DIY Supermarket

Graceful, sweeping lines and simple operation make roman blinds a beautiful, eternally stylish choice for any room in your home.  The diversity of materials available make roman blinds a versatile and attractive window covering that will complement your home’s décor.  Consider neutral colours for rooms like the conservatory or living room.  Cool, peaceful colours go well in bedrooms.  For rooms that require the most light control and privacy like the nursery or television room, blackout liners can be added to roman blinds to reduce glare and darken the room.  Thicker materials also offer good insulating qualities, keeping heat in during those long winter months, and helping keep rooms cooler by blocking the summer sun, improving the comfort in the room.

Stylish, sophisticated roman blinds add a touch of class and elegance to every room in your home.  What better way to add a chic touch of romance to the bedroom than with a stylish, attractive set of roman blinds?  The wide range of colours and styles and refined look of roman blinds bring a sense of elegance into any room, transforming a dull, drab décor into something a bit more exciting.

Ordering your roman blinds is a breeze.  Simply measure your windows, or have a professional do it for you, to determine whether you will need standard-sized readymade blinds, or you will need to order a custom set to match your unique windows.  Then choose a colour and style, and soon your beautiful roman blinds will be ready to install.

Sinks in both the kitchen and bathroom can easily become blocked either by a build up of material over time or by a specific item becoming lodged in the pipe. There are a couple of simple things you can do to try and unblock your sink before you need to break out the DIY tools; most supermarkets sell chemical products which aim to unblock sinks by dissolving whatever is causing the obstruction or you can always use a plunger, which uses suction to try and dislodge the item.

Bottle Trap Sinks

Some sinks have what is known as a bottle trap, a device that allows you to gain easy access to the pipes under the kitchen or bathroom plumbing. If your sink has one of these, cleaning a major blockage is a straightforward process. Make sure you have manually removed as much of the standing water from the sink as possible and then unscrew the bottle trap and remove whatever is causing the blockage. Have a bucket and lots of cloths handy as the water trapped in the pipe will also come out behind the obstruction.

Sinks With a U-Bend

DIY enthusiasts living in older houses are more likely to have a conventional U-bend pipe under their bathroom or kitchen sinks. If one of these pipes becomes blocked then you will need a simple tool known as an auger to try and dislodge whatever is causing the sink to back up. An auger is a flexible rod made of steel that can be purchased in any DIY store. Push the auger into the pipe to remove the blockage, twisting and turning when you reach the offending item to move it through the pipe. The auger’s flexibility allows it to follow all the curves in the U-bend, making sure that no parts of the system remain obstructed.

If you have draughts coming into your home through either external or internal doors, there are some simple steps you can take to stop them.  External doors are often the worst culprits, as they allow cold air to enter the house, but draughts under and round internal doors can be very annoying too.

Firstly, figure out exactly where the draught is coming from.  Look closely at the door.  Is it obviously not fitting well at any point?  If there are large gaps, it may be worth trying to rehang the door before trying to fix the draughts.

The simplest solution to drafts through narrow gaps is by applying a thin strip of sticky-backed foam along the gaps to plug them.  These strips will squash down over time, but do result in a quick fix.  Nailing draught excluder strips to the door itself is a more effective long term solution, though do be careful not to seal doors completely; air does need to be able to move around the home.

If there is a draught at the bottom of a door, the traditional solution of a long stuffed cushion can rarely be bettered.

Once the valves on a radiator have been turned to isolate it from the main water supply, you need to confirm that they are indeed doing this before attempting to remove the radiator from the rest of the system.  Open the air-release valve at the top of the radiator with the radiator key that was supplied with it.  To begin, water will spurt out because of the internal pressure, but this will subside after a few seconds.  If this does not happen, you will be alerted that one of the valves has not fully closed off and will have to check them both again.

When you are able to open the air-release valve without water flowing out, you will know that both valves have been closed properly, but then you must make sure to close the air-release valve again.  If you do not do this, air will be able to get into the radiator and force water out onto the floor when the union nuts at the base of the radiator are undone.

Once you have established that no water is flowing into the radiator, you can undo the big union nuts at each end, the ones that connect the radiator to isolation valves.  At this point the radiator will still be full of water, but it cannot come out as long as air does not enter.  Once both the union valves are undone and the radiator has been disconnected from the valve, it can be simply lifted away from its brackets.

Removing an old sink or bathroom suite is pretty simple if you follow the right order and ideally get someone to help, because it can put strain on muscles.

Turn off all water at the mains and thoroughly drain the system, which is the usual preliminary task to most plumbing work. Alternatively, use an isolation valve if one is fitted. Leave the bath and sink taps turned on to let all water drain away.

Remove the bath’s supporting framework, such as bath panels, and use a tap spanner to remove waste outlets and taps from the sink and bath. If you cannot undo the nuts, just cut through the pipes, but leave enough piping for later connections.

Lift the sink off the wall after undoing its holding screws and then take the pedestal off the floor. If it is fixed via screws, you may have to remove them using a hacksaw if they have rusted into place.

