Episode 15 Getting the Builders In

For us Brits, our home is our castle.

-Wow!

-I know.

Oh, my goodness.

-Amazing.

-Amazing!

But keeping it how we want it...

Got the complete DIY manual!

..takes a lot of work.

-Have you been up that chimney?

-Human sweep, I am.

And getting the builders in...

-What time do you call this?

-..can be a daunting task.

To be fair, John, I think they built the Great Wall of China quicker.

That's a work of art, that. Look.

So we've asked tradesmen from all over the country...

Still alive. I feel like a doctor.

..to go up against each other.

If you get it, you can give it to us, all right?

Yeah, we'll savvy it out. I want it painted.

Each home owner hears three quotes...

£1,650.

-Need a stiff drink yet?

-Get in.

-Get in.

..before picking the best one for the job.

Told you.

But there's a sting in the tail for the winning builders

as their rivals get to watch them at work.

We haven't got a key.

Uh-oh!

-I don't like the idea of this at all.

-No.

Do you feel sorry for the boys, John? No!

We're kicking off in the north-west, in an old mining town,

where the average terraced house costs around £80,000.

We're up north, in Farnworth, near Bolton.

This terraced house has been home to Sarah and John for just two months.

It took a while before it was habitable,

because it had rising damp and it had problems with the roof,

and it had... There was no working boiler.

Because of all the work that's been done on the house,

it's really a mess now.

-It's a project, though, isn't it?

-It's a project, yeah.

While there's work to be done throughout,

there's one room they just can't live with any longer.

The real problem is the bathroom.

We've got a lovely cast-iron bath,

but I think it was probably put in in '73, when the house was made.

We've got tiles in there that were also probably from about '73,

that have been painted over.

The sink's a bit high.

Yeah, I think it's too high for me, to be honest.

-To have it low down a bit.

-Yeah, about that height, maybe.

I've got a form of dwarfism.

Obviously, it affects reach.

-Having a lower sink would be...

-That would be very...

-..ideal in the bathroom.

-Yeah.

Getting the bathroom right for these two isn't just a question of

aesthetics. So how much have they got for the job?

Well, the budget is £3,000 at the very most.

You know, we've got so many rooms to do,

we don't really have more than that to spend on any one room.

Because of the house being 1970s,

we were thinking of sort of maybe having a 1970s look.

Yeah, like 1970s inspired.

Well, if you're looking for a '70s throwback,

time to meet today's builders.

Bucketing it down.

Still smiling, they are not letting the rain dampen their spirits.

It's lovely.

Should have been a duck!

Not the weather for hairspray.

And they're all hoping to walk away with the job.

Do you actually know where you're going this morning?

Well, I could put my satnav in, but we're only five minutes from home.

First in to quote are family firm Tracy and her hubby, Vic.

What bathroom did you have in the '70s, then?

-Can you remember?

-Avocado. You won't be able to remember the colour.

It was avocado. I remember it well.

Hey, look at that! We've got a Banksy.

Tracy and Vic know the key to any successful relationship is communication.

He doesn't always listen to me all of the time.

HE LAUGHS

-And...

-What did you say?

When your mum said I was stripping today,

I was going to put my speedos on.

Didn't realise she meant this sort of stripping.

KNOCK AT THE DOOR

-Hiya.

-Hello. Nice to meet you.

Straight up there?

It will be tiles off, plaster, definitely.

If we do a wall-hung sink, it can go to any level, possibly.

The floor, again, I think...

It's a wooden floor. The problem with that is, if water comes over

the bath, it's going to go straight through the gaps.

What we can do is, we can lay a nice wooden floor which is all locked

together, all sealed.

It will look a lot better.

Going to go with a wooden toilet seat to go with the wooden floor.

In the '70s, you might remember this...

-Thanks very much.

-Did they have tongue-and-groove wood ceiling?

-Yes, they did.

-So let's go with that.

-A bit of tongue and groove, yes.

-Let's give it a '70s wood feel.

-Yeah.

-We'll go with wood as much as we can.

Sticking to the brief sounds like a good plan.

Let's see what John and Sarah think.

Back to the '70s.

When I had a moustache, a beard, long, curly hair.

Looked like Cat Stevens, but...

-That's all gone.

-That's long gone, yeah.

We've got a wood theme.

Yeah, the theme that we had in terms of wood, again, '70s type thing.

The bath, obviously, we're going to keep,

because you want to keep the bath.

-OK.

-Is it going to be re-sprayed, or...

Yes, it's going to be re-enamelled.

I'm guessing when they did the electrics, it's fine for an

extractor, but I would be thinking about putting the extractor

somewhere else, not out the window.

