DIY home repairsEight essential home repairs

Bleeding radiators will ensure they heat up properly

Key

Ease of DIY is rated on a scale of one to three, with one being the easiest. Ratings are based on Which? member experiences. 

Our DIY costs cover all the materials you’d need for each job. The professional costs are an average and come from Building Cost Information Service data for the last quarter of 2008. The costs will differ depending on where you live. 

DIY expert Tommy Walsh has given his top tips for each job.

Painting

Ease of DIY: 2

When: Minimum of every five years, but it’s best to do it every two.

Why: It’s not essential, but will keep your house looking good.

Tips

• Many people don’t prepare before decorating, and this can cause problems; use dust sheets and make sure you have enough paint, particularly if it’s a specially mixed colour.
• Always start with the ceiling and use a minimum of two coats all over.
• If you need to cover stains, don’t just use emulsion; use a stain block or oil-based paint to cover them first.

What you'll need to paint a 4 metre x 4 metre room, including skirting and door: Paint (15l), roller tray and roller, paint brushes (set of 5), masking tape, sand paper, sand block, white spirit, two dust sheets, polyfiller, gloss paint (2.5l), palette knife

DIY cost: £61 (you’ll also need a stepladder)

Professional cost: £760

Bleeding radiators

Ease of DIY: 1

When: Once a year or whenever your radiators feel hot at the bottom but cold at the top.

Why: If you don’t, your radiators won’t heat up properly and you’ll waste energy and money.

Tips:

• Have some rags handy to catch the water so you don’t end up with a mess or damage the surrounding area.
• Use a bleed key (also known as a vent key) to open the valve. You’ll hear air hissing as it escapes. Keep the valve open until a little water runs out and the air has stopped completely.
• It's best to turn off your boiler before you bleed radiators. And if you have a combi boiler, you'll need to adjust the pressure after you've done the job. If you don't, the pressure will be incorrect and the boiler will run inefficiently.

What you'll need to bleed a radiator: Bleed key

DIY cost: £1.50

Professional cost: You don’t need a professional for this job.

Clearing drains/toilets

Ease of DIY: 3

When: Check drains once a year to see if they need clearing. Clear other drains as needed.

Why: Your property will suffer water damage if your drains overflow. Also, if you don’t deal with simple blockages immediately you may have to get a professional in, which can be pricey.

Tips:

• Clear drain blockages with drain rods. Lift up your manhole cover and use the plunger rod to clear the blockage, adding rods as you need them; this will depend on how far down the pipe the blockage is.
• Make sure you go with the flow of the drain, and once the blockage is cleared use a hose to flush it through.

What you'll need to clear blocked drains: Chimney drain rods set with plunger rod, worm screw, gloves

DIY cost: £32

Professional cost: £130

Insulating pipes/tanks

Insulating your pipes can cut your energy bills

Ease of DIY: 2

When: One-off.

Why: Pipes that aren’t insulated can freeze and burst, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage. Insulating your hot-water tank and pipes can save £50 a year on your heating bill and means you’ll emit around 260kg less carbon dioxide.

Tips:

• Buy pre-slit foam insulation, slip it around the pipe and seal the joint with gaffer tape. Be careful with hot pipes.
• You can buy purpose-made insulation jackets for your cold water tank in the roof space and to wrap around the hot-water tank.

What you'll need to insulate 10 metres of pipe and a hot-water tank: Pipe insulation (10 metres) for 19mm pipes, gaffer tape, hot-water tank jacket

DIY cost: £24

Professional cost: £335

Excluding draughts

Ease of DIY: 2

When: One-off.

Why: You’ll save money on energy bills.

Tips:

• Clean surfaces thoroughly before you apply self-adhesive draught excluders.
• Stick the draught excluder to the edge of the open window so it’s tight against the frame when you shut it. Apply it to the door frame rather than the door itself.

What you'll need to fit rubber draught excluders: 10 metres of self-adhesive rubber door and window seal

DIY cost: £10.50

Professional cost (based on aluminium and rubber draught excluders and therefore not comparable): Single door £155; sash window (0.9 metre x 1.2 metre) £260

Repointing a patio

Ease of DIY: 3

When: When the joints appear cracked and broken.

Why: Slabs can become loose. Weeds will grow rapidly through the joints.

Tips:

• Rake out the old joints first. Use dry, soft sand and cement mixed to a ratio of three parts sand to one part cement and sweep it into the joints with a soft brush, forcing into joints with your hands – you must wear rubber gloves for this job.
• Rub hose or copper pipe over the new joints to give them a professional finish.
• Make sure you do this on a dry day.

What you'll need to rake out and repoint a 12 square metre patio: Cement (10kg), rubber gloves, bucket, yellow building sand, pointing tool, brush, hose

DIY cost: £27

Professional cost: £260

Caring for a shed/fences

You'll need to coat your shed with wood preserver to prevent it from rotting

Ease of DIY: 2

When: Paint the shed or fence with preserver every two years. Replace the shed roof felt when it starts to leak.

Why: The wood will rot otherwise.

Tips:

• Before you attach new felt to a shed roof, apply a coat of wood preserver.
• Leave 15cm (6 inches) of spare felt around the roof so you don’t end up with too little; nail the felt on and then cut the excess off with a craft knife.
• You’ll need a stepladder and a friend to help you.

What you'll need to paint a 2.4 metre x 1.2 metre (8ft x 4ft) shed with wood preserver and to recover the roof: Wood preserver (5l), brushes (set of 5), white spirit, sand paper, sand block, two rolls of felt roofing 5 x 1m, stanley knife, hammer, galvanised nails

DIY cost: £27 (roof); £37 (wood preserver)

Professional cost: Not available from BCIS

Fitting extra security

Ease of DIY: 3

When: One-off

Why: To make sure your house is secure.

Tips:

• You can fit door guards and hinge bolts yourself. A hinge bolt goes on the same side of the door as the hinges so it’s protected all round. A door guard limits how far the door opens, giving you extra security.
• Make sure the door frame is well fixed and strong; this is often overlooked when fixing new locks.

What you'll need to add two hinge bolts to a door: Two hinge bolts, screws, electric drill. See our advice guide on choosing a drill for details of the different types on the market.

DIY cost: £6.50 

Professional cost: £130