Practical tips on looking after your home plus a fortnightly roundup of what's on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds. Written by Martin Heap, your local handyman.
The Mop Fair winds up, then autumn takes over. Haunted town tours, harvest markets, a candlelit concert in the parish church, the start of the History Festival and ghosts at Chedworth for half term.
Read more about What's on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds: Mon 12th Oct to Mon 26th Oct 2026October arrives properly this fortnight. A beer festival in the parish church, a wool fair in the Corn Hall, two Mop Fair Mondays, ghosts at Chedworth and a Saturday on the 10th with more on than anyone can get round.
Read more about What's on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds: Mon 28th Sep to Mon 12th Oct 2026Heritage weekend is done and the town has settled back down, which is when the good small stuff starts. A sound bath, a jazz night, the horse trials in the park, and a last Saturday in September with more on than any one person can get to.
Read more about What's on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds: Mon 14th Sep to Mon 28th Sep 2026The schools are back and the town has got its rhythm again. Gifford Circus finishes its run, the brass bands are still going in the Abbey Grounds, and the second weekend brings Heritage Open Cirencester with twenty venues free to walk into.
Read more about What's on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds: Tue 1st Sep to Tue 15th Sep 2026Original timber casements usually came with a single latch. Modern insurers often want two locking points. Here's how to add a second lock without ruining the look.
Read more about Adding a second window lock to an older cottage: worth doing?Cheap garden lights look lovely in June and stop working in November. Here's what lasts through a wet, frosty Cotswold winter.
Read more about Outdoor lighting that survives a Cotswold winterA permanent BBQ spot is one of the best investments in a Cotswold garden. Built in the wrong place, it becomes the corner nobody uses. Five things to get right before you pick up a trowel.
Read more about Setting up a proper BBQ area: what to think about before buildingNot everyone who needs a ramp wants a permanent concrete one. There are sensible options from £60 to £3,000. Here's which suits which door.
Read more about Ramp options for a stepped front door: four choices, real costsFirst fortnight of the summer holidays, and there is plenty on. Brass bands in the Abbey Grounds, a hypnotist at Odd Socks, vintage tractors at South Cerney and craft workshops to soak up a rainy afternoon.
Read more about What's on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds: Mon 20th Jul to Mon 3rd Aug 2026Dripping from the spout, weeping from the wall, or a pipe that's burst since winter. Each has a different cause and a different fix. Here's how to tell.
Read more about Outdoor tap leaking? Three fixes before you call a plumberMost decking problems start underneath, not on top. A quick once-over before the July heatwave stops half the issues people have in August.
Read more about Decking maintenance before the real summer: what actually mattersA gate that doesn't shut on its own has almost always got one of the same few problems. Post leaning, hinges dropped, latch misaligned, or the ground's moved. Here's how to tell which.
Read more about Garden gate won't close properly? Four usual culpritsNot a garden makeover. A morning of small jobs that make the difference between a garden that feels loved and one that feels a bit neglected. Here's what I'd do.
Read more about Getting the garden ready for summer guests: a sensible half-day listUneven flagstones, loose rugs, that one tricky step into the kitchen. Most falls in older houses are predictable. Half of them are fixable in an afternoon.
Read more about Trip hazards in a period cottage: where to look, what to fixSilicone that's gone black or lifted at the edges isn't just ugly. It's a sign water is getting behind the bath. Left too long, it gets expensive. Here's when to act.
Read more about When it's time to renew bathroom silicone (and why the black bits are a problem)If the tap's leaking from the spout, it's usually the cartridge. If it's weeping from the base, it's the O-ring. Neither needs a plumber, both need the right bit of kit.
Read more about Replacing a dripping kitchen tap without calling a plumberThe placement matters more than the rail itself. Get it right and it gives real confidence. Get it wrong and it's in the way every time someone reaches for the soap.
Read more about Where to fit a grab rail in an older bathroom: three places, two rulesThe door shut fine in March. Now it's June and you're leaning on it. Wood swells, the house moves, and the gap that was there in spring has closed up. Here's the sensible fix.
