| |
Posts Tagged ‘texture<’
Posted in General Building on Jul 06
Most seasoned DIY types prefer to use high speed steel bits it seems. That’s because these tools are great for drilling into most wood and metal surfaces. You need to understand the principles of drilling, while maintaining respect for the object you are drilling into. In this article, Alf – he’s a regular London general builder on Mr-Skill – is going to tell us how we should drill into mild steel.
Choosing Your Bit 
Alf says, “First, select a high speed bit smaller than the diameter of the finished hole required. The drill itself is important too, because a semi-professional, variable speed impact power tool will make the job so much easier. It should also have a reverse switch for easing the bit out nicely once you’ve drilled your hole. Once you have your pilot hole, load up the correct diameter bit to finish the job.”
If drilling is really not your scene, rather get a general building quote from one of our members here on Mr-Skill. As a guideline, first use a bit that’s approximately half the diameter of the eventual hole size. In other words, if your final hole measures 8mm (5/16-inch), drill the pilot hole with a 4mm (5/32-inch) bit.
Before Drilling
Use a centre punch and hammer to mark the hole you are about to drill – a swift gentle tap should do it, and this will act as a guide for the bit once you start drilling. If you don’t, the chances are good that your bit will wander all over the surface. Many of our customers prefer to find a general builder on Mr-Skill.
Drilling Steel
Apart from tensile strength, steel has a uniform texture too. This is to avoid any unevenness in the sheet, which in turn allows for a simpler drilling action. It is important to properly secure the steel surface before drilling, because if you don’t, you risk having the object replicating the drilling motion and spinning dangerously out of control.
Alf’s Final Tip
When you’re drilling into particularly hard or resistant surfaces, use short bursts of speed-to-slow motions, and keep your drill straight at all times. This way, your drill will last longer and your drilling action will be correct. Sustained high speed drilling will wear out the bit, as well as the power tool and the driller! “Go with the flow, but exercise patience at all times” is Alf’s motto!
Tags: centre punch, diameter, DIY, drilling, drilling action, drilling steel, drilling wood, find a general builder, general building quote, hammer, high speed drill, hole, impact, London general builder, mild steel, reverse, steel, tensile strength, texture, wood
Posted in General Building | Comments Off
Posted in Tiling & Flooring on May 14
 If you are looking for subtle ways of brightening up your bathroom, you could find that mosaic tiles are just the job. They can add texture as they come in a variety of shapes and patterns, and there’s a veritable kaleidoscope of colours to select from too. You can even add some of your own artistic ideas to get a sensational finish, and all your friends will think you’ve had the experts in! If you’re not quite so brave, perhaps you should find a tiling and flooring expert right here on Mr-Skill.
Tips on Design
If this is a first attempt at using mosaic tiles, it may be best to start with a simple concept. Even basic designs can look really impressive with bold highlights and a mix of complimentary colours. This form of tiling can be quite fiddly too, because each tile making up the mosaic needs to be positioned and glued in place individually. It can be quite similar to fitting pieces together in a jigsaw puzzle.
Tips on Colour Selection
Give some thought to the four components of colour, which are:
- Tone
- Temperature
- Hue
- Intensity
If colour composition is not your best subject, rather get a tiling quote right here.
Tone is the degree of lightness or darkness of a colour, whereas temperature refers to the warmth or coolness factor. Hue is the parent group of colours, including red, yellow and blue, while intensity indicates the depth of a particular colour choice.
Taking it a step further, colours of different hues, but with matching tones can be complimentary. However, colours of varying intensity or temperature could end up clashing. When you select your mosaics tiles, consider them in different colour combinations before setting them in glue. Moreover, as you work, glance away from the detail from time to time, so as to keep the bigger picture in your mind. It’s very easy to get confused otherwise!
