A Hammer – For putting up pictures, installing curtain rods, repairing an item coming loose, a medium-weight hammer will suffice for most household jobs.

Two Screwdrivers – Medium sized, one flat head, one Phillips at minimum. You may find it handy to also invest in a set of small screwdrivers for tightening or repair screws in electronics or glasses.

Screw and Nail Assortment – These can be purchased in small sets which include the most-used types and sizes or you can create your own.

Spirit Level – For hanging pictures and mirrors; building or hanging shelves, etc.

Pencils – For marking where to nail, where to drill, or record a measurement

Tape Measure – Measuring for curtains, shelf heights, picture placement, etc.

Wire Cutters/Pliers – Some pliers come with wire cutters built in, but wire cutters are an essential if you don’t want to struggle with trying to get scissors (ruining them in the process) to cut something they weren’t intended for. Two types of pliers are essential as well; needle-nosed and heavy duty for removing stubborn nails, etc.

Tape – Two types are essential, masking tape for painting and duct tape for repairs.

Even the humble toilet roll holder comes in a minimum of around five different types made from various materials. With wood, ceramic and stainless steel being the most popular.  The first type of design is the kind that is simply a piece of wire mounted horizontally on a hinge that hangs from either the toilet door or wall. This meaning that the roll actually still touches the door or wall and thus enabling the user to use the friction from that connection to tear off a slice or two of the tissues.

A more modern incarnation of the same basic principle includes a curled flat shield that covers the roll, to avoid actually requiring the touching of the roll itself. Then there are the kinds that are either horizontal or vertical that are recessed into the actual wall.

Toilet roll holders are also available as a separate pole on an unattached base, which can be particularly useful in households with members who are right or left handed. Then there is there horizontal axle that is actually positioned on that separate pole with its unattached base.

Planning for the patio should start by defining the space to be used. Measuring and then clearly marking the outline of the length and breadth of the patio helps in calculating how many paving stones will be needed, and what type of garden furniture can be placed on the patio.

For patios that are to be partially embedded in the ground, and thus requiring some digging, it is important to check with the previous owner of the property or the local authority if there are any water, electricity, or other types of pipe or cable running through the ground. Damaging these can be dangerous, as well as extremely costly to fix.

Raised patios that angle slightly downwards at the outer edges (more or less imperceptibly to the naked eye) are good for limiting the quantity of standing rainwater. Raised patios require strong sand and gravel foundations, as well as sufficiently thick paving stones.

It is essential to get the laying of the patio foundation right, as inconsistencies will almost certainly lead to a partially sunken patio. Where the underlying ground is particularly wet, use more foundation sand and gravel to avoid damage later.

You must think about functionality as well as personal preferences when choosing cheap beds, as these are not only items of furniture that tend to dominate the room, but also very practical objects in which you’ll be spending much of your life.

You can expect a mattress to last ten years at the minimum, so it’s a real investment and you need to consider a few things before buying. Most mattresses consist of fabrics arranged in layers around a core of springs. The springs may be open in arrangement or come in separate pockets of fabric. The latter are more comfortable, because they respond individually to pressure, so if you have trouble sleeping this type of mattress may suit you best. Natural latex mattresses are good for people with back and joint or respiratory problems, because as well as moulding to body shape for extra support they are hypoallergenic and anti-microbial. Memory foam mattresses offer the ultimate in support, but are a little more expensive.

As far as the actual bed frame is concerned, space will usually be the deciding factor, closely followed by personal taste. If you are considering wooden beds, metal beds or even leather beds, you won’t be short of options and the kids might decide the matter for you, as bunk beds are very popular as children’s beds.

The electric shower draws on the cold water feed and heats the water for immediate use in the shower. It is the perfect way to combat low hot water pressure issues or manage heated water for shower enclosures for two people, with two showerheads.  Not only will your water get hot and stay hot for as long as needed, but pre-set controls allow you to keep the temperature exactly where you like it.

Installing an electric shower is also a very simple process, and many consider the do-it-yourself route.  A licensed electrician should be consulted to manage the electrical component of this handy shower accessory, but other tasks can be done on your own.  To install the electric shower, you will need a 15 mm connection to the rising main for water, access to an electrical source, and copper pipes and valves to make the connection to the water source.

Electric showers are compact and space-efficient.  They are relatively inexpensive and can be installed quickly and easily.  For so little effort, the tremendous benefits make an electric shower a must-have for your home shower cubicle.

- How efficient is your current heating system?
- Is the heating system still cost-effective?
- Is your current heating system environmentally friendly?
- Do you think it is as effective as an underfloor heating system?

