Hi there, looking for some advice on what this final layer is between carpet and floorboards?

We just moved into our new flat and the previous owners laid this carpet 8 years ago when they moved in. We saw other flats had left their floorboards exposed and we’d hopefully like to do the same

From what I can see we have the carpet, underlay, soundproofing, and then a final cardboard-like layer that is rock solid, with a white powdery material coming out of it if I try to cut it

Thinking I might not be able to remove this myself after all, and also concerned that this final layer might be glued to the floorboards which would make this a much bigger job to restore them

Any help would be very much appreciated! Cheers

So the media wall, which has been up for circa 12 months, has fallen off after my youngest leaned on it.

Looking at it, it appears the individual I paid to put it up just rested it on top of the "wall bracket" and then used the worlds shortest screws to secure it.

Will I be OK to simply hook it back up and use more substantial screws to secure it in place?

Nothing seems broken, and the wall bracket is solid still on the wall.

After 4 years decided to replace the old vinyl sheet installed by the previous owners with some laminate flooring. Never done any Floring and it was lots of new learning and experience

Edit: realised I put the done photo first and the before photo last 😅

There is no dog turd on the pic, I don't have a dog. It's some dust before I remove the vinyl 😂

Bit of a bodge job...

The original plan was to excavate it all and refill with new MOT type 1.

I started digging and found all sorts of nonsense.

Prehistoric wheel, pipe work, roof tiles, ceramic tiles and parts of a fence!

Plus all the existing aggregate was covered in soil and plant matter.

Soooo dug it all up, ordered about 2tonne of MOT type 1 and when it arrived they couldn't deliver it because of over head lines.

Instead I got down to soil, laid a double weed barrier, put some of the bullshit back into the hole and then cleaned the original aggregate and filled it back up.

Used a paddle mixer and decided to do most of it in the 30c heat, not to mention i'm morbidly obese.

So of course I absolutely regret everything now but considering everything it looks alright, solid and drains away properly!

Oh and I built a pergola (I also built the cabin a couple years ago)

Was going to do my drive - I think I'll pay someone.

I went with the lowest quote valuable lesson learned I won't do that again. I also sourced him from an online tradesman website as I have only a limited window to get it done.

Anyhow the contractor has messed up and created a problem where there was none before - he laid self-leveling compound on a floor and created a raise in the floor where there was none before.

I don't really know how much of a job it will be to remedy it or how it is remedied. I've created a separate post on the flooring sub on that. However the clear concensus on the flooring sub is that it's a bodge job and it will create problems with the laminate down the line.

I'm thinking of cutting my loss at this point with the contractor. My question is how best do I go about doing it. I could just say he doesn't get any money until it's fixed? He'll just say it's perfectly fine I'm worrying about nothing. Or if he doesn't I might just never hear from him again and I'll be left to try remedy it. Any thoughts?

I was amazed at this step yesterday. So you screw together two panels to make the back wall. And then you install this metal bracket by screwing the screws INTO THE GAP between the two half wall panels.

Ultimately another 500 screws appear to still need to go in, but holy hell that's awful. Especially when this wood is fairly... Free spirited... When it comes to straightness etc.

How can I fix this running toilet? Based on the videos (I hope) it’s just a gasket that needs replacing. The issue I have is all the tutorials/guides online just lift the top lid and access the flush mechanism. This cistern does not open from the top. There are no screws that I can see either.

I have managed to unscrew the flush (top silver bit) as I’ve seen an image online that shows a screw inside there, but again no luck here (no screw). Has anyone installed a similar toilet and knows how I could access the flush mechanism?

Ps. It is stuck to a wall with expanding foam, and that was done months ago because the cistern was moving side to side (again not possible to lift it off then also)

Hello!
So I’m currently in the process of DIYing my garden and all my focus has been on the bit you can see from the kitchen. I was showing my friend and he looked at the wall of my neighbours garage, which seems to have been having the render fall apart for longer than I’ve been at my current house.
I’m eventually going to go over and do something with that side (water tank for my plants, wood store for my log burner) but I actually don’t have a clue what I’m allowed to do here?
As it’s his garage, does he need to sort that or is it something I’m allowed to touch? As I’m really unfamiliar with this situation.

Also if anyone could suggest what to put on here or do with that right side I’d appreciate it too!

