I need to get a new bathroom. There’s so much black mould, the toilet is bust, shower rail keeps falling down etc. I’ve saved up 8 grand over the last two years cos someone told me that’s roughly how much it would be. It’s a standard 1950s council house bathroom.
Toilet handle is broke, and it doesn’t flush properly. Even a wee with toilet paper takes two or three flushes:
Wasn't sure if you could afford it from what you've said previously. I just put it up as a basic price for anyone that was interested.Aye, if I had a few hundred quid I could redo bathroom suite and the basics - but even with fairly cheap suite it all adds up - we cannot do the plumbing ourselves so that would be on top, I could do tiling - and our tiles do need replacing*. But if I was going to replace everything I'd also want a plasterer to come and skim the walls and ceiling (it's like really really thick textured finish on our bathroom walls, I can actually make out a profile of fucking Maggie Thatcher in the texture of the thing which does not make for a relaxing soak in the tub), and I'd need an extractor fan put in (don't have one and hence condensation issues and constantly having to open and close the window and wash everything with vinegar every so often).
So I reckon I'd be looking at £1.5k outlay even with a cheap suite and doing everything but the plumbing and plastering myself...
*(The loo, which is in a separate room, is worse - I think the previous occupants ripped off tiles in that room and took half of the plaster off with the tiles, then slapped some knotty pine tongue and groove onto the bottom portion of the walls and left it unfinished - I can see the plaster behind it is hacked off and it is just a cover-up job, and the skirting board is just a nailed on piece of wood with massive gaps between skirting and panelling - I either need to rip that all out and get the walls replastered so I can tile it, or caulk (I estimate 3 tubes of caulk) and prime and paint all the panelling and pull off and replace the skirting - I mean I can do that no probs - just buying caulk and a decent wood primer is a lot of expenditure for me right now! I start thinking about doing something about it then just get depressed because the costs start adding up and I feel overwhelmed).
I can actually make out a profile of fucking Maggie Thatcher in the texture of the thing which does not make for a relaxing soak in the tub
Re. ceilings.
Our old bathroom ceiling had a very odd covering - almost like a sheet of Fablon or something. It looked very dated but O boy it kept the mould away. When the bathroom fitters came round, I asked what it was and if there was anything similar available. They had no idea what it was.
They recommended acrylic panels, which we went with. IMHO if you have a bathroom prone to condensation and therefore mould, a painted ceiling is just going to go mouldy, and the mould will stain and be hard to wipe off.
Finally ripped up the carpet on the stairs which will be painted white & no carpet.
Do you have loads of nails in yours? I did this years ago but just painted the step bit as I can't get the nails out on the tread bit (if that makes sense, haven't google correct terms) , I think they're from the carpet rather than holding the stairs together.
They could do with some proper fixing, there's a couple with cracks and they're noisy. And I'm not sure as a terrace with thin walls whether we should cover them anyway so they're less noisy.
Does anyone know, is this general carpentry? We also need a couple of floorboards replacing.
Much the same but this will get nails out without heads. The points dig in to grip the nail lower down.
I have Wilko's version of this for removing upholstery tacks, but it will only work with tacks which have heads rather than nails which go right into the wood. Use with a hammer.
By the way, I can recommend that if you don’t want to go down the cheapest route (but also far, far from the most expensive!), St. James do really high quality taps, bath mixers and shower units that just have a really great, solid feel. Expect to spend a few hundred quid on a mixer, rather than £50, though. As always, what you spend comes down to your personal circumstances.
Have you got the manual for the boiler? If not, you can download it from the manufacturer's website to find out what the error message means. It's often just that it needs refilling, so you add a bit more water to get the pressure back up, pretty straighforward to do.I'm back in my flat and really want to get it sorted but don't know where and how to begin. The main thing is getting the boiler on. It just flashes an error message.
Should I have a go at fiddling with it (the seller's brother explained what to do and I have a video of that somewhere) myself? Or call a gas person to come? Who do I call? I'm dreading being told I need a new boiler.
Dripping kitchen tap is a problem too. Noisy and a waste. Can I fix that myself?
Need TV put up on wall rather than resting precariously on a stool. Can I do that myself? Bear in mind I have no tools or abilities.
Just want to have a nice home..
Good point.Tools are an essential for the homeowner on a budget. I think you should start with coat hangers. pictures, shelves before hanging a tv, could be costly if it falls off the wall
My best and totally amateur guess as to why your boiler is flashing an error message — a guess based on no information other than why mine typically flashes an error message —is that it needs repressurising. Have a look for YouTube videos based on that.I'm back in my flat and really want to get it sorted but don't know where and how to begin. The main thing is getting the boiler on. It just flashes an error message.
Should I have a go at fiddling with it (the seller's brother explained what to do and I have a video of that somewhere) myself? Or call a gas person to come? Who do I call? I'm dreading being told I need a new boiler.
Dripping kitchen tap is a problem too. Noisy and a waste. Can I fix that myself?
Need TV put up on wall rather than resting precariously on a stool. Can I do that myself? Bear in mind I have no tools or abilities.
Just want to have a nice home..
I'm back in my flat and really want to get it sorted but don't know where and how to begin. The main thing is getting the boiler on. It just flashes an error message.
Should I have a go at fiddling with it (the seller's brother explained what to do and I have a video of that somewhere) myself? Or call a gas person to come? Who do I call? I'm dreading being told I need a new boiler.
Dripping kitchen tap is a problem too. Noisy and a waste. Can I fix that myself?
Need TV put up on wall rather than resting precariously on a stool. Can I do that myself? Bear in mind I have no tools or abilities.
Just want to have a nice home..
Thanks, couldn't find it on my phoneYou already asked that question here and people already gave you a bunch of answers.
Some plumbers don’t do gas and vice versa, hopefully he’ll have a reliable mate he can recommend if not (and think of any other jobs he can do while he’s there).In the meantime, I had a shower today and the kitchen was all wet as the ceiling was leaking. So I've booked a plumber to come tomorrow, he can fix the dripping tap too. Maybe he knows about boilers as well, with any luck
In the meantime, I had a shower today and the kitchen was all wet as the ceiling was leaking. So I've booked a plumber to come tomorrow, he can fix the dripping tap too. Maybe he knows about boilers as well, with any luck