So let's incorporate a new piece of glass, as well.

New piece of glass, yep.

It would be beneficial to put a new window in, and, really,

you should have an opener in your bathroom window.

-OK.

-And relocate your fan.

And then tile the wall all around the bath.

-The colour I've seen is an orange.

-I do like orange.

It can be called orange or it can be called watermelon,

particularly from the '70s, very warm, reddy-orange colour.

Tracy and Vic's '70s theme includes tongue-and-groove wood panelling in

the ceiling, wooden flooring, and a watermelon colour scheme.

But does a '70s design come with a '70s price tag?

We can do that all in for £2,906.92.

-That's us.

-I think we can knock the 92p off!

Yeah, £2,906, we can do that for you.

How long would you envisage this taking?

Realistically, five to seven days maximum.

So, £94 under budget.

Tough competition for their rivals.

-Let's have it. Come on!

-Next in are grafters Alex and Chris.

-Wow.

-Compact is the word I think we were looking for.

-Bijou.

-Yeah.

The shower. That's an add-on, isn't it?

It's like a railway track, mate.

You can't go through a cast-iron bath, so we'll go round it.

Working together for three years,

these two have got each other's strengths sussed.

Chris's organisational skills are fantastic.

Everything's planned out, which is great.

It allows me then to get on and do what I do.

There you go. That's Alex.

-Don't forget my beer belly.

-Oh, yeah.

I've made you look pregnant!

The first thing I see is, because of that size and that space,

and because of this door and everything, it's a walk-in shower.

-It just depends on...

-Whether you want to use a bath or not.

Some people do get...

I do like my baths myself.

As do many people.

Ditching the bath could be risky.

The problem that you've got is because you've got the cast-iron

bath in there, and it is from the '70s...

-It is from the '70s, yes.

-It's not a great bath.

-It's a good size.

-But it's going to cost at least as much

to re-enamel it as it is to get a brand-new bath.

-OK.

-All right?

-So that's the bottom line of it.

So what we've come up with, there's two solutions for where your bath is.

You can get a bath that has got an angle on it,

which would take you into that cupboard.

You've then got a shower screen on.

Option two is to do you something completely different,

which is a walk-in shower.

-Right. We quite like our bath.

-We quite like our bath.

We do definitely quite like our bath.

-So if we can keep the bath.

-The old tapping's going on, mate!

Actually, that feels pretty solid.

What we've done is we've priced it to do uPVC on the ceiling...

-Right, OK.

-..rather than skimming, because it's a low ceiling,

and it just keeps the condensation down.

Yeah, no, the condensation is something I'm quite cautious of.

So that's what we thought.

Having quickly dropped the walk-in-shower idea,

Chris and Alex are now offering up a new bath,

fitted with a shower screen,

and uPVC cladding on the ceiling to cope with the condensation.

Tracy and Vic managed to come in under budget.

Can Chris and Alex do the same?

That's come out at £3,200.

-OK.

-How long would this take?

Looking at round about eight days.

OK, OK. Righty-ho.

That's only just over their budget, but £200 is £200.

Finally, bidding against the other two are no-nonsense lads

Mark and Chris.

Yet another little tiny space to work in!

Very small, yeah.

Dated. I mean, it's a small bath.

I'd promote getting rid of it.

Only benefit with these is they stay warmer for longer.

I would put on it, a scientific fact,

that it would be warmer if it was plastic.

-I disagree.

-You reckon?

-Yeah.

-I think I'm right.

He thinks he's right. That's just our usual relationship, isn't it?

HE LAUGHS

Well, they do say you fight with the ones you love best,

and, having known each other for eight years,

these two are definitely close.

Plenty of arguments. We do more of handbags.

-Mate, are you going to listen?

-Yeah, I know what you're saying.

I spend more time with you than I do with the kids, the missus,

anyone else in my family.

What time do you call this?

It's like being married. Better late than never.

The sink's very, very high, as you say.

They would like it lowered.

We've got to cater for both parties,

so it would be better if that sink was on a hydraulic ram

to lift up and down, right?

-Up and down.

-Yeah.

Hydraulics seems a practical solution,

but what will Sarah and John think?

We would definitely promote using a rise-and-fall sink.

-So...

-Well, what would a rise-and-fall sink be?

If you can imagine this was your sink area.

You can press a button, and that will lift up to your height.

-OK.

-And then if you went in there yourself and it was at that height,

you could press a button, and it comes down to your height.

Can you put something in like that with the loo seat?

A step.

And have music go, "Aaaaah."

LAUGHTER

This cupboard, realistically, could be made smaller.

-Yeah.

