Where or how can I learn basic DIY skills?

[freckles20]

We are on the midst of having a small extension built- new kitchen, small downstairs toilet and utility, separating open plan room into two separate rooms.

The entire process has been a nightmare. I've had to be really observant because so many things have been done wrong.

I have no DIY skills. But I feel I have more common sense and care about how a job is done much more than most of the tradesmen who have been involved in our build.

I'm not under any illusion that I could do big or very skilled tasks. But I'd love to be able to do some typical DIY stuff- painting, using a drill, filling gaps etc..

I don't know anyone whose happy to teach me. I am thinking that a hands on in-person class would be best but I can't find any. I have found various YouTube videos but I'm not sure if have the confidence to wield a power tool after just watching a video.

It is also so hard to work out things like what type of screws or fixings to use for different surfaces etc.. There doesn't seem to be anyone available to ask or advise in local diy stores. One even suggested I got myself a husband ffs.

So to get to the point- how can I learn these basic DIY skills so I don't have to wait weeks for a reluctant trader to come and do a half hearted job of something that I feel I shop do do myself like putting up a shelf, mirror, painting etc.?

Basic DIY, hanging stuff for example is pretty easy.

As for drilling, ignore all the people telling you to get top quality drills. Plasterboard is soft like hard cheese. Any crappy drill (and drill bit) will go through it. You don't need to invest hundreds in tools and then waste it if you decide diy is not for you.

If you are worried about drilling, first get a bit of wood and buy your cheap drill and decent drill bit (see iii) below). Along with some safety glasses. Make sure you fix the wood down (otherwise when you drill the wood will whip round with the drill rotation if the bit gets caught in the wood). Then just practice drilling a few holes (make sure there is nothing on the other side you don't want damaged). You'll find after a bit of practice it is easy to make holes.

Once you have drilled holes in the wood and are confident, you can move onto the wall. There are a few things to be careful of. First you don't want to drill through pipes (its unlikely you will do this with a crappy drill anyway as pipes are hard, unless you hit a plastic one). Second electrics. Its relatively easy to figure out where the electric lines are - it you are really worried you can always turn the electrics off before you drill. I would watch some you tube videos to learn about stud walls how to mount stuff and where services are likely to be. There are some rules. For example, you can't mount anything heavy in plasterboard because it is so soft it will not hold the weight.

Here are my tool tips :

i) If you are going to use something a lot, buy something good quality.

ii) If you are not going to use it much any old crap will do, even if it falls apart after a couple of uses. Except iii)

iii) Always buy good quality cutting bits. That's drill bits, knives, saws etc. That's because the harder and better quality the bit or blade, the easier the cutting process will be. The process is easier with more torque (higher quality drill), but that is big bucks compared to the blades/bits.

Plasterboard is indeed soft. But if you're hanging anything of any significant weight on a fixing, the fixing needs to go through it and into the brick or whatever behind, unless you happen to drill through where there is a wooden batten, or where there is a gap big enough to use a special heavy-duty plasterbaord fitting. Breezeblock is still soft, fair enough, (so you need to go in further, and do use correct rawlplugs), but if it is brick, that can be very hard- try drilling into 'engineering' brick or NORI (Accrington) brick with a crappy drill, it'll get you nowhere. And if it is a curtain rail you're putting up, what's behind my be a concrete lintel. By all means don't buy the most expensive drill out there if you don't plan to use it a lot, but at least get a decent brand with good reviews for the drill in question. Even if you are only drilling one hole, if the drill isn't up to that job you're wasting your money.

@GasPanic

Plasterboard is soft like hard cheese.

Yes it is, and personally, I don't even bother using a drill for plasterboard - you can get a hand tool like a screwdriver with a rounded/pointed end where you just dig in a little and then turn it round and hey-presto you have a hole in about 30 seconds.

The thing is, though, that you still need a drill for the walls that aren't plasterboard, such as external walls and internal supporting walls which will be made of brick or breeze blocks. So at the very least, you need to know the difference!

But you need to know the difference anyway as the fixings are different - you're really not going to get a sound attachment using a bog standard wall plug on a plasterboard wall - you need special plasterboard wall plugs, or better still, proper fixings that cling to the plasterboard from inside the wall. You also need to check that a plasterboard and fixing will hold the weight of whatever you're going to hang on it and probably need to use more fixings, i.e. four screws/fixings for something really heavy on a plasterboard wall whereas 2 would suffice for a brick/breezeblock wall.

Yes, Bosch, Makita, JCB, DeWalt, or even good old Black & Decker, basically any decent named brand, if you check out the reviews before you choose - reviews really are worth their weight in gold. I'd avoid like the plague anything with a name like Yakimaki or HungSung (made up names) from Lidl or Aldi that you've never heard of before and will never hear from again and which have no online reviews!

I'm really not any good at DIY and the bit I've learnt is watching other people and giving it a go. I'm small so I struggle with anything heavy.

But I stripped, primed, filled holes, took down a ton of curtain rails etc and painted the bedrooms here. I'm determined to gradually get better.

I came here to say, too! The Goodlife Centre was brilliant AND the course was run by a woman who really knew her stuff. They do online courses too now, it seems, so if you're not london based that would probably be a good starting point. I'm thinking about doing the basic plumbing one, so I'll report back if I do.

Personally I have just used YouTube a lot and my house as a 'test lab'.

Either I simply learn how to do stuff I need. Or I may just do a project because I want to learn that skill.

All gone pretty well so far and a steep learning curve. Luckily I see this house as just for 5ish years, so I don't mind using it as a learning experience.

What a great thread!

Tbh, I think women should take over the construction trade! All of the men that I have employed to do building work, with the exception of two, have been unreliable, messy and in one case, downright dangerous in his practices.

Sadly I agree. There are fewer and fewer of the older generation of tradesmen around. We've just had some work done by our longstanding plumber and joiner, who are both retiring. It's just a shame as it took us years to find them, their work is excellent, and they don't rip you off.

By contrast literally every single one of "younger" generation has been incompetent, lazy, unreliable and rip off merchants, and these aren't people we've got from facebook, they've been "real" businesses, supposedly reputable local firms, who've simply thrown random "subbies" at the work and not shown the slightest bit of interest after they've been to do quotes etc - basically no "after sales service" and not remotely interested in the quality of work their subbies have done. They include a carpet shop that's been in town for decades, a decking/shed/garden furniture showroom, a bathroom/kitchen showroom, a fireplace showroom, and a firm of decorators. The "salesmen" talk the talk but go awol when it comes to actually checking the work of their subbies and putting things right.

When we complain, it's always the same "we can't get the staff" hard up tale - well don't take on work you can't do then! But no, they take on the work and then get any old Tom Dick or Harry (usually some neanderthal knuckle dragging 25 year old) to botch it. With the decking, not only was the finish awful (uneven edges, no consistency in spacing between planks), but the planks started warping within days, so the wood quality was crap too - not only did the business owner play the "can't get the staff" card, he also played the "there's a shortage of quality wood" card - as if that's any excuse for shoddiness - needless to say, we didn't pay them until they came and replaced it and fitted it properly!