05 December 2011

DIY Handbook 2011

Are you a DIY practitioner? Do you enjoy building things, fixing stuff and generally making yourself useful around the house? If so, you’ll appreciate the 32-page DIY Handbook accompanying this issue of PM. Aside from the host of useful hints, it showcases a compelling variety of what we term “non-threatening”... 

01 September 2011

One-day project: Bird feeder

Make squirrel-proof bird feeder. 

01 September 2011 -  By: Roy Berendsohn

Cast in stone

I want to make a cast-concrete planter for the backyard. Would regular concrete be suitable, or is some specialised product available? 

01 September 2011 -  By: Roy Berendsohn

Assorted nuts

I was assembling a piece of knockdown furniture and noticed the kit contained nuts with built-in washers. Because I find these to be convenient, I went to buy some for another project, but my local hardware store doesn’t stock them. 

01 September 2011 -  By: Roy Berendsohn

Cold shower

Can you help us with a problem with our gas-fired water heater? It delivers plenty of hot water in the morning, when my husband takes a shower. In the evening, when I use the same shower, it produces only lukewarm water. I don’t use hot water before taking a shower, so I’m stumped by the problem. 

01 September 2011 -  By: Roy Berendsohn

Lighten the load

I’m restocking my toolbox. My sons are going to get the tools I started with, and I’m going to buy everything new. This time, I want tools that weigh less. What should I look for?  

24 August 2011

The ultimate garage

It has a concrete floor, a draughty door and humming fluorescent tubes. It smells of detergent, grease and the earthy tang of cut grass. It’s all yours. So what do you want to do in there? 

07 July 2011

PM's 2010 Tool Guide

Your annual 24-page Tool Guide, a practical and informative companion for every imaginable DIY job... 

01 July 2011

Off the wall

I live in an old house, and I applied one of those basement-wall coatings to my brick foundation. At first, it really made the basement look good, but now it’s peeling like crazy.  

01 July 2011

Dirty Dishwasher

We live in a part of the country that has hard water, and it’s clogging and ruining our dishwasher. We’re on our second machine in five years.