Why does rain shoot straight over my gutter?
Water leaving the roof faster than the gutter can catch it usually means a steep roof, a valley concentrating flow, or a gutter set too far in.
intermediate20 min2 min read
Maintenance
The jobs that stop problems happening in the first place.
353 guides in Home & DIY
Why is my masonry paint peeling off the wall?
Masonry paint peels off render for one of three reasons, and only one of them is about the paint. How to tell which you have before spending a summer on it.
advanced2 hr5 min readHow do I check my home is electrically safe?
Visual checks and test-button routines any householder can safely do, and the warning signs that need an electrician.
beginner45 min2 min readHow do I stop pipes freezing?
Which pipes freeze and why, how to lag them, and what to do if one has already frozen.
beginner2 hr3 min readCan I fit an outdoor socket myself?
Why an external socket is notifiable work, what a properly installed one involves, what it should cost, and what to specify when you ask for one.
beginner10 min4 min readCan I recoat a wooden floor without sanding it back?
A recoat renews the finish without touching the timber, so it uses up none of the floor's remaining sandings. The test that says whether your floor qualifies, and the preparation that decides whether the new coat sticks.
intermediate4 hr3 min readCan I vent a tumble dryer into a room?
No — a vented dryer's exhaust is the load's entire water content plus fine lint, and putting that into a room causes damp in the short term and mould in the medium term.
beginner25 min5 min readDo I need planning permission for a driveway?
The five square metre rule, what counts as permeable, and the separate dropped kerb permission that catches people out.
beginner20 min3 min readHow deep do house foundations need to be?
Why depth is about ground movement rather than strength, the minimum depths Approved Document A publishes, and why the honest answer for any particular site is that it depends on what is found in the trench.
intermediate10 min5 min readHow do I clear gutters safely?
How to clear and check gutters and downpipes without taking unnecessary risks, and how to tell when it's a job to pay someone for.
intermediate2 hr3 min readHow do I fit a gravel board under a fence?
Why the bottom board is the part that rots, and how to fit a timber or concrete gravel board so the panel never touches the soil again.
beginner1 hr3 min readHow do I know if my permitted development rights have been removed?
The four ways a house loses rights it appears to have on paper — and the two searches that find all of them in an afternoon.
beginner30 min3 min readHow do I lay block paving?
The sub-base, laying course and edge restraints that make block paving work, and the compaction and jointing that finish it.
advanced20 hr4 min readHow do I make a side gate actually secure?
The gate that closes off the back of a house is the highest-value single measure most homes can take, and the hardware rather than the timber is what decides whether it works.
intermediate2 hr5 min readHow do I make patio and French doors secure?
Why sliding and French doors are the weak pair on most houses, and the specific additions — sash jammers, shoot bolts, laminated glazing, anti-lift adjustment — that close each gap.
beginner1 hr 30 min5 min readHow do I oil a new oak worktop before it goes in?
A solid wood worktop is finished before it is fitted, on all six faces, and that is what decides whether it stays flat and survives the sink. The sequence and the places people miss.
intermediate3 hr4 min readHow do I point the joints between paving slabs?
Mortar pointing, dry brushing and resin jointing compounds compared, and the preparation that stops any of them failing in a season.
beginner4 hr4 min readHow do I serve a party wall notice, and what happens next?
Getting the notice right, the three ways a neighbour can respond, what a surveyor actually does, and who ends up paying for it.
intermediate1 hr 30 min4 min readHow do I stop ice forming on paths and steps?
Grit before it freezes rather than after, and the common approaches that make things worse.
beginner20 min2 min readHow do I stop my boiler condensate pipe freezing again?
A condensate pipe that froze once will freeze again. The four changes that actually prevent it, in order of how much difference they make.
intermediate1 hr5 min readIs my garage roof asbestos, and what am I allowed to do with it?
Corrugated garage roofs, flat sheets, downpipes and soffits from before 1999. How to recognise likely asbestos cement, why it is treated differently from insulating board, and what the rules actually say.
intermediate10 min5 min readMy floor slopes — should I worry, and can it be levelled?
How to tell a settled historic slope from active movement, how to measure and record it, and the three honest options for living with, disguising or correcting a floor that is out of level.
beginner30 min4 min readMy fuse box has old rewireable fuses — do I need a new consumer unit?
What an old rewireable board does and does not protect you from, whether replacement is legally required, what a new consumer unit involves, and roughly what it costs.
beginner15 min5 min readShould I get a water softener?
What a softener does and does not do, where the savings actually come from, and the running costs and plumbing constraints to weigh first.
beginner25 min4 min read
Going deeper: MaterialWorld
Material properties, comparisons and suitability — paints, fillers, sealants, timber, tile, insulation.