What DIY have you done today?

[Jimmyneutronsforehead]

A thread to share the things big and small that you've started, finished, planned or conceptualised.

Inspired by the lovely posters on the What have you done in the garden today threads.

I think I've finally finished the hatch to cover the boiler hole. Need to sort out the magnet latch, do a final coat of paint on the wall and ceiling, and then I'm done.

That looks like a tricky spot, you've done a cracking job with that.

Glad to have found some DIY’ers.

Installed some corten lawn edging and got soaked!

Not one per se, but one watched a relative watch his belongings being put into some removal vans.

Very relaxing.

Thanks. Only took me 4.5 years of putting it off! Top tip for anyone getting a new boiler installed: insist they make good any ridiculously large holes they cut 🙄

do it One's Self?

One's relative may be normal for Norfolk ;)

I took a coat hook off a bedroom door and replaced it with a long coat hook rail thing. It is... mostly straight. But it is done that is good enough for me.

Getting in the garden again whilst there is a break in the rain.

Will try to do some painting of woodwork (shed etc).

Wish me luck!

Good luck, you are really going to need it with this weather!

Yesterday I screwed a bookcase together, replaced the batteries in the Velux remote and reprogrammed the TV in our rental, ready for the new tenants.

Today I shortened a Prairie style dress into a peplum blouse which I’m sure I’ll get more use out of and cut out a simple corduroy pinafore/dungarees dress. I have the dungarees clips but I need thread for that.
Sew it Yourself!

Ooh I’ve done some (by my standards) good ones since I last posted!

I removed and replaced a toilet seat - I bought the seat about 8 years ago in Wilkinsons when that was still a thing.

My husband didn’t know his own strength and pulled the cord off a sconce (a little light on the wall, is that the right word?) and I turned it off at the fuse and took it apart and found the thing it connected to and rethreaded and tied it. This is was most satisfying as, in contrast to the toilet seat, I did it the day after the initial breaking rather than putting it off for a long time.

Really want to get into sewing. I can't thread a machine to save my life.

Well done on your electrical work @HappyCrochetHooker! I have two wall lights that need to be put back on the wall - DP thought it would be easier to decorate if they were taken off, and it was, but the decorating was finished at least four months ago, and they still aren’t back on the wall. We don’t live together, so for him it’s out of sight, out of mind. I’m not about to start nagging, I’d rather do it myself, but I’m a bit afraid to mess with electrical stuff. I wouldn’t even know how to turn the electric off, although I know where the fuse box is.

@TeamToeBeans I totally get what you mean about electrical stuff. I feel like I should be able to do a lot more stuff than I actually do, but I’m too scared to 😁 I hate the ceiling light in our living room and it should be a straight switch to take it down, match the wiring on a new light, put it back up again. But will I try? Nope. I will put it off and put it off and rant about the horrible light because I can’t justify calling out an electrician for that!

If the fuse box is anything like mine, all your different bits of the house will be labelled. So I flicked the ‘downstairs lights’ fuse switch off and tried turning the downstairs lights on and they didn’t come on 😁

Changing electric lights and switches is easy. However you do need to follow the steps, especially when it comes to isolation. Can you change a light bulb or a fuse? That's a first step.

Getting started on my bathroom. The preparation is clean and clear. Cleaning is the easy bit.

Hello glad to have found you, since we’re doing a minor renovation on a 60s place, with no money! Today I painted the hallway and bedroom. Found loads of holes and dinks that need filled tomorrow, then a second coat.

The dumb ways to die song has convinced me if I do my own electrical work I will die, and I will be very dumb about it.

Exactly @Jimmyneutronsforehead and I often sing that when getting stuck toast out too 😁

I’m with you on electrics no way I’m going near them I would definitely be the one to die 🤣
haven’t been able to do anything today but yesterday primed, filled, sanded and caulked a fitted wardrobe I’m going to paint tomorrow.
I’ve managed to sort the ceiling but @Jimmyneutronsforeheadyou're right a sprayer would be a great investment.
This little “glow up” of our bedroom is taking a lot longer than originally planned!

I 'tried'.........to unclog my kitchen sink which has a blockage more stubborn than an A road during rush hour. Its like brown canal water but not too deep.

Tried the boiling water, bicarb, vinegar but ran out!

I purchased a wire snake thingy-majig as well 2kg of sodium bicarbonate online today and I will not be putting the whole lot down the sink at once hahaa and I am not sure which will hiss more when it arrives in the post the snake or the sodium bicarbonte.

I will add vinegar!

Anyway, its clogged like a rat up a drainpipe and its staying like that for now!🤣🤣🤣

Anyway, its clogged like a rat up a drainpipe and its staying like that for now!🤣🤣🤣

This has given me flashbacks to the great rattening of Christmas '24 where we had to find Sue and Noel Ratford before they had 22 kids and counting behind our kitchen units.

Little buggers destroyed our dishwasher, ate our washing machine grounding cable, ate the bottom 2 foot of the kitchen unit next to the fridge and also decided to eat through our sink drain pipe and every fixture we replaced just didn't quite fit.

In fact we're not sure if that's how they got in to begin with.

The wires for the wall lights are still poking out of the walls, I don’t need to change anything, they need to go back exactly as they were, so the logical part of my brain tells me I should be able to put them back up. However, the logical part is in the minority. The rest of me is convinced I will die.

After several months without a cooker hood and no spark on the gas hob, and multiple quests to find their fuses, I've finally found the switches to turn them on again at the back of a kitchen cupboard 😂🙄 Thankfully the electrician that came over for a quote the other day hadn't sent anything yet.

Replacing lights isn't that hard. Loads of YouTube videos are there to help! If you can replace a plug and a fuse, you can replace a light.
Turn on the light at the wall switch, turn off the matching fuse box trip switch. The light should now be off. Before you remove the wires from the old light, look in which hole the existing wires go and label them accordingly (usually 1 or 2 letter codes). Then stick the wires in the corresponding holes on the new light. Screw/clip in wires. Attach light to ceiling. Flick back trip switch. Done!

I've now spent about half my life in the UK and do get the impression that people think you need an electrician for everything? It's a shame, where I grew up we had to do 40 hours of basic technical skills (like lights) in secondary school, it's pretty useful.

As you boyfriend caused the problem, just give him a call. Either he'll apologise and give you proper instructions, or he'll get worried you'll electrocute yourself and come over right away. Win win.

@Agapornis I mentioned the wall lights this morning. I said “so I turn all the lights on, and then start stabbing at it with a screwdriver, right? And lick it to check which wire is live?” He assures me he will come and do it.