Salt-tested. Chalk-tuned.5% off for pensioners07763 100 477 · hello@doverhandyman.co.uk
Dover HandymanTown · Cliffs · Downland

Dover · Cliffs · Downland · CT14–CT17

Small building jobs, done properly, around Dover.

Ten services under one roof: general repairs, guttering, timber, small roof jobs, painting, fencing, small plumbing and small electrical, flat-pack and property maintenance. Salt-tested, chalk-tuned. When it turns out to be a specialist job (rewire, structural roof, gas), we tell you and step back.

What we do

Ten jobs we do. No upselling on the rest.

Specified for Dover’s conditions: coastal salt on fixings, chalk-driven timber rot on unprotected sills, ash-dieback tree-fall on rural boundaries, and the Georgian and Victorian housing stock that dominates the town. If a job isn’t on this list, ask - the answer will be a straight yes, no, or ‘here’s who to call’.

Handyman repairs

General fix-it work - jammed doors, swollen frames, failing catches. The bread-and-butter of a post-war Dover terrace.

Pricing & scope

Guttering & downpipes

Clearing, resealing and section swaps. The easterlies dump ash-leaf and salt-corroded fixings do the rest.

Pricing & scope

Timber repairs

Sills, frames, fascias, soffits. Chalk-and-sea combination rots exposed timber in cycles.

Pricing & scope

Small roof jobs

Slipped slate, ridge pointing, small flashing repairs. If the job is a strip-and-recover, we tell you and step back.

Pricing & scope

Painting & decorating

Interior, exterior and trim. Salt-primer on exposed timber is not optional this close to the water.

Pricing & scope

Fence & gate repair

Panel swaps, post concrete, rehang, hinge replace. Marine-grade fixings as standard.

Pricing & scope

Small plumbing

Taps, isolators, silicone reseals, radiator bleeds. No gas, no boilers, no bathroom rip-outs.

Pricing & scope

Small electrical

Like-for-like socket, switch, fitting and extractor swaps. New circuits go to a Part-P electrician.

Pricing & scope

Flat-pack & home fitting

IKEA, Argos, curtain poles, blinds, TV mounts, shelving. Right fixing for lath-and-plaster.

Pricing & scope

Property maintenance

Second-home and landlord visits. Empty-property winter checks for absentee owners.

Pricing & scope

Our promise

Three things you can hold us to.

A proper job, or you don’t pay.

We don’t ask for payment until you’ve looked at the finished work and you’re happy. If it’s not right, we put it right or you owe us nothing. No deposits, no upfront, no chasing.

£

5% off for pensioners.

Anyone on a state pension, automatically. No card, no proof of anything - just mention it when you book. Honour system; we trust people.

10% off bigger return jobs.

Used us before? Your next job over £500 gets 10% off, no time limit, no asking. Logged when we quote - you don’t need to remind us.

Why local matters

Dover eats fixings and rots timber differently.

The town centre sits on the Seaford Chalk. Above that, the cliff-top belt catches salt-laden easterlies straight off the Channel. Together, that combination corrodes galvanised fixings within a few years and drives a timber-rot cycle on any unprotected sill, fascia or door frame.

We work to that reality. Marine-grade (A4) stainless as the default fixing on anything external. Salt-primer on exposed timber before topcoat. Ash-dieback awareness on rural-boundary work - East Kent hedgerows are heavily hit and post-fall property damage is a running risk. And the honest conversation about what needs a specialist rather than a handyman.

Read the local guides  →

Coastal-grade by default

A4 stainless. Not ‘stainless’.

Most trade suppliers sell A2 stainless as if it were one thing. On the Dover cliff-top belt, A2 rusts inside three to four years. A4 - marine grade - doesn’t. It costs a couple of pounds more per hinge or fixing. We use it as standard on any external job within a kilometre of the water or up on the cliff.

How salt eats hinges  →

Recent work

Where we’ve been this month.

A running log of jobs around Dover and the surrounding villages. Updated as we finish them.

See the full jobs log  →

Common questions

Five things people ask before booking.

Do you cover St Margaret’s-at-Cliffe?

Yes. Full CT15 cliff-top belt - St Margaret’s, Kingsdown, West Cliffe, and the exposed properties along the Deal Road. Higher salt-and-easterly load, factored into the quote.

What’s a typical half-day rate?

Most small jobs land in the £45–£120 band. Half day £120–£220. Full day £220–£380. Larger jobs quoted fixed up front.

Do you do gas or boiler work?

No. Anything gas is a Gas Safe engineer’s job by law. We’ll do the surrounding non-gas work; the gas itself we tell you and step back.

Salt-corroded external hinges - can you fix?

Yes. A4 marine-grade stainless as replacement standard for anything on the cliff belt or within a kilometre of the water. A2 rusts in three years here; A4 doesn’t.

Georgian sash windows - do I need a specialist?

Full box-frame rebuild on a listed property, yes - heritage joiner. Weatherproofing, staff/parting bead, sash-cord replacement on a non-listed property, silicone-free putty on Georgian glazing - we’re comfortable.

Want a quote?

Send a couple of photos and a postcode. We’ll come back same-day with a fixed price and the next available date.