Choosing Grout for Your Mosaics
The mix that we use to seal gaps between mosaic tiles is known as grout, and we use it to keep out unwanted dirt and dust too. Grout comes in many colour options, so you need to consider carefully, because your choice of grout finish can make or break the overall impact of your job. One of our regular London tiling and flooring specialists advises that if in doubt, use grey as your grout colour. That’s because grey is perfectly neutral, being halfway between black and white!
Tags: clash, colour, colour components, complimentary, coolness, design, find a tiling-and-flooring expert, grout, highlights, hue, intensity, london tiling-and-flooring specialist, mosaic tiles, temperature, texture, tiling-and-flooring quote, tone, warmth
Posted in Tiling & Flooring | Comments Off
Posted in Tiling & Flooring on Dec 26
Floor tiles are often set for life, if for no reason other than that taking them up again is such a noisy, dusty business. Here are some things you need to consider carefully before you Find a Tiler on Mr-Skill. We call them rules because they can dictate how you feel about the finished job.
 Rule No.1 Colour
A lighter-coloured floor tile makes a room look spacious while it also shows the dirt and dust. Darker colours add warmth, and hide the dirt. Go for neutral colours to show accessories off best.
Rule No.2 Texture
Wet tiles are slippery and that’s almost a rule in itself. There’s only one way to make a tile suitable for outside use in wet conditions, and that’s to add a gritty finish to the surface. Best to buy yours already done, because the paint-on solutions wear away.
Rule No.3 Size and Shape
A London Tiler worth his money will always determine your overall goals before recommending tiles. Large ones create a sense of spaciousness, while smaller ones may look busy over larger areas.  Rectangular tiles make a room seem wider when laid across the width. Lay them in the length though, and you’ll get the opposite effect
Rule No. 4 Thickness
When you obtain a Floor Tiling Quote it’s a good idea to specify the thickness of the tile. This is because this makes them heavier and more difficult to cut. As a general rule, a medium thickness floor tile is adequate for domestic use, unless you are planning something different.
The 5th Rule is perhaps the most important principle of all, and that’s Choosing the Right Tiler. And that’s where Mr-Skill comes in. We’ve searched high and low for the finest tradesmen across the length and breadth of the United Kingdom, and we’ll not charge a single penny to introduce you to them.
Tags: accessory, choose, cut, dark, deep, dirt, domestic, dust, find a tiler, finish, floor, grit, heavier, length, light, london tiler, medium, neutral, quote, rectangular, rule, select, shape, size, slip, slippery, spacious, texture, thick, tile, tiling quote, warm, wet, wide, width
Posted in Tiling & Flooring | Comments Off
Posted in Bricklaying on May 10
 When you are in the process of considering Bricklayer Quotes on Mr-Skill you may find yourself bombarded with bricklaying jargon. The following are some of the commonest terms that you may encounter.
Bricks are glued together with a mixture of cement, sand and water that sets hard. Brick bonds, which are brick-laying patterns, add extra strength to joints between bricks by adding overlaps. These bonds may be varied between different courses of bricks to create visual interest. Effects can be quite remarkable when bricks of different colours and textures are used.
 XXX
o The Stretcher Bond remains the commonest bricklaying pattern in use today. This is because it is time efficient and easy to apply. It is universally used inside plaster walls where a cosmetic effect is unnecessary. It is also the only bond possible in a single brick wall. Bricks laid in this way are called stretchers. This is the commonest recommendation you may receive after you Find a Bricklayer on Mr-Skill.
o The Flemish Bond may be used to create stunning effects where different colour bricks are used. It is also immensely strong because every course is a  combination of alternating stretchers and headers.
o The English Bond is similar in concept except that courses of headers and stretchers alternate. Although it is equally strong there are fewer opportunities for visual effects. It is ideal for use in areas of heaving clay or repeated earth tremors.
o The American Common Bond is a further variation on a similar theme, except that this time complete rows of headers and stretchers alternate. This is an attractive wall with many decorative possibilities, especially when different textures of bricks are used.
XXX
A Bricklayer in London is often left with little choice of bond to use when building in the older parts of the City. This because the City Fathers want things to blend in with the prevailing patina, which many believe to be more attractive than some recent modern buildings.
