The latest news RELEASES, PRESS RELEASES and developments from diy doctor and our associates
DIY DOCTOR NEWS PAGES UPDATE
Due to the popularity of our Blog, Facebook and Twitter pages we have now moved our news information services over to these areas so for all the up to date DIY Doctor, building, construction and DIY Doctor associates news click on any of the links below:
Archived News Page Stories Follow Below:
DIY flooring made easy
Buying and laying vinyl flooring has been made easier thanks to Gerflor’s new on-line store: www.gerflorstore.co.uk. This convenient internet shop is dedicated to Gerflor’s luxury vinyl tile and plank floorings, which come ready-to-install.
Now it is possible to buy top class looking floorings at down to earth prices from a world-leading flooring manufacturer, which specialises in east-to-fit, DIY floorings.
The site itself offers a handy service allowing you to browse for a new flooring, order free samples before you purchase and buy products that are delivered straight to your door, ready-to-install.
In total there are ten tile and plank flooring ranges with many designs and colours to choose from. Some authentically replicate wood, stone and ceramics, whilst others are either modern twists on classics or very contemporary.
All Gerflorstore floorings are warm and comfortable underfoot and feature a hardwearing, hygienic and easy to clean surface finish which requires only minimum maintenance. Not only do these floorings provide cosy, quiet and practical alternatives to wood and stone but also lightweight solutions for upstairs rooms where weight issues can prevent heavier floorcoverings from being installed.
Common to all Gerflorstore floorings is the pre-applied, commercial quality, adhesive backing making them quick and easy-to-fit without needing separate adhesive, specialist skills or tools, other than a sharp cutting knife.
The adhesive is pressure sensitive and will only set firm once pressure is applied allowing for positioning. It will then automatically form a perfectly sealed, waterproof join, as it cures, remaining firm even in bathrooms. Additionally, should a tile or plank need replacing, the adhesive can be re-activated by safely applying a little heat.
Prices at Gerflorstore range from £8.99 per square metre to £29.99 per square metre. Also available is Gerflor Floor Primer at £9.99 per bottle, which covers between eight and twelve square metres depending on the condition of the subfloor. Its use will ensure good subfloor preparation and adhesion by isolating any existing contaminants such as paint, plaster, oil and grease when applied before a new flooring is laid. Its use also forms part of the product warranty.
Products at Gerflorstore include: Caractère Distinctive and Caractère Elegance, 100% recyclable, mineral composite, tile ranges that emulate real stone and wood. Luxury vinyl plank ranges, Senso Classic, Senso Rustic, Senso XXL, Senso GripX and Senso Origin. Plus Prime, Aqua and Design, cost-effective floor tile ranges which contain both trend setting designs and classic wood and ceramic effects.
Take a look at their new 'Laying Vinyl Flooring' project and for
further information see www.gerflorstore.co.uk
Click the image above for a larger view!
Come and see the DIY Doctor at the National Home Improvement Show!
If you are contemplating some DIY projects yourself and you need some practical help, DIY Doctor will be running the 'Tricks of the Trade' stage at the show from Friday 1st - Sunday 3rd October 2010.
Mike Edwards will be presenting seminars and demonstrations over the three day show on 'How to Skim Plaster a Wall', 'How to Tile a Bathroom', 'How to avoid Cowboy Builders' and a 'DIY Disasters' comedy show.
All the seminars are free - so come along and pick up some advice and tips from the DIY Doctor himself!
There are still some free tickets available for the show - so if you would like the info to register online for 2 FREE TICKETS just send us a stamped, self-addressed envelope to:
Free Ticket Offer, DIY Doctor Ltd, Block 1 – Suite 2 Lakeside Park, Mells, Frome, Somerset, BA11 3RH.
This gives you a saving of £24!!! So get your tickets and come along to the 'Tricks of the Trade' stage and come and say hi to the DIY Doctor team!
A bit of information on Mike Edwards - the DIY Doctor!
After leaving school at 15, Mike gained a scholarship to attend Civil Engineering College in Norfolk where he studied as a Quantity Surveyor.
After establishing many contacts in the construction Industry from all over the UK, Mike left college and started a Building Company which he ran for almost 25 years.
Employing 13 tradesmen in its peak, his Company built new houses and extensions but specialised in the refurbishment and renovation of period properties.
Mike has always been interested in the principles of construction and always made a point of explaining to his customers how and why their houses were constructed the way they were. This became a unique selling point for the Company as, after explaining how their “house worked” Mike was able to show many people how to save money by doing many of the jobs themselves.
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In 1999 (with the winters getting colder and Mike getting older) he hit on an idea for continuing the DIY message in the relatively new Internet market. After a trip to a DIY “shed” one evening he was dismayed at how little the staff at the store knew about the products they were selling.
He contacted the Head Office at Homebase to offer his services via the newly built DIY Doctor web-site. In 2001 the website became “Homebase’s DIY Doctor” for a trial period of 3 months during which he answered over 2000 questions from Homebase customers about the best tools and materials to use for a variety of projects.
