Which type of hook should I use for my wall?
Hardwall hooks, screw hooks, adhesive hooks and over-door hooks — what each will genuinely take, and the wall type that decides between them.
beginner10 min3 min read
Tools & Materials
What to buy, what to skip, and how to use it.
511 guides in Home & DIY
Which yarn should I buy as a beginner?
Reading a ball band, what the weight names mean, and why acrylic is a sensible first choice even though wool is nicer.
beginner20 min3 min readWhy does plywood vary so much in price?
Two sheets of the same thickness can differ in price several times over. What is actually different inside them, what shuttering ply really is, and when the cheap sheet is the right buy.
beginner10 min4 min readWhy is my circular saw cutting at a slight angle instead of square?
Five causes of an out-of-square cut, how to check the blade against the shoe properly, and why a bevel detent that reads zero is not proof of anything.
beginner20 min3 min readWhy is my jigsaw cutting at an angle instead of square?
Blade flex, a shoe knocked off its detent, and the blade guide roller — the three causes of a cut that is not square through the edge.
beginner15 min3 min readHow do I drill a deep hole without the bit binding or wandering?
Why long holes jam and curve, and the peck-drilling, pilot and alignment routine that keeps them straight.
intermediate20 min3 min readHow do I fit a coach screw properly?
The pilot hole, clearance hole and washer a coach screw needs, and why a spanner rather than a drill drives them.
beginner20 min4 min readHow do I fix into a concrete ceiling or soffit?
Reinforcement, overhead resin technique and the fixings rated for suspended loads — plus when to stop and get advice.
intermediate40 min4 min readHow do I make a plunge cut with a circular saw?
Starting a cut in the middle of a board: how to pivot the saw in on the front of the shoe, how far the cut overruns at each end, and when to use something else entirely.
advanced20 min4 min readHow do I read a vernier or digital caliper?
The four measurements one caliper takes, how a vernier scale is actually read, and the handling errors that make a precision tool give sloppy numbers.
intermediate20 min4 min readHow much clamping pressure does a glue joint need?
Why clamps close a joint rather than squeeze glue out of it, how many to use and how far apart, and the signs of both too much and too little.
intermediate20 min4 min readIs a steam oven or a combination steam oven worth buying?
The three quite different appliances sold under the word steam, what each is genuinely good at, and the maintenance nobody mentions before purchase.
beginner30 min4 min readWhat do the letters and numbers on a bag of cement mean?
CEM I, CEM II, 32,5, 42,5, R and N decoded — what each part of the marking changes in practice, and the two situations where a general-purpose bag is the wrong bag.
beginner8 min3 min readWhat is formwork, and why does concrete need it?
Formwork is the temporary mould that holds concrete in shape until it can hold itself. Why the pressure of wet concrete is the whole design problem, and what makes a home-made form fail.
intermediate8 min4 min readWhat is the difference between a self-tapping and a self-drilling screw?
One cuts a thread in a hole you made; the other drills the hole as well. How to tell them apart, and what each will and will not go through.
beginner10 min3 min readWhat moisture content should timber be before I use it indoors?
Equilibrium moisture content, the figures for heated and unheated rooms, and why acclimatising matters more than the number on the invoice.
intermediate15 min4 min readWhat tools do I actually need to plaster a patch?
The short list that genuinely matters, what each tool does, the two where quality changes the result, and the ones sold in plastering kits that you can ignore.
beginner20 min4 min readWhen is it worth ordering ready-mixed concrete instead of mixing it myself?
The volume at which a truck beats a mixer, the questions the supplier will ask you, and the extra charges that catch people out on a domestic delivery.
intermediate15 min5 min readWhy should I mark with a knife instead of a pencil?
Line width, severed fibres and a physical wall for the tool — what a knife line does that a pencil line cannot, and when a pencil is still right.
beginner12 min3 min readAre scaffold boards any good for shelves and furniture?
What a scaffold board actually is, what it can and cannot span, the preparation nobody mentions, and why new boards are usually the better buy.
beginner30 min5 min readCan I fix into the mortar joint instead of the brick?
Sometimes it is the right answer and usually it is not — how to judge which by the mortar, the load and whether the fixing will ever come out.
beginner12 min3 min readCan I use my phone as a stud finder?
What a phone magnetometer can genuinely do, what it definitely cannot, and why a two-pound magnet outperforms it — plus the situations where the app is actually the convenient answer.
beginner10 min4 min readDoes acoustic plasterboard actually work?
What the dense board really does, why it disappoints people who fit it on its own, and the three things that matter more than the board choice.
intermediate10 min5 min readHow do I clamp a mitre joint so it does not slide?
Why glue makes mitres slip, and the band clamps, corner blocks and pinning methods that hold a 45 degree joint closed.
intermediate30 min4 min read
Going deeper: MaterialWorld
Material properties, comparisons and suitability — paints, fillers, sealants, timber, tile, insulation.