Garden ponds are an excellent feature to have in any garden, a pond combined with a water feature, such as a small fountain enhances your garden, they help to create a relaxing atmosphere where you can just sit and chill out, listening to the sound of running or trickling water in the background. The pond can become the main feature of your garden, you just need to decide where to site it, as there are a few things to take into consideration before you start work.

How big and what shape do you want your pond.

Do you want to use a pond liner to create your own pond shape, or are you going to purchase a preformed fibreglass pond.

Do you want the pond to be sited in a sunny position (sunshine apparently encourages algae growth).     

Is your favourite site for the pond beneath any over hanging trees, as you will be constantly removing leaves from the water during the autumn months.

Do you need to consider child safety, will you need to build a fence around the perimeter of the pond and reduce the depth of your design to reduce any risks to young children.

Where do you want to site the pond in relation to where you sit out in the summer.

Do you want to add a water feature such as a fountain or waterfall.

What depth do you want the pond, do you want it to have different levels (Black pond liners give the pond a deeper look).

The pond will require an electrical supply for the pump, so check if it is practical to do this with regard to installing the cable from the pond to your property. (see pond electrical supply post)

When you have decided on the pond type (liner or fibreglass), size, shape and where to site it, you can mark out its position on the ground using small sticks and string. Make sure that you have a plentiful supply of rubble/strong bags if you intend to get rid of the dug out soil yourself, you may wish to order a small skip as it is quite surprising, depending on the size of your pond, how much soil you have to excavate. If you want to re-use any turf from the pond location, cut through the turf with a spade using the string line as a guide, remember to cut approximately 8 inches (200mm) out from the string line around the whole circumference, this is to allow for the pond liner overlap (which can be covered later with turf or stone slabs etc, then cut through the turf across the pond in straight lines approximately a spades width apart, now remove the turf by cutting through the soil just below the turf surface.

Excavate the soil to either the required shape and depth for the fibreglass pond, or to suit your own design for the pond liner, remove an extra 1 inch (25mm) of soil from your excavation and remove any sharp stones etc. Check your excavation is level using a spirit level, if not add or remove more soil as required. Now lay a soft base of damp building sand and pond felt or even old carpet, at least 1 inch (25mm) deep all around your excavation, this protects the pond shell or liner from any sharp stones, etc, that may puncture the pond base or liner.

Now place the fibreglass pond in the hole and fill any gaps around the sides with soft soil and sand and fill it with water to around 1 inch (25mm) below the top edge, if you have a pond liner, drape the liner over the hole, at this stage just get the liner in roughly the right position with an even overlap around the edges taking care not to punture it, place bricks or weights on the overlap edges to hold the liner flat and in position (see fig 1 below) then start to fill the liner slowly with water from a hosepipe, as the liner fills, lift the bricks slightly to allow the liner to slide slowly down and bed against the sides and base of your excavation, smooth out any folds in the liner as well as you can and fill it to around 1 inch (25mm) below the top edge of the liner. 

Allow several hours for the pond liner to bed into the excavation, then trim off any excess liner around the pond edge, I would leave an overlap of around 7 inches (180 mm) which can be covered with either turf or stone slab, etc. The pond can be lined with carefully placed smooth large pebbles (take care not to puncture the pond base or liner) which creates a rock pool effect, like the one in the video below which I think looks very effective.

The coals or briquettes can be purchased from DIY stores, garden centres, food stores etc.

Safety tips :- Take care when working at height, especially on ladders, if possible only use a hand grinder at height working from a scaffold tower, wear a face mask that covers both your mouth and nose, wear safety goggles. Use an extension lead fitted with an RCCD plug top, (see – Safe DIY practice).

Over a period of time, mortar in brickwork seams can become loose and break up due to inclement weather, when this occurs it should be repaired to avoid water penetrating the brickwork, which could result in possible damp problems within the property. 

Re-pointing brickwork is a very time consuming job, but can be carried out with only a few tools. Small areas of brickwork can be repaired using a ladder to reach the work area, but if as an example, most or all of the wall requires attention, I would recommend hiring a scaffold tower to work off, as you will be spending a lot of time working from it and you will be working with power tools at height, therefore you need to be comfortable, be safe and have both hands free. (see- Tool hire)

You should start re-pointing at the top of the wall and work your way across the whole wall, therefore I would re-point only three or four courses at each pass. Re-pointing from the top down will ensure any dust and bits of dropped mortar can be cleaned off as you move down and it won’t spoil the brickwork you have already re-pointed.