More good ideas from Mr-Skill published in the interests of transparency.
Tags: american bond, blend, bond, brick, bricklayer(s) quote(s), bricklayers London, bricklaying, bricklaying job london, bricklaying quotes, cement, colour, common, effect, english bond, find a bricklayer, flemish bond, header, jargon, overlap, patina, pattern, sand, stretcher, stretcher bond, texture, water
Posted in Bricklaying | Comments Off
Posted in Plastering & Drywall on May 02
While ordinary cement-based plaster is for keeping rain off outside, fibrous plastering is decorative and normally applied on walls and ceilings inside buildings.  It has been in use at least since 7,500 BC, when Jordanian people used lime from shells to decorate their homes. More recently, that great tradition the City Hall had ornate ceilings decorated in a similar way. Already in those days, it was not always easy to Find a Plasterer with the exceptional skills required for masterpieces like these.
While Fibrous Plasterers continue to use traditional tools like laths, floats, trowels, hawks and scratching tools they have also made adaptations as new materials arrived. This means that trowels are available in polycarbonate, and that floats are finished off with a layer of expanded polystyrene, or even foam.
 The plaster itself is a combination of lime, sand, ox-hair and water in proportions that vary according to the job in hand. The hair from oxen is half the secret – it serves as the binding medium that stops wet plaster from sliding off. Remember this when evaluating Plasterer Quotes. While a Plasterer from London such as you could find on Mr-Skill would never dream of it, other plasterers may try to get away with cheaper alternatives.
These days, the base coat most commonly applied is on interior dry walls and ceilings, to cover studs and seams. These may then be painted, unless the customer requires a specialized textured finish such as artex detailing. A fibrous plasterer none the less takes great pride in the quality of their work, although few these days may even dream of producing a great work of art.
Tags: artex, celing, cement, decorative, fibros, fibrous, find a plasterer, foam, hair, hawk, lath, lime, ornate, oxhair, plaster, plasterer london, plasterer quote, plastering job London, plastering quote, polycarbonate, polystyrene, sand, scratch, seam, stud, texture, toll, trowel, wall, water
Posted in Plastering & Drywall | Comments Off
Posted in Uncategorized on Feb 10
While raw brickwork is an interesting feature on an interior wall because of the contrast it provides, the very texture that we love so much attracts extra dirt because of its porous nature. Especially near an open fireplace (if you are one of the lucky ones) debris, dust and soot may gradually obscure the natural colour which was once an object of so much delight.
There are two ways to get your brickwork sparkling clean again. You either need to track down some Elbow Grease, or Find a Housekeeper on Mr-Skill. Here is the DIY way.
o Assemble an assistant, 2 wire brushes, a bucketful of lukewarm water, some table salt and washing-up liquid from the kitchen (when the boss is looking the other way), a strong ladder (if necessary) and a sponge.
o Blend equal volumes of table salt and dishwashing liquid together. Mix this gradually with water until you have a consistent paste-like mixture.
 o Apply the paste to the bricks using the sponge and then scrub the wall down using the wire brushes and with help from the assistant. You really do need an apprentice here because it really is a horrible job. At this point in time you may be ready to obtain a Housekeeping Quote instead – if not, press on.
o After 15 minutes, wipe the paste away using the sponge which you should rinse regularly in the bucket of lukewarm water. Make sure you get rid of all of it, otherwise your dirty brick wall will become blotchy instead, and you will be in more trouble.
Expert Tip
A Housekeeper in London may prefer to use proprietary brick cleaner although to my mind this simply adds to the cost without doing a better job.
Tags: brick, brick wall, clean, cleaner london, cleaner quote, debris, dust, find a cleaner, find a housekeeper, housekeeper london, housekeeping quotes, interior, paste, porous, raw brickwork, rinse, soot, sponge, texture, wall, wash, washing up liquid, water, wipe, wire brush
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off
|
Subscribe to our RSS Feed