Results from the UK’s biggest home and garden survey

The Home & Garden Survey was carried out in November and December 2009 by Homebase and surveyed a total of 208,257people.  As the nation gears up for the first long weekend of the year and paintbrushes, drills, hammers and pasting tables are dusted off, Homebase has revealed the causes of the most common DIY disasters following the biggest home and garden survey ever conducted in the UK.

Homebase, asked more than 200,000 people about their DIY experiences and were inundated with tales of hammer horrors, painting panic and far-from-fool-proof-flooring. The DIY disaster league shows that the number one project likely to cause a calamity is painting and decorating, followed by flooring, hammering nails, drilling and plumbing.

Men are most likely to find themselves in a spot of bother when hammering nails, while for women it’s decorating. One in ten women have had a disaster doing the painting and decorating while 15% of females claimed their biggest disaster when it comes to DIY is their husband! With more than 1,000 of those surveyed claiming to have sustained an injury as a result of a DIY disaster.

Despite a few problems along the way the vast majority of people are still keen to have a go at Doing-It-Themselves with only 10% of respondents saying they rely on the experts for the whole job and 80% of people saying they get pleasure from improving their home doing DIY.

Paint Pot

The Homebase DIY disaster league:

1. Painting and decorating
2. Flooring
3. Hammering nails
4. Drilling
5. Plumbing

Examples of DIY disasters shared with Homebase in the survey:

• Drilling holes through brand new central heating pipes 20 minutes before the carpet fitters were due to arrive
• Cutting an overgrown garden with a strimmer and hitting a stone resulting in a smashed conservatory window
• Hanging floral wallpaper upside down, with the pattern not matching
• Hammering a new shelf resulting in a flat screen TV being knocked off the other side of the wall and falling to pieces on the floor

Simon Yeomans, DIY category marketing manger at Homebase commented, “Easter weekend is always one of the busiest of the year for DIY with plenty of time to tackle important projects around the home. People are more likely to try something ambitious and our advice is to make sure you prepare well. Homebase has a series of ‘How To’ guides available in store and online for all the most popular projects with step-by-step instructions, top tips and the tools you need for the job.”

About Homebase

Homebase is the UK’s second largest home improvement retailer and is recognised for choice, style and customer service across the wider home enhancement market. It has more than 300 large, out-of-town stores throughout the UK and Republic of Ireland. In the last financial year, Homebase sales were £1.5 billion and it employed some 20,000 people across the business.
Homebase sells over 30,000 products across its home enhancement ranges, and has a growing Internet offering. Homebase serves 60 million customers per year through its stores and offers customers the convenience of home delivery for bulky, high-value items.

Homebase was the first UK DIY retailer to achieve Forest Stewardship Council Chain of Custody certification and the first national DIY retailer to be recognised with a Government TrustMark Award, achieved for its kitchen installation service.

Homebase is part of Home Retail Group, the UK’s leading home and general merchandise retailer.

Bathroom Design

As any interior designer will tell you, it is all very well choosing the right fixtures and fittings, but it is the finishing touches and how you dress the room that can draw a scheme together.

Lighting

Consider a staged lighting scheme so that you can choose lighting to suit your mood. Bright halogen downlighters will flood a room with white light creating a feeling of space. However, if you want a relaxing bath you may want something a little more subtle.

Floor level lighting shining on tiling or simple wall lights can help to create a subtle ambient light perfect for creating the feeling of a sanctuary. And don’t forget the mirror. Downlights can cast awkward shadows on the face when you look at your reflection. Wall lights mounted either side of a mirror create the ideal light for shaving or applying makeup. A three staged lighting scheme will help increase the versatility of your room.

For a more elaborate, period ambience your lighting may need to be more flamboyant. A dramatic chandelier in a large traditional bathroom is a real winner and will help to create an instant feeling of opulence. However, if you don’t have enough space, simple wall sconces can give create a similar effect of sumptuousness.