You can remove mortar from small areas of brickwork with a lump hammer and bolster chisel, working off a ladder. To remove the mortar in larger areas I would use a hand grinder with a diamond tipped disc working off a scaffold tower (don’t forget the face mask and safety goggles). Remove the mortar to a depth of around 3/4″ (20mm) and brush away any debris and dust from the seams, take care when using the grinder that you don’t damage the brick faces as you make the cuts.

Damp down the seams with water using a paint brush or water spray bottle before pointing the seam with the new mortar. The mortar mix should be stiff enough for you to ’slice’ it and push it into the seam with the finger trowel, if it is too wet it will just end up everywhere bar the seam. Dont mix too much mortar at any one time, otherwise it will ‘go off’ before you get a chance to use it. Try to mix the mortar each time using as near as, the same quantities of sand and cement, so the mortar is of a uniformed colour (see – Mixing concrete or mortar by hand). When the new mortar has started to set, strike / point the seam with your trowel or piece of pipe to give the brickwork seam a professional finish.

Decking is constructed from timbers such as Larch and Cedar, and although the timbers are very weather resistant and will have been pretreated with wood preserve, it will without a little maintenance start to look dirty and stained. Cleaning the decking once or twice a year will remove surface deposits that can create a slip hazard, especially during and after wet weather conditions.

To clean the decking, you can use a high pressure washer, or warm water with a little household cleaner, use a stiff brush to get any stubborn dirt, moss etc, out of the grooves in the decking timber, then rinse it down with clean water and let it dry out.

If you intend to paint over the decking with a preservative, you may have to sand the timber with a power sander to gain a clean stain free surface.

There are a wide range of wood stains / preservatives available for your decking, I prefer to use one that will soak into the timber rather than just coat it, this reduces the chance of it flaking off. I also always use one that dries with a clear finish, because I have seen decking boards that have been stained with a coloured stain, and after a few months depending on use, the colour starts wear to off the timber and it looks like it has not been maintained for years.

Try to use a good quality decking preserve i.e. Cuprinol, although brand names tend to be a little bit more expensive, in my experience, the finished results are usually very good and last longer. A little time spent maintaining your decking should ensure you get many years of use and enjoyment from it.

• How to remove an existing internal door
• How to cut and plane a new internal door to size
• How to mark hinge positions on a new internal door
• How to hang a new internal door in position
• How to fit the door handles and latch
• Preparing a new internal door for painting
• Painting a new internal door

Tip :- Screws that have been painted or varnished over will need to have the paint or varnish removed from the screw heads, this can be done using a small screwdriver, giving it a few light knocks will dislodge the paint or varnish, enabling the screwdriver tip to sit fully ’home’ in the screw head slots. Use the correct size of screwdriver to suit the heads of the screws you are removing, aside making the job easier, this will help to prevent the screwdriver tip from slipping and rounding the screw head slot (s).

Remove all the screws from the door frame side of the  bottom hinge first, have an assistant steady the door so it does not twist. Then remove all the screws from the door frame side of the top hinge.

The old door and wedges can now be carefully removed. 

Unless the existing hinges on the old door are in very good condition and of an appropriate size, I would discard them and fit new hinges to the new door.

Now you are ready to start hanging the new internal door.

 (see How to cut and plane a new internal door to size)

 (Back to main page :- HOW TO HANG A NEW INTERNAL DOOR)

When you have your new internal door unwrapped and ready to be fitted, look at the top and bottom edges for a key or lock symbol that may be stamped on either the left or right end of the door edge (as shown below), the stamped symbol is there to show you which side of the door the latch and handles should be fitted.

Most internal doors have an extra wide wood block on one side to accommodate the latch and handles, if there are no symbols stamped on the edge of the door,  the latch and handles will more than likely be able to be fitted on either side of the door.

Place the door against the door frame, then measure and mark how much of the door edges will need to be removed for the door to fit in the frame. You could use the old door as a template providing it was a good fit, simply place it on top of the new door and mark it out accordingly. Ideally you should have a gap of no more than 1/8″ (2mm) around the door when it is fitted. This is of course easier to sometimes say than do and depends on how square the door frame is. Remember to allow enough of a gap at the bottom of the door to clear any carpet or laminate etc.

Safety tip :- Remember to wear a face mask and safety goggles whilst using an electric plane as they emit a lot of dust and small particles when in use.

Tip :-  Cut and plane the door edges from the outside in, to avoid splintering the wood.

Should you need to remove more than 1/4″ (6mm) from the edges of the door, it will be quicker to make this cut with a wood saw and then hand / electric plane the edge flat and smooth afterwards. Try to cut and plane an equal amount of wood from each side of the door, more so if the door has panels, as the side rails should be the same width from the aesthetics point of view.

