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Dear RenoTalk members, Please do your due diligent when you engage those highly recommended electricians, unless the person that speak highly of the electrician can vouch for the workmanship and character of the electrician he/she recommended to you, i suggest you better dont trust them wholeheartedly. The electrician highly recommended by gragaschen cannot deliver. Please do not be taken in by the cheap quotation. Personally i dont wish any of you to fall victim like my facebook group member. The following was posted on one of my facebook group about this electrician. Initially he won me over with his low price & eagerness... He spent 1hr to go through my needs & wrote down everything & gave me a quote very swiftly.... Young man, Nice chap I thought, & with some (or maybe it's one) good review at RT.... As the project progresses, he started to face problems as he claimed his workers left & he has to do my place personally.... I have already lost count of how many days he has been to my place.... Even as I write now, he is at my living room creating new debris, throwing screws & stuff over my completed & supposingly clean floor... I shall just summarize the dissatisfaction 1. Very very poor housekeeping, simply drill & throw things all over the place without protection... I even took the effort to give him cardboards & he said he is used to do things this way.... There was one incident many weeks back that a screw was found stuck under my bedroom door & I think I know who is the culprit.... BTW, he keep losing his stuff & have to rebuy.... I have seen him mixing new & old trunkings & placing it together with the rubbish 2. Cannot deliver - After so many trips to my place (more than 5), still cannot finish... Everytime he goes off, will tell me only a bit left, but there will forever be something left.... As of last night count, still about 20 items not done. For my fanco fans, he doesn't know how to fix & I have to get bro Eric (from RT) 3. No sense of responsibility, absolutely no. All the mistakes r someone else prob. Eg trunking creates big gap but claims it's painter job to touch up, cracked my wall tile blame tiler for not tiling well... Leave messes everywhere & just refuse to do anything about it.... But the worst is he will always come in late, go off early & never finish the jobs.... 4. Always asking for payment when the job is about to be finished, & always tell me job done... It was prob my fault for being too casual & didn't go through items one by one..... Yesterday he asked me to pay him today & told me almost fin (i went back to take photos & count about 21 items outstanding & tried to tell him today; he still insisted only a few items left).... So far I have been very prompt in payment including some extras like remote controls & lights he bought for me... Maybe my biggest mistake was to be too prompt & friendly.... 5. Poor workmanship... Plenty of gaps at the joints of trunkings & socket/light point... Trunking covers that cannot close properly, slanted trunking & points.... Everytime point to him & ask him to fix it's either somebody's fault or it's a simple job & he will do it (but he never does) I have already booked the mover to shift next week & keep reminding him to finish it this week... No problem he says, give him one day... & he is now onto his 2nd day (not counting the half day last week).... & a few weeks ago when painting was done, he already spent about 2 days told me he completed his job except the kitchen..... So according to his version with only kitchen outstanding, he can't even complete it in 2 days..... Here are some additional comments my member posted last few days. He left the project on Fri... Called me on Fri to tell me take the bal sum & get someone else to fin the job..... Finally, things were fixed this afternoon..... It's crazy, spent so much time cleaning & cleaning (u should see the warzone he left behind....) & coordinating everything.... I decided to touch things up myself in case more pple damage the house..... I m shifting on Fri, but I m burnt out now to do anything..... Gotta recharge, regroup & make a final push towards the last hurdle.... Tuesday at 7:57pm via mobile · Like My touch up refers to the painting, silicon filling etc.... Did I tell u he even threw tiling debris into my toilet bowl & then vehemently denied doing it (no other contractors were in the house).... I had to put my hand in to scoop 4 times to remove it..... I think he came over 6 times after painting & still couldn't fin... EVERYTIME he spent short duration, at times no drill, material not enough, keep coming back & forth...... Good news is, it's all over with him now!!! I need to Zzzzzzzz now, ciao Yesterday at 7:13am via mobile · Like My wirings were supposed to be done after tiling, & installation after painting..... But he kept leaving things up, & he refused to touch the kitchen & toilet until after my kitchen cabinets r up, citing that he needed to do it all at one s hot.... & I had like SCV points, phone points etc exposed for weeks because he couldn't find the cover for them.... & a wall light that couldn't be switched on for a week coz he lost the cable for that... Get the drift of how messy he is...... Really, I should be catching up on my sleep.... Zzzzz, ciao Yesterday at 7:31am via mobile · Like But today I realised that he smoked my wife by telling her that the SCV splitter was spoilt... In fact, it was his connection at one of my rooms that wasn't working.... 4 hours ago via mobile · Like

My FSM asked me to buy a Jadeite Mountain, any idea where is the best place to buy it? And how does it look like?

