The Morecambe DIY Project

[accykeef]

There is an ongoing DIY project going on here and has been for several years. I will try to keep it up to date but I am not promising to update it every day.

Today will be spent rubbing down the front door, Living Room Door and Dining Room Door.

[trevnhil]

Hi Keith. I for one would be interested in a DIY thread. It usually includes some woodwork, and I was a joiner until my early fifties.

And we must bear in mind that a picture paints a thousand words. ;D

Trev..

[accykeef]

Right, the first question is how much does a wheelie bin hold?
The pesky trees out back need trimming so how much of this will fit in a bin?


Ahh, that much but it is going to take a few weeks before they are cleared. What a pity I didn't set this up as a STD (Spot the Difference) but never mind there will be other opportunities.



On to more pressing matters. The door furniture was getting a bit yukky and we were thinking of replacing it. Turns out that it is solid brass so a bit of research is in order to determine a good method for cleaning badly tarnished brass. Mrs Keef did the deed and discovered that lemon juice is the thing to use so after a few experiments with the door numbers, which were badly tarnished beyond belief but have been restored to thier former glory.

I am replacing the old mortice lock with one of those new fangled Euro locks because they are draught proof)

The door knocker and letter box were imersed in a bath of lemon juice. The results are amazing but you will have to wait until the door is finished for the results



When I become Queen, I will make a law that all doors have to be fitted with lift off hinges, they are brilliant!!!! The picture shows the good side of the living room door.



This shows the not so good side of the living room door.



First coat of varnish and looking a bit scabby



Utility cupboard in the hall way and a bit of surreal art - an American Car?



Lakes and Mountains?



I think we may be glossing tomorrow.

[trevnhil]

Well you have certainly been busy Mr and Mrs Keefy. I too thought about the STD pictures.
Re.... how much does a wheelie bin hold..... well non of next doors trees. I thought you could trim what was overhanging but had to give them back to the owner, otherwise it is stealing.
No wonder we fell out with our neighbours at Bolton le sands. ;D

The difference on the fittings is remarkable. Maybe it is too late in life for me to keep that in mind.

The lift off hinges look like black rising butts.

Thanks for all the pictures Keith, and good luck with the glossing.

Regards. Trev

[accykeef]

Well our wheelie won't be collected for a couple of weeks. If they really want the branches, they can have them back. I doubt if they care though because somebody has done them a favour.

Not sure what a black rising butt is, but I am sure that the NHS don't serve them in their restaurants. I know them as rise and fall hinges but I am not a real joiner, just a J.O.A.T. and master of one!

Why has the bottom of the door gone a bit crackled and black, not really obvious from the pic but seems to be a bit weathered?
I have rubbed it down but it is still crackleled. I am going to fill it with varnish and see what happens. If all else fails, we will get a plastic door but I fancy a nice perfectlly smooth, varnished wooden door.

[trevnhil]

It's amazing how much you can get in a wheelie bin. I used to stand in ours to squash stuff down. The binmen called one day to tell us not to pack stuff too tight in the bin, as it would not come out when it was upended.

Where the word 'Butt' for hinges came from I do not know. But it just means hinges. ie 4" butts are 4" hinges. And as you say yours are rise and fall which in theory means the door closes on its own and rises over the carpet when opened. The top of the door was beveled at the hinge side.

Good luck with the front door. UPVC doors are fine but people seem to forget about the big cill with the frame. Older people especially sometimes have difficulty with the cill.

Cheers. Trev..

[accykeef]

An early start today and 2.5 litres of gloss later and the woodwork is looking good. Now there are other more pressing matters to attend to while the paint dries.



My lastest sander, a cheap and nasty Silverline palm sander has driven me nuts since I bought it. I had a really good one but I just wore it out and didn't think that there was much more sanding to do. The sander itself is ok, it does what it is meant to but the challenge is keeping the sandpaper in place under the crappy little clips. The only way I can get it to hold the paper is to cut a thinner strip and thread it through the clip like this





Some modification of the sander body has been necessary to make the threading easier. I believe this sander was designed by the academic numpty who designed the locks on our car.
I do wish they would get engineers involved when designing something as simple as this.

[trevnhil]

Hi Keith. The White Gloss is looking good and what looks like a Piano hinge.

I agree from your pics with what you say about the sander. I am not sure I have ever seen a round bar to hold the sandpaper. Certainly mine is a sprung blade at each end and even than there is some movement.

Looks like you need to pop out for a new strip of sandpaper!!

Regards. Trev..

[accykeef]

Many of the sanders these days use that Velcro backed paper, it doesn't come loose but is is expensive. My old one held the paper in place with a kind of blade and that never came loose.
There is not much rough sanding to be done now but I do have stocks of paper. I prefer to do the fine sanding by hand as it makes a better finish.
Wet and dry works well in the sander until I dip it in a bucket of water, I feel a bit tingly then, what am I doing wrong?

