SK-04Fix the skirting into the right wall typeBefore you drill or nail, remember cables and pipes can run behind skirting height too, especially near sockets — a detector helps but can miss deep or shielded cables, so go carefully and stop if you feel resistance. Find your stopcock (usually under the kitchen sink) and check it turns before you start; if you're at all unsure what's behind the wall, isolate the circuit at the consumer unit and turn off the water at the stopcock before drilling near it. On a timber stud wall, nail into the centre of each stud with 50-65mm lost-head nails or drive 4x50mm screws into pre-drilled holes, plus a bead of grab adhesive along the back for support between fixings. On plasterboard over metal studs, nails pull straight out, so use self-drilling metal-stud screws into the stud track and grab adhesive — never a plain wall plug or wood screw, which strips straight through 0.5mm steel. On dot-and-dab plasterboard, fixings need to reach the masonry behind the adhesive dabs, so use a 60-75mm masonry screw drilled to the depth marked on the fixing packaging. On solid brick or block, drill a 6-7mm hole to 40mm depth, insert a wall plug, and drive a 50-60mm screw or masonry nail. On lath and plaster, fixings must find the timber studs or noggins behind the laths, so use 60-70mm screws to reach through the extra thickness.