How do I fix a wobbly kitchen tap?
Why taps work loose, how to reach the fixing nut in an awkward cupboard, and what to do when the sink itself is the problem.
beginner45 min3 min read
Home & DIY
Practical answers for repairs, cleaning, decorating and the household problems that turn up whether you planned for them or not. Written so you can start with what you already own.
2,154 guides
How do I get a smell out of a room permanently?
Find the material holding the smell, because everything else is masking — and soft furnishings hold more than you think.
beginner1 hr 30 min2 min readHow do I get rid of rats in the garden?
Removing the three things that hold a rat population — food, water and harbourage — and the point at which it becomes someone else's job.
intermediate3 hr5 min readHow do I get through Christmas with less waste?
Where Christmas waste actually comes from, the decisions made in November that determine it, and what genuinely cannot be recycled.
beginner30 min4 min readHow do I heat my home more cheaply?
Control settings, zoning and the behaviour changes that reduce heating cost without living cold.
beginner45 min2 min readHow do I improve air quality indoors?
Ventilation before purification, the sources worth removing, and where an air purifier genuinely helps and where it does not.
beginner45 min5 min readHow do I insulate pipes and a tank in a loft?
Insulating the ceiling makes the loft colder, so pipes and tanks up there need protecting or they freeze. The rule for a tank is the opposite of the rule for a ceiling.
beginner1 hr 30 min2 min readHow do I keep a record of what I own?
The twenty-minute video version that covers most needs, and the detailed record worth building for high-value items.
beginner1 hr 30 min4 min readHow do I know if an appliance is worth repairing?
The rough cost rule, the faults that are cheap and the faults that are terminal, and the rights that may mean you pay nothing.
beginner30 min5 min readHow do I prepare a concrete floor before painting it?
Almost every floor coating that fails, failed at preparation. The three things that matter are moisture, contamination and profile, and none of them can be judged by eye alone.
intermediate3 hr3 min readHow do I read an appliance energy label?
What each field means, why an old A-plus-plus machine now rates D, and the one number on the label that turns into money on your own bill.
beginner15 min6 min readHow do I remove specific stains from carpet?
Treatment for the common carpet stains — wine, coffee, pet accidents, grease, ink and mud — and the order that matters.
beginner30 min2 min readHow do I repair a hole in plasterboard?
Patching small, medium and large holes in plasterboard so the repair disappears under paint.
intermediate2 hr2 min readHow do I reseal around a window?
Removing the old bead completely, choosing a sealant that survives outdoors, and the tooling that makes it stick.
beginner2 hr4 min readHow do I service an extractor fan?
Beyond cleaning: the duct, the shutter, the bearings and the run-on timer — the parts that make a fan weak rather than dirty.
beginner1 hr4 min readHow do I stop a floor being cold underfoot?
Seal the gaps first, insulate if you can, and use rugs and underlay for everything else.
beginner1 hr2 min readHow do I stop a shower screen leaking?
The four places a screen leaks from, how to tell which one you have, and the repairs that fix each.
beginner1 hr3 min readHow do I stop a shower tray or bath leaking at the edge?
Why resealing usually fails, finding whether it is the seal or the tray, and doing it so it lasts.
intermediate3 hr4 min readHow do I stop heat escaping through doors and the letterbox?
The cheapest heating improvement available, and the one place you must not draught-proof.
beginner1 hr 30 min2 min readHow do I store batteries safely at home?
Keeping terminals apart, the temperature that actually matters, and what to do with a swollen lithium battery.
beginner25 min5 min readHow do I tell whether I have mice or rats?
Droppings, gnaw marks, smear marks, sound and smell give a reliable identification, and the answer changes both the treatment and whether it is a job for you.
beginner30 min5 min readHow do I turn off the water supply?
Where to find the stopcock and isolation valves in a typical home, how to shut the water off in an emergency, and how to keep the valve working.
beginner15 min3 min readHow do I use a hand plane?
Sharpening, setting the depth and reading the grain — and why a plane that is not working is almost always set wrongly rather than broken.
intermediate45 min4 min readHow do I use a stepladder safely?
What actually holds a stepladder up, why the top two steps are not standing surfaces, the sideways reach that tips it, and how to get tools up there without carrying them.
beginner15 min5 min read
Going deeper: MaterialWorld
Material properties, comparisons and suitability — paints, fillers, sealants, timber, tile, insulation.
MaterialWorld is in development — GuideHQ covers the practical answers in the meantime.