How do I use masking tape so paint does not bleed?
Sealing the edge before you paint the colour, choosing the right tape for the surface, and when to pull it off.
beginner30 min4 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 flat does a wall need to be before tiling?
Tile follows the wall. Every hollow and hump appears in the finished surface as lippage, and adhesive is not the material to correct it with.
intermediate40 min2 min readHow hot is too hot inside a house?
There is no single legal limit for a home, but there are the thresholds that matter — for sleep, for vulnerable people, and for knowing when a house is genuinely underperforming rather than merely warm.
beginner10 min5 min readHow much can I cut off a door before I ruin it?
The limit is set by how the door is built, not by a universal figure. A solid door has plenty in hand; a hollow-core one has only the depth of its bottom rail.
beginner15 min2 min readHow much does a dehumidifier cost to run?
Worked out from your machine's own wattage and your own unit rate, with the duty cycle that almost every published estimate leaves out — which is why quoted figures are usually two or three times too high.
beginner15 min5 min readIs a video doorbell legal if it films the pavement?
The short legal answer, what changes the moment your camera sees past the boundary, and the four things you then have to do.
beginner30 min5 min readIs damp and mould my landlord's responsibility, and how do I report it?
What a landlord is obliged to deal with, why 'lifestyle' is not a complete answer, and the reporting sequence that creates the record you will need.
beginner1 hr4 min readShould I turn off radiators in rooms I do not use?
Where the saving actually comes from, the condensation and cold-bridge risks of an unheated room, and the setting that gets most of the benefit safely.
beginner15 min3 min readShould I use matt, silk or soft sheen emulsion on my walls?
Sheen buys you a washable, moisture-tolerant film and costs you every ripple in the wall. How to decide which trade you can actually afford.
beginner10 min4 min readWhat are the layers of a floor, and which one is causing my problem?
A floor is a stack of layers, and nearly every fault you can see in the top one was made in a layer below it. How to read the stack and find the layer that is actually at fault.
beginner15 min3 min readWhat can I service on a heating system myself?
The dividing line between householder maintenance and an engineer's job, and the jobs on your side of it worth doing.
beginner1 hr 30 min4 min readWhat do I do if a builder damages something?
Which insurance responds to what, the order to act in, and why claiming on your own policy first is usually the wrong move.
beginner45 min3 min readWhat is a competent person scheme, and which trades can certify their own work?
How registered trades certify their own work instead of applying to building control, which trades that covers, and the documents you should end up holding.
beginner25 min3 min readWhat should I check before calling out an appliance engineer?
Fifteen minutes of checks that resolve a large share of appliance faults, plus the information to have ready if they do not — because a call-out is typically £70 to £120 and is usually payable whether or not anything was wrong.
beginner25 min6 min readWhat temperature should my hot water be set to?
Balancing legionella risk against scald risk and standing heat loss, and why the cylinder and the tap should be at different temperatures.
beginner15 min3 min readWhich cleaner should I use for which type of dirt?
There are five categories of cleaner and each removes one class of soil. Matching them correctly is the difference between five minutes of waiting and an hour of scrubbing.
beginner15 min4 min readWhich flooring can I use in a bathroom?
The bathroom question is not what looks good, it is what happens at the joints when water gets there. What each material actually does when wet, and the edge detail that matters more than the material.
beginner20 min4 min readWhich screw do I need for the job?
Reading the size code, matching head and thread to the material, and the coatings that survive outdoors.
beginner20 min3 min readWhich side of the glass is my window condensation on?
One wipe of a finger separates three completely different problems — a moisture problem, a window working correctly, and a failed sealed unit.
beginner5 min4 min readWhich tape should I use for which job?
Eight tapes that look interchangeable, what each is actually engineered to do, and the three most expensive mistakes.
beginner12 min4 min readWhich tile adhesive and grout should I use in a wet area?
The substrate decides the adhesive, the joint width decides the grout, and the tanking that has to happen before either.
beginner30 min4 min readWhy are knots showing through my paint?
Resin in a knot is mobilised by heat and travels straight through primer and topcoat. Why more paint never fixes it, and where the barrier actually has to sit.
beginner45 min5 min readWhy do my screws keep stripping?
The bit that does not match the screw, the pressure that is really the problem, and how to remove one that has already rounded off.
beginner25 min5 min readWhy does my bathroom get so much condensation when other rooms do not?
The three levers that control bathroom condensation — moisture produced, moisture removed, and surface temperature — and which one to pull first.
beginner20 min3 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.