Beyond Blue Home Improvement Thread

[geoff]

Hi everyone. I'm Geoff and have been a dedicated Volunteer on the forums for 13 years. I am proud to have stopped some of the stigmas that are associated with mental health as well as doing my best to help others too

Before my health went south I was a builder in all aspects of home construction and renovation. If you don't have a handyman around I hope I can offer you some tips that may be of help. I have had many years of experience in home renovation and will do my best to help you out if you are stuck and need some advice

I hope my experience may be of help to the people on Beyond Blue and make their life a little bit better. Even if you need help with the most basic painting job or putting up a shelf I can help there too with some tips

I will do my best to get back to anyone that has a question when I can as this is social yet important thread

Geoff

[Music_Freak]

geoff said:
The power board can be attached to the tiles by drilling into the grout then fill the hole with matches, piece of timber or you can buy cheap plastic inserts, so ask at the hardware store that you need these so you can screw an item into the tile grout,these would be better but they are very cheap.

What do I do if the nail/screw holes on the back of the power board don't match where the grout is??

[geoff]

Hi Music_Freak, use a drop of paint on top of the screw by dabbing a cotton bud in the paint and then put onto the screw.

You can get free sample pods, which mean they are only 250 ml, a small amount from your paint store or hardware, although some hardware stores may want to charge you, again a nominal amount.

Best wishes.

Geoff.

[Music_Freak]

Hi Geoff,

And that definitely won't crack the tile or anything??

The only reason I'm asking is that when I googled about it everywhere said that I needed a proper drill bit, a drill that went at slow speed and masking tape etc. etc. ie: a big headache for me!!

Your idea is MUCH EASIER!!!

Is there a specific screw I need or anything?

I'm sorry about all my (silly) posts...

[geoff]

Hi Music_Freak, the drill bit is what's called a masonry drill bit, this will allow you to drill through concrete, tiles, grout and/or bricks.

The masking tape is so the drill bit won't slip on the slippery tile surface, but if you're drilling into the grout then start the drill up and slowly approach the grout, it's not hard.

There are screws you can buy that also have plastic caps that fit straight over the top of the screw, they pop on and pop off easily, but then you may still want to paint the top them anyway.

It is best to use a masonry drill bit because if you use a normal bit, one that can drill through timber, you will blunt it and it will be useless, just ask at the store, it's no trouble many people do this.

They are normally called 'cupboard screws with caps'.

Don't worry about all the posts, I'm enjoying it.

Best wishes.

Geoff.

[Music_Freak]

Thank you Geoff. I think you're wonderful for putting up with me 🙂

So do I need one of those masonry drill bits and some of those screws then? I feel so lost when talking about this kind of stuff...all this stuff is on my to do list so there's no rush and I know I shouldn't stress. I know I will be a typical clueless person and take my drill with me and all sorts...oh well...

The reason I'm posting is to ask if you (or anyone else) know the cheapest way to do garden edging? I want it to be tall-ish (30cm+ maybe) Could I just do timber, if so is this cheap/easy and how would I keep it standing etc.

[geoff]

Hi Music_Freak, it's great talking with you and anyone else, so please don't worry, there are lots of other topics I need help with, so it all goes around.

Go to the hardware store and say you need 'plugs, screws and caps' so you can attach the power board to the tiles, then they should give you the masonry drill bit the size of the plastic plug.

You won't need to take your drill and if you can print this out so the person at the hardware store knows what you want, plugs, screws and caps to put on top of the screws.

There are others who are in the thread that will hopefully give you suggestions for the edging, however treated pine would be about 30 cm wide but then you will need to hammer a timber post so that you can nail the board to it, or you can buy an edging already made, it's little pine posts cut in half and joined at the back with plastic strip, I've forgotten the length.

There are much heavier edging you could use, but that's hard work.

Any trouble please get back to me, it's no trouble at all.

Good Luck.

Geoff.

[Ggrand]

Hello Geoff,

I did what you said with the star pole and I now have a working gate. I cannot thank you enough for your help..

I will need your help again soon. When I moved in here 2.8vyears ago I took 3 layers of carepet out of a few rooms and do not have skirting boards down. As soon as I feel up to doing it I will need to ask about cutting the corners at and angle so they sit in right.. I did attempt it once before but....let's just say very unsuccessfully.

If it's okay and I'm not bothering you to much I will get back to you soon. You are so appreciated Geoff..Thank you once again for your help..

Kind thoughts,

Karen.

[geoff]

Hi Karen, I'm pleased the star picket did the job, but you may have to keep tightening the wire over time as it may stretch in the summer and then sag in winter.

You can also put in another star picket if you want.

Hi Music_Freak, I'm not asking if, but want to know how it's going.

Best Wishes.

Geoff.

[Music_Freak]

Hi Geoff,

I will definitely keep you updated when I get going on everything (and probably ask more questions!)

[geoff]

Hi Music_Freak, please ask anything you want.

- Does anyone want to paint their room with a yellow colour

-Does anyone have any old 'sash windows' that won't stay up

- when you are about to paint a wall, run a wet rag across the top of the skirting board because there will be splatters of paint when you are painting, then wipe the top once again, the splatters of paint will come off much easier.

-ceiling fans used to remove smoke fumes, eg. like over the stove and over the shower which needs replacing can be done quite easily, so please let me know.

-Anyone about to tile the floor in the toilet

-Anyone need to match paint colours

Please let me know.

Geoff.