by Caroline Henn | Feb 10, 2025
Join Our June 2025 DIY Club for Women!
Kick off your DIY journey with our exclusive Monday Evening Women-only DIY Club, starting on 2nd June 2025. This 4-week course, priced at just £95, includes all 4 sessions and offers a unique opportunity to learn and practice essential DIY skills in a supportive, women-only environment.
Our DIY Club for Women provides a safe and relaxed space to explore new skills at your own pace. With a friendly atmosphere and plenty of room to experiment, you’ll gain confidence in tackling DIY projects at home. Each session is designed to give you a comprehensive grounding in practical skills, along with handy tips and tricks.
Sessions begin at 6.30pm, but feel free to arrive when it suits you. We wrap up between 8.30 and 9pm, ensuring a flexible and enjoyable learning experience.
With a wide range of tools and ample space to practice, you’ll have everything you need to succeed. Plus, bring your DIY issues and problems, and we’ll work together to find practical solutions that meet your needs.
Don’t miss out on this empowering DIY Course for Women—reserve your spot today!
by Caroline Henn | Feb 2, 2025
Friday 2 May
2pm – 4pm
Learn to use a Drill
Conquer your fear of using a drill in this Bitesize introduction to Cordless Drills & impact Drivers. Discover just how easy it is to use a drill safely and confidently.
What You’ll Learn:
- You’ll learn how to choose the right drill bit,
- how to drill with control and get successful results every time.
- Most importantly, we’ll help you feel confident about knowing where it is safe to drill, and what to do, if things don’t go according to plan.
- AND you’ll learn about choosing and using the right fixings for your projects.
This course will really get you started on your DIY journey
This is part of our short “Bitesize-DIY” courses for those who don’t have time for a half-day course. They are designed to help you get started on your DIY journey, and build your DIY Confidence to start working through that DIY Jobs list at home
Book this Bitesize-DIY Drilling Course
by Caroline Henn | Oct 24, 2024 | DIY Advice, DIY Electrical Advice, DIY Plumbing Advice, Practical DIY Advice
Keep your Home ticking over
Top Tips to help you keep your Home Safe.
Follow this simple guide for some essential Proactive Home Maintenance on the weekends that the Clocks change. Its a great time to carry out these simple jobs to keep your home safe.
Nothing too strenuous. You probably won’t even need any tools. Just a few checks which could save you a bit of money, and possibly, even your life.
I’m recommending that you carry out the following FOUR checks:
The reason I suggest this weekend, is because the clocks change.
It happens twice a year, which is the perfect interval for carrying out these checks.
On Sunday morning, you’re going to be scratching your head, trying to remember how to reset the clock on the Microwave and the Oven.
(How many of us give up with clock in the car, and decide that living 6 months in the future is infinitely preferable to wading through a huge car manual trying to find the tiny paragraph dedicated to the overly complicated clock setting?)
Anyway, I’m not really worried about the car. Its your Home, and in fact, you & your family, that matters this weekend. Keeping your Home safe is simple, and quick. Let me explain…..
The clocks going back (or forwards in March) is the trigger. It happens twice a year, and that’s the recommended interval for exercising your RCDs.
PLEASE DO THIS TEST BEFORE YOU CHANGE THE TIME ON ALL YOUR CLOCKS
Who knew an RCD needed exercise?
Ok, I’m sure some of you are also asking what one of those is. If you’ve never heard of them, then please check out our useful post on Tripping RCDs.
You can find out what they do, why they’re not only a good idea, but actually essential for keeping you safe. You’ll even learn what to do if they start tripping.
All you need to do, is press the little TEST or (T) button on the RCD, and it will switch off. (The lever will drop down) This will turn off the power to a number of circuits.
Just reset the RCD by pushing the lever back up (Some Consumer Units need you to push the lever down a bit further, before you push it up).
Some of you may have a nice modern Consumer Unit, where each circuit is protected by its own RCD. These are called RCBOs. The same principle for these. Just press the TEST button, turn the circuit off, and then turn it back on.
That’s all you need to do.
Press the button. Turn the lever back up to reset.
Press the black button. The lever will drop. Press the level back up to reset.
Press the black “T” button. The lever will drop. Press the level back up to reset.
Press the GREY Test button. The lever will drop. Press the level back up to reset.
Why am I asking you to do this?
RCDs (or RCBOs) constantly monitor your electrical installation. Their job is to switch everything off in the event of a fault. You need them to be in tip top condition, so that they do this as quickly as possible, and save your life.
What if my RCD won’t switch off?
If this happens, then your RCD is not doing its job properly. It proves how important it is to carry out this test.
I recommend that you contact an Electrician on Monday, and arrange for them to come and check it out for you.
I know we only think about these when the annoying chirping starts as the battery starts to fail. That generally happens in the winter, when the temperature drops in the middle of the night. Batteries struggle more in the cold weather.
