Do it yourself tasks for your outdoors during winter season

During the cold winter months it can be difficult to keep any outdoor space in perfect condition, but there are plenty of tasks you can carry out to ensure your garden or outdoor area is looking great for spring. The following tips will ensure you stay safe when working outside winter, whilst keeping your DIY tasks in order.

Winter DIY tasks could include :

Keeping the lawn in check: Although plant growth slows considerably in the winter months, there are still tasks that should be completed to ensure your lawn stays well aerated and good root growth is maintained.

A manual lawn aerator tool will help promote healthy root growth during the colder months, when excessive water may cause problems with your lawn. This may be especially important for clay-heavy lawns or areas with poor drainage. For larger outdoor gardens, try a powered lawn aerator which is an efficient tool for larger areas of grass.

Related Items : Powered Lawn Aerator, Portable Chipper

Checking your guttering: Set up a Ladder, being sure to follow the correct safety guidelines and clear out any excess muck and leaf litter from your gutters. If the ground surface is slippery, ensure you use a ladder safety foot to ensure a safer working environment.

Also ensure the guttering is securely fixed into the building, so take a power drill with you just in case.

Keep your hedgerows and plant life trimmed. Clear out any unwanted waste and mulch it with a portable chipper. This mulch will also acts as a great base for compost and plant bedding.

2.6kVA portable generator Ensure you have a safe source of power

You can ensure that working outside during the darker months can be improved by using a portable power source. By using a petrol generator, you can reduce the risk of accidents caused by trailing cables, whilst keeping productivity levels high.

For smaller power requirements, the 2.6kVA Portable Petrol generator is ideal for the task.

Telescopic floodlights: Maintain correct visibility at all times

Working outside in the winter can be a dangerous task without adequate lighting, so be sure to set up a lighting rig to keep you working. For small home DIY tasks, telescopic floodlights are a flexible lighting solution. For larger working areas, an 'all in one' lighting tower may be more suitable for maximum visibility.

Source: 'Hss Hire.com'

How to Sand a Floor doing it yourself?

DIY projects always attract my attention as there is a self satisfaction side along with saving money. Internet offers loads of information in this regard for home improvement, decoration and do it yourself ideas, tips, tutorials etc.

Having authentic wooden floors is a great way to add both warmth and character to any room. By stripping away old paint and dirt, you can create a great look at a fraction of the cost of buying new flooring.

Step 1: First, be sure to clear away all furniture and fragile items from the room, including curtains and soft furnishings. Also tape up doors and cupboards if they cannot be moved to prevent the wood dust getting in. Ensure you are wearing the correct breathing apparatus and protective clothing required for the task.

2- Sanding Hire Pack: Ensure the flooring is completely clear and any loose nails or potential hazards are removed. You can knock protruding nails well beneath the woods surface to prevent the floor sanding paper from tearing.

3- Floor Sander: Tidy up the wood panels before starting to sand, by making any necessary repairs to the panels and giving the floor a good sweep and vacuuming.

4- Sanding: Be sure to read the manual for the floor sander before starting any work. Load the floor sander with the appropriate sanding sheet, ensuring that it remains tight against the drum to prevent slipping. Why not find a rental center for your Floor sander hire to keep your costs down

5- Floor Edging Sander: Position the floor sander against one wall, with over half of the remaining floor in front of you. Keep the sanding drum elevated, and as you start to move forward with the machine gradually lower the sanding drum onto the wood flooring to start sanding. Be sure to sand with the grain.

6- Portable Dust Partition: Keep moving forward at a gradual pace, until you reach the end of the room. At this stage, lift the drum off the floor and turn around, ready to repeat the same procedure over the same area of flooring.

7- Light Duty Vacuum: When you have completed one pass, reposition the sander around 7cm across from the first area and repeat the process. Gradually you will reach the opposite side of the room, go over each pass evenly and carefully.

8: Turn off the belt sander and work on neatening up the corners and small areas not reached by the drum sander. Do this by using an edge sander; you can blend the two sanded areas together by a using semi-circular motion with the edge sander as you work towards the corners of the room.

Varnishing: If you are looking for a rich varnished style or even a “freshly sanded” look, it would always be recommended to finish the flooring with a varnish. This varnish will help to seal and protect the floor the stains, marks and damage from spills.

9: For a classic rich finish, always go for a quality varnish. Before applying the varnish however, it is always recommended to give the floor a vacuum to remove any dust and debris, which could become stuck in the varnish.

10: When applying the varnish to the floor, be sure to keep the room well ventilated, by opening doors and windows and even wearing a mask if possible. Begin applying the varnish with a wide brush in even strokes, which follow the grain of the wood.

11: Repeat the varnishing process across the whole floor, with at least 2 hours drying time between each coat. A minimum of 3 coats are recommended to give the floor maximum shine and protection.

12: Allow the floor to fully dry. At least 8 hours after the final coat is applied is recommended. Allow at least 72 hours drying time if the floor will be heavily used.

Link: More 'DIY Guides'

Creation of Crafts with pencil lead

Pencil is very commonly used and easily available object. Pencils come in attractive formats, color and shapes. The main part of pencil is lead which is made of carbon graphite. There are some artists who can create crafts with the help of wooden pencil, but it is strange to hear that the lead can be used to create amazing objects like 'alphabets, shoes, buildings and etc.

Dalton Ghetti is an artist who works with one of the toughest mediums around. His craft involves sculpting pencil lead into impossible to imagine images. Everything from a giraffe to a hammer can be made out of lead.

There have been artists who use pencils as part of their craft, but none use the smallest and most fragile part: the pencil lead. Dalton Ghetti has found a remarkable niche in the art world.


Most of the pictures shown in this post are created by Dalton Ghetti


Source and related links:

* 'Artisitic writing utensil creation photos at 'Trend Hunter'

* '25 peculiar pencils'



* 'Pencil Talk'   is a blog devoted 
to exploring woodcase pencils and related topics. The blog is ad free so user friendly and comfortable to read the posts.

* 'Sharp pencil lead crafts'

Another artists from Bosnia, Jasenko has created the following art

The chain in this picture is carved from pencil lead-
another artists work

Learn to design your own house

Do you believe that 'The basic elements of good home design can be learned and achieved by all?' I believe that you can make good changes in your home design yourself, and you just need some brain storming to do it. Internet can help you discover many sites which provide ideas, tips and home decor articles. These tips, and ideas can be easily adopted or re-designed according to your need or choice. Most of the DIY (do-it-yourself) sites offer easy to learn free tutorial or posts to design your home while saving money as well.

'Re-nest' offers “green” movement and the “home decor” ideas. It helps people to connect the resources they need to improve their homes, while saving money.

They believe that 'A calm, healthy, beautiful home is a necessary foundation for happiness and success in the world. Creating this home requires inspiration, connection to resources and motivation to do something about it.'

Mission: Helping people make their homes more beautiful, organized and healthy by connecting them to a wealth of resources, ideas and community online.

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• The Best Easy & Cheap DIY Home Tech Hacks
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