What work needs listed building consent?
The test that decides whether consent is needed, why it applies inside as well as outside, and what to do before any work at all on a listed building.
intermediate30 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
Where can I put a fridge and how much ventilation does it need?
A cold appliance is a heat pump that has to dump its heat into the room — clearances, ambient temperature and airflow above the appliance are what let it do that.
beginner30 min5 min readWhere do I find the model number and rating plate on an appliance?
Where the plate hides on each type of appliance, which of the several numbers on it is the one a parts supplier actually needs, and why the digits after the slash are the ones people leave off.
beginner10 min5 min readWhere should I start tiling a wall — in the centre or in a corner?
The setting out decides how a tiled wall looks, and it is all done before any adhesive is mixed — centre lines, the batten datum, and where the cuts are allowed to land.
intermediate1 hr5 min readWhich adhesive survives outdoors, and will any glue stick to a damp surface?
Water, ultraviolet, freeze-thaw and daily movement each kill different adhesives — which families survive all four, and which stick to a surface that is already wet.
beginner15 min5 min readWhich dimmer switch works with LED bulbs?
The compatibility mechanism behind LED dimming — leading versus trailing edge, minimum and maximum load, and dimmable drivers — so you can predict whether a combination will work before you buy it.
beginner12 min4 min readWhich dust mask do I need — FFP2 or FFP3?
What the FFP numbers mean, which rating each common DIY job actually needs, why the valve matters, when a reusable half mask is the better buy, and the fit check that decides whether any of it works.
beginner15 min6 min readWhich kitchen tap should I choose?
The four checks that decide whether a tap will work in your kitchen — hole count, water pressure, spout reach and height — before any question of style.
beginner20 min6 min readWhich plywood grade do I need?
What the face grades and bond classes mean, and which plywood survives outdoors.
beginner15 min3 min readWhich sealant should I use outdoors?
Silicone, polyurethane and hybrid sealants outdoors — which one survives sun, movement and rain, and which ones you can paint.
beginner15 min3 min readWhich way does an isolating valve turn to close?
Reading the slot or the lever at a glance, why a quarter turn is the whole travel, and why you should always confirm at the tap.
beginner5 min3 min readWhich wood oil should I use — danish, tung, linseed or hardwax?
Four oils that behave very differently: what each one is, how far it penetrates, how much protection it gives and which jobs each is genuinely right for.
beginner12 min4 min readWhy do I get a small shock off my taps or appliances?
The four causes of a tingle from taps, sinks, radiators or an appliance case, why none of them is acceptable, and what to do in what order.
beginner10 min5 min readWhy do I still have mice after setting traps?
The six reasons a trapping programme stalls — placement, density, an open entry route, an unnoticed food source, trap shyness, and a population bigger than the plan.
beginner1 hr4 min readWhy does damp come through my wall only after heavy rain?
How to find the defect behind penetrating damp, why it is nearly always on the weather elevation, and the order to check things in during and after a downpour.
intermediate1 hr5 min readWhy does my combi shower run hot, then cold, then hot again?
The cold water sandwich explained — what causes the slug of cold water a few seconds into a combi shower, and what genuinely reduces it.
beginner20 min3 min readWhy does my drill just click instead of driving the screw?
The ratcheting sound is the clutch doing exactly what it was designed to do — five reasons it is doing it too early, in the order worth checking.
beginner8 min4 min readWhy does my flat-pack wardrobe wobble, and can I still fix it?
The five causes of a wobbling flat-pack unit in diagnostic order, how to tell them apart in two minutes, and which ones can still be cured once the thing is built.
beginner1 hr 30 min6 min readWhy does my toilet cistern take ages to refill?
The filter, the isolating valve and the diaphragm — the three things that slow a fill valve, and how to tell which one you have.
beginner30 min3 min readWhy does rain shoot straight over my gutter?
Water leaving the roof faster than the gutter can catch it usually means a steep roof, a valley concentrating flow, or a gutter set too far in.
intermediate20 min2 min readWhy has my caulk shrunk and left a gap?
Acrylic caulk loses water as it cures, so it shrinks. Applying it in one deep pass, or painting it too early, turns normal shrinkage into a visible gap.
beginner25 min3 min readWhy has my paint wrinkled?
Wrinkled paint is a wet-film fault, not a dried-film one: the surface skinned over while the paint underneath was still liquid. Three things cause that, and all of them are avoidable.
beginner30 min3 min readWhy has my worktop swollen at the sink, and can it be repaired?
The honest answer on repairing swollen chipboard, the four routes water takes into a worktop at the sink, and how to seal every one of them so it does not happen again.
beginner40 min5 min readWhy is my bathroom ceiling dripping?
Telling condensation on a cold ceiling from a genuine leak from above, and what each one requires.
beginner30 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.