-To about there, allowing a slightly bigger bath.

We'd be looking at maximising the space in the bathroom.

-Cool, OK.

-Because it is very small.

Cabinet in the corner is taking up quite a bit of extra space than what

it's needed to.

Mark and Chris have come up with a practical hydraulic

solution to make the sink height changeable.

They've also found a way to make the boiler cupboard smaller,

and so get a new, bigger bath in.

But what price will they do all this for?

The minimum price that we'd be able to do it is £3,700.

How long is it...? Would you envisage it taking?

-You're looking at around five days to fit.

-Right.

That's the most expensive quote,

and £700 more than Sarah and John want to spend.

They've all given it their best shot, but Sarah and John don't have

to go with any of them if they don't want to.

-Well, it won't be you!

-Yeah? Why not you?

We was quite a bit over budget.

-Go on, what did you go in at?

-We went in at 3,700.

-Oh.

-Yeah, anyone that can get it down on price,

yeah, fair play to them.

I guess it's...

-Time to make a phone call.

-..time to make a phone call, yeah.

Yes, it is, but who will that call be to?

Tracy and Vic, who went for a full-on '70s design and came in

cheapest of the three? Or Alex and Chris,

whose shower and a bath tub idea was priced in the middle?

Or Mark and Chris,

whose hydraulic sink was the most expensive of the three?

Only the winners' phone will ring.

PHONE RINGS

-Hello.

-Hi, Tracy.

-It's John.

-Oh, hi there, how are you?

-Hi, John.

-We're just ringing to say that we would like you to come and

do our bathroom for us.

OK. That's fantastic.

Thanks very much indeed.

-Take care. Bye!

-Thanks. Bye.

-In the bag.

-In the bag!

-That is cool.

-Is that cool?

-Yeah.

Tracy and Vic were all over that one.

The losers aren't surprised.

To be fair, they gave them, as it turned out,

exactly what they wanted.

Do you know what? This one falls down to budget.

That's it, at the end of the day.

Stretching the budget is something we all want to do,

so what's the best way to go about it?

If you want to buy materials yourself,

remember, research can be time-consuming,

and you may have to wait for deliveries.

So don't delay your builder by not allowing enough time.

It's great shopping online, but really go to the showrooms,

see the products. There's nothing better than actually touching

the product you want to use in your home.

When you're buying materials, never rely on a single price.

It's always a good idea to go to three or four different places,

and get different prices, and cost it up and compare.

It's day one of the build and Vic's made an early start.

He's wasting no time ripping out that dilapidated bathroom.

And the losing builders are watching his every move.

There's quite a few things that could've gone wrong.

-Yeah.

-So...

-I'll be glad to see how they manage to get round it!

Could be quite interesting viewing. Yeah.

With over 20 years' building experience,

Vic's taking a cautious approach to removing the tiles.

When you're taking tiles off a stud wall, just remember,

this is a stud wall.

It's hollow. It's only plasterboard, so when you're doing it,

keep your chisel flat against the wall, give it a few taps,

it'll come off eventually.

Just don't be too aggressive,

because you will go straight through the stud,

and then you'll have to repair all the stud wall, which is great fun.

Not great fun at all.

I think it goes for any wall, really, what he's saying there,

as you well know. You don't want to lose the plaster,

because you've got to bond it out.

Son Darryl arrives from another job,

and Vic knows he'll need to tread carefully.

He's one of the seven dwarves. He's Grumpy!

Nothing wrong with me, mate. I'm fine.

I'll give it about 12 coffees before he wakes up!

Don't know what he does in the evening.

Before 12 o'clock, he's a nightmare.

Are these the tools we need that you're searching for, by any chance?

-No, no.

-Are your tools bigger than mine?

Is that what it is? It's a man thing.

Just getting what I need.

His tool's bigger than yours, Vic!

He's got tool envy.

LAUGHTER

Tommy Walsh will be dead envious of that tool belt.

-Right, come on.

-Come on, let's go.

Darryl's first job is to fit a new window.

He's just got to take the old one out.

Don't give him something like that to do first thing in the morning!

Big guns are coming out now.

Got the big crowbar out.

It must be serious.

Probably been in there about as long as I've been alive, so...

Has everyone got a thing about taking windows out with hammer and

-chisels, or...

-You didn't want to crack the glass, did you say?

I didn't want to crack it, but I have done.

I didn't want to crack it, so I thought I'd bring out the sledge.

Darryl's not giving up, and Vic's gone inside to help him out.

Hopefully, that will come out fairly simple.

Fingers crossed. You never know until you're actually halfway through it.

If not, then we're just going to have to be a bit abrupt.

Let's hope it doesn't come to that.