Hi Just get my key for a BTO 4 room, Looking for a reliable contractor Anyone have one to reconmend. ... TIA Chia

Hi, sforshor, can you share me the contact for the LED downlight and strips? Thank you in advanced!

Hi! Pls email me at pearlyn_8@hotmail.com your quotation and Calvin contact.. just received my keys from hdb and saw your posts on RT. Really glad to have found such a clear and detailed info!

Those ceiling beams.... wow. How much do they cost to fix up? Love the feel...

My Pantry Work in Progress! This is how it looks like when you walk into the kitchen. Checking if my purse can fit in a sliding door which I am hoping I can! That's the view from the Balcony. The first opening is the 3rd Bathroom and the 2nd is the Pantry. Didn't notice until my friend pointed out the misalignment of height so going to check with ID tomorrow. The Pantry Space which can fit in shelving and decent amount to hoard my groceries and pots & pans & Kitchen Appliances. My table top oven is going in there as well. Magic will happen!!

Painting Updates Part 2 Master Bedroom with an even lighter shade of blue with Sail White. Can't wait to dress it up with white flowy curtains My CRAZY REFURBISHED WHITE DOOR for the Store under the staircase! Swooooooooooning! I nearly went with baby blue and was worried it might make my house into a baby boy nursery feel so am really glad I stuck with white! White contrasting each other. I have Sail White and the Matt White side by side. Shows the 2 whites off!!

I Just brought a resale 3rm in hougang. 20k is definitely not enough. I go to 20 over ID. Ended up sign my contact with a contractor. Cheaper then what was quote by ID

Since there is not much information available in Renotalk blog and forums on the choice of sanitary products - WCs and Toilets, available in the market, I decided to do a research. After spending few days of my time in going around and visiting various shops, I have compiled below some of my research in WC and toilet products (1 piece models only): Jalan Besar area: I started visiting the shops in traffic direction from Lavender Street. 1. Poh Joo Hardware, 389 Jalan Besar (opp. Lavender Square): My first stop. Brands they carry & promote are mostly Clayton only. Clayton prices seem to be on the cheaper side. But models don't inspire much. Also they carry other brands like Arino but very limited choice and price seems to be more expensive than others for such brands. 2. Hupfarri Bathroom, 255, Jalan Besar. My second stop. Nice, big showroom carrying primarily OTTO products. The staff are knowledgeable and able to explain the products in detail. But pricing is at a premium. For eg., a model like 7030 WC, the price quoted is $599 inclusive of a $300 FREE basin. Mind you - some decent basins cost $350 here; so you need to top-up another $50. Man, use this showroom to learn about the products and buy somewhere! Warning: Be careful - as some models are P-trap only with exposed back; not be suitable for HDB's, unless you use a converter. You will still have to live with the exposed back. 3. Fullsun Marketing, 146, Jalan Besar 3rd stop after third time! Don't get it right? They are like an Corporate office. Work only on weekdays. No weekend service. So I had to come here 3rd time. Please ensure you visit them only on weekdays and office hours only. Premium products right - you have to bear it! They market TOTO products. Well need not say much. Basic models start at $850 and move upwards of $1100 for decent ones. Ofcourse they claim to give you 20% discount on the list prices mentioned above. Also bear in mind, most of their models only cater to P-trap WC's; so not really suitable for poor HDB cousin's (like me!) unless you opt for converter to fit in the existing floor type S-trap's in HDB's. With being not comfortable with this converter stuff, I decided to walk out of the showroom. With my dreams of doing my stuff on a luxurious TOTO smashed, I decided to take a break and have a humble Nasi Briyani and Teh Halia to refreshen in Little India. 4. GR Link Marketing, 155 Jalan Besar (just opp Fullsun) I have read enough about them from Renotalk especially the very sweet lady and Uncle Ben, the owner. Brightly lit showroom, although much smaller than Hupfarri and Fullsun; products are neatly arranged. Friendly service and lots of advice. Models that impressed me here are: 1. Baron WC 888 (1 piece) with Geberit flush - 10 years warranty $389 2. Inspire 6081 (1 piece) with Geberit flush - 10 years warranty $399 3. OTTO Mercury (1 piece) - 10 years warranty $350 Add $68 and get a wash basin from the available choices. As usual, available choices don't impress me and I then see something that needs top up of $120. 5. Eng Soon Huat Hardware Merchant Pte Ltd 140 Jalan Besar, Next to Fullsun Not friendly service; not so much variety. Carry few Otto, Inspire, baron & one more chines brand (Caroma or Carona). I took note of the models and moved on quickly. 6. Poh Seng Hardware Enterprise, 153, Jln Besar (just next to GR Link Marketing) ALL prices here are inclusive of GST. Very experienced Uncle – Mr. Seah Boon Seng. Prices seem to be cheaper than GR Link Marketing. Models suggested by him: 1. Arino Caprio WC with Geberit (1 piece) new model where the top flushing system cover is invisible) with heavy duty seat cover $320 2. Treo T200 WC with Geberit (1 piece) - with a nice oblong shape; looks really nice. But more expensive than Arino Caprio. $380 7. Royal Fanco, 135 Jalan Besar Highly recommended by many people in Renotalk; Small showroom; cramped; not much on display; price seems to be cheapest especially if you go for package deal ie., WC+Basin. Models suggested: Baron (830x370x700) SINGLE PIECE $399 with basin With slim seat cover add $30 Magnum (640x360X780) Single Piece with new slim seat cover – same price. The slim seat cover was very impressive. No other shop seems to have that. 8. Ideal Merchandise, Block 808, French Road, #02-21 Had a big difficulty to locate this shop. It is above NTUC. Specialize in Bidet primarily for Toto, Bravat and other high end models. Approx cost $350 for a bidet. Not much focus on selling WC's. More interested in pricing a bundle offering of Bidet+WC. Geylang/Tanjong Katong: 9. Hoe Kee, Tanjong Katong Plaza Carry mainly their inhouse brand Roz. Didn't see the designs to be modern and contemporary. So left the shop quickly and headed to Geyland Road. 10. Wasserbath, Geylang Road WC’s : only deal with IXIS brand; supplied to many private condo project; Offer for GSS period $599 with Basin. WC's look decent and nice. Not heard of this brand much. 11. Heritage Bathroom, Geylang Road Carry Toto Brand. Prices are very competitive for Toto. (seems better than Fullsun); but no display. Suggested models: Inspire 6081 WC (1 piece) with Geberit ($320). Most competitive price. Baron 888 WC (similar to Inspire 6081) was $290. Again most competitive price. 12. Universal Union: not so impressive. not much knowledge from staff to explain. 13. *spam: give it a miss. - too tired leh! Not visited from original list: 14. Bathroom Warehouse, Changi Guess, this gives you an idea of where/what to shop.. Happy shopping!

