Although they’re harmless, they’re also disgusting looking! During the day they hide behind wallpaper, skirting boards and beneath loose floor coverings, laying their eggs in cracks, and come out at night. Check sinks and behind the washing machine/dishwasher for leaks, and fill in any hidey-holes. If you do get them, treat with an insecticide powder.

Most local authorities do kerbside recycling, but the trouble is they all have different rules about what to put in the designated box.

An easy way to find out what your council collects is to visit http://www.recyclenow.com, enter your postcode and up comes the list.

The answer is pretty obvious, but you wouldn’t believe the number of queries I get about this.

You need a tube of Loctite Glue Remover Gel. Safe to use on many different surfaces and glue types but better to test a hidden area first. If you’re happy, squeeze a dab over the marked area, leave to work for a while to soften the glue, then wipe away the residue with a paper towel. Rinse well.

If you peg the sides of your sheets and towels together so they never blow over the line and get tangled up, you will save all that grappling in the wind!

A great line of defence is to put a Turtle Mat just inside the front or back door, which traps most of the dust, wet mud and dirt – and is really brilliant if you have pets (www.turtlemat.co.uk).

There are loads of great designs and colours to choose from – from trad to contemporary – and, best of all, most of the rugs can be machine-washed and tumble-dried.

If you spot what look like maggots with brown hairs in your carpets you have woolly bears (this sounds revolting but they’re fairly common). As they hatch they gorge on the pile, leaving holes behind in the same way as clothes moths do.

You should also check your clothes in wardrobes and chests of drawers. Wash or dry clean anything affected and vacuum carpets thoroughly (and empty the bag straight away).

Treat with Rentokil Insectrol Dust for Carpet Beetle from hardware shops. To stop them coming back, keep the place clean and dust-free under and behind furniture.

Rub the stain with either a pencil eraser or the heel of a (clean) trainer – that should do it!

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For the sink and an enamel bath, you can safely use white spirit or brush cleaner. Soak a pad of cotton wool with the white spirit and hold over the paint marks for a few minutes to soften the paint.

Gently rub until removed, then immediately rinse with plenty of soapy water. If it’s an acrylic bath, take a plastic knife or plastic ice scraper and gently scrape away, taking great care not to scratch the surface. Don’t use a metal scraper. Once the paint is gone, go over the area again with a cream cleaner such as Cif to help polish out any light scratching.

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And you’ve ended up with stubborn creases that no amount of steam ironing will shift? What’s happened is that an overlong, hot drying cycle damages polyester fibres, hence the creases.

What you can try, though, is to rewash at 95 degrees, which will ‘relax’ the fibres and help them lie flat again. There’s the risk the shirt may shrink and the colour could fade a little, but it’s worth a go. Then steam-iron while still damp.

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Try this: cut each dishwasher tablet in half, add a little salt to the dispenser, and chances are the results will be every bit as good.