Push it, Vic.

-The top.

-Hang on.

-Push it, Vic.

Try and tease the bottom out. The bottom's not coming.

Just push it, Vic!

There you are, we're out.

Oh, he's got it. Nice.

You coming to me?

-Hang on.

-He's left it up there.

I thought he was going to try and climb down the ladder with it!

-Nice one.

-Nice one.

Darryl just needs to prep the frame ahead of the new window going in.

Oh, Daz, he loves tools.

Yes. He loves his tools. One of the lads gets a new tool,

he's got to have the same. Like I say, it's called tool envy.

-We're the same.

-Like us all, yeah.

You get a tool, I want that tool.

Well, everybody loves their tools.

-Apart from yourself.

-Apart from me! I'm old school.

-Disgrace, man.

-I haven't got tool envy, mate.

Well, you have, because you always pinch mine.

-That's not true.

-It's very true.

-I'm not a tool snob.

-You are.

He says he's not a tool snob.

-We're tool snobs.

-He is.

They've all got to be the same.

Finally, the frame is out, meaning the new window can go in.

To me, to you.

Come on, I'm just waiting for one of these things he fits

to be the wrong size.

He's a bit too meticulous with his measurements for my liking!

-Catching on that.

-Did you take the key off the inside?

-Is it not on the outside, is it?

-It's on the outside.

Not on this side.

LAUGHTER

-It's at the top. I saw it before.

-Key's stopping them putting it in.

-There it is. There she is.

-You'll have to unscrew it.

Yeah, top tip. Often, window companies, they'll fit keys...

They will fit the keys with a screw so that you don't lose them in

transit. The majority of time, they're on the inside, but this

particular one's on the outside, so before you fit the window,

make sure you remove it, otherwise it could be tricky to open the

window afterwards.

Probably would've been a good idea if he'd seen that before he actually

-put it in.

-Key tip - take the key off.

-Yeah.

Key retrieved, so they can finally get the window in.

It should be plain sailing from here.

Not losing that.

It's not... No, no, no, I can see it.

Lost his bolster down the cavity.

Hope it's not gone too far down!

Go on, see if you can reach it.

Go on! Look at that.

Can't get my hand out now. My hand's stuck.

LAUGHTER

Ta-da.

Another top tip - don't drop your chisel down the cavity.

Don't drop your tools down the cavity!

Here's a top tip - put something over the hole!

We'll be back later to see if they actually manage to fit the bathroom.

For our next job, we're heading to a picturesque commuter village

tucked just inside the M25.

The average terraced house here will set you back around £500,000.

We're down south in Cobham, Surrey.

So who is looking to get the builders in?

This Victorian semi is home to Rebecca, her partner,

and three young children.

I've lived here for nine and a half years.

This property needs quite a bit of work doing to it.

My partner's not DIY friendly.

We both work full-time. We've got three children.

Life's pretty chaotic, and I'm not very good with a screwdriver.

Good job we're here, then.

The area under the stairs is quite a nice, big area,

but it's really ugly because it's got no door on it,

so you can see straight into it.

The floor's unfinished and it's just not a very good use of space.

At the moment, it's got a washing machine in,

which is quite handy because the kitchen's so small,

but the rest of it is just a dumping ground.

So how much is Rebecca aiming to spend on sorting out that

understairs cupboard?

Our budget is £1,000.

Whatever we could get done with that to make it a better use of space,

and a door on there to hide it away.

Maximising storage in small spaces can be tricky,

so our builders have a few tips.

Storage in the home can sometimes be an afterthought,

but there are lots of clever solutions to consider,

like pull-out drawers under the stairs.

Windows and radiators can often make storage in those areas difficult,

but if you ask your builder, he can quite often make something

bespoke that will work well and maximise storage.

If you've got an awkward space and you can't find off-the-shelf

furniture to fit,

then having something made bespoke could be the answer.

It might cost a little bit more,

but the overall result should make it well worth it.

Let's see which trio of builders will be going head-to-head today.

Are you happy now you've got your coffee?

I wouldn't really class this as coffee.

The life of a builder.

They all know the brief is to create some slick storage,

but it's their designs that will set them apart.

-I'm a bit of an Alpen man, myself.

-Watch your figure?

First out of the starting gate are diamond geezers Elliott and Mark.

-Hi.

-Hi, Rebecca.

-Nice to meet you. Come in, guys.

-Looks like this is it, mate.

-Yeah.

These two have 55 years' experience between them.

I've got some good ideas.

I've got a lot I can bring to the drawing table.

On this job, Elliott's in command.

I'm his little labourer, I think.

-Big shoulders.