Don’t plane the whole amount of wood off in one go, keep trying the door in the door frame to check its fit, it is very easy to remove the wood, but you cannot stick it back on if you have planed too much off.

When the door is cut and planed to size you are ready to continue to the next stage. (see How to mark the hinge positions on a new internal door)

(Back to main page :- HOW TO HANG A NEW INTERNAL DOOR)

When the new door is cut and planed to size it is ready to have the hinge positions marked out. The hinge recesses on the door frame and door edge can also be cut using your wood chisel and hammer.

Place each of the hinges on the door frame where the originals were fixed in place, mark out around the new hinge with your pencil and cut out an appropriate recess to suit the new hinge with your wood chisel and hammer (see Fig 1). Whenever you are using the wood chisel, hold it with the bevelled edge facing the wood that will be removed (see Fig 2). Mark the fixing holes of the hinges on the door frame and drill small pilot holes (1/8″ 2mm) as straight as possible, for the screws, to reduce the chance of the wood splitting. Fix the new hinges in position with preferably cross head screws.

Use chisel with the bevelled edge against the wood that will be removed

Position the new door against the door frame, resting it on wedges at what will be its final fixed height (see Fig 3). The hinge positions on the door edge can now be marked out, try to get some assistance to hold the door in place whilst you mark the door edge. You can now cut the appropriate recesses in the door edge to accommodate the hinges, as with the door frame, mark the hinge fixing holes and drill small pilot holes for the screws. Now you are ready to hang the door in position (see How to hang a new internal door in position).

(Back to main page :- HOW TO HANG A NEW INTERNAL DOOR)

Now all the preparation work for fitting the hinges is complete, you can either fix the hinges to the door frame, or as I prefer, fix them to the door edge. For the time being fix the hinges in position using one screw in each of the hinge centre fixing holes, in case any adjustments have to be made.

Position the door against the door frame, and as before, rest it on wedges so it is at the correct height on the door frame. Fix the hinges in position temporarily with single screws in each side of the hinge. Check the door closes flush in the door frame and the gap between the door edges and frame is around 1/8″ (2mm). When you are satisfied with the fitted door, the remainder of the screws can be screwed in to hold the hinges in place (see Fig 1 ). Now the door is ready to have the latch and handles fitted (see How to fit the door handles and latch).

(Back to main page :- HOW TO HANG A NEW INTERNAL DOOR)

You are now ready to fit the latch, latch plate and door handles to the new door and door frame.

First of all, decide on an appropriate height for the door handles and mark the centre of the door handle on the edge of the door with a pencil, using a square mark this centre line for approximately 4″ (100mm) on the face of the door (the pencil mark can be removed later with an eraser or damp cloth).

Hold the door latch against the face of the door, flush with the door edge, and mark the spindle centre on your previously marked centre line (see Fig 1).

The holes for the door latch and spindle can now be drilled (see Fig 2). Measure the diameter and length of the door latch, the majority of  door latches are tubular so you only have to drill a circular hole using either a brace and bit or a battery / power drill with a suitably sized wood bit, or as I prefer, with a battery drill and hole saw, as I find this easier to control with regard to the drill cutting speed and keeping the hole straight and level. Don’t forget to add a few millimetres to the depth of the hole to allow for the recess that will be cut in the door edge for the front plate (forend) of the latch.

Drill the spindle centre hole through the door using a pilot drill, the hole can then be drilled with the correct size of bit (so the spindle can turn), from each side of the door to avoid the wood splintering. Cut the recess in the door edge, using your wood chisel and hammer, to accommodate the front plate (forend) of the latch and then place the latch in position, before fixing it in place, check the spindle passes through it and can turn freely, if not, make any adjustments necessary then fix the latch in position, if the door is hardwood, use a small pilot drill for the wood screws, if it is softwood use a bradawl or thin screwdriver to give the screws a ’start’.

The latch plate can now be fitted to the door frame, close the door ‘to’ and mark the centre of the latch tongue on the door frame. Measure the distance (as shown in Fig 3 as A) and transfer this measurement to the door frame. Position the latch plate in what will be its fixed position and mark out the door frame for the recess and any hole that will be required for the latch tongue, when these have been cut out using your wood chisel and hammer, the latch plate can be fixed in position on the door frame using whichever method is appropriate (pilot drill or bradawl).

To fix the handles to the door (see Fig 4), drill small pilot holes for the wood screws and check, dependant on the door handle shape, that the handles are square to the door edge before fully tightening the screws. Always use the correct size screwdriver to suit the screws you are using, a screwdriver slipping could easily scratch the door handle.

 (Back to main page :- HOW TO HANG A NEW INTERNAL DOOR)