Just press the Test Button on your Smoke Detector, and make sure that it goes off. If you have inter-connected Smoke Detectors, this should also set all the other Smoke Detectors of in the House.
While you’re up the ladder, just check the Expiry Date on the Smoke Detector. If it’s already long past. You need to replace them.
This is something you can probably do yourself. Check out our post on Smoke Detectors.
If your Smoke Detector is quite elderly, check our Safelincs Website, where you can find a list of compatible Smoke Detectors.
If you’re not sure, then call an electrician.
Hopefully you know where your mains water supply turns off.
If you don’t, you’re not alone. However, you’re about to rectify that situation.
Check out our post, “How do I turn my water supply off?
Why am I asking you to do this?
If you have a sudden plumbing emergency, then knowing where your Stop Tap is, that it’s accessible and that it turns off is going to save you loads of money.
Over time, Stop Taps can seize up. You really don’t want to find that yours has done that, when there is water pouring out of something that shouldn’t be.
Take it from me, there is nothing like the sound of gushing water to stop your brain thinking clearly.
If you discover that the only way to turn your water supply off is outside on the pavement, you’re going to make sure that you have something helpful to lever the cover off the water stop tap easily accessible for future use.
If you come on our Essential Home Plumbing Course, we talk a lot about making sure you’re prepared for these eventualities.
Water damage is potentially very expensive. Insurance Companies really don’t like it.
So…..
TOP TIP
If your Water Stop Tap is an old BRASS TAP, open the tap fully, when you turn the water back on. Then turn the tap back a ¼ Turn.
This will give you some Wriggle room if your Stop Tap starts to seize up in the future.
If you’re in Bristol, and you’re struggling to turn your Stop Tap off, check out Bristol Water’s Website. They have lots of helpful information and support.
If you live outside Bristol, check out your own Water Supplier. If you’re lucky they might be one the helpfl ones
And finally……
This is, sadly, a very timely reminder of just how important these are.
You can’t see or smell Carbon Monoxide. It will kill you very quickly.
If you have a Gas or Oil Boiler, or a Solid Fuel stove, then you should have a working Carbon Monoxide Detector somewhere near by. Often this is just “hanging about nearby” and not actually fixed down. In this case it can be easily mislaid. Make sure that it is not under a pile of magazines, or under the sofa. Its not going to work properly there
Please check that it works and that it is in date.
If you can’t find one, please go and buy yourself one AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
You can buy a battery-operated Carbon-Monoxide Detector from any local DIY/hardware Store, or Supermarket.
No excuses on this one. Please do it. It will save your life!
If you don’t have a Carbon-monoxide Detector, that suggests that you may not have had your had your boiler serviced recently.
A Gas or Oil Engineer will check that you have one when they service your Boiler, and persuade you to get one.
Please get your boiler serviced every year. It will save your life
That’s it. You’re done. You have kept your Home, yourself and your family safe for the next six months
If you’re a parent, maybe this is a good exercise to involve your children in. The more peple who now to deal with an emergency, the better.
by Caroline Henn | Aug 24, 2024 | DIY Advice, DIY Electrical Advice, Practical DIY Advice
Consumer Units. What you need to know.
You might hear a Consumer Unit called different things: a Distribution Board, a Fuse Box—whatever. In the trade, it’s mostly called a Consumer Unit, or just CU for short, so let’s stick with that to keep it simple.
I’ll try not to bore you to sleep here, because this stuff matters, but I get it—electrics aren’t exactly thrilling.
No matter what you call it, a CU is what distributes electricity around your home. At its core, a CU should have a Main Switch, which lets you shut everything off if needed. You’ll also find various fuses or MCBs (Miniature Circuit Breakers) that control each circuit in your home.
If you’re lucky (and lots of people are these days), you might also have an RCD. If you’ve got two, great. If each circuit has its own, you’ve hit the jackpot.
Consumer Units come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, and safety levels. We’ll run through some of them below.
Keep reading…
1. Consumer Unit with Ceramic Rewireable Fuses
These are old-school and, honestly, look pretty cool (if you’re into that sort of thing). But they belong in a museum, not in your home. If you have one, it’s a good sign that you haven’t had certified electrical work done in ages, so call an electrician.
What it does:
This CU protects against circuit overloads—the fuse wire inside will break if there’s too much demand.
What it doesn’t do:
It won’t protect you from getting shocked or seriously hurt if there’s an earth fault.
What’s an Earth Fault?
It’s when an electrical current tries to escape to the ground (Earth). It is often caused by cutting a cable (e.g. by drilling into it) or a sudden appliance fault.
2. Consumer Unit with Rewireable Fuses
These are still fairly common and do the basics.
What it does:
It stops you from overloading circuits by tripping a fuse. You can reset it by pressing a button or flipping a switch—way easier than the older CUs.
