Fixing Things
The Line Between a Repair and a Job for a Professional
Some household repairs are genuinely simple and some are regulated work where being wrong causes a fire, a flood or worse. The…
Fixing Things
Basic tools and the repairs worth attempting before calling somebody.
12 articles · updated August 11, 2026
Fixing Things
What Actually Belongs in a First Toolkit
Two hundred piece toolkits are sold on the number rather than the contents. About a dozen items cover almost every repair a tenant is entitled to attempt.
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A Slow Leak Costs More Than a Fast One
A burst pipe announces itself and gets dealt with within the hour. A drip behind a cupboard runs for eight months and takes the…
Fixing Things
A Dripping Tap Is Usually a Washer or a Cartridge
The noise is annoying and the wasted water is the smaller cost. Which of the two designs you have decides whether this is a…
Fixing Things
Unblocking a Drain Before You Reach for the Chemicals
Caustic drain cleaner is the first thing people buy and the last thing that should be tried. Three mechanical methods clear most…
Fixing Things
Putting a Shelf Up Straight and Keeping It There
Shelves fail for two reasons: the fixing was wrong for the wall, or nobody worked out what the shelf would eventually hold. Both…
Fixing Things
Doors That Stick and Hinges That Drop
A door that catches on the frame is rarely a warped door. It is usually a hinge that has moved a few millimetres, and it takes a…
Fixing Things
Silicone Sealant Fails When You Rush It
The black line along the edge of a bath is not decoration. It is what stops water getting behind the bath, and it fails almost…
Fixing Things
A Radiator Cold at the Top Is Telling You Something
Cold at the top and cold at the bottom are two different faults with two different answers. One you can deal with in five minutes…
Fixing Things
Filling a Hole in a Wall So It Disappears
The repair itself takes two minutes. Everything that makes it invisible happens in the preparation and in the sanding afterwards.
Fixing Things
When a Circuit Breaker Trips It Is Doing Its Job
A tripping breaker is not a fault in the breaker. It is a protective device telling you something on that circuit is drawing more…
Fixing Things
Furniture That Wobbles and the Cheap Fixes That Work
A wobbling table is rarely a broken table. It is a joint that has loosened or a floor that is not flat, and each has a different…