Ask a building expert
Real questions from UK homeowners, answered by our editorial team — planning permission, costs, building regs, choosing a trade and more. Search the answers below, or ask your own (it's free).
We've had three quotes to repaint downstairs and one's nearly half the others, so what's the catch?
Usually there's a reason, and it's almost always in what the cheap quote leaves out rather than the painter being a bargain. Nine times out of ten the gap is prep. Filling, sanding back, caulking, a mist coat on any b…
Our 1930s house has odd-sized internal doors that don't match the shops, can a joiner fit standard ones?
Yes, a joiner can nearly always hang standard off-the-shelf doors in a house of that age, and it's usually cheaper than having them made to measure. The thing people get wrong is measuring the old door rather than the…
We've been quoted to lay our patio straight onto sand, but will it last without a proper base?
No, I wouldn't sign that one off as it stands. Sand on its own shifts as the ground beneath it settles and as rain washes it about, so within a season or two you tend to get slabs that rock, lift at the edges and trap…
My tenancy agreement says I have to pay for a professional clean when I move out - is that allowed?
No, a clause like that isn't enforceable. Since the Tenant Fees Act 2019 a landlord in England can't make you pay for a professional clean as a condition of the tenancy, even when it's written into the agreement. What…
Do hollow-sounding walls need replastering, or can they be patched?
Hollow-sounding plaster is what a tradesperson calls 'blown' — it's lost its grip on the wall behind and is hanging on by not much. It doesn't automatically mean the whole wall is finished. Do the tap test properly f…
Is my furniture insured while a removal company moves it?
Most reputable removal firms carry goods in transit insurance, but it covers less than people assume, and the gaps are exactly where the arguments start. Standard cover pays out when the crew's own handling causes th…
Will the bricks on my extension ever match the rest of the house?
Honestly, an exact match is rare, and any bricklayer who promises one straight off is overselling it. Bricks are made from natural clay, so colour and texture shift from batch to batch, and the bricks already on your…
How do I know if my gutters need replacing or just repairing?
Start by separating three jobs people lump together: cleaning, repair and full replacement. A gutter that overflows in heavy rain has often just filled with leaves and moss, so clear it and check the fall first &mdash…
How can I tell if my house needs repointing, and how urgent is it?
Repointing means renewing the mortar joints between your bricks once the old mortar has worn back — it is not just cosmetic, because those joints are what keep water out of the wall. The clearest signs are mortar you…
My garden wall is leaning and cracking — repoint or rebuild?
A leaning wall and crumbling mortar are two different problems, and which repair you need depends on which one you actually have. If the mortar is soft, powdery or recessed but the wall itself is still upright and tru…
My double glazing has misted up between the panes — do I need new windows, or can just the glass be replaced?
Good news first: misting between the panes almost never means you need whole new windows. It happens because the seal around the sealed glass unit has failed and let moisture in, so the fog forms inside the double gla…
Can I legally repair my own gas cooker or hob?
For most repairs the answer is no — you need a Gas Safe registered engineer. Under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 it is illegal for anyone who is not on the Gas Safe Register to repair, s…
Realistic 2026 price for a 2.5 x 2.5 metre lean-to conservatory, with the old conservatory taken down and away, a strip brick and timber base installed, fully finished with plastering etc on a concrete foundation (already in place), with French doors and a solid roof?
A realistic 2026 budget for this job is £11,000–£15,000 including VAT, fully finished. Here is how that builds up for a 2.5 x 2.5m lean-to. The conservatory itself sits at the bottom of the lean-to band: £8,500–£10…
Do I need a burglar alarm for my bungalow
There is no legal requirement, and no planning permission needed in almost every case. Whether an alarm is worth it comes down to your insurance and your layout — and a bungalow's layout does change the maths. On a t…
How can I get scaffolding removed from my property?
It depends on whose scaffold it is and where it stands. If it's left over from your own project, contact the scaffolding firm directly — the scaffold belongs to them, not the builder, and quotes normally include disma…
How can I check if my builder has insurance?
Ask, then verify — never rely on a logo on the van. Every legitimate builder carries public liability insurance, and the accepted minimum for domestic building work is £2m of cover. Ask for the certificate before you…
How do I find a good builder?
Start with a shortlist of three, never one. Ask neighbours and friends who've had similar work done, and look for members of a recognised scheme such as the Federation of Master Builders or TrustMark — then verify the…
How big an extension can I build without planning permission?
Under permitted development (PD) rights in England you can often extend without a planning application, within limits. For a single-storey rear extension, the standard allowance is up to 4m deep on a detached house or…
How deep do foundations need to be for a single-storey extension?
There's no single legal depth — the honest answer is that building control decides on site, based on the ground your extension sits on. The factors that matter are soil type (shrinkable clay is the big one), nearby tr…
How do I compare fitted kitchen quotes fairly?
The trick is making every fitter price the same job. Kitchen quotes vary partly because firms include different things — one covers strip-out, plumbing, electrics and flooring, another quotes cabinetry and fitting onl…
How high can a garden wall be without planning permission in the UK?
The general rule under permitted development is that a garden wall can be up to 2 metres high without planning permission. That drops to 1 metre where the wall sits next to a highway used by vehicles or the footpath o…
How do I know how old my boiler is?
The most reliable route is the serial number. Every boiler has a data plate or sticker — usually behind the drop-down front flap, inside the case door, or on the side or underside of the unit. Most manufacturers encod…
How do I apply for a dropped kerb for my driveway?
A dropped kerb (the council term is a vehicle crossover) is an application to your local council as highway authority, and the process varies from council to council. Start at [gov.uk's dropped kerb page](https://www.…
How expensive are solar panels in the UK?
A typical home solar panel system costs £5,000–£9,000 fitted in 2026. The main driver is system size: a 3kW system runs £4,500–£6,500, a 4kW system (around 10 panels) £5,000–£8,000, a 6kW system £7,500–£11,000, and a…
How is scaffolding charged?
Scaffolding is almost always quoted as a fixed price for the job rather than a simple weekly rental. A standard quote covers three things: erecting the scaffold, dismantling it, and a hire period of around six to eigh…
How long do boilers last — and is it worth repairing or replacing?
A modern condensing boiler should last 12–18 years with annual servicing. What tends to fail along the way is predictable: diverter valves and printed circuit boards often need replacing at 8–12 years, at £250–£500 a…
How expensive is air conditioning to install at home?
For a fixed, properly installed system, UK air conditioning in 2026 costs £1,500–£3,000 for a single-room split system — one indoor wall unit plus an outdoor condenser, and the most popular choice for a bedroom, home…
How easy is it to replace a toilet — can I do it myself?
Honest answer: a straight like-for-like swap is one of the more achievable DIY plumbing jobs, but only in the right circumstances. If the new toilet is a standard close-coupled pan going in exactly the same position,…
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