My Favourite 10 DIY Tips & Tricks

Great tips as always . I’ve cut blinds using my mitre saw and I put tape around the end I was cutting and got a really neat cut

Good stuff as usual one tip I was given when starting woodworking was when using a square to draw a line place the pencil on the mark you made when measuring where you wanted the line and slide the square up to the pencil that way the line you draw will be on the measurement you made. Hope that made sense! That’s why we like YouTube as a picture says a thousand words!!

Some great tips for the DIYer, Stuart. As a pro carpenter and cabinet maker I do a lot of measuring and have found a couple of things that work for me. Firstly I always have a folding carpenter's rule for measuring/marking along flat surfaces. I find it much easier than the 100mm method, plus it's useful for measuring in from walls, inside cabinets etc. For measuring between walls, cabinet side panels, reveals etc, I just use a laser measure, even for short distances. Offer it up and press the button, job done. With "trapped ends" eg skirting or batten between walls, it's always good practice to overcut the length you're fitting by a few mm then nibble it on the chop saw to shoot it in. Last tip: the rubber grips on those Stanley tapes can be used as pencil erasers!

Picture frame trick for some ppl!!! Would be to use a forks tines on the hook then slide the wire between the wall and the fork. The fork guides the wire onto the hook. Then remove the fork.

That string line tip is an absolute game changer. I used it today putting in some fence posts

Brilliant as always. Having always being an enthusiastic DIYer, I have learnt some really useful tips and tricks. The one thing that I have learnt which stands out most is that I have now become really fussy about the end product and have learnt that there is only ever one absolutely correct way to get a great project finish. This is extremely satisfying.

Thanks Stuart, the string line is easily the best tip here, use it all the time now, most of the others I've heard of, or have worked out myself over the decades, wish I could have found them all in one place like this way back then !

Great tips Stuart. I always keep a roll of cling film handy for wrapping brushes, etc if I'm not cleaning them straight away.

And i was sitting here feeling smug that I knew all this UNTIL YOU BLEW MY MIND with the picture frames 🤣

Great vid as usual Stuart - down to earth, mixed with an occasional quirky look to camera, solid no faff tips, in fact proper DIY. I wonder how many 'innocent' good folk who just want a quality presentation have had to suffer the total incoherent waffle of silly nonsense BS DIY...loads, including me! My warm thanks.

For the paint roller or paint brush trick, I wrap in cling film which works really well. I also use this on a bucket of wallpaper paste if I have to continue the next day.

Nice one Stu. An idea for your channel: Get people to contribute to a wishlist of items they'd like you to cover - if enough people request it, you know it will be popular before you make it - my current hobbyhorse repairing cracks in concrete oaths and drives.

The trouble with drilling into plasterboard with brad point bits is that they are very sharp. If you hit a wire or a pipe there's a good chance that you will damage them. Masonry bits are quite blunt so there's much less chance of damaging anything behind the plasterboard that you don't want to hit.

Stuart, you should be on the BBC. Great tips, great presenter and great editing.

Just found your channel this AM, outstanding format, explanations, speed, and subjects. I've been woodworking for over a decade and have always been underwhelmed with woodworking DIY videos. You've knocked it out of sight. Off to start from video #1! Thanks from the US.

When I need to mark a location for screws or fixings on a "finish surface" (such as a wall, a floor or a work surface), I put down a piece of painters tape and make the mark on the tape. I then make a dimple with a nail / center punch (or put a drill on the mark and run it in REVERSE) to start it. Once you have your hole, carefully remove the tape (so it doesn't lift the paint off of the wall etc.) and there you are!!

Surly the best tip is to watch all of your videos and you will not go far wrong. Everything you show is very easy to follow and well explained with added humour. Kids would excel at school a lot more if teachers took a leaf out of your book.

Hi Stuart, Thanks for these, I really like that string-line trick, I've struggled with untying them for years.

I'm a landlord, and all your tips cover what I am doing on a regular basis, you have either helped me to achieve a better job or save time, especially the blinds. I think I will buy a cheap blind just to try it. Thanks

3:00 frequently the body of the tape measure is a certain size, and it's marked on the casing. So you can put the end of the tape in one corner and just pull the tape until the back of the body is against the other corner. Now just add the size of the body to your measurement.