-That's because I'm carrying you every day.

Not a lot of space, is there?

I presume the washing machine's going to be taken out.

Yeah, I presume so, mate. That's half the battle.

So, I think we'll just give it a little bit of je ne sais soir.

I've known you for 14 years. Didn't know you could speak French!

I can actually speak one, two, three, four different languages.

But I'd say French isn't one of them.

Time to see what Rebecca thinks of their idea.

It's a Victorian house.

We're just trying to bring that... There's not a lot of space in there,

so we just want it to look, as I say, like, je ne sais soir, you know?

Just that little bit more intricate rather than just a bit of dull,

empty shelf space, you know?

-Yeah.

-If we go some robust MDF...

-Yeah.

-Sprayed white.

Almost like pigeonholes.

-Yeah, yeah.

-With some...

-Baskets.

-Yeah, wicker basket, something like that.

-Cottagey.

-Yeah.

It depends on what, obviously, we can source wicker baskets-wise.

So, it could be slightly linen lined.

-Yep.

-With the light, we will probably say just put some smart LED

in there. Paint it white, it will brighten it up.

Yeah. That sounds good.

Elliott and Mark are offering country cottage-style wicker basket

pigeon hole storage, a crisp white paint refresh, and LED lighting.

Rebecca didn't want to spend any more than £1,000.

So, what's their quote?

Our price is £1,085.

-OK.

-We would like to think it's approximately two days' labour.

It may be two and a half days' labour.

So, Mark and Elliott are just over budget.

But there are two more pairs of rival builders waiting to pitch.

Next up are burly bears Simon and John.

-Si?

-Yes.

-Woolly hat but shorts?

Well, yeah. Woolly hat, bald head.

-Shorts, good legs.

-Oh!

Is that how it is?

What do you reckon? Look at that.

-They suit you, mate.

-I feel a bit smart with these on.

These two have been critiquing each other's fashion for the last six years.

I do all the brick work, do plastering...

-Yeah.

-You lend you a hand for most things, don't you?

Yeah, I'd say plumbing and chippy work.

-Left a bit, Si, left a bit.

-You look like a black Woody Allen!

HE LAUGHS

So what's their plan for the cupboard?

Maybe, like, a little Scandinavian look, John.

-Yeah.

-All white. All white, MDF, all painted.

Yeah, very crisp, clean.

I like the upside-down plug.

I tell you what, John, maybe that's not upside down.

Maybe we are.

Feeling topsy-turvy,

can John and Simon sell Rebecca on the Scandi storage?

As you walk in on the right-hand side,

we'll have a long hanging section for your ironing board.

-OK.

-And your vacuum cleaner.

As you go up, obviously, the rake becomes less, doesn't it?

-Yep.

-So just up the top there, put some shelving in.

And then this side, we'll split up into, like, four shelving areas.

You could put some big pockets in there, MDF pockets, could you?

Yeah, so they're deep.

We'd put four box sections in there on castor wheels.

A lot of the stuff at the back you never get to.

I know it's quite exciting in years to come when you find things you

haven't seen for 20 years, but storage-wise, not great, John, is it?

What about the floor?

We could maybe latex the floor, John, and paint it white, as well,

-couldn't we?

-Yeah, we can do that.

John and Simon's Scandi-style design has plenty of built-in storage,

with space for the ironing board and vacuum cleaner.

They're also offering to latex the floor and paint it.

So, what's the damage?

Price for the cupboard is £700.

-OK.

-Wow, £300 under budget.

That's a pretty tough act to follow.

But it's not putting clean-cut duo Wayne and Steph off.

Interesting space.

We like tight spaces.

We're good at those.

Yep, these two have been squeezing in together on jobs for the past

couple of years.

I tend to do most things wood-wise or carpentry-based,

and Steph does all the plumbing, tiling.

Yeah. I make the best tea, though.

-Which is why it's the best.

-How do you call

yourself a builder when you don't even drink tea?

You should see me on caffeine, it's not good!

We could go quite cottagey in the realms of, like, apple crate.

Can we hang a coffee sack on the door?

-Yeah...

-Or put a coffee sack on the inside?

-Yeah.

So they're giving things an upcycled twist,

but can they convince Rebecca?

We've decided that a nice route to go down would be a walk-in larder.

You can do a lot of wraparound shelving so you can stand in it,

have access to all areas of it.

-Yeah.

-Because there's a fair amount of floor space.

We are going to focus on using apple creates...

-OK.

-..to give you a cottagey feel but with no chintz.

So the one that we've brought here,

this has been washed, kind of whitewashed,

but it could just be left wood or it could be a more watered-down version

of this. Do we put a door on this?

