Main Page

Welcome to the uk.d-i-y wiki!

Here you will find articles on:-

• Plumbing
• Heating
• Electrics
• Lighting
• Building

and much much more...

You can access wiki articles by any of the following:

• Article Index
• Contents by Subject Category
• Random article
• Entering a keyword in the search box on the left

You can use the search function (in the sidebar at the left) to find particular topics (e.g. 'limescale').

About this wiki & uk.d-i-y

uk.d-i-y is a usenet "newsgroup". It was created at the end of 1994, and since then has grown into a very popular group which typically receives in excess of 6,000 postings per month!

You can get access to the group via Google Groups which will let you get a taste for what is on offer.

Some may be unfamiliar with newsgroups, and usenet in general. Newsgroups have existed on the internet for many many years, and even predate the creation of the world wide web itself. Although some web sites (including Google Groups) have been created that allow access to usenet, it is generally at its best when accessed using dedicated news reader software. For better ways of joining in the discussion, read newsgroup access tips

Do It Yourself (DIY) encompasses a vast range of subjects, with the common factor of ordinary people doing jobs for themselves that are within their abilities but which they would otherwise have to employ others to do for them. Another common factor is that many such jobs require the DIY-er to expand their skills and understanding - sometimes quite rapidly - to carry out the job successfully. Since a third factor is that many such jobs have already been tackled by other DIYers it is useful to learn from the experience of others.

In the UK the uk.d-i-y newsgroup has for many years been a valuable resource for exchanging information and, like many newsgroups, it has for some years had a web-based FAQ containing articles contributed and edited by a few individual 'regulars' of the group. Since wikis are by their nature DIY websites this uk.d-i-y wiki was perhaps inevitable ...

This wiki was started in 2006, and now has over 600 articles on a wide range of subjects. Articles range in their completeness and levels of polish, some are excellent, and some are still in need of more work. Since many articles are the work of only one or two people, they may carry the particular bias(es) of the author(s). (Viewing a page's history tab shows how the page has been edited and how many people have contributed to the process.)

It is hoped that people (this includes you!) will contribute their own particular skills - whether by writing new articles, improving existing ones or just pointing out where improvements need to be made (in content or in clarity).

• In order to post new articles or edit existing ones, you will need to login first.
• To create a login or user account, see Account Requests
• You can discuss this wiki on the talk (discussion) page
• All contributions to this Wiki are considered to be released under the GNU Free Documentation License.

Navigation

• You can use the search function (in left sidebar) to find anything (e.g. 'boilers')
• Here is a list of all articles (pages) in the wiki
• Here is a list of all categories of article
• Here is a list of new pages in the wiki
• Here is a list of recent changes in the wiki

Contributing

A wiki is a collaborative thing. You can contribute by adding to or improving the content of articles (even if just to corect speling improve and grammar). You can also help by letting other contributors know if an article is unclear, even if you can't help by clarifying it yourself: you can add comments on an article's "talk" page (click on the discussion tab at the top). It helps if you can be specific e.g. "It's not clear whether you should use a widget or a dongle for firkling a round tuit" rather than "article unclear". Talk (discussion) pages are also the place for suggestions for extending an article (e.g. "how about a section on where to get Round Tuits?") or splitting ("maybe the section about where to get Round Tuits should go in the Supplies article?") and so on. Please see Creating and Editing Articles for more info on, er, creating and editing articles.

If you would like an account to enable you to edit or create articles, then please request one here

Spammers please Note

Please be aware that there is absolutely no point in adding link spam to this wiki. The system has been configured to emit "no follow" tags on all pages. The wiki administrators will delete or revert any damaging changes. Hence any spam links that you post will be neither seen or indexed via search engines. You (or your client) will not gain any benefit from doing this.

The wiki administrators will ban users who spam - and if needs be, permanently.

External Links

• uk.d-i-y newsgroup (Google groups web interface)
• uk.d-i-y FAQ website
• DIY Advice and Articles
• Glossary of trade terms (from HonestBuilder.com)
• Wikibooks: Do-It-Yourself (from the people who brought you Wikipedia)
• UltimateHandyman.co.uk Illustrated articles on DIY basics.
• DIY Wiki with many illustrated articles (USA)
• Rudiments of Wisdom by Tim Hunkin. Light hearted but informative.