A cowboy builder ruined my house, made it uninhabitable. The house is fully gutted with no main external wall or services. How do I move forward. The building inspector is private and doesn't come out and was employed by the builder, a matey of his. The whole build is ruined. I will probably need a new builder, structural engineer to help solve problems. Council won't help because I'm not under their building control. Can anyone assist me on what to do next pls ..read more

I am currently feeling very daft and vulnerable so would just like some advice. We have recently discovered that a crack in the render of our house is not just a crack in the render but a crack through the whole house. The house is of wimpy no fines construction. We bought it just over 5 years ago and knew the render crack was there but were waiting to have the relevant funds to potentially re do all of it. The house is semi detached and the crack starts around 1 m from the corner and... Read more ..read more

Hi, we have a 1970's detached single cavity construction house (block and brick) where there seems to be a problem with a wee bit of damp getting in upstairs via the wall shown in the pictures (see attached) The wall in question is actually part of a slightly later (80's) extension. The wall is very exposed to wind and rain and faces due west with only open fields beyond (we're in rural Tayside, Scotland) so I'm not surprised there's a bit of (penetrative, is that the correct term?) damp as... Read more ..read more

Hello In a small shower room on the first floor of the house I currently have a tiny wood framed window (brick and a half width) that doesn't open. There's no lintel above it and it's a 300mm exterior brick cavity wall. I'd like to put in a proper window and am told 450 is the minimum width I should aim for, which is fine. From what I've read here, 450 isn't a massive opening so I'm hoping it's not going to be too difficult, I've had two people look at it - one says two concrete... Read more ..read more

Living room has a 3m long freezing cold external wall, brick with zero insulation. It’s free of windows, doors, and power outlets, a completely blank wall except massive new split system installed up high. I don’t want to move the slit system. I’m thinking about building a half-height “wall” with studs, plasterboard and insulation that goes the full length of the wall but only about 1.5m high, and use the top as a long bookshelf/ mantelpiece. Any ideas if this would work, to add to... Read more ..read more

Hi, Please what would be the best way to tie these 2 walls together by the corner as I have gone back to brick. Thanks in advance ..read more

What sand are bricklayers generally using to Kay bricks? 70-30 or 50-50 ? Cheers in advance ..read more

Hello, Would anyone know what the best method would be to remove a wall vent grille what might be bakelite? I suspect this might be original from 1954 in an ex-council flat judging by the paint layers. Out of curiosity, is there any sensible reason why someone would have glued paper over this at some stage? And more importantly, what product/method would you recommend to get his off without too much hassle so that I could apply a more even layer of paint if removal is likely to be overly... Read more ..read more

Hi thanks for reading Just noticed a split in a purlin. No noticeble signs of roof sagging though. It was slightly concealed by a peice of brown paper . Nice surprise from the previous owner isnt it? I wasnt concerned about fixing this until I heard a voicemail reaction from a roofer I have shown a photo to. Had the tone to his voice like it was the end of the world and going into the weekend, it is on my mind now stressing me out. Looking it up. It... Read more ..read more

Hey everyone I was looking to do a quick refurbishment of my utility. It’s got vinyl floor which had a rip in it and a noticeable dip. I’ve ripped up the vinyl and seems the problem was a tad bigger than I was expecting. I’ve attached some images. I’m thinking of ripping out the loose parts and just patching it with some fresh screed. It’s a slab on top of some polystyrene floor. The new floor will be laminate and will have a membrane underneath as part of the underlay. Key thing for me is... Read more ..read more