Yeah, I think she wants a door, just to hide it all away.

We did a job recently where we used coffee sacks and created

a curtain out of coffee sacks. OK.

So it's not a physical door that you have to open,

you just move it to one side,

so it covers it over but also you've got a nice feel to it,

and it's not too chintzy.

And would you paint the floor?

We haven't factored in the floor,

only because it's another day, because we'd have to paint it,

-let it dry before we came back...

-And let it dry, OK.

If you had that pre-painted before we arrive...

-I want to keep it within your budget, you see.

-Yeah.

Wayne and Steph are going for a kitchen larder feel,

with wraparound shelving and fruit crate storage.

Instead of a door, they'll make a sack cloth curtain,

and they've asked Rebecca to paint the floor herself.

They're clearly trying to keep costs down.

So, what's their quote?

Including all materials and everything we've discussed,

the quote is £700.

-OK.

-They're even-stevens with Simon and John at £300 under budget.

The pitches are in,

but it's up to Rebecca whether she goes with any of them.

What did you do, then, Elliott?

We're going to give it a pigeonhole effect all the way round.

-Wood pigeons, or...?

-Yeah, they come free, as well.

Our price was a little bit over budget, we went in at £1,085.

-Whoa.

-So, what did you go in with?

-I've seen the...

-He went in with a crate!

I see the crate!

All the builders can do now is wait.

They've all come up with a storage solution.

Will it be Mark and Elliott's top-price pigeonholes,

John and Simon's Scandi shelving, £300 under budget,

or Wayne and Steph's kitchen larder design, also at £700?

I liked all of them, which made it harder.

I didn't think they'd be quite as creative as they have been.

But I think I've made my choice.

Only the winner's phone will ring.

PHONE RINGS

-Hello?

-Hello!

-Oh, hello!

Hi, it's Becks.

I'd really like you to come and do the work for me, if that's OK?

-Oh, wow!

-Thank you very much.

-That's brilliant.

It's a job in the bag for Simon and John.

-Excellent.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you very much.

-Speak to you soon.

-BOTH:

-Cheers, bye!

-Bye.

Yes, done!

Good, really pleased.

-That's it, mate.

-Jolly good.

Very good. Happy days.

They're delighted, but it's not such happy days for the losers.

Well done.

Congratulations. It's one of those, isn't it?

Well, I look forward to seeing how it ends up,

because I haven't got a clue what it is.

We'll see what design it is.

But they'll do a good job, whatever, they're always good.

Rebecca's understairs cupboard is about to get a total revamp,

but if you're getting the builders in, what do you need to know?

Some people find it awkward to talk about money but it's really

important to agree a price with your builder

and any stage payments upfront.

Always get a receipt and keep a record of how much you've paid and

how much you still owe.

Communication throughout the build is the key.

If you do want to change your mind - we're not mind readers -

tell us right from the onset.

At least that way we can change things, we can adapt the price,

everybody's happy and we know where we're going.

Simon and John hope to get Rebecca's cupboard sorted out in two days.

There's some gear in that cupboard, isn't there?!

It's like a TARDIS, that cupboard, isn't it?

And the losing builders are ready to watch them at work.

I hope they're not going to do flat-pack.

-I'll let you take that one.

-First job is to clear everything out.

That includes the washing machine and a rather furry resident.

-It's a rabbit!

-It's Bertie!

Sorry, Mr whatever-you-are.

What is it with you blokes not remembering names?

How do you remember a rabbit's name?!

-What is that, John?

-That is a hairy rabbit.

-Is that a rabbit?

-Yeah.

-Funny-looking rabbit, isn't it?

Clearing out may take time, but John's got a cunning plan to catch up.

Basically, we're going to take some measurements in here,

we had a little quirky design, and those measurements, I'll phone

through to someone and they'll cut it out of a sheet of material.

Phone a friend!

Screwdriver needed, I think.

With Simon on demolition duty...

He's been on the weights again, look.

His arms are getting bigger than yours.

He's probably got more time to go to the gym!

He'll finish at three o'clock!

John hits the phone.

Hi, Kevin, can I do a cutting list, please?

Normal MDF, yes. One at 800 x 860.

Main advantages of doing it like this is we're going to cut it on a

machine and you'll pay 30p a cut.

Like, I can't cut it that quickly for that money, do you know what I mean?

It doesn't make sense.

See, when I do a cutting list, I lay it all out like a jigsaw on one big

sheet of paper then just e-mail it over to them.

You're relying on someone else writing down the numbers correctly.

Mistakes can happen, you know.

-We're only human, aren't we?

-All right, lovely, cheers, bye.

