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1. Place a post in the corner of the frame you created with the pegs and string. Measure and mark out 100mm from each side.
2. Dig out this soil to a depth of 700mm (watch out for cables or pipes). You should have a 300 x 300mm hole. Repeat for the other 3 corners.
3. Using a brick bolster, split a concrete block in two. Put a section of the block in each hole.
4. Get a length of post longer than you need and place one in each hole. You can cut it down later.
5. Create props on each post to hold them in place until you’re ready to add a cement mix. Check that they’re level. When you’re happy that they are, secure them in place with a concrete mix, making sure you create a slope in the concrete so that rainwater runs away from each post. When the concrete is set, remove the props.
6. Create a string line around each corner post and find the centre point between each. Place a timber batten at each point, ensuring that they’re not spaced any more than 1500mm apart.

1. Working from the corner where the deck will be at its highest above ground level, measure and mark on the post where the highest part of the frame will be.
2. Measure from the far side of one post to the opposite and cut sections of joist to size. Line up a piece of joist with the mark you made and temporarily secure it. Factor in a 2mm fall for every metre of decking so rainwater can run off.
3. Secure the frame to the other corner post, ensuring it’s at the right level. Do this for every side of the outer frame.
4. Using 100mm coach screws with washers hanging on the end, secure each end of the four sections of frame.
5. Mark out where the centre of the support posts will be and secure all of these posts to the frame, except the centre post.
6. Add your central support joists. These should run in the same direction as the deck boards will run. You’ll need to measure from the inside of the frame on one side to the inside of the frame on the opposite side. Attach the joist in the same way as you did for the other posts. Repeat so the centre post is in between two sections of frame and secure the posts with concrete.
7. Trim down all the posts to the correct height using a saw.
8. Add your weed-control fabric and weigh down with gravel across the entire area.

1. Measure 400mm from the centre of the outer frame and mark a line. This will be where the first joist is positioned. Repeat at 400mm intervals down the length of the frame – if the last one will be more than 400mm, add another joist to create enough support.
2. Attach a joist hanger to each end of the joist.
3. Place the joist in position so the centre lines up with the 400mm spacer mark.
4. Secure using external grade screws once you’re happy that the joist is flush with the frame.

• Blade material Artificial grass is made up of lots of individual blades, just like real grass. The blades are made of plastic and are sewn to a backing material. To help keep your artificial grass looking great for longer, a blend of blades made from nylon and polyethylene are best. Nylon is extremely resilient, but isn’t very comfy to walk on, so adding the polyethylene which is still very strong helps to keep it feeling nice underfoot.
• Backing material The backing material holds all the artificial grass blades together. It’s made of two layers: a membrane that the grass is attached to, and a section that’s usually made of latex or polyurethane and bonds everything together. When you’re choosing your artificial grass, ask for samples – try to pull away the backing material. If it comes apart easily, steer clear of that type of grass.
• The artificial grass’ use The lifespan of your artificial grass will depend on how much traffic it gets. It’s best to invest in strong nylon or nylon-blend turfs where it’s going to get walked on regularly, such as on a pathway to a door. Of course, if the artificial grass is more ornamental, a lower-quality product will last a long time.
• Good installation One of the main things that will help your artificial grass last a long time is effective installation. If artificial grass is laid badly, it might suffer from poor drainage and weeds which will reduce its lifespan. It’s always best to get your artificial grass installed by a professional since they’re trained in fitting it to a high standard.

Nothing provides you with more relief during the hot summer months than having a fully functioning air conditioning system at home. If you seek to keep your surrounding cool, then your best bet would be to install an air conditioning system. The system functions mainly by transmitting air over a specific temperature to outside from the inside and then replaces it with the cooled air. The outcome of this is a comfortable, conducive and relaxing environment to live, play or even work. Asides the cooling advantages provided by air conditioning systems, they’re also able to deliver other great benefits like removing pollutants and improving the indoor air quality of your living space. What’s more? They also feature filters which works to keep out both insets and parasites. So when making a purchase decision, most homeowners are usually concerned about the cost of buying and installing these air conditioners. If you’re also interested in knowing the cost, here’s what you need to know.

There are different types of air conditioning units with each having it own unique prices. Let’s have a look.

✓ Portable air conditioning unit - £300 to £600

✓ Fixed air conditioning unit - £800 to £1000

✓ Installation Charges - £130 to £200 per day

The prices of these air conditioning units varies depending on a number of factors. Some examples of these price influencing factors include the height of the ceiling, the exact number of both the doors and windows, construction or design of the property and finally, the number of people it can cover at a go.

You need to determine the air conditioning unit’s size as well as the size of the area. Generally, a ton of AC unit is perfect for cooling an area of about 400 square feet.

