Julian Cassell's DIY Blog

In DIY stores across the land, there are great products for sale……but amongst these are an equally large number of items that I really don’t think help the DIY cause in any shape or form. My top 10 (or rather bottom 10!) listed below are products that I find to be generally unnecessary, or trying to provide a ‘quick fix’ when the tried and tested option is for me, so much better. I’m not trying to single out manufacturers, as with those featured below, I will often sing their praises in other articles, with different products in their ‘catalogues’. However there really is some stuff that I wish they wouldn’t produce, and that I’d advise you to leave on the shelf. read more »

Wayne de Wet is quite simply one of the nation’s finest decorators. He was the Grand Winner of the Dulux Select Decorator of the Year in 2011, and runner-up in 2008. He also hand picked a Team of Dulux Select decorators, and they painted show homes and room sets at the 2011 London Ideal Home Show (Swedish house open plan living) and 2012 (The Santiago Town House and Dulux Design Service room set) – the same team produced great results at London’s Exel Grand Designs Live 2012, decorating multiple room sets, and Kevin McCloud used one to open the show. read more »

Working out how much a new bathroom is going to cost can seem like a complicated calculation, as the final price tag is dependent on so many factors, but if you break down the whole job into its component parts, it is possible to come up with a very accurate estimate. How much your final figure adds up to, will also be very much dependent on the amount of work you yourself carry out, and this is clearly the area where big bathroom savings can be made. read more »

Asbestos safety is a topic that needs to concern all homeowners, as the wrong type of asbestos exposure is a serious health risk. However, with any material that is potentially dangerous to health, as long as we all know what dangers are actually presented by that material, then it becomes more straightforward to deal with it in a safe way. Many of us have asbestos present in or around our homes, and the key thing to remember is that in most cases, it only starts to present a health risk once it is cut and/or disturbed. read more »

A thorough home buying inspection is an essential step in the process of buying a new home. I tend to do quite a number every year, for friends or family, and below are a selection of my best tips for assessing a potential new house. Before exploring the list below, there are a few general rules for that first visit; remember to make notes, take a tape measure, ask questions, and above all take your time. You’ll clearly have at least one more viewing if you think you’ve found the house of your dreams read more »