What it doesn’t do:
Like the older ones, it won’t protect against electrocution from an earth fault. If you’ve got one, you might need an upgrade if you’re getting electrical work done, since newer regulations prioritise safety and require RCDs.
What is an RCD?
An RCD (Residual Current Device) is a nifty safety gadget that trips when it detects an earth fault. Potentially it will save your life.
At its most basic level, it constantly monitors the current in your house. If it detects an imbalance, it assumes that the current has gone into something it shouldn’t have – you. It should trip within milliseconds. This will save your life.
3. Consumer Unit with an RCD as Main Switch
This setup has an RCD that acts as the main switch. It’s better than nothing, but if there’s a fault on any circuit, the whole thing shuts down. Not ideal if you’re halfway through cooking dinner.
What it does:
It gives you some protection against earth faults, which is a step up from the older units.
4. Consumer Unit with Two/Dual RCDs
For a while, this was the go-to upgrade. These CUs usually have a plastic casing (newer ones are metal for better fire protection) and split your circuits into two groups, each with its own RCD.
What it does:
If one circuit trips an RCD, only half your house goes down. The other RCD keeps things running, which is more convenient but still a bit of a hassle.
You can find these CUs sold cheap in DIY stores because they don’t meet current regulations any more. Don’t be tempted—it’s not a bargain.
And you shouldn’t even be thinking abut carrying out that kind of electrical work anyway.
5. Consumer Unit with Individual RCBOs
This is what electricians install nowadays to meet the latest safety standards.
What it does:
This setup has a metal casing and a Main Switch, with each circuit controlled by its own RCBO (a combined fuse and RCD). If a fault occurs, only the affected circuit is shut down, so the rest of your home stays powered. It also likely includes a Surge Protection Device (SPD) to shield sensitive electronics like TVs and computers.
It’s more expensive but offers way better protection and convenience, especially in older homes where wiring can be dodgy.
You’ll notice that labelling on CUs can be hit or miss. It’s really handy to know which fuse or RCBO controls which circuit, especially in an emergency.
If your CU isn’t well labelled, you can fix that yourself in about an hour. Grab some clean labels and a fine-tip pen. Go through each MCB one by one—switch it off and see what stops working. Jot down what each circuit controls and label accordingly.
Keep a record of this info near the CU; it could save you a lot of hassle (or even your life) later.
Plus, it’ll make things easier for any electrician working in your home.
If you have issues with your RCD not resetting after it has tripped, check out our handy post: Help, I have no Power
by Caroline Henn | Aug 20, 2024 | DIY Advice, DIY Electrical Advice, Practical DIY Advice
Where is it SAFE to drill in a Wall?
“Where is it safe to drill?” is a question we asked all the time on our DIY Courses. Understandably, many people are worried about this. It stops them even picking up a drill.
So here’s what you need to know……..
There are 3 MAIN AREAS where you can definitely expect cables to have been run……
These areas are rather strangely called “SAFE ZONES” even though there is very little safe about them.
An area 150mm (6 inches) wide along the top of the wall where it meets the ceiling.
2. Horizontally either side of an Electrical Accessory
Basically this means in a straight line either side of a socket/switch/fused spur/light fitting etc. The line is the height of the socket/switch.
It runs all the way to the adjoining walls, or an obstacle, such as door or window.
Its important to note that an electrical accessory can be a lot of things, including a Consumer Unit (Fuse Box)
Its very safe to assume that there will be lots of cables running up, down and sideways around a Consumer Unit, so think very hard before you bang a nail in to put a lovely picture above the Consumer Unit.
3. Vertically above and below an Electrical Accessory
In a straight line above and below a socket/switch/fused spur/light fitting etc. The line is the width of the socket/switch/fitting. It runs all the way to the floor and ceiling.
Again the same applies to a Consumer Unit, so be very wary.
If the wall is less than 100mm (4 inches) thick, then the safe zones operate on both sides of the wall. Bear this in mind when you are drilling from a different room!
Electricians have very strict rules about where they can run their cables, and have to document if they haven’t been able to stick to the rules.
If you have had some electrical work carried out, it is worth checking the Electrical Certificate (if you were issued with one) as it may have some information about any deviations from the rules.
Electricians in the past did not have these rules. Cables could be, and were run in all sorts of odd places.
We have found cables run diagonally across walls, doing sudden 90 degree bends and all sorts, so beware.
If you suspect that someone in the past has carried out some electrical DIY work in your house, it is quite possible that they did not know about Safe Zones. They may have run cables wherever was most convenient for them, not always in the safest place.
If your current consumer unit does not have a functioning, healthy RCD, in fact, if you have any doubts at all,
TURN OFF THE CONSUMER UNIT BEFORE YOU DRILL
Where is it safe to drill in a Ceiling?
