Why does my trip switch keep going off?
Telling an RCD trip from a breaker trip, the socket-by-socket method that finds the faulty appliance, and when to stop and call someone.
beginner30 min4 min read
Household Problems
Damp, draughts, smells, noise and the other slow annoyances.
284 guides in Home & DIY
Why does my boiler keep cutting out?
Separating a boiler that locks out from one that short-cycles, and the householder checks for each before an engineer is needed.
beginner45 min5 min readHow do I stop condensation?
Why windows and walls stream with water in winter, and the ventilation, heating and moisture changes that actually reduce it.
beginner30 min4 min readWhy are there cracks in my walls?
Which cracks are normal, which are worth watching, and the specific features that mean get someone in.
beginner20 min3 min readWhy is my dishwasher leaving things dirty?
Filter, spray arms and loading — three causes in order of likelihood, and all three are free to fix.
beginner40 min3 min readWhy is my dishwasher not draining?
The drain path runs sump, filter, pump, hose, high loop, waste connection — check it in that order and an uncut waste spigot or a blocked filter accounts for most cases.
beginner45 min5 min readWhy is my shower pressure weak?
Start with the shower head, because it is the cause more often than the system is.
beginner40 min3 min readWhy is there a damp smell in my house?
A method for tracing the source rather than covering it — where to look, in what order, and what each finding means.
beginner45 min3 min readHow do I stop mould coming back?
The moisture, ventilation and temperature changes that stop mould re-establishing after you have cleaned it off.
beginner1 hr 30 min2 min readHow do I dry out a room after a leak?
Getting the water out fast, why the damage happens afterwards rather than on the day, and how to know when it is actually dry.
beginner2 hr4 min readHow do I reduce damp in a house?
How to tell condensation, penetrating damp and rising damp apart, and what actually fixes each.
beginner2 hr2 min readWhy does my freezer ice up?
Ice is airborne moisture that got in and could not get out — so the cause is always a way in (seal, door, warm food) or a failed way out (defrost drain, defrost heater).
beginner40 min5 min readWhy does my hot water run out so quickly?
Working out which system you have, then the four things that actually cause a short supply.
beginner30 min4 min readWhy does my loft have condensation?
Why the water is coming from inside the house rather than through the roof, and the two things that fix it.
beginner1 hr4 min readWhy does my oven cook unevenly?
Hot spots are a different fault from an oven that runs at the wrong temperature — how to map yours, and what each pattern points at.
beginner30 min4 min readWhy is my thermostat not turning the heating on?
Distinguishing a dead thermostat from a lost connection from a boiler that is not responding — in the order that costs nothing to check.
beginner30 min4 min readHow do I stop mould coming back in the bathroom?
Why bathroom mould recurs after cleaning, and the ventilation and habit changes that actually prevent it.
beginner1 hr3 min readHow much can I plug into an extension lead?
The one piece of arithmetic that decides whether an extension lead is safe, why the socket count is irrelevant, and the appliances that use up the whole budget on their own.
beginner10 min4 min readWhat should I do when a pipe bursts?
The first five minutes that limit the damage, and the order to do things in when water is coming through a ceiling.
beginner30 min3 min readWhy does my dishwasher smell?
A drain smell and a dirty-machine smell are different problems — the drain side is usually the waste connection, the loop or the sink trap, and it is the one people never check.
beginner40 min4 min readWhy is my dishwasher leaking?
Where the water appears tells you which of six things is leaking — front, underneath, at the back or only during fill each point at a different part.
beginner1 hr5 min readWhy is my socket warm or discoloured?
What heat in a socket actually means, which signs are urgent, and why this is never a DIY repair.
beginner20 min4 min readWhy did I get condensation in the loft after insulating it?
Insulating the ceiling makes the loft colder, so the moisture that was always arriving from the house now condenses. The fix is airflow and stopping the moisture, not less insulation.
intermediate30 min3 min readHow do I find where mice are getting into the house?
A systematic survey of a house at rodent height, the real gap sizes involved, and the order to seal so you do not shut mice inside.
intermediate3 hr5 min read
Going deeper: MaterialWorld
Material properties, comparisons and suitability — paints, fillers, sealants, timber, tile, insulation.