Carpentry FAQs

There is no reason why shelves cannot be made of any timber. However the quality of timber used for "landscaping" is usually not adequate for indoor use. It has a much higher moisture content and will warp and distort if used indoors. You can obtain a rustic effect by using thick boards and sanding them or using a spoke shave to make the front edge uneven.

If you're thinking of using split logs such as those used in landscaping you will have to firstly allow them to dry out for approx. 3 months in the environment where they are to be used and then strip off all the bark. You will then have the problem of shelf brackets. The only way we can see to do this is to cut through on the curved face a square parallel slot and put the bracket into this slot. We would not recommend suspending the shelves by putting the brackets on the flat top surface.

It very much depends on the type of wooden floor you wish to use and whether you want it to be a floating floor or not. If it's a rigid floor of at least 3/8 inch thickness, you should lay it at right angles to the existing floor and use concealed nailing to the joints to give a good final finish.

When laying a hardwood floor, you lead with the tongue. If you wish to use concealed nailing then you must nail into the groove of the piece, which you have just laid. This does require some skill but it is the means whereby you can lay hardwood flooring without seeing the nails. It does help if you drill a 2mm hole to lead the nails, which should be at 400mm centres.

If it is to be a floating floor, you will have to lay down a foam or fibre underlay and then lay your boards on top of this. The joints of the board must be glued together to keep the floor stable. This is the way that laminate floors are laid and you have to leave a gap of 10mm all round the walls.

The simple way to repair joists like this is to cut out the rotten material and treat the cut ends with a wet and dry rot treatment such as Cuprinol 5 star.

Then plate both sides of the joists with new joists of a similar size. Bolt these through the old joists using timber connectors. As a guide, the length of plating should be at least 4 times the depth of the joists.

Finally, be sure to apply the timber treatment to all new timbers and to the seatings in the wall.

Firstly, you must ensure that the concrete is absolutely level. If it's not, the best way of doing this is to apply a latex levelling compound.

The next step is to prevent moisture movement and, in this case, the best solution is to paint over it with two coats of a bituminous type paint such as liquid roofing felt.

Most DIY stores will stock 3 grades of laminate flooring:

• 1600 for light commercial/heavy domestic use.
• 900 for normal domestic use.
• 500 for light domestic use

The flooring is simple to lay but don't forget that this is a floating floor and as such must have an underlay to prevent transmission of sound when you walk on it. Laying it is a matter of relatively simple skill, except where you have to cut the boards to meet skirting and door openings.

At this point there are two methods of laying the floor:

1. Put down timber battens at 400mm intervals and nail the floorboards on top.
2. Lay a 'floating floor'. You will need to lay a layer of foam or fibre felt. On top of this lay either tongue and groove hardwood boards or laminate boards.

These are both laid with the tongue of the tongue and groove boards leading. Apply some PVA cement along the joints of the boards and knock them in whilst the glue is still wet. You should prepare pieces ready to go where you have central heating pipes. The floor, however, should be cut about 10mm away from any skirting boards and cover this gap with a quadrant bead.

The use of solid wood is difficult as the wood must be at the right moisture content. The first alternative raises the floor by about 65mm. The only tools you will require are a tenon saw, a hammer, a square and the small kit designed to help you pull the sections into position.

A handy method of doing this is to fix the shelf by doweling it to the wall. For this you will need some 1 inch doweling, a 1 inch wood drill bit and a 1 inch masonry drill bit. Then follow these steps:

• Find and mark the centre line of the shelf.
• Along the centre line mark out the position of the dowels (start about 4 inches in from either end, and space about 9 inches apart).
• Using a spirit level, mark the centre line on the wall where you would like it positioned, then mark the dowel positions.
• Using the wood drill bit, drill the dowel holes into the wood approximately two thirds of the depth of the shelf, then fit dowels using wood glue, leaving approximately 3 inches sticking out to fix into the wall.
• Drill dowel holes into the wall approximately 3.5 inches deep and check the alignment with the shelf.
• Finally, fit the shelf using panel adhesive (not nails), or an epoxy resin fixing, to glue the dowels in place.

There are a number of ways that you could tackle this problem. Use the method that is best suited to your situation:

1. Directly on subsoil. The decking frame can be laid directly on top of level compacted subsoil, providing the timber is pressure treated.
2. Using posts. Firstly, you need to set the posts into the ground, inside the ring beam that forms the outer wall of the decking framework. Then build the framework for your deck by bolting decking joists to the posts. This allows joists to be secured without resting on damp ground, and rainwater will drain away without pooling. Cut off the posts below the level of the decking, then lay your decking boards on top of the joists. You could try leaving some of the posts to form the supports for a handrail.
3. Concrete footings. Lay level concrete footings 300mm x 300mm x 300mm (12inches square) at 1200mm intervals around the perimeter. The deck may also require footings in the centre to reduce flexing.

To do this you need to drill a hole down the centre of the screw of at least 2mm in diameter, and go into the screw about 4 or 5mm.

You then insert an extraction tool, which is like a tap but with anti-clockwise threading. As it tightens up in the damaged screw it will unscrew it and release it.

The simple way to repair joists like this is to cut out the rotten material and treat the cut ends with a wet and dry rot treatment such as Cuprinol 5 star.

Then plate both sides of the joists with new joists of a similar size. Bolt these through the old joists using timber connectors. As a guide, the length of plating should be at least 4 times the depth of the joists.

Finally, be sure to apply the timber treatment to all new timbers and to the seatings in the wall.

The reason for decking timber splitting is due to the quality of wood used in the construction. The timber has obviously been cut green and treated with the moisture content too high. During the summer they have dried out and that is why they have split.

It is unclear how the peeling is taking place but this may be due to splitting in slab cut timbers. The only possible remedy without replacing the timber is to use Ronseal High Performance Wood Filler to fill up the cracks. Then use a stain to give a reasonable appearance. You will not be able to use the Ronseal filler if the timbers are showing any sign of mould growth.

The best way of removing nails in this case would be to pull the entire skirting board away from the wall. This should leave the nails exposed at the back. Then, using a pair of pliers, you can push the nails out from the back, thus avoiding any damage to the front.