Use a cold chisel and hammer on the brackets, holding the bath to the wall before lifting it away.

In order to keep outdoor decking looking its best, it is advisable to give it a clean twice a year. Taking the time to maintain your outdoor decking pays dividends as it adds years to its life as an attractive garden feature.

Spring is a good time to spruce up the decking in preparation for the increased use it will get over the summer. Another clean in autumn is also recommended before the harsh winter months kick in.

Pick up some specially formulated wooden decking cleaner from a DIY outlet. You will find specialist products designed exactly for this particular job.

It is important to clean the decking surface of the general dirt, algae, moss and grease that has collected over the months. Using decking detergent will not only make the surface of the deck look much brighter and cleaner but will ensure slippery and hazardous areas are removed.

Apply decking cleaner according to the instructions on the packet. Scrub with a stiff brush immediately after application. Leave to stand as per instructions, then rinse with a hose thoroughly. Leave for two days before coating with a protective wood treatment.

Seeds have to have warmth, moisture and air if they are to successfully germinate. Different types of seeds require different levels of soil warmth to germinate, which is why they are planted at different times of the year. Weather conditions are more important than the calendar in this connection, so you may have to postpone sowing if this is unseasonably cold for example.

Prepare a seed-bed first, to ensure that the seeds have sufficient moisture and air and that the fragile roots when they appear can get a good foothold. Choose a day for seeding when the soil is dry on top but moist underneath, then lightly tread it down and give it a good raking over.

Seeds can be spread over the surface but more usually they are sown in drills, the depth of which will be determined by the size of the seed. Covering the seeds with soil to twice their depth is a good rule of thumb. Also, spread bio humus along each yard of drill to keep the seeds moist. Sow seeds thinly, and if they are very small mix them with sand first to help spread them out.

Dripping taps are not only an annoyance but they waste water and can end up staining your bathroom suite or kitchen sink.  Many people just ignore the problem, yet most causes of a dripping tap can be fixed in just a few minutes.

The first step is also the most important; turning off the water supply.  After that you can safely remove the external part of the tap, having put the plug in just in case any small parts fall into the sink and down the drain.

Most of the time, a dripping tap is caused by damaged washers inside the tap.  These are small discs which control the water flow and can let a small amount through when they become worn, causing the annoying drip.  Washers are available from all DIY stores, and most British sink taps use half-inch washers, while bath taps tend to use the quarter-inch type.  You can always remove the tap cover before you go shopping to make sure.  If this does not stop the dripping, you might need to replace the whole tap, which is a more complicated procedure.

A home and garden can be greatly enhanced by the addition of wooden panel fencing. It makes a great background for planting, improves privacy, and also acts as a windbreak. Erecting wooden panel fencing is not difficult, but make sure the property boundaries are established first, and plan to put the fence inside the boundary to avoid any unpleasantness with neighbours.

Use a peg and taut string to give a clear line to work up to, pegging the corners. In the event of a wandering boundary, peg out shorted, yet straight sections. Next, measure out the positions of the postholes. For anything but a short length, hire a posthole augur to cut the holes. The augur will produce clean, neat cuts for the concrete bases, increasing stability. It is recommended that the post hole depth is about a quarter of the above ground height; eg if the panels are 2m high, the hole needs to be 500mm, and if the soil is loose packed, add some more depth. The holes should be twice the width of the post, giving a good concrete footing.

Ram hardcore into the bottom, place the fence post vertically and square to the fence line, borrow an extra pair of hands and fill the void around the post with a quick-setting concrete. Let the concrete overtop the soil level, shape it to deflect water, and help keep the panels clear of the wet soil level to prevent rot. 

Ensure each post is correctly sited using a length of wood and repeat until all the posts are vertical and set. Use gravel boards to keep the panels clear of the soil, wedge and prop the panels before securing with galvanised nails. Remember to check the tops of the panels are level.

Poor choices of timber and treatment spoil too many decking projects. Although timber decking cannot last as long as concrete or stone, it is quite possible to construct a timber deck to last many years.

The problem is in the nature of the material and the physical demands of the environment. The timber is exposed to sunlight, rain and cold, all of which naturally break down the wood. Therefore, the timber needs treating with chemicals to resist the process. Look for timber that has been pressure treated for the best results. Alternatively, home-applied treatment can be used, but it will not be as good.

Softwood is the cheapest option for decking but, as so often in timber construction, hardwoods perform much better and last much longer. However, they are around twice as expensive.

Of the hardwoods, teak is the premier wood for decking. It is tough and durable with a wonderful colour and grain; it is also very expensive. Oak comes a close second and is, of course, the great British construction timber; like teak once used for sailing ships and in older buildings. The most popular hardwood, possibly because it is cheaper, is opepe, an attractive and durable alternative to the more expensive timbers.

If the softwood path is taken, red cedar looks and smells good but tends to split; spruce is good above ground and has a pleasing straight grain, unlike larch, which is knotty but expensive.

Last, but not least, pine is cheap, has a good grain, and is easy to work. It is probably the most common decking material.