The FUTURE of Outdoor Christmas Lighting – LED Tape

If asked to picture Christmas, you’ll probably conjure up images of presents under the tree, stockings hung by the chimney with care and huge turkey dinners you let yourself get away with because it’s the diet-free day of December 25th. Maybe you’ll think about walking through your local town or park to take in the displays, or perhaps you’ll remember the last time you decorated your own home for everyone’s favourite time of year? Continue reading “The FUTURE of Outdoor Christmas Lighting – LED Tape”

The ULTIMATE Power Tool Christmas Gifts this December

From sanding to cutting to drilling, power tools are the bread and butter of around-the-house DIY and amateur workmanship. New power tools are to DIYers and amateur workpeople what new cars are to petrol heads – thankfully, power tools are a little easier to fit under the Christmas tree. Continue reading “The ULTIMATE Power Tool Christmas Gifts this December”

A DIY Guide – The Secret’s Behind the Perfect Hole Saw Technique

A workman’s staple, the hole saw is a tool you’ll encounter as you start to flex your DIY muscles and branch out into more interesting challenges. They’re used to cut perfectly round holes in a variety of materials. Wood and plaster are common workpieces, but metal, glass, ceramic, concrete, and stone still fall to the hole saw. Continue reading “A DIY Guide – The Secret’s Behind the Perfect Hole Saw Technique”

Fire, Water and Electric Shocks – How to Avoid Danger Using Cable Trunking

Cable trunking is a hollow enclosure through which cables can be run to keep them protected and organised, with a removable or hinged side allowing quick and convenient access for routine inspections or wire changes. Continue reading “Fire, Water and Electric Shocks – How to Avoid Danger Using Cable Trunking”

Plasterboarding – Fitting Plasterboard Perfectly

Plasterboarding is an ideal way to finish stud walls; installation is generally easy, materials are generally inexpensive, and there is a whole host of plasterboard options beyond the average to fit around more niche requirements. Continue reading “Plasterboarding – Fitting Plasterboard Perfectly”

MIG Welding – How to Weld! Basics to Advanced Techniques

Welding goes right back to the Bronze Age, but we’ve never stopped refining this simple process of fusing two materials together. Throughout time, the method has remained fairly consistent: you shape a base metal and add filler material to form a new join, usually one that is stronger than the base material itself. Far from the distant struggles of pre-history, the modern man has a wealth of welding processes available, but one of the most popular and versatile is MIG welding.

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Sealant 101 – When, where and how, your one stop sealant guide

For the DIY crowd, sealants are a bit of a step up from your screwdrivers, hammers, and spanners, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t learn to differentiate between them and apply them yourself with relative ease and confidence. For the tradesman, they’re just another tool in the handyman arsenal and one that can be used in a vast array of ways.
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Consumer Units Explained – EVERYTHING You Need to Know

Often referred to using the slightly outdated term of ‘fuse-box’, a consumer unit is essentially the main control centre for a home’s electrical supply. It’s something nearly everyone can recognize but which fewer people can name and far fewer actually work. A bit of a shame since consumer units are both important and relatively easy to understand. Continue reading “Consumer Units Explained – EVERYTHING You Need to Know”

10 Things That Should Be in EVERYONE’S Toolbox

Every home deserves a toolbox, and you can pick one up through any reputable online or brick-and-mortar hardware store. But what actually goes into your toolbox? That can be a surprisingly hard list to make – you don’t want to spend the Earth or feel inundated with gadgets, but neither do you want to find yourself missing the right tool for the right job. Continue reading “10 Things That Should Be in EVERYONE’S Toolbox”

Light Fittings & Fixtures: The ULTIMATE guide to Lighting Your Home

Humans took 200,000 years to invent the electric light fixture, but you can learn how one works in the time it takes to read these bullet points:

    • Your power supply comes through fuse board or consumer unit to (usually) two circuits – one for upstairs and one for downstairs.
    • With brown for live, blue for neutral, and green/yellow for earth, wiring runs from power source to a series of lighting points, then splits off to separate switches.

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