Here are a few of my hints and tips which you may find helpful if you are planning work on your home. Whether your project is DIY or you are getting professional trades in, there are always little details which can trip anyone up.
Electric Showers
When tiling around the cable and water pipe that have been put in, ready for connection, be very careful about how close to the pipe/cable you tile. I have had gaps too small to make the pipe connection (with compression elbow) and feed the cable into the shower unit. I have also had it the other way around where the hole was a little too big (see photo).
I recommend you get the shower unit out of the box. There is normally a paper template. Use the template to see where the pipe and cable need to come into the unit. Get a compression elbow or ask your plumber for one. You need enough space around the pipe to get the nut of the elbow through. If you put the elbow on the shower unit (hand tight only) and hold it up against the wall, you may find (depending on unit) that the elbow pokes out past the back of the unit. So for the unit to sit flush on the wall, you need enough space around the pipe for the elbow to go into.
Take care when leaving a gap around pipework/cable
Toilets
I have fitted £50 toilets and £300 toilets and basically the bits on the inside which make it flush and fill are the same. I have a £50 toilet in my home and its works reliably and effectively. I must admit I did swap the toilet seat for a wooden one as the one supplied was a bit flimsy and cheap.
So if you are thinking about a buying a toilet, don't feel you must get the most expensive one. Get the one you like the look of. In my opinion that is what you are really paying for. This advice comes with absolute no guarantees. Nobody can predict when toilets will go wrong.
Column Radiators
Column radiators are very attractive but expensive. Here is a quick comparison:
For each case we are looking at a 1.5kW radiator that is approximately 600x1200 (very typical radiator size and heat output)
1) Standard double panel radiator - approximately £100
2) Steel 3 column radiator - approximately £300
3) Cast iron 4 column radiator - approximately £500
Prices are just for the radiators and do not include valves and fitting.
So if you want basic, simple and effective then go with option 1.
If you want something a bit more fancy, go with option 2. This is what I have in my house. They are good for hanging/drying towels but keep in mind you can see the wall behind. The panel radiator hides all sorts of holes and old wallpaper. Another tip is that you need a good solid wall to fit these to. I use M6x70mm anchor bolts to take the weight. You can get feet for them if your walls are not strong enough. I would avoid the feet if you can. Another issue is dust collects on these more than the panel type radiators. I have a bendy bendy cleaning thing that goes into the gaps.
I don't quite see the benefit of option 3. It is another jump in price and the weight of these is such that you need two people to fit them. If they are good quality they should outlast the steel rads. Great if you buy a house with them in but is the life expectancy of your radiators a big factor? If you have good water quality in your heating system (serviced regularly) then the steel ones should last for 20 years or more. That feels like enough for me.
In the end it is just down to what you want. Don't let me tell you what to do. I just hope this gives you a bit of help to understand the options.
Top photo is a steel 2 column radiator I fitted (see new pipework joined to old)
Bottom photo is from my house. Note the feet sitting on a wooden block so you can carpet around them (bit of a pain). Also note the screw hole in the wall (not my work). Got to have tidy walls if you want to have column radiators.
Take care when fitting column radiators, walls need to be finished neatly and you may need support feet