Curtain rods may not be the most exciting things in the world, but they come in very handy if you want to hang a pair of curtains. That might sound like I’m stating the obvious (I suppose I am really), but as probably the worst DIY practitioner in the world, sometime the obvious needs to be stated. To me, at least.
The first time I ever tried to fit a shower curtain rod (one of those tension curtain rods that expands to fit the space above the bath/shower), it looked great and I was feeling very pleased with myself until I actually hung the shower curtain on it. At first everything seemed fine and was working well, but as soon as I got in the shower and the curtain became a little heavier because of the water on it, the whole thing completely collapsed, I dropped the shower head in shock and water sprayed all over the bathroom. The moral of that story is, when fitting such a tension curtain rod for the bathroom, make sure you apply enough tension to take the weight of a wet shower curtain!
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Curtain rod brackets can also be problematic to the hapless DIY-challenged individual. These are the brackets that you use to fit the curtain rod to the wall or ceiling. When fitting these brackets, remember that, like so much with DIY, it all comes down to accurate measurement and taking the time to get things right. If, like me, you fit the brackets to the wall without taking the right measurements and marking things up properly, you will end up (like I did), with a curtain rod that is sitting at an angle rather than completely level. So when you are measuring up, check and check again that you are going to put the brackets in exactly the right places.
The other thing you want to make sure of is that you use the right wall plug (or rawl plug) for fixing the curtain rod brackets to the wall. Walls are made of many different materials. if you have a plasterboard wall for example, you will need a very different type of wall plug than you would need for a brick wall. I have made this mistake many times myself in the past (I never seem to learn from my mistakes when it comes to DIY!), resulting in the brackets coming loose and the curtain rod detaching itself from the wall.
So, in short, when fixing up curtain rods, yes it is a simple process but you still need to take your time and do it right.
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