Home DIY

Plan:

1. Drink case of blue WKD and eat a dozen, okay, half a dozen beetroots.
   
2. Next morning, shit and watch drain.
   
3. Profit?
   

Haha well that too.

I can't get into it with what I have. It's fucking massive slab of concrete and I can only just lift one end up. I need a couple of the proper L or T piece handles so I can lift and slide it over, otherwise I'll just end up dropping the lid into the cunting hole.

On the earlier topic of swapping out MR11 downlighters for integrated ones.

This fresh bullshit:

I should probably be stuffing it inside a junction box, but uggghhhh.

No idea,, five twin and earth in seems like a big box, if you've got no ignitable looking things up there - just have it as a DIY pro job, thing done

I don't think it needs to be in a box as it's pretty easily accessible for maintenance.

that's every ceiling rose in our house, minus the nice wagos.

must say the one thing i'm definitely happy with from the electrical work in the summerhouse is it uses the 3 plate method where the switch is where the live comes in and out of rather than the fitting. going to make it much easier to add lighting later on. it's a bit tricky retrofitting that into a house with concealed cable runs though granted.

1 Attachment

I want to replace a dimmer light switch with a standard one. The current switch is a 2 gang switch. Switch 1 is for downlights in the ceiling. Switch 2 is for a light fixture I have now removed. When I removed it I capped the cable on the fixture end, and then bunged that up in the coving.

How can I safely change the 2 gang switch to a single switch as I make the change? Will I have to cap off the wires for the unused circuit in the back box? Or will the wires no longer carry any electricity once they are no longer attached to a switch?

Any recommendations for an SDS hammer drill? I usually go with Makita as a brand.

The white makita one in a box with no battery. It was the recommended one in this thread for a couple of years, did a sterling job on our renovation, there is a heavier duty titan one but that’s more weighty.
You will have to search the thread or someone will know the model number

Edit: it’s a 202 model, loads to choose from. Think ours was £100 or less but we already had a battery

I've got the corded titan and it's good. Opened some big holes and done a lot of chisel work on mortar.

Decide if you need cordless or cord first. I used mine for a lot of long duration work a battery would be a pita for.

I've got a corded Titan, this one I think
https://www.screwfix.com/p/titan-ttb653sds-5-9kg-electric-sds-plus-drill-230-240v/6846h

It's good but heavy.

I wouldn't bother with a battery one unless you think you'll need to use it somewhere without power.

I want to replace a dimmer light switch with a standard one. The current switch is a 2 gang switch. Switch 1 is for downlights in the ceiling. Switch 2 is for a light fixture I have now removed. When I removed it I capped the cable on the fixture end, and then bunged that up in the coving. How can I safely change the 2 gang switch to a single switch as I make the change? Will I have to cap off the wires for the unused circuit in the back box? Or will the wires no longer carry any electricity once they are no longer attached to a switch?

I've just done the job, putting each of the now not used wires in one end of an electrical connector. I must have been feeling pretty sleep deprived last night to even consider not capping them off. Nice easy job. Parts cost less than £3, took me 20 minutes to do, and my partner is very happy.

Questions:

1. How many KG (i.e. heavy duty predominantly to destroy, or light predominantly to drill holes)
   
2. Budget
   
3. Volume of use
   
   
   

Narrowing down the KG range is the first thing. Then if you're not on a budget and won't be using it for really long stretches at a time get whatever cordless mikita is in budget.

If corded then buy whatever hits your price point. I bought this posh bosch Bosch GBH 2-21 2.3kg like it. Mainly used for drilling into concrete, but also have chased out a brick wall and it did everything well. I've borrowed a lighter weight mikita and enjoyed it's easy of use.

If I needed one to spend a chunk of time really fucking shit up, I'd get the cheap massive Titan.

1. Need it only for drilling holes into brick & concrete
   
2. £150 approx
   
3. Infrequent, only for home use. We've moved house, need to put things up like curtain rods, and drill bike lock anchors into the concrete in the yard.
   
   

Am looking at this one
https://www.screwfix.com/p/makita-hr2470wx-2-3-3kg-electric-sds-plus-drill-240v/29604

I think you could get the titan one at a third of that and be fine.

I'd probably get something like this cordless one then.

I think corded sds are fine, but given it's light use and you've got the budget, the not having to get the extension lead out makes your life easier. Nothing you've said suggests you'll need the extra joules the white one gives.

I disagree with skinny as I'd always opt for a lighter sds unless you really need something hench (unless I'm missing a light weight Titan).

I’m on my third Titan SDS having bought one a few years back. Motor burned out in the first and the chuck broke in the second. Screwfix don’t bat an eyelid when you return stuff within the two year warranty window in my opinion.

I must admit they took some proper hammer. First was used to split a load of quarried stone into dry stone walling and I used the second for mixing bonding coat and tile adhesive with a paddle.

Actually it may have been the one I used to mix that burned out.

That one is just bare though?

doesn't have batteries or a charger or any drill bits, so would be looking at an extra... hundred quid on top??

Personally I have always found SDS drills a bit too aggressive for doing jobs like curtains tracks. Far better off with a combi that’s got a hammer action. You’ll only be going into brick or block.

This is exactly what I don't want. I bought cheaper brand drills in the very distant past and was just contributing to electrical waste. I would rather get something durable. Happy to spend a bit more and not be bringing stuff back for repair or return.

The Makita drill, impact driver, and circ saw I have, have all been worth the few extra £.

I've already tried that with the hammer action of the Makita combi drill that I have and it just stops dead at the wall. Also need it for going into the concrete outside

As Dubkev says, no batteries. However I have been using knockoff batteries from eBay for £20 a pop. Absolutely fine. The 8.0 ah ones last as long as a legit 5.0 ah Makita battery in my opinion. But they’re a third the price.

YMMV (your Makita may vary).

Yeah. Point taken on that. I bought one of these for a specific job and used it to destruction. I don’t think a more expensive drill would have lasted me significantly longer.