The DIY thread

[bickster]

3 minutes ago, Seat68 said:

Ikea units have these screws that have a bigger girth than standard screws but also a shorter length, how much length and how girth do you want, I say this as I may have a few left over.

You can just go into the IKEA returns department and ask for some new ones, so if you know the product numbers you can post them here and he could just go in and ask for them  

[Seat68]

2 minutes ago, bickster said:

You can just go into the IKEA returns department and ask for some new ones, so if you know the product numbers you can post them here and he could just go in and ask for them  

True, and if those fit the bill I will have a look through my emails for the details and pass it on.

[choffer]

24 minutes ago, Seat68 said:

Ikea units have these screws that have a bigger girth than standard screws but also a shorter length, how much length and how girth do you want, I say this as I may have a few left over.

 

Googling ikea short fat screws will give you an idea.

I'm going to have to get my micrometer out, aren't I? 

[Mandy Lifeboats]

2 hours ago, choffer said:

I'd forgotten this thread existed!

I've been tasked with fixing a problem in the OH's kitchen. Not sure why it's on me rather than her landlord and I fear I'll make it worse rather than better.

There's two storage drawers under the hob and both of them have clearly been botched in the past. The screws holding the runners, are loose in the holes that have been drilled for them in the wood (chipboard) so the drawers keep dropping (insert KW*). Trying to find a fatter screw that isn't too long is proving a pain. Is there something I could use to fill the hole and then re-screw the screws into it? Rawl plugs haven't worked so far as they're too long. Maybe I could snip the ends? Any advice appreciated.

 

*appreciate that most of this post is KW-worthy.

Matches. 

Strike the match or cut of the end.  Trim it to the right length.  

If that's too tight, try to split the match in half.  

 

[Mandy Lifeboats]

3 hours ago, Stevo985 said:

See this is the kind of knowledge I don't have!

Neither did I - until I tiled my hallway.  It was 3 tiles wide. Perfect!  

I started in a corner and completed the first width.  Perfect! 

But every row afterwards was a fraction of a mm short of the left wall. 

By the end it was a 3mm gap.  

I ripped them up and started again.  

Even though it was 3 tiles wide I had to do 2 tiles in the centre with 1/2 tiles either side. 

 

 

 

[blandy]

4 hours ago, choffer said:

Is there something I could use to fill the hole and then re-screw the screws into it?

Match sticks cut to length. If it’s not your flat, then that kind of temporary bodge should be fine.

edit, turn the page and find it’s already been suggested. Doh!

[Mandy Lifeboats]

1 hour ago, Mandy Lifeboats said:

Matches. 

Strike the match or cut of the end.  Trim it to the right length.  

If that's too tight, try to split the match in half.  

 

@choffer

I forgot to say. 

If the particle board is in terrible condition put some glue inside the hole (KW Gif). 

This will stabilise the crumbling wood. 

Wood glue is best. Even PVA glue does the job.

Let it dry before packing it with matches.  

 

 

[choffer]

19 minutes ago, blandy said:

Match sticks cut to length. If it’s not your flat, then that kind of temporary bodge should be fine.

edit, turn the page and find it’s already been suggested. Doh!

 

18 minutes ago, Mandy Lifeboats said:

@choffer

I forgot to say. 

If the particle board is in terrible condition put some glue inside the hole (KW Gif). 

This will stabilise the crumbling wood. 

Wood glue is best. Even PVA glue does the job.

Let it dry before packing it with matches.  

 

 

This is the kind of thing I love about VT. Thanks both. 

[AvfcRigo82]

4 hours ago, choffer said:

I'd forgotten this thread existed!

I've been tasked with fixing a problem in the OH's kitchen. Not sure why it's on me rather than her landlord and I fear I'll make it worse rather than better.

There's two storage drawers under the hob and both of them have clearly been botched in the past. The screws holding the runners, are loose in the holes that have been drilled for them in the wood (chipboard) so the drawers keep dropping (insert KW*). Trying to find a fatter screw that isn't too long is proving a pain. Is there something I could use to fill the hole and then re-screw the screws into it? Rawl plugs haven't worked so far as they're too long. Maybe I could snip the ends? Any advice appreciated.

 

*appreciate that most of this post is KW-worthy.

Also, as @Mandy Lifeboats suggested about the the glue.

I have experienced in the past that also filling the holes with hot glue from a gun and insert the screw and bracket into place until it sets solid has also worked a treat. Rinse and repeat on the rest of the holes allowing a few minutes of dry time between each one.

[Stevo985]

On 17/07/2023 at 17:40, Mandy Lifeboats said:

Neither did I - until I tiled my hallway.  It was 3 tiles wide. Perfect!  

I started in a corner and completed the first width.  Perfect! 

But every row afterwards was a fraction of a mm short of the left wall. 

By the end it was a 3mm gap.  

I ripped them up and started again.  

Even though it was 3 tiles wide I had to do 2 tiles in the centre with 1/2 tiles either side. 

 

 

 

This was great advice. This is exactly what would have happened if I’d started in the corner. 
 

Started in the middle and did an ok job I think. The tiles are actually quite shit. Put a PVA bond down first but the tiles still aren’t very sticky. 
 

But it’ll do as a temporary measure and looks pretty smart for now

[Stevo985]

Since my last post I’ve also done some panelling in my dining room. By myself. And it actually worked. 
I’m getting used to this!