After the trial period however, Homebase told Mike that (as DIY Doctor was such a new, small company) it could not possibly pay for such a service and DIY Doctor should continue to serve Homebase customers for free. Mike was convinced there was a market beyond Homebase, declined the “offer” and DIY Doctor has not looked back. The website now attracts over 100,000 unique users every week
The website www.diydoctor.org.uk was launched to give free DIY advice to homeowners while at the same time selling targeted advertising space to suppliers of building products and services.
After studying marketing at The University of East London and 10 years on the website; helping hundreds of thousands of DIY enthusiasts every month; Mike & DIY Doctor now also help small to medium building companies market themselves.
In 2008 Mike was approached by the best selling “Teach Yourself “ series publishers, Hodder Publications and was asked to write Teach Yourself Basic DIY. The book has sold in its thousands and a 2nd run was published earlier this year. You can buy the book by clicking on the link on the home page of the website.
Mike is now invited to attend all the trade, DIY and home improvement shows in the UK to give seminars on DIY projects and problems and how to get the very best results with limited resources.
Regularly invited onto both national and local radio, and appearing on TV programs such as Watchdog and BBC current affairs news programmes, Mike is a fierce campaigner for driving Cowboy Builders and Rogue Tradesmen from the building industry. To these ends he is soon to launch a full Cowboy Control system which is certain to take the UK by storm as it will be available to every home owner across the Country.
To find out more about Mike or DIY Doctor please email office@diydoctor.org.uk or call 08456 342179
New Water UFH Thermostat For Bedrooms with En-suite from Heatmiser
How best to control underfloor heating in an en-suite has always been open to debate, some installers choosing to link off the bedroom zone, whilst others prefer to create a separate zone that can be controlled independently.
Given the choice, most home owners would opt to zone the en-suite as it gives a greater level of control of their heating system, but at the same time they are always looking for ways to reduce the number of items on the wall.
The Heatmiser 2 Zone Touchscreen Thermostat (PRT-2TS) answers this problem by enabling the user a single point of control for the bedroom and en-suite.
It has been designed to control the air temperature in the bedroom, via the built in sensor, and the en-suite air or floor temperature via the supplied 3 meter remote probe.
A 12v network model (PRT-2NTS) is also available
For further information visit www.heatmiser.co.uk
DIY Doctor will be appearing at the National Home Improvement Show again this October at Earls Court, London.
We have been invited to run the 'Tricks of the Trade' stage, and will presenting seminars and demonstrations over the three day event on'How to Skim Plaster a Wall', 'How to Tile a Bathroom', 'How to avoid Cowboy Builders' and a 'DIY Disasters' comedy show. All the seminars are free - you can just turn up.
The National Home Improvement Show runs from Friday 1st to Sunday 3rd of October, and is the place to go for all the practical products and services, ideas, advice and inspiration you need for your home and garden.
DIY Doctor has a free ticket offer for their users which gives you two free tickets to the show!
Just send an SAE to us at:
Free Ticket Offer, DIY Doctor Ltd, Block 1 – Suite 2 Lakeside Park, Mells, Frome, Somerset, BA11 3RH.
We will then send you the information to register online which guarantees your two free tickets, saving you £24!
Don't forget, if you come to the National Home Improvement Show - come and see us at the 'Tricks of the Trade' stage and say hello!
DIY Doctor is asking for your help to repay a 10 year old debt.
In 1998 the building company owned by what is now DIY Doctor Ltd was refurbishing a house in London. This house was owned by a lady called Katie Fried and her husband Ben. Katie, amongst other things, was one of the synchronised swimmers representing the United Kingdom in the Aquatics World Championships in Perth, Australia, in that year.
Despite the pressures on her and her family, with International training, a full time job and her house being torn to pieces by a bunch of guys with hideous builders bums, Katie stayed cool and allowed us to take photos of many of the projects we were undertaking for her. The idea of DIY Doctor had recently been conceived and we asked Katie & Ben if we could kick it off by using projects from their renovation work as examples on the website.
They were not only pleased to help us, but spent many hours discussing the DIY Doctor idea with our owner; even asking their many friends, associates and colleagues for feedback (on our behalf) on the idea of a DIY Doctor information and advice site.
The feedback was all positive and it is largely due to Katie & Ben that DIY Doctor had something to put on its pages when it launched! You can see some of the work we did for them through the links at the end of this piece.
The real point of this press release is to say that we now have the opportunity, with your help, to repay the favour to them, especially to Katie.
Katie retired from International swimming and started a unique company called Aquabatix. Aquabatix takes synchronised swimmers (many of them Great Britain's International team) and presents spectacular events and performances at venues across the world. These performances are used to enhance Corporate events such as the opening of International Sports Arenas and production of high quality advertising campaigns including Red Bull Flutag and My Speedo. They even put on a party performance for David Walliams and his new wife Lara Stone at 
their wedding in May.
Now Aquabatix have been voted one of the top four event company finalists in the UK. The winner will be picked by public vote and we plead with you to help us get Katie and Aquabatix the prize this amazing hardworking lady deserves. You can vote by clicking here and ticking the Aquabatix box.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NJC3MB5
You can also see some of the work we did for Katie and Ben on the following pages.
Laying a timber floor: Sanding a timber floor:
