Screwfix have just contacted us about this great deal! You can save £100 on this great SDS power drill. Its usually £349.99 – its now only £249.99!
Now this is a great drill! Firstly the power of an SDS drill (Slotted Drive Shaft) is so much greater than the normal hammer drill. It will eat walls all day and still want more.
Until recently the main drawback of SDS drills was their need for mains power and the associated leads. Now Hitachi have designed this beast which is powered by 24 volt battery alone. Instantly the ease and versatility of this power tool is appreciated by all knowing tradesmen.
It can easily take core bits used for larger applications like 40mm waste pipe holes. We didn’t try it on 110mm core bits (usual flue size) but we have a feeling it could cope with that aswell. All the time we felt safe because of the very effective mechanical safety clutch that overrides drive any time the drill bit snags.
The drill has three drive settings – normal drill, SDS hammer drill and chisel (really handy for chasing out walls, bricks and removing old tiles). It also has a variable trigger switch, replaceable motor brushes and a small lock off switch. The chuck is not keyless. At plumberparts we regard this as an advantage – keyless chucks never get the same grip as one that requires a key.
Best of all, it is supplied with two batteries! You can work away with one on charge and swap over as soon as that battery runs out. So many suppliers leave you needing to buy one more but not Hitachi.
Screwfix have kindly given the wink to plumberparts.co.uk about a great offer on this De Walt drill. It is usually £299.99 but is now only £149.99!
Right then. This power tool (the De Walt XRP DC988L1 to be exact) is for your more advanced DIY’er. It is used widely in the trade, a fact not lost on Screwfix who have come up with this remarkable offer.
It has all the usual attributes expected of a tradesman’s daily power tool – 40 minute battery charge, 13mm keyless chuck, a never ending list of torque settings, electric brake, replaceable motor brushes and most importantly of all…a rubber grip!
There are however pro’s and con’s. On the good side the drill has 3 speed settings which is unusual but handy. It also comes with a sturdy carry case. On the other hand, it is only supplied with one battery (a replacement is £63.98) which can stall your progress when pressed for time.
The lovely people at Wickes have created a special summer sale page only for those who visit plumberparts.co.uk!
So many products are on offer and with massive discounts. Not all the products are from the plumbing world and include up to 50% off garden equipment, screening, fencing, decking, lighting and power tools.
You could even save up to 30% on kitchen sinks, showers, baths, bathroom taps, designer radiators and outdoor watering facilities.
Below is an instructional video that outlines the installation of a shower pump. First, read this brief description about their use.
Shower pumps are now very common in the home and commercial properties. They are installed on systems where the head pressure is not sufficient to create a pleasurable shower experience. Shower pumps dramatically increase the amount of water used but most household water tanks will cope with the demand.
Shower pumps work using two impellers. This means they effectively pump two separate water supplies -the hot and the cold. Both are fed from the tank in the loft. Never attempt to install a shower pump on mains pressured water. It will damage the impellers and possibly void the warranty.
After the shower pump is your usual shower control which mixes the pumped water to the desired pressure. Most shower pumps come with push fit flexible pipe fittings to fit either 15 or 22mm. To buy a shower pump, click here.
Screwfix have currently got some great offers on power tools including the Dewalt power drill pictured here. Personally we always use Dewalt because of their power, reliability and willingness to supply new batteries if needed. The small extra cost for one of these drills does go a long way. Thats why our ears pricked up when we saw Screwfix were selling a Dewalt 18volt cordless drill set for only £89.99! Thats £110 cheaper than the usual asking price. It goes without saying that we already have them in our vans.
The Dewalt drill themselves have been designing and building power tool solutions for the domestic and commercial industry for over 80 years. All that technique and skill has not been lost on this particular model. It comes with a keyless chuck, one hour charger, 2 speed settings, 17 torque settings (not that you really need all that), electric brake and best of all – two batteries. It even has replaceable brushes on the motor!
That’s enough of our ranting. If you want to get in on this great offer, click here.
Below is an instructional video on how to install flexible pipe. First read this brief description.
Flexible pipe has obvious advantages over other pipe because of its malleable nature and ease of installation. The most common sizes are 15mm and 22mm. It is widely used for underfloor heating applications and unseen pipe runs in lofts, behind sinks and behind toilets and baths. It’s main disadvantage is aesthetically it is not very pleasing on the eye. Most plumbers will only install flexible pipe in unseen places, only leaving a copper tail visible.
Flexible pipes can be joined using compression fittings. Make sure you use the metal sleeves on all connections – compression or push fit to strengthen the flexible pipe.
Push fittings use a fixed rubber washer to create a seal around the pipe and fitting. The pipe is held firmly in place by a bladed collar, often referred to as a ‘Sharks’ Tooth’. All the components of the fitting are then held in place by a nut that you can tighten by hand.
Watch the video below for detailed instructions on how to fit flexible pipe.
Compression fittings in the world of plumbing are very common. They are a safe way to connect copper pipe without the use of heat making them popular with DIY’ers. Many different types of valves, tees, connectors and utilities require compression fittings in order to make them water tight and safe. That is why we at Plumberparts have created a simple instruction video for you to follow. First, read the description below:
Compression fittings work by the compression of an ‘olive’ between two tapered surfaces and the pipe itself. The two surfaces are the body of the fitting (be it a valve, connector or any other type) and the nut. Using a spanner and a pair of grips the nut is tightened. This exerts pressure on the olive and bites it onto the pipe.
Compression fittings work well if the pipe is clean and cut properly. Pipeslices are an excellent tool for such a job and are great in tight spaces.
When the pipe has been cut and cleaned, assemble the compression fitting by sliding on the nut and olive at both ends. Hold the compression fitting body tightly with a pair of grips and tighten the nut with a spanner. Its often said in the trade to not over tighten a compression fitting, leaving you more thread in the case of a leak and not distorting the olive or fitting. Generally a nut will need one whole turn after hand tightening.
Often people wrap PTFE round a compression fitting olive to make sure of a water tight seal
This instructional video could have you £’s in new taps. Often if you have a dripping tap and change the tap washer, the tap will still drip. At this point most people would give up and buy a whole new tap. Wait one minute and watch this video. It teaches you how to re-seat a tap. This means smoothing-off the metal plate that the tap washer presses against to create a seal. In hard water areas the seat can be prone to damage from scale but it can happen to all taps. Nevertheless a tap re-seating tool is a very handy piece of kit and can save you money. Buy one here.
There is quite a bit of chatter about Rated People on the Internet today. Plumberparts.co.uk thought they had better speak to customers, tradesmen and officials to see what it’s all about and if it works. Here is our review.
Rated People is a website that specialises in finding local tradesmen to carry out jobs for customers from plumbing to building and even gardening works. To register with them, click here.
The Benefits: As a customer wanting a certain job done, you can register with Rated People, post your job up, and three tradesmen within your area will be notified. They will then contact you and quote for the job. Best of all, if other people have used them already they will be ‘rated’ in a 0-5 star rating – making it easier for you to decide which tradesmen to select. So you get genuine customer ratings and it is quick and convenient.
As a tradesman the jobs come to you. No expensive costs advertising in local magazines and papers. Also they are local jobs so you have to travel less. So all you have to do is get a job, get paid and get rated. The better rating, the more jobs you get.
If you are interested and want more information on getting jobs or having them done by a Rated tradesman just click here!