 

Anyway this isn’t really a DIY question as I won’t be doing it myself, but this seems like the best place to ask it. 
 

The “patio” in the new house could be nice, but it’s literally just concrete. It’s not paved or anything it’s just a big square of raised concrete. And it’s that really rough concrete as well. So basically it looks shit. 
My question is could decking or a patio be laid directly onto the concrete? As far as I can tell it’s level and flat and adding a few inches of height I don’t think would be an issue as there are two steps down from the back door. 

Im wondering if it would make it less of a laborious job than I first thought of the concrete doesn’t have to be broken up and disposed of and the ground levelled first

Edited August 8, 2023 by Stevo985

[Mandy Lifeboats]

28 minutes ago, Stevo985 said:

 

My question is could decking or a patio be laid directly onto the concrete? As far as I can tell it’s level and flat and adding a few inches of height I don’t think would be an issue as there are two steps down from the back door. 

Im wondering if it would make it less of a laborious job than I first thought of the concrete doesn’t have to be broken up and disposed of and the ground levelled first

Yes.  It will make building the decking much easier. 

Weeds have a nasty habit of breaking through concrete. To guard against this, build the decking so that you can easily remove a few pieces and apply weedkiller to the area under the decking.  

 

[Stevo985]

10 hours ago, Mandy Lifeboats said:

Yes.  It will make building the decking much easier. 

Weeds have a nasty habit of breaking through concrete. To guard against this, build the decking so that you can easily remove a few pieces and apply weedkiller to the area under the decking.  

 

That's what I thought. I've done some googling and it seems laying patio on concrete is doable as well. In fact to a layman like me it looks like often people specifically lay concrete to give a level base and then put their patio on top. So we've effectively got the first bit already

[Follyfoot]

Buy a tube of cheap toothpaste and prick ten holes down the side of it with a pin in three lines. Squeeze it a little bit so some of the toothpaste comes out and put it in your toilet cistern and it will make your bog smell fresh for up to a year when you pull the chain

[Mandy Lifeboats]

26 minutes ago, Stevo985 said:

That's what I thought. I've done some googling and it seems laying patio on concrete is doable as well. In fact to a layman like me it looks like often people specifically lay concrete to give a level base and then put their patio on top. So we've effectively got the first bit already

When you come to attach the decking flooring try to have a few smaller pieces that you can easily remove to maintain under the decking.  

It's much easier to remove a 1 metre piece than a 6 metre piece if all you want to do is spray weedkiller underneath or remove leaves. 

 

 

[VILLAMARV]

And then cover the decking with trippy bubble lino

[Mandy Lifeboats]

2 minutes ago, VILLAMARV said:

And then cover the decking with trippy bubble lino

There's something down there! 

[blandy]

12 hours ago, Stevo985 said:

The “patio” in the new house could be nice, but it’s literally just concrete. It’s not paved or anything it’s just a big square of raised concrete. And it’s that really rough concrete as well. So basically it looks shit. 
My question is could decking or a patio be laid directly onto the concrete? As far as I can tell it’s level and flat and adding a few inches of height I don’t think would be an issue as there are two steps down from the back door. 

Is it also worth thinking about what you want to achieve? I mean by that, it seems like it’s the appearance of the “patio” that’s the issue. It’s not like a change of use thing, like “could turn this area of flowerbed into a patio”, it’s just “this patio looks ugly”. So obviously one solution is to cover it with decking and that might be the best idea. But are there others, like “if it was covered with [e.g. Cotswold stone] that would look nice” , or “if it was skimmed over and polished…” or if it was painted in a Zebra pattern…” or “if it was tiled”…

Maybe it’s because decking is not really my cup of tea. It needs maintenance and looks crap after a while and everyone’s* got decking.
 

*I haven’t got decking, or the space for it, but I’m not jealous. Honest

[Stevo985]

1 minute ago, blandy said:

Is it also worth thinking about what you want to achieve? I mean by that, it seems like it’s the appearance of the “patio” that’s the issue. It’s not like a change of use thing, like “could turn this area of flowerbed into a patio”, it’s just “this patio looks ugly”. So obviously one solution is to cover it with decking and that might be the best idea. But are there others, like “if it was covered with [e.g. Cotswold stone] that would look nice” , or “if it was skimmed over and polished…” or if it was painted in a Zebra pattern…” or “if it was tiled”…

Maybe it’s because decking is not really my cup of tea. It needs maintenance and looks crap after a while and everyone’s* got decking.
 

*I haven’t got decking, or the space for it, but I’m not jealous. Honest

I'd favour patio over decking. It was just a general question of can these things be laid over the top.

But yes you're right, it's mainly appearance. It's in the right place, it's big enough. It does what a patio needs to do. It just looks shit because it's ugly, rough concrete. There's a small wall on the one side but it's just made of breeze blocks. So I'd probably want to take that down and add a nice wide step down to the lawn. but apart from that it functions fine. It's just the aesthetics.

[VILLAMARV]

1 hour ago, Stevo985 said:

it looks like often people specifically lay concrete to give a level base and then put their patio on top. So we've effectively got the first bit already

tis true. Just consider drainage (although the concrete is already there in your case).

And how does raising the height on the new patio affect the height of your steps