The rule that electricians should follow is to run the cables through the joists, as close to the centre of the joist as possible, at a depth of at least 50mm from the top and bottom of the joist. i.e 50mm from the ceiling/floor.
It is not always possible to follow this rule. There are often existing holes and notches in a joist. It is extremely likely that in the past, cables will have been run all over the place.
It is also quite possible that cables can be lying on top of plasterboard ceilings.
Because it is not always possible to run cables this way, the current electrical regulations allow cables to be run outside the zones, provided they are protected by an RCD..
If the wiring in your house is old and/or you have a Consumer Unit which does not have an RCD, then you should be even more cautious.
If you have any doubts…..
TURN OFF THE CONSUMER UNIT BEFORE YOU DRILL
Where is it safe to drill in a Floor?
As with ceilings, the rule that electricians should follow is to run the cables through the joists, as close to the centre of the joist as possible, at a depth of at least 50mm from the top and bottom of the joist. i.e 50mm from the floor.
It is not always possible to follow this rule. There are often existing holes and notches in joist, and it is extremely likely that in times past, cables have been run all over the place. It is also extremely likely that gas & water pipes have also been run under the floorboards through notches in the joists, (in which case, it is worth checking very very carefully first)
Because it is not always possible to run cables this way, the current electrical regulations allow cables to be run outside the zones, provided they are protected by an RCD.
If the wiring in your house is old and you have a Consumer Unit which does not have an RCD., then you should be even more cautious
If you have any doubts…..
TURN OFF THE CONSUMER UNIT BEFORE YOU DRILL
by Caroline Henn | Jul 29, 2024
by Caroline Henn | Jul 29, 2024
by Caroline Henn | Jul 28, 2024 | DIY Advice, DIY Plumbing Advice, Practical DIY Advice
Speedfit Pushfit Plumbing Fittings
Learning to use Pushfit Plumbing Fittings is easier than you think. As those of you who have been on our Home Confidence 1 – Understanding Plumbing Course will know, these JG Speedfit Push-fit Plumbing fittings are really straightforward to use.
They are great for DIY plumbing. We thought it would help to make a quick video to remind you of a couple of important tips when using the fittings.
If you still feel a bit wary about using push-fit fittings, or would like a bit more practice, why not sign up for one of our DIY Plumbing Courses, or check out our DIY Assist Service (we come to your home and support you with your DIY projects)
by Caroline Henn | Apr 23, 2024 | DIY Advice, DIY Carpentry Advice, DIY Tool Advice, Practical DIY Advice
The whole issue of choosing a drill bit feels a bit of minefield. It doesn’t need to be.
We cover it on lots of our courses, so that you feel confident choosing the right drill bit for the right material.
If you are just drilling into wood, you have a couple of choices…..
HSS Drill bits (High Speed Steel) are usually a gold colour or black.
The point should feel a bit sharp, but not painfully so.
These are actually designed for metal, and they are great at drilling into metal, but they are also great for everyday drilling into wood, and can be used for plastics, as well.
They’re a great all-rounder. I generally buy them in packs of 5 from Screwfix, (in my favourite sizes). This makes them pretty economical to use. When they go blunt, I mark them up, and hang onto them to mark drill holes on plaster & masonry walls.
If you’re using them in metal, then drill slowly and steadily. If you need to drill a large hold, start with a small hole, and gradually move up through the sizes. This gives you, the drill and the drill bits a fighting chance.
You can also use a Brad Point Drill bit in wood.
These have a really sharp point, which hurts when you press it into your finger (no need to try it, just take my word for it). They can only be used on wood, and possibly plastic, but use them on metal or masonry, they will go blunt immediately.
When you’re drilling into walls, you will need Masonry Drill bits.
These are often Silver-coloured or Gunmetal Grey.
They don’t feel sharp to the touch, but have what looks like a reinforced point. This is because they will be drilling into a hard material, and can be used with a Hammer Drill. Basically they use both blunt force trauma & a cutting action at the same time, so need to be very robust.
They’re not designed for using on soft materials like wood or plastic. If you do, you will probably just create an unpleasant burning smell. You can use them on plaster and plasterboard.
Use HSS drill bits when drilling into metal (that’s what they’re designed for).
Drill slowly, and don’t try using a blunt drill bit.
For larger holes, start by drilling a small hole, then slowly increase the size of the drill bit until you reach the right size. Trust me, this may sound a bit slow and laborious, but it will be more successful more quickly.
For drilling into plastic, I generally use an HSS Drill bit (see how versatile they are). Plastic can get hot and melt, so make sure the drill bit is sharp, and don’t drill to fast.
If you want to get some practice using Drills and choosing Drill bits, then why not try one of our Beginners DIY Courses. We will take you through the process slowly and clearly. You can have as much hands-on practice as you need …
