What happens if work was done without planning permission?
What a planning breach actually is, the routes back to lawful, and why the problem usually surfaces at sale rather than at the time.
intermediate1 hr3 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
What insurance should a builder have, and what does it not cover?
The three policies that matter on a domestic job, the gap none of them fills, and the call to your own insurer that people forget to make.
beginner20 min3 min readWhat is an unvented hot water cylinder and what am I allowed to do to it?
What the safety devices on an unvented cylinder do, how to read a discharging tundish, and exactly where the line falls between what you may check and what needs a ticket.
intermediate15 min5 min readWhat is the difference between an RCD, an RCBO and an MCB?
The three protective devices in a UK consumer unit, the different fault each one is watching for, and how to tell which you have from the front.
beginner10 min4 min readWhat is the difference between gear 1 and gear 2 on a drill?
A two-speed gearbox trades speed against turning force, and choosing wrongly is behind most stalled drills and most burnt holes.
beginner8 min3 min readWhat is the difference between silicone and acrylic sealant?
Which one is paintable, which one survives water, and the single question that decides between them.
beginner15 min3 min readWhat size drill bit and plug do I need for a screw?
The rule that the bit matches the plug rather than the screw, the standard UK plug colour code, and how deep the hole has to be.
beginner10 min3 min readWhat size is 4x2 timber actually?
Why the timber you buy never measures what the label says, what the common sections really come out at, and how to plan a job around the real numbers.
beginner6 min3 min readWhere should a bathroom extractor fan vent to?
Duct route, fall, insulation and termination — the four things that decide whether an extractor actually removes moisture from the building.
intermediate1 hr 30 min4 min readWhere should a room thermostat be positioned?
The thermostat measures one spot and controls the whole house — the positions that give a false reading and what a good one looks like.
beginner20 min3 min readWhich carpet should I buy, and what do the specifications mean?
Fibre, construction and density decide how a carpet performs, and only one of those three is visible in a showroom. What to ask for, and what the numbers on the back of the sample actually mean.
beginner25 min3 min readWhich hinge do I need to replace a kitchen cabinet hinge?
The four things that have to match on a replacement concealed hinge — overlay, crank, plate height and opening angle — and how to read them off the hinge you already have.
beginner20 min5 min readWhich masonry fixing should I use?
Matching the fixing to brick, block or concrete, and the hole preparation that determines whether it holds.
beginner20 min3 min readWhich masonry paint should I use on my house?
Vapour permeability is the property that matters and the one nobody reads. How to choose a masonry coating by what the wall behind it needs to do.
intermediate20 min4 min readWhich radiator valve is the lockshield, and which one do I adjust?
Every radiator has two valves doing completely different jobs, and adjusting the wrong one makes another room worse. How to tell them apart on sight, including on old valves with no markings.
beginner10 min4 min readWhich screwdriver do I need?
Four common head types that look similar and are not — and why the wrong one destroys the screw.
beginner10 min2 min readWhy do I have to flush the toilet twice?
The five reasons a flush is weak, checked in the order that finds it fastest — water level, flush valve setting, blocked rim jets, a partial blockage, and the pan itself.
beginner40 min4 min readWhy do my LED bulbs flicker or glow when off?
The three causes — dimmer mismatch, illuminated switches and residual current — and which one your symptom points at.
beginner25 min3 min readWhy does my boiler pressure go up when the heating is on?
The normal rise when water heats, the band the gauge should stay within, and what a pressure that keeps climbing is telling you.
beginner20 min3 min readWhy does my conservatory get so hot, and can I make it usable?
A glass box collects far more solar energy than it can lose, and the roof does most of it. What genuinely works, roughly in order of effect, and what is a waste of money.
beginner25 min6 min readWhy does my door swing open or closed on its own?
A door that will not stay put is almost always out of plumb, and the direction it swings tells you which way. It is usually fixed at the hinges rather than the frame.
beginner30 min3 min readWhy does my electric shower go cold or cut out?
Why an electric shower runs cold after a few minutes or shuts down entirely, which causes you can safely check, and the point at which it becomes an electrician's job.
beginner20 min4 min readWhy does my heating come on at the wrong time of day?
Clock drift, AM and PM confusion, the clocks changing, and the override buttons that quietly leave a system in the wrong mode.
beginner20 min3 min readWhy does my paint not cover, even after three coats?
Hiding comes from pigment, and the brightest colours physically contain the least of what hides. Why more topcoats stop working, and the basecoat that solves it.
beginner15 min4 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.