How Do I Guides

STEP BY STEP GUIDE Waste pipes and traps are a vital part of your home’s drainage system. Most modern systems use plastic pipes and fittings. If your sink, basin or bath is draining slowly, try to fix it straight away. If you don’t, it might become more difficult to fix. Waste pipes are bigger than […]

STEP BY STEP GUIDE Removing cork or polystyrene tiles is easy – you just lever them off the wall or ceiling with a large stripping knife. The problem is the adhesive they leave behind, that’s still firmly attached to the surface. The best way to get rid of this is to soften it with an […]

STEP BY STEP GUIDE Before you begin any preparation or decoration work, it’s best to clear the room as much as you can. Move any items that need to stay into the centre of the room and cover them with dust sheets. Use dust sheets to protect the floor, too. It’s also a wise move […]

STEP BY STEP GUIDE Walls almost always need some surface preparation before you can start painting. Even brand-new plaster needs sealing. You should fill any cracks and holes and make sure all surfaces are clean, smooth and dry. You can paint over emulsion-painted surfaces that are in good condition, but make certain you strip back […]

STEP BY STEP GUIDE Small hairline cracks in concrete aren’t a problem and should be expected in garage floors and outside pathways. But you will need to repair large cracks and holes to stop them from filling with water – which could freeze in extreme weather and cause more damage. Water filled cracks compressed by […]

STEP BY STEP GUIDE Years of use and exposure to the elements can make concrete steps deteriorate on the edges where the tread meets the riser. Try and repair the damage as soon as you can to stop your steps from becoming unsightly and unsafe. Tip – Concrete repairs Look out for specially-formulated epoxy patching […]

STEP BY STEP GUIDE If a slab has sunk or been damaged, it’s quite easy to lift and either relay or replace it. If you have spare slabs then great you are in business. If not, take a picture and the dimensions and if there is a broken bit, take that also to ensure you […]

STEP BY STEP GUIDE If your existing taps don’t have an isolating valve, you’ll need to turn off the water supply (both hot and cold), and then turn on all the taps in your house until they run dry. It can be very difficult to unscrew the nuts that connect your old taps to the […]

STEP BY STEP GUIDE It’s never a good idea to ignore a dripping tap. The sooner you tackle it, the easier it’ll be to fix – and the less damage will be done. Even if you don’t have a spare washer, take a look inside the tap. If the washer is only slightly damaged on […]

STEP BY STEP GUIDE You can buy a kit with all you need to fit an outdoor tap from all the major hardware suppliers. There are slightly different kits for copper and plastic pipes but they both work on the same principal. Here’s what you do to install it Step 1 Firstly you need to […]