That was hard work, wasn't it?

HE LAUGHS

Beautiful.

He makes me laugh.

But the division of labour hasn't gone unnoticed.

I do everything, he doesn't do a lot, obviously.

John don't do painting.

I'm allergic to paint.

Is that a scraper?

He's painting with a scraper?!

Brilliant!

Next job is to tackle that uneven floor.

Right, self-levelling compound is just a powder-based levelling compound.

You mix it with water so as you pour it out, it just self-levels,

so if you're doing tiling or floor laying of any sort,

it's a great product.

And it seems this is something John is happy to get hands-on with.

-He's not going to get that whole 20-kilo bag in a ten-litre bucket.

-No.

Is the bucket not big enough?

-Maybe not.

-Going to need a bigger bucket!

-Uh-oh!

-How's that?

-Is he going to put more water in with that?

Looks a bit wet.

Just tip some into there.

So, who's Mary Berry and who's...

I think John's the baker and Simon's definitely Mary Berry.

Right, all done?

Then, after prepping the floor with PVA glue, down goes the latex.

Got the old socks on, mate, it's always serious then.

Shoes off.

This helps the latex level itself out, the aerator.

It makes me sad, covering up old floorboards.

There you go. Couple of hours of drying and we're done.

Happy days.

But it's three o'clock, so it's home time.

Another long day, eh, lads?

In Farnworth, Greater Manchester,

Vic and Darryl are doing Sarah and John's bathroom.

They've decided against the wood-panelled ceiling and, instead,

the whole room has been plastered and painted in a very '70s shade of orange.

Vic needs to build a lower sink unit for homeowner John,

which is flat-packed, so should be easy.

A bit of flat-pack.

Right, so if you build it but then leave the doors off it.

-You think so?

-Got to get the pipes in, haven't we?

Oh, course, got to get the pipes in.

Come on, Dad, sort yourself out.

Oh, my God!

Another quick fix!

Done that much of it, it's untrue.

Having said that, I'll probably make a mess of this one.

You end up crying if you don't know what you're doing.

Give it another ten minutes, I'll be in tears.

What's all this about reading instructions?

You're not supposed to read instructions!

Sarah is a keen recycler, so wants to keep the bath.

But it's in a shocking state, so Vic has called in the professionals

to get it re-enamelled.

-I'm going to mask up the bath...

-Yeah.

-..put me fan in the window to

-take the fumes out, because it's fairly fumy.

-Yeah.

-Lock yourself in.

-I will.

-We'll disappear.

-All right, thanks.

Cheers, mate.

The enamel is so toxic and difficult to remove,

they need to cover every surface,

making it look like there's been a murder.

They're good, these guys, aren't they? It's a nice skill.

Two whole days later, the bath is finally dry.

That's come out really well, hasn't it?

It's better than I expected, it's come out really nice.

I've got to admit, that's a lot better than I expected, as well.

-Looks great, doesn't it?

-Mmm.

-Looks like a new bath.

The final touch is some very '70s cork,

which the homeowner has requested.

I must admit, I wasn't sold on the cork.

-No. Me, neither. But...

-But, yeah, I think it's come out quite nice,

-hasn't it?

-Customer's always right.

And the job is complete.

Ten days ago, Sarah and John's bathroom was in a shocking state.

And so was the window.

That was ridiculous, that sink, wasn't it?

What will the losers think of it now?

-Can't wait to see what's been done.

-Yeah.

-Wow, what a difference.

-Loads better, right?

Yeah. Miles better.

The bath has been completely re-enamelled

and looks brand-new.

-What a difference.

-The whole thing's cool.

-Yeah.

No stilettos, then.

The sink has been lowered for John,

and the whole room decorated in a warm, vibrant orange.

-Big turnaround.

-Yeah, massive turnaround, you know,

-in comparison to what it was.

-Yeah.

-No, looks good.

It's a bit disappointing, really, to be honest!

I know! I was waiting for the foot to go through the floor or something!

Yeah, I know. No, nice job again!

The losers are impressed. But what will Sarah and John think of it?

-Oh, gosh!

-Oh, can't wait for this bit...!

-No! I so hope they're going to like it!

-Hope they like it.

Oh, God! What do you think?

Daz and Rick have done a good job, hey?

They have, haven't they? Really good.

-Really good job.

-No, that's brilliant.

-That's fantastic.

Oh, God, I'm glad she likes it, because it really was a difficult job.

I can get onto the sill, too, which I couldn't before.

We can put the mouthwash up there!

-That is so good.

-Incredible, isn't it?

-Yeah.

So much better.

The colour really surprised me, because when you walk in,

it's like you hold your hands up, you're going to get a suntan.

