• dave replied to the topic Kitchens in the forum DIY 3 years, 7 months ago

    I’m a sparks, I see lots of kitchens.

    I also fitted my own kitchen

    Ikea cabinets don’t have a void behind them for services. This may or may not become an issue for you.

    Lots of units you stand off the wall a little, check your worktop depth.

    I’ve never seen a builder take an old kitchen out with sympathy.

    Up stands cover lots of…[Read more]

  • dave changed their profile picture 3 years, 10 months ago

  • I so hated my induction hob I changed back to a ceramic one.

    The slightest drip of steam on the hob and it bleeped until dried; knock a pan slightly sideways and it bleeped. Finally the flush controls got so hot we couldn’t remove the lock one of us had turned on in error. We had to wait 20 minutes till they had cooled sufficiently to put a…[Read more]

  • dave replied to the topic Ground Source Heat Pumps in the forum DIY 4 years, 4 months ago

    They rely on pushing out a low but consistent temp. So aren’t suited to poorly insulated houses and existing radiator systems that require water temps of 50 or 60 degrees.

  • Have you had a look on james villas ? thier late deals can have bargin villas 🙂

  • You should first go all over the plaster and give it a light sanding.
    Mist coat and cut round the edges

    light sanding

    first proper coat.

    light sanding

    possibly last coat.

    How do I know. My daughters fiancee has who has just fully painted our house did it this way on new plaster and the finish is awesome.

    I asked if all the sanding was…[Read more]

  • dave replied to the topic Campsite Etiquette in the forum Chit Chat 4 years, 10 months ago

    I think the farmer/owner doing his evening rounds may have told them to shut up or Foxtrot-Oscar, as they stopped it rather rapidly after his pickup went over in their direction.

    I did consider popping down to have a word, but as I was with my Scouts, I didn’t fancy them seeing me getting my head kicked in by some oiks in tracksuits to the s…[Read more]

  • dave started the topic Campsite Etiquette in the forum Chit Chat 4 years, 10 months ago

    Scenario: you are staying on a busy campsite with a group of your friends (all with utterly gomping Brummie accents), and decide that, in 10 minute bursts from 8.30pm-10.30pm, you’ll start to crank out some horrendous dance music from a massive car stereo.

    Should you:

    a) be run over with the car for even contemplating such a thing?

    b) beat y…[Read more]

  • I wouldn’t bother doing much work in the garden during the first year, just sit back and look at what plants are already there, and how they grow.

    Daffodils, tulips and grape hyacinths are good bulbs to plant in grass areas. They give nice flowers; dead-head them as they finish but allow the leaves to keep nourishing the bulb for another few…[Read more]

  • Well that’s a healthy attitude to take on this but one the otherhand you could say the same about ordinary money. I can remember when petrol was one old shilling and nine old pennies a gallon and a large loaf of bread was six old pence – petrol is now £1.22 per ltr ( roughly £6 per gallon) and proper bread is £2 or near – that’s 80 times more ex…[Read more]

  • It’s really quite straightforward – here’s some background – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitcoin My personal take on it is – treat it like any other financial bubble that can burst at any moment ( usually just after you’ve committed your life savings!) don’t go anywhere near it if you don’t have a clear picture in your head of what you’re…[Read more]

  • Thanks everyone, some good suggestions there.

    The downlights are already LEDs. I’ll look at hoods to fit over them, thanks for the idea.

    Underfloor insulation will be a massive PITA. The boards are tongue and groove and the only way to lift them is to start at one end and take them all up, including some of the skirting boards. May do that in t…[Read more]

  • What are the easy hitting insulation related improvements that can be done to a house to reduce heating bills/make the house warm up quicker? Single story terrace cottage, cavity walls. So far I’ve done:

    Added loft insulation, now about 300mm.

    Filled a lot of drought ridden gaps around skirting boards etc

    Sealed better around loft hatch.

    Put p…[Read more]

  • dave replied to the topic Best probiotics to buy? in the forum Health 4 years, 10 months ago

    Plain yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut etc.

    It’s good for what ails ya