The doors under the stairs have all got piano hinges on them - ordinary hinges don't tend to stay connected to MDF for long, unless you use very long screws. I like the look of piano hinges, especially when they are polished up with wire wool.

There is some trim to be added to the edges of the doors yet but it looks like another coat of gloss is needed. Not a good colour to paint onto white undercoat and there are a lot of small white patches showing through.

[trevnhil]

Re.. "Wet and dry works well in the sander until I dip it in a bucket of water, I feel a bit tingly then, what am I doing wrong?"

I think your problem may be that you are not in bare feet on a damp solid floor. I feel sure that this action would indeed make the difference.
I also realise that this is maybe a shocking suggestion.

I always had trouble with the brush marks in gloss.

Regards. Trev..

[accykeef]

That is much better - Mrs Keef can see to read her book of spells now!

The novelty of electric shocks is wearing off now and I was itching to risk life and limb this morning so I thought I would do some wall papering. A long ladder is all but useless and the steps on their own are too close to the wall to be any use so I devised a solution using a storage box. Mrs Keef dusted off the insurance policies had everything crossed and was most disappointed when I didn't fall and earn her a nest egg.

The first piece of wallpaper starts just above the plaster board on the left hand side of the picture below, goes up the wall, across the ceiling and halfway down the right hand wall. A real challenge but it went ok in the end.


There were some glitches in between but hey - where is the fun in working off a plank - especially when you don't have one to hand. The piece was just over 18ft long and was one of the hardest bits of wall papering I have ever done.


The picture above shows the first piece in place and the ingenious use of 2 pairs of step ladders to allow access further back. This piece too, was not without it's problems but it went right in the end



The hardest part is finished now - or so I thought because the two pieces on the wall facing the stairs run down the hall way to the front wall. The piece which runs down the hall has to match one of them and be trimmed round the fancy cornice.



A bit of a wrestling match but with some skill and a few well chose expletives, the task was completed.


Once the paper paste dries, the creases will be gone.



Just one long piece down the hallway and lots of bits to do now and the top half is finished.
Phew - I need a drink now!

[trevnhil]

Well Keith what can one say? Firstly, thanks a lot for the pictures. They certainly show haw the job is coming along. And that wall / ceiling papering seems like a very difficult job to me. The first piece would have been bad enough but getting the other pieces to line up....almost impossible.

Your ingenuity with the plastic crate and the lashing of two steps together leaves me short of words.

Maybe when the job is finished you could send some of your best shots to the H & S brigade. I am sure they could use them in an instructional video

And finally this is a message for Mrs Keefy......

Mrs K. Make sure Keith's policies are paid up to date ;D ;D

Well done Keith. I am looking forward to seeing the shoes in the display case

Cheers and Thanks. Trev..

[accykeef]

Things have moved on a pace since my last post but we are having to do a few of the jobs in the wrong order. I would prefer to have completed all the painting and varnishing before the papering was started but circumstances are acting against us. The papering had to be completed ASAP and that has happened except for a few odd little bits. The landing in particular has turned out well, it was like a patchwork quilt before.



We over estimated on the ceiling paper but it will get used for something. The lower wll paper was a different story and we had just enough.

The glass block window, which I made a few years ago, finally looks like it belongs now.



The rolls say that it is a free match paper but we thought it looked a mess when we dry hung some so the little laser spirit level saved the day again - what a great invention they are.



Another great invention I wouldn't be without is plastic trim. It is meant to be for outside use but looks just as good inside. A pan of boiling water can be used to bend it into any shape you like.

I can feel another gripe from H & S coming on.


Bending it round this corner was just a practice for more complex tasks, I have formed a piece to fit the arch going into the kitchen but I need some strong adhesive to fix it in place.


The plastic also makes terrific mouldings for finishing off plaster boards.

The wooden trims have appeared, as if by magic, on the under stairs doors but they are in need of some varnish. The handles have been fitted and removed until the painting is completed.

Another coat of varnish should do it.

[trevnhil]

Well, Keith.
It it certainly nearing completion now. And I am glad that you have taken some pictures as you have gone along, so that we can see the different stages. Yes I agree the plastic moulding certainly looks good and you have done well to bend it round that corner in the hall.

Myself and the other member will certainly keep quiet about the Safety aspect of the pan of boiling water to the H&S people.

The glass brick window looks well and you must be pleased at the overall effect. It certainly shows what work you have put in ,and Mrs accykeef as well.

Don't forget to give us a preview of the 'shoe case' before someone from the council (Mayor !!??) come to officially open the new area.

Thanks Keith....... Best wishes. Trev..





H & S. Its the 4th picture.

[accykeef]

We are keeping quiet about the shoe cabinet just in case they decide to tax it!