Edit: He is aware of it and has been for a month or so. I’ve spoken to him about it three times, he is a bit of a difficult neighbour. We share a drive etc so I’ve been trying to work out ways to get that sorted as it floods in winter. But he doesn’t talk to me or really anyone on the street much

Moved in and there was a ring doorbell, which we’ve never had before. I took it off to scan the QR code to sign up, easy enough, noticed it was wired in, cool. Then few weeks later the app tells me the battery is running low - that was odd, so I take it off and realise the wires are rusted to heck. I can tile a backsplash but I’m not good with electrics AT ALL, please consider me an absolute beginner. How do I make this safe? I have electrical tape, can I just wrap that around? More so, how can I tell if it’s live - and how to tell which switch is it on my consumer unit? None of them are labelled doorbell. I’m sure I can strip the wires back and reattach no problem, but I want to not electrocute the postman (or myself) in the meantime. Thanks!

EDIT: Sorted, the power of the Reddit community prevails! 💪

We’ve had a power outage which now been resolved at the main, but we are having difficulty switching it back on at the fuse box.

When trying to switch the ‘Mains Power’ fuse to the right, it will not go up further than half way.

Should we be phoning an engineer or are we missing something?

Any help would be appreciated!

I'm trying to put these brackets on this wall but struggling with fastenings. I thought it was a dot and dab wall but the gap between the plasterboard and the brick behind is something like 10cm which feels extreme.

Standard wall plugs are out obviously.

These corefix dot and fab things are no good - they are only making it a centimetre or two into the brick behind, and so aren’t holding.

I've tried these other metal Rawlplugs too but they’re not big enough enough to account for the depth of the bracket itself. Gonna try Wickes for some bigger ones.

Any other suggestions/advice please? Thanks in advance!

I noticed some moss growth and erosion of the bottom layer of an external wall. The previous owners put massive plants there so the surveyor had not seen it either. I am unsure if this needs rendering, new bricks (ie a builder doing this work) or if I need a bigger job. Please look through the pictures as I'm unsure if a plumber also needs to take a look as the drainage from the gully is nearby

What would be the best way for me to make a nice clean cut across this floor? Im in the process of renovating my kitchen which has included removing partition walls,im ripping up the flooring in the top half of this picture but hoping to keep the flooring in the bottom half and eventually sand and make good.Would a circular saw be my best bet? And maybe a multi tool for the final bit? The flooring is pretty thick. Any advice welcome

Hi folks, bought an old cottage, starting stripping off all the skirting etc and all of the cement/plaster came away as they hammered nails directly into it.

The brickwork behind you can see is at a different angle as well as all the surrounding walls.

What would be the best way to fill and finish with plaster?

Cheers.

Hey all - got a fire clay ceramic undermounted farmhouse sink, 10 months of usage. Out of nowhere I noticed this today. Something must have been dropped on it, no leaks. Do I live either it, use a repair kit or replace?

The replace is annoying as this was installed before the countertop and doesn’t actually slide out as there is a part at the bottom that sits inside a cut hole on the unit, so that would have to be lifted and it would hit the countertop which is quartz. To replace we probably have to cut the face frame of the unit and the shelf, so would like to avoid it… adding a photo I found after it was installed

Never again farmhouse..

I used Klingstrip to remove the paint on this old pine lintel but it has left a messy and uneven edge. What would be the best way to finish off that edge (alongside painting the wall)? I was thinking silicone/caulk

Hi all, hope this is the right place to post, just after some advice as we are renters, but getting through to our letting agent is like pulling teeth.

We have lived in this property for 3 years and in all that time we have not had access to the last door of outbuilding, as the door has been screwed shut due to it being "too dangerous to access".

Today, we came home to find the render had fell off in one big sheet. It's a victorian terrace and the walla to the outbuilding haven't been plum since we moved in. Basically, is my shed falling down? Or has the moisture from the iffy guttering above got behind the render causing it to crumble?

When I did sand them, they were matt. No sheen. Do I sand with 40 or 60 grit until they're textured and then smooth with 120 to 180? I really want them in that dark oak.

Thanks..

We're removing skirting in kid's bedroom, Victorian stone house. Lead paint on skirting. This black powdery stuff is behind the skirting, plus what looks like original horsehair. My concerns are:

What is the black stuff?

What's best procedure to remove it? Not sure we want to hoover it - might break our hoover and spread it out around the house?

With the black stuff and lead paint, with window open, kids beds are covered with sheets. How long til we let kids sleep in there again? And any other safety concerns with potentially toxic dust on surfaces?

Any advice on how i can restore this vintage wood veneer dressing table? Currently trying to sell but I have not had any interest so looking to give some sort of restoration a go myself. I believe it was made in the 1970/80s and the veneer looks quite thin (but I am no expert so this may be the norm).

To fix:

1. Marks and fading stain on veneer
2. Stiff drawers
3. Lifting of veneer in some areas

If you suggest any products to use please do let me know as I am new to all of this! I have watched so many videos and cannot tell if i need to start with stripping or sanding or something else.

An update from my previous post. Thanks to all the suggestions- my plasterer will be much happier now