Read more about Why doors stick in summer, and what to do about itTwo tiny screws adjust every hinge. Five minutes and a Phillips driver and the door lines up properly again. Here's which screws to turn.
Read more about Kitchen cabinet door won't close flush? It's the hinges.The kids are down from Edinburgh in July. Or the friends from Holland. Or the grandchildren for a week in August. A half-day's work makes the spare room feel properly welcoming.
Read more about Guest bedroom refresh for summer visitors: five small jobs worth doingNine times out of ten the tiles are fine. It's the grout that's gone grey, crumbly, and a bit suspicious-looking. Here's how to fix it without ripping half the bathroom out.
Read more about Regrouting bathroom tiles: the right way, and the fast wayMay and June, if the wood's ready. August if you missed the window. February is never the answer no matter what your brother-in-law told you.
Read more about When's the right time to repaint exterior woodwork in the Cotswolds?A fortnight with proper character to it. South Cerney Street Fair anchors the bank holiday weekend, with singing, a Napoleon lecture, an ABBA night and a couple of open gardens to round it off.
Read more about What's on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds: Mon 18th May to Sun 31st May 2026It sits somewhere between handyman and carpet fitter. Most people don't know who to ring. Here's how to work out what you need, how to price it, and what questions to ask.
Read more about Who replaces a stair carpet in Cirencester? And what should it cost?A roundup of recent events across Cirencester and the Cotswolds. Drumming circle, aerial circus, fried chicken at South Cerney, and a few things further out worth keeping on the radar.
Read more about What was on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds, April to May 2026You'd think a draughty window would mean a cold house. In summer it means a hot one, because the same gap that loses heat in February lets it in in August. Here's what actually works.
Read more about How to make an old sash window less draughty before summerHere's a roundup of what's been happening across Cirencester and the Cotswolds recently. Sing-alongs, history talks, craft markets, plus the first proper outdoor events of the year.
Read more about What was on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds, spring 2026Between jobs I try to get to as many local bits and pieces as I can. Here's a roundup of what's been happening across the back half of April. Markets, charity walks, sewing workshops and the odd film night.
Read more about What's on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds: Fri 17th Apr to Thu 30th Apr 2026A short roundup of what's caught my eye over the next fortnight. A spring feast on the Market Place, a folk gig in Tetbury, a wreath workshop and a mums' brunch club. Something for most tastes.
Read more about What's on across Cirencester and the Cotswolds: Wed 15th Apr to Wed 29th Apr 2026Pressure washers and Cotswold stone are a bad match. There are better ways to get it properly clean, keep the weathering character, and not have to redo it every year.
Read more about How to clean a Cotswold stone patio without ruining itA gentle push and the whole panel rocks. Nine times out of ten it's not the panel, it's the post. Here's how to work out which and what it'll cost to put right.
Read more about Wobbly garden fence panel? Here's what's usually wrongShort answer, usually yes, with caveats. Longer answer involves listed building consent, police-approved boxes, and why you don't want to drill into the front elevation if you can help it.
Read more about Can you fit a keysafe to a listed property in Cirencester?Short answer: twice a year, and more often if you've got sycamores nearby. Longer answer involves moss, jackdaws, and why your neighbour's leak is probably your problem.
Read more about How often should you clear the gutters on a Cotswold cottage?Every spring I get the same call. "The sills are sweating again and the paint's flaking." It's condensation, mostly. And the fixes are simpler than you'd think.
Read more about Why your stone window sills look damp, and what actually fixes itA neighbour in the Cirencester Community Group asked about clearing a small wall that blocks a front door. Sensible question, and there's a bit more to it than just swinging a hammer.
Read more about Thinking of knocking down a small front wall? Start here.Someone in the Tetbury group asked if a handyman could fit a turn-key lock to a door. Short answer: yes. Here's the longer one, because the right lock for the job depends on things a lot of folk miss.
Read more about Fitting a turn-key lock to an internal door: what you actually needNothing matches that filter yet. Check back soon.