It's absolutely brilliant. It grows on you, the colour grows on you.

-Well, it's unique to their home, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-It's what they wanted.

It's what they wanted. As long as they're happy, that's all that matters.

They were really brilliant, they were really brilliant.

I'm really happy with this,

-and this is just so much cleaner than what we had before.

-Yeah.

-Come on, five - well done.

-Well done, job done.

-Worked out well. Worked out well.

-Yeah. I'm pleased with that.

-Me, too.

Down south in Cobham,

John and Simon are sorting out Rebecca's understairs storage.

They've cleared everything out and put self-levelling latex on the floor.

-But there's a problem.

-For some reason,

we've found that the latex we put down yesterday hasn't set correctly.

But we found the bag's out of date, so maybe that's an issue.

-So, it was out of date...

-Fancy that!

We've got some oak flooring on the van,

which I think we may use to do the floor job.

It's just left over from another job, so rather than throw it away...

-Yeah.

-It'll look quite nice...

-Agreeing, that.

Good recovery, boys.

John had the MDF for the shelves and boxes cut off-site to save time.

He looks like he's doing a jigsaw puzzle with MDF!

So, I'm just checking the measurements and I thought they'd

-missed... Oh, no, that ain't good.

-That's the wrong size, isn't it?

Shelf's about an inch short.

Ooh, this doesn't sound good.

So, I've gone through all my cutting list,

and it looks like some bits are missing, or have not been cut.

So... Urgh!

If you want something done right, John...

-Do it yourself.

-You know it, do it yourself, mate.

Oh, dear. John's not a happy bunny.

By the time it takes to cut this, I should have two things made.

Get them made, I'll feel a bit better then.

Come on, John!

He rises to the challenge, though, and knocks up the boxes in no time.

Yeah, that's lovely. We're good to go.

Back inside, Simon's fitted the first shelf.

It looks like one of those pod hotel rooms.

You're going to try it out like a bed.

-Yes, like a Japanese hotel room!

-Yeah!

Oh, my God. Got the old John test out.

20st of John on there, mate, look.

If you've fall splat on your face from the laughter...

HE LAUGHS

-Well, he's tried it out. It seems to work.

-Yeah.

-In we go, John.

-With the shelving recut

and fitted in the other side of the cupboard,

Simon gives everything a coat of primer.

As you can see, I'm using a small roller here, as well,

because I think it's a little bit better, you get better coverage,

and it's a bit quicker.

So... Then you've got to just touch up the corners with the brush, then, really.

It's all over him now.

It's that small, he's touched every arm, every wall!

Yeah!

So, that's the storage system done.

Now, the last big job is to fit the wooden flooring.

But fitting is easier said than done in such a small place.

-Oh!

-My God!

-Oh, all right, mate?

All I've got to say, that must be a big old cupboard space if that's

just the bottom, there. We could lose a John in here.

That's just on the bottom shelf, as well.

John makes it out of the cupboard in one piece.

And with the flooring finished...

Well done, mate. Lovely job, that.

..the storage boxes are rolled into position.

John! John!

Don't push it!

-Guess what?

-What?

-That's wheely good, mate.

-Thanks.

No prizes for comedy, gents.

But this pair are pretty pleased with themselves.

-Well done, mate.

-Happy days, mate.

There's a lot of storage there, isn't there?

-I think the storage is good.

-That was the prime idea, wasn't it?

With a few mishaps along the way, the job has taken four days to

complete, so having watched their every move,

what do the losing builders think of their work?

They've done it well.

Yeah.

There are deep shelves and drawers...

-Good job.

-Good job, yeah.

-Yeah.

..space for the iron and vacuum cleaner...

Yeah, think that's a good one.

..an all-white colour scheme...

And I think she'll love it, because anything that's painted bright new

and clean and sleek lines, you always like.

She should be happy with that.

And of course, a new door means Rebecca can tuck it all out of sight.

-This is for you, Simon and John.

-Well done.

-Well done.

They've given it the thumbs - or doughnut - up.

But what about Rebecca?

Oh, my God!

-She looks a bit stern, though, John, doesn't she?

-I'm scared.

Oh, it's so much better.

-BOTH:

-Oh!

It's really good. For one, the storage goes all the way back,

which is just, like, amazing.

And these are so good. Look at these!

So handy. You can put all of the toys and stuff in here now.

-That's good, she's happy.

-Ah, that's handy. She's happy.

Floor's nice. It's really good.

And so much better than it was, and just fresher and brighter.

Really handy having the door on there, as well.

-Well done, mate.

-Well done, mate. Beautiful.

-Whoo! Whoohoo!