me a little more info we recently bought a new house where the garden is very sloped and in need of raising. we are hoping to put a small retaining wall in front of the rear fence concrete blocks laid flat approximately 0.5m high and back fill to this to bring...

I’m doing a rear extension on my bungalow, the floor is going to be block and beam. My question is... where the beams key into the existing cavity wall, do they have to knock through so that they sit on the inner load bearing skin? Or can they rest on the outer skin? any advice would be...

Hi, This is my first time here and being a homeowner and not a builder/roofer go easy on me! We have an adjoining parapet wall on a groundfloor extension which is leaking damp through the wall just below the ceiling, with signs of previous damp all along the wall. Pic 1 &2. From the outside...

Hi, I understand the need for calculations but also understand the difficulties when the lintel is cast in place? I would like to remove the single brick partition to the left. This is the old pantry. The lintle is holding the side of the house (3 bed semi detached) the pantry is part of a flat...

Hi, I am after some advise. I have had a builder doing a single story extension for me. We have had nothing but problems with him from the start. Him turning up for a couple hours a day and sometimes only twice a week. (This we could deal with) the real problem started when he took out the...