I was at IMM to visit Hoe Kee a few weeks back. There was a shop 1-2 units beside them that sells some kind of modular kitchen cabinets that has stainless steel surface, etc. Very commercial kitchen look but quite stylish. I asked the sales lady, she said must get people to go your house measure then can quote. She didn't seem quite knowledgeable about it, but you can try go take a look...

Hi vicx1234, I refer to your earlier comment (quoted below). No revolving door for the irobot. Just setting aside a space below the shoe cabinet for it and allocating a powerpoint inside the shoe cabinet. shoe cabinet (with space for irobot) by Harriette_Tan, on Flickr By the way, very nice renos. Love the WIW.

any idea how much does the invisible grill cost for HDB 4rm balcony?

Hi Jason5, Let me know if you need. i can intro my renovator, reliable and good service. mikey

After spending 5 weeks viewing houses, I have come to realise that it is indeed possible to buy HDB resale DIY but it depends on two things: 1) knowledge on HDB buying procedure - like most people have mentioned, this is the "easy" part if you diligently read HDB website / attend their resale seminar and here comes the difficult part 2) luck (which also depends on how much cash you have for COV, how urgently you need a flat) If you have these two factors, I sincerely congratulate you to be able to buy a resale flat DIY. Personally, we have number 1 but not number 2. And so we switched to engaging agents. After experiencing how it is like in both worlds, I can tell you the pros and cons of engaging an agent. Pros: 1) They have more listings within agency and between agencies. Many of these listings are not available publicly to DIY buyers. 2) A good agent is able to help you negotiate a lower COV 3) A good agent can arrange viewings back to back so that you can view more units than arranging them yourself. Cons: 1) Most agents do not act in your best interest. They just sweet talk you, saying they will help you save money but in the end just tell you to increase offer and burst your budget. 2) As the buyer's agents we have encountered, were those we called up to arrange flat viewing, they usually just concentrate on that unit and not really be bothered to arrange more for you (cannot blame them since we didn't sign exclusivity with them) All in all, among the 11 agents we met: 2 (seller agents) was sincere and willing to transact with DIY buyers 1 (buyer agent) was really good and helpful, truly act in our best interest Rest of the seller's agents couldn't be bothered to even negotiate with us. Rest of the buyer's agents just want to close deal on the unit we viewed and/or no help in negotiating COV and/or didn't bother to bring us to view other units. (This applies to the Tampines area)