Installing an electric underfloor heating system or a water underfloor heating system should be considered if you answered “no” to any of the above questions.  If you’re an avid handyman or home remodeler, this makes for a great DIY underfloor heating project.  However, you need to take a few things into consideration when you are contemplating taking a project like this on.

Where overall cost-effectiveness and efficiency are concerned, the key component involved during the installation process is the insulation and the amount of it.  Granted, you can install an underfloor heating system without using insulation, but before it will heat up the room, it will be heating up an even colder sub-floor.  The amount of Marmox insulation that you use is going to depend entirely on the type of building you live in.

Finally, the thicker the layer of insulation that you install, the more cost-effective and efficient your underfloor heating system will be.  It is easier to install thick insulation when the home or structure is being built.  However if it is a DIY underfloor heating project, the thickness of the insulation is going to depend on how high the level of the finished floor is going to be.

Home buildings insurance is something you cannot avoid even if you don’t want it, as when you take out a mortgage it will be one of the conditions. This is to protect the lender’s investment, which is your house. But it also protects you, because if the house is flattened by an earthquake or fire, for example, the cost of rebuilding it would be prohibitive without the cover in place.

Buildings insurance commonly also covers external fittings and fixtures, but the moveable contents of the house such as jewellery and other possessions are covered by home contents insurance, which although optional is recommended. Burglaries are an unfortunate fact of life, and you need to have your possessions covered.

Indemnity insurance is the cheapest form of contents insurance, and will see lost or damaged items replaced with ones of the same age, but ‘new for old’ is the cover of choice for most people. This will get you brand new items to replace those that have been lost or damaged.

Contents insurance usually also covers possessions when they are taken away from the house (by you, rather than a burglar) such as cameras and watches.

You’ll need travel insurance when you go abroad, to protect your personal belongings whilst staying away for any length of time.

No one mattress is right for everyone—but beyond that, all bets are off. Both types of mattresses are available in all sizes, so they can be purchased for everything from children’s beds to divan beds to king size four-poster beds. But inner spring mattresses tend to be firmer than foam mattresses, especially those with a higher spring count.  You don’t want an inner spring mattress that’s too firm; anything that flattens your spine from its normal curve will leave you with a backache.

That brings us to foam mattresses. These are being hailed as the answer to back pain, and for many people, they are. Yet some find them too soft, allowing their spine to curve too much, and leaving them with a backache in the morning.

So the truth is, there’s no one answer that’s perfect for everyone. If you have joint pain, arthritis, or have experienced backaches after sleeping on an inner spring mattress, try a memory foam mattress and see if it offers relief. But the opposite is also true; if a foam mattress hasn’t had you counting sheep on a regular basis, try a good, supportive inner spring mattress and see if that doesn’t help.

Your back, your health, and your mental acuity are worth spending some time to find the perfect bed for you.

The downside with designer radiators is that they can be quite expensive. Some represent greater bargains than others, but there is no doubt you need to spend some time shopping around to find the best bargains on designer radiators.

The easiest way to begin is to search online, because you have instant access to all kinds of suppliers and websites such as UK Bathrooms who  have a wide range of designer radiators. Since designer radiators vary widely in style between suppliers, you can expect to find lots of different styles in the course of your search.  Ensure you check all the websites you come across and think about what kind of style of designer radiator you would ideally like to have.

For example, do you want a retro style of designer radiator or would something more modern be better suited to your bathroom? Once you have a good idea of the style you want, you can look for designer radiators that fit into the price range you have in mind. You should be prepared to spend a bit more on a designer radiator, but you may be surprised at how cheaply you can buy them if you have a good look around.

In most cases, a 65-75 mm cement screed is required, but water underfloor heating systems can also be installed over timber subfloors.  When you install a wet underfloor heating system in the case of a cement subfloor, the thermal mass will then become a background heat store. The temperature offset can be dealt with during off-peak or overnight times.

With a wet underfloor heating system, it is advisable that the floor heating not be turned off completely during the cooler months.  The reason behind this is that the cement screed would cool down way too much to be efficient when turning it back on.  It could delay room warming for up to two hours!  It is a good idea to select a constant temperature and stick to it, depending on the time of year. This is where your underfloor heating thermostat will be most useful to you.

When compared to traditional radiator heating, wet underfloor heating definitely has its advantages, especially when installing it at the time of construction.  Remember, when the pipe work is incorporated into the flooring, the installation costs are no more than a traditional home heating system.  It is later that you will find the added savings of a water underfloor heating system.