What is your garage being used for? If your answer is anything besides your vehicle, you’re in the majority in the UK. In the country, according to a research by Admiralty Loans, several home and property owners now use their garage as dumping ground for all sorts of stuffs asides a car. Ultimately, this gives rise to garage conversions as the more or less underutilized space can be converted into a living space which can be more beneficial while also adding more value to the property.

A garage conversion is a fast and relatively affordable route to adding more floor space within your home. It’s basically the act of changing your garage into something other than a storage or a place in which you can park your car. This can be anything from a bedroom to a playroom and anything in between. It’s a great way to provide extra space to allow your family to spread out and have more privacy while still within the walls of your home.

A garage conversion project is a huge one which mostly does not require a planning application so far the conversion is internal. However if you’re planning to increase the garage’s size or change the exterior of your home, or convert your garage into a separate room, then you may require a planning permission before getting started. It’s always wise to consult your local authority before carrying out any work to be on the safer side.

A project of garage conversion’s magnitude is better left to a reliable professional who have the experience when it comes to dealing with building regulations and more. This way, you’d also get to save yourself some headaches and some extra cash which may result from possible costly errors.

To ensure your boiler is functioning efficiently and to keep your home warm, it’s important to see that your boiler is serviced on a regular basis by a licensed boiler engineer. Failure to do this can result in sudden boiler breakdown which can be a hard hitting blow to one’s financial power especially when there’s no boiler cover to cushion the blow or totally avoid it all together.

When your boiler is covered, it implies that you’re protected in the event whereby your boiler or it’s controls malfunctions or break. Several boiler cover will include the servicing cost, while some may not so it’s advisable to always go through the details, no matter how small, before entering into a boiler cover agreement. Typically, a boiler cover will cost between £60 to £100 per year and the payment is made on a monthly basis. Various boiler insurance companies have varying cover cost, however, here are the common boiler cover policies:

• Homeserve charges from £13 per month

• EDF Energy costs from £13.29 per month

• British Gas from £12 per month

• Scottish Power from £13.13 every month

• CETRI UK charges from £13.50 every month

• 24/7 home rescue costs from £9.60 every month

• Gorgi Home Plan costs from £6 per month plus 3 months free

• Your repair charges from £9.60 per month

• NPower Boiler Cover costs from £10.92 every month

• SSE Boiler Breakdown Cover charges from £4.95 every month

It’s important to note that sometimes you have the option of adding your boiler cover to your existing home insurance, if you do not want a standalone policy for your boiler cover. In many scenarios, this is referred to as an extra or add on service referred to as “Home Emergency Cover. When compared to the standalone boiler policies, this is usually a lot cheaper as it comes in around £5 per month.

Smart EV charger is basically a set of functionalities in EVBox charging stations which allows the owner of the station to run several charging stations in a manner that’s cost effective and energy efficient. The word “smart, technologically speaking can mean a number of things, but generally it simply implies automation or your device’s ability to connect to other devices. Talking of smart ev chargers, this enables your charger to communicate with your car, the electric grid, as well as the ev charging infrastructure or other chargers. In other words, this means that any time you plug in your car to charge, the charger is able to transmit data to the charging operator. This operator can then make use of this data to identify the best time for you car to be charged and as a result, puts much less pressure on the grid and could also turn to be very cost effective in the long run.

Here are some of the primary benefits of smart ev charging

• They’re a lot quicker than three-pin plug. This is perhaps the most obvious benefit you can get from a smart ev charger. Overall, the charging time is much shorter due to fact that it possesses up to 3 times the power of a three pin plug.
• Schedule the charging to suit your lifestyle. If your ev home charger is connected to the internet, there are additional benefits you can derive from it. These includes being able to sync it with your calender. Once you add your schedule to the smart charger app, your ev will be well charged and ready to go any time it’s needed.

Solar thermal panels are panels that can be used to heat your hot water. The collectors, which are either evacuated tube panels or flat plate collectors, harness heat from the sun and transfer it to a heat transfer liquid that heats up water that is stored in a hot water cylinder. You can use a boiler or immersion heater as a back-up in the winter or to heat the water up further to reach the right temperature.

Evacuated tube panels involve a bank of glass tubes mounted on the roof tiles, and while they’re usually more expensive, they’re more efficient than flat plate collectors. They’re exactly what they sound like – flat panels that can be fixed onto your roof tiles or integrated into the roof.

Having a solar thermal system will reduce your energy bills since heat from the sun is free, so you won’t have to rely on your traditional heating as much. You’ll also be doing your bit for the environment – if you have a natural gas heating system, you could save up to 295kg of CO2 every year.

Another benefit to solar thermal panels is that you might be eligible for payments through the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI), which is a Government scheme to encourage people to take up renewable heating technologies. As long as you have your system installed by an MCS-registered installer and you meet a few other requirements, you could receive payments of up to £525 per year for seven years. And since the average solar thermal panel system costs £5,500, you could pay off over half of your system just with these payments. That’s not even considering that you could save up to £60 a year on your energy bills if you have a gas system.