DIY/Home furniture blah blah blah

[Gifter]

Any painter and decorators on here?

I need to re-paint my radiators and the internal doors and frames (all white)... What's the best paint for this?
I saw some special radiator paint today but it was 20+ quid for a tiny tin that I'm not even sure would be enough to do all the radiaors!! Is this the best option because there's also wood and metal paint that says it'll also do radiators but I wanna make sure I get the right thing as my radiators have already gone an off-white colour after only about a year or so since I moved in?

Again, harping back to my no chemicals stance, I would say that there is good reason it costs more and that is to be 'safe' in terms of outgassing in the presence of heat, but I suspect in this context that safe is an abstract concept and not aligned to my own perception of 'safe'.

I would suggest http://www.ecospaints.com/products.htm they have radiator paint on there. Probably be about 50% more than shelf products, hope you have the money and inclination to detox your living space rather than retox it.

 

[DHSF]

Now that is what you call a passport photo.

haha well funnily im getting a new passport - so we will see. Would it get passed the photo people

 

[DHSF]

DHSF you strike me as someone who is comfortable, so I would go all out on the heating (good systems sell houses), if you own the place of course (sure you do).

Plus, if it is old I'd get some cast iron radiators (well I'd say largely whatever the age, maybe not some new places, but very cool for warehouse looks, victorian/georgian and older, even if there is a modern finish), we have an older cottage with an inglenook/back boiler and no gas in the village, so we have a couple of these which run off electricity (but that costs ALOT more), still water filled but with an element, would rather have gas as long as the boiler is quite a distance from living/sleeping spaces.

View attachment 1281

Here's a builder, so you can upload a picture of your wall and impose a radiator onto it. Should you be interested.

http://www.castrads.com/builder/

I've really tried to find 'wall art' and stuff but can never find things that are just right (very irritating), we going to get rid of all ours downstairs and get some more, plus new curtains, new carpet for the loft conversion and stairs to it... expensive next few months.

I'm also going to paint the entire house with organic, zero VOCs, paint (well the parts of it which are not already covered). I look forward to doing most of it, but hate the planning and deciding (my wife instantly becomes the spawn of goebbles when it comes to paint colour choices and soft furnishings!) is something of a mare.

Chich - considering your like of all things Japanese, I would suggest you try some decent quality Mandarin Essential Oil (we have it, in fads, in our bedroom as it is a relaxing fragrance, I pour a little oil in and burn a tea light when I go up for bed, by the time I'm washed and ready for bed the room smells lovely, sometimes blow out the candle, sometimes let it burn, you know that's how I roll!), plus a tea light/oil burner is also quite oriental if not directly Japanese. I use Lemon for the lounge/kitchen, fresher, more lively... You can get larger amounts on Ebay quite cheap (ie for about £20-25 you can get 250ml of Organic Mandarin Oil, if I recall, yet it would be about £5 for 5-10ml in a Holland&Barrett). No chemicals in that brick, or very few compared to most home scents, why people would pay to be slowly poisoned is beyond me, but I guess people just don't want to reflect on their ways.

Anyway, Free Leeds!

Whilst im comfortable im not THAT comfortable but I am replacing the boiler and im going boiler shopping next week.

Im just tinkled off I gotta spend that much knowing myself full well ill get bored of the place after a year and will wanna move somewhere else. Hence the hesitancy in spending a bundle on things that I wont reap the full benefit of.

I guess when its a place you know you will spend the next 10 to 15 years there - you are happy spending 2k on a top boiler with all the fixturs and fittings. You know your stuff tho

 

[P.D.]

The motto with furniture, paint, boilers and general home improvements is you get what you pay for. Theres a reason things are cheap! They may look great initially but you need to consider if its something you want to last 5+ years. Obviously there is some discrepancy and markup but price and quality usually compliment each other.

 

[DHSF]

The motto with furniture, paint, boilers and general home improvements is you get what you pay for. Theres a reason things are cheap! They may look great initially but you need to consider if its something you want to last 5+ years. Obviously there is some discrepancy and markup but price and quality usually compliment each other.

Totally agree - that is obvious - however this place is for a year or two then ill rent it out and get my own place as in long term - stepping stones and all that.

So taking that into account cheap yet good is good enough for me - a boiler lasting five years at 1k is better for me than 2k on a boiler that will last ten years. I dont want to buy bargain basement stuff but also not buying high end stuff as that is money down the drain.

 

[DHSF]

Ok sorted out boiler. Hopefully two weeks time theyll come fit it in. 1200 quid. ****s.

Another issue - creaking floorboard. I have a family who live above me - theyre brilliant people awesome people BUT I can hear ever footstep they make which is fairly annoying. Is there anyways I can sort this out i.e. tell the landlord to repair the floors or something? Its a creaking sound not neccessarily just foot steps. They do stay up late at night and sleep like at 2 or 3 which I cannot afford to do as I fudgein wake up at like 5.30.

Anyone been in such a position? do I just grin and bear it?

 

[jts1882]

Why I don't do DIY:

 

[Gordinho]

Ok sorted out boiler. Hopefully two weeks time theyll come fit it in. 1200 quid. ****s.

Another issue - creaking floorboard. I have a family who live above me - theyre brilliant people awesome people BUT I can hear ever footstep they make which is fairly annoying. Is there anyways I can sort this out i.e. tell the landlord to repair the floors or something? Its a creaking sound not neccessarily just foot steps. They do stay up late at night and sleep like at 2 or 3 which I cannot afford to do as I fudgein wake up at like 5.30.

Anyone been in such a position? do I just grin and bear it?

Take round some of The Brothers Johnson's finest, what you don't sprinkle on their floorboards you can powder Chich's bum with.

 

[DHSF]

Take round some of The Brothers Johnson's finest, what you don't sprinkle on their floorboards you can powder Chich's bum with.

The thing is I have already used it on his bum - haha

How does it help? Do you sprinle it on the floorboards or what?