sgdstuff

Hi Everyone, Have been hanging around with envy in this forum for the last 2 years, finally; it's going to be my turn soon to transform my home. Some background details : The thought of revamping my home came about slightly more than 2 years ago and it was always the thought of between selling my existing place for a new one or to revamp my existing and all these while, these 2 thoughts have been battling with one another deep in my mind (just like the devil & angel ) and just about 2 years ago, i made up my mind to set on revamping and then came the good news that my wife's preggie with my princess hence everything came to a abrupt stop. During my wife's 10 mths pregancy, these 2 thoughts start battling one another again and at the begining, the thought of getting a new place won and I stopped all my preparation e.g. research in renovation ideas etc etc and began concentrating on looking out for a new place. As time goes by, I soon realised that with the ridiculous property market, I will never be able to get an unit of the same size and location as convenient as current without folking out large amount of COV as well as high valuation price. Although the valuation of our existing had risen handsomely when compared to the price we paid for,the fact of the condition of our place (little reno and lot's of wear and tear), we reckon we will never be able to command a decent COV hence that would meant we would need to come out with hard cash for paying the COV of the other property and that's not to meantioned any additional cash for the reno of the new place. After some serious discussion between me and my wife after the birth of our princess, we decided to stay put and decision set of revamp and once again, I began my "research" about 6 months ago and set the target to start the revamping process some time after my princess turn 1 year old and as she had just turn 1 year old couple of weeks ago, here I am, actively looking for a short term rental as well as starting to get Contractors & IDs to provide us with quotations. To start of with, I had engaged a FSM to audit the place as I would like to ensure I'm doing the correct stuff. The FSM audit report is not out yet but due to time constraint, I had invited 5 IDs/Contractors to view my place and provide me with quotes and once the FSM report is out, I will then update them of the changes. 3 of them had came yesterday and this morning and I have another 2 who's coming this afternoon and tomorrow afternoon. I will reveal their company names once I have received their quotes next week. Below would be my ideal reno schedule : 3rd week of March : Confirmed a short term rental place 4th week of March : Quotes from ID/Contractors received 1st week of April : Audit report from FSM received and notify all ID/Contractors on changes 2nd week of April : Revised quote from ID/Contractors and I start to decide on what can be obtain from "ready-made" furniture stores instead in order to cut reno cost. 3rd week of April : To shortlist and confirm ID/Contractor 4th week of April : Move to short term rental place 1st week of May : Reno Starts! May & June : Shopping spree on Furniture, Lightings, Home Appliances stuff etc End June - Begining July : Major reno works completed 1st & 2nd week of July : Inspection & Touch-ups of reno works and arrival of new furniture, home appliances etc 3rd week of July : Mission accomplished and move back to Home Sweet Home. Note : Would be most grateful for fellow brothers & sisters to comment if my "ideal" schedule is acheveable. I have yet to take any photos of my place..... 1 reason is because it's too messy to show to general public audience Will upload my floorplan later, just could not figure out how to at this moment. I shall stop here for today and will update again after I received the quotes

I bought thru a friend. He was getting 1 for himself so I tag along. not sure if there's anywhere u can see one on display but like what I had mentioned earlier, if you are looking for a device to provide strong breeze....... Don't waste time on this (cannot comment on original Dyson).

LG Top Load....... Noisy but bearable. I'm using one for about 5 years, so far I'm quite ok with it but I'm not sure about the quality of newer models. Based on my understanding previously, LG's Fridge & Washing Machine are quite alright (not sure about now) but was advise not to get their aircon if have a choice.............. On Hitachi WM, no comments as have not used before but I recently had some experience on Panasonic Top Load WM, I would say it's pretty quiet but not sure if it's because it's new..

Hi All Gurus, I'm wanting to get a built-in oven when I do my reno in the upcoming months and am wondering which dimension would be the best to avoid future hiccups i.e. when the old one spoilt, which dimension is the easiest to find a replacement? Thanks in advance for the advice.

Thanks RB for the reply, completely understood how it works now....... My household is quite tradtional in a way as we boil our drinking water using kettles over gas hence have no experience on water boiler

Not sure about the original Dyson set but if you thinking of a a fan that can produce strong "wind", you can forget about the China Imitation set. I'm using one and I think the wind "speed" at the highest level is worst off than traditional blade fan's lowest speed.....

Hi All, I'm going to embark on a reno process for my home soon and am wanting to install Storage Heater. Recall someone telling me that I need to be cautious if I used a Storage Heater because if one forgot to switch off the heater after usage, it will continue to boil and the heating elements will get over heated and burnt..... Is this a Myth or Fact? Greatly appreciate if users of Storage Heaters could provide me with some clarifications. Thank you in advance.

I'm embarking onto a hunt for Contractors in about a months times after my FSM audit and would like to find out some info beforehand. Usually when a contractor or ID provides a quote, would their quote includes tiles? If yes, what happens when I have my prefer tiles..... say from Hafary, wopuld the contractors/IDs just reduce their quote and I go and buy my own or they will purchase it for me and I pay them the difference? Thanks in advance for the advice.

No harm getting one to quote 1st. If what the ID quoted fits your budget and able to maximize your usable space, why not.

Thanks angkt for the info. Any Bros & Sis can provide any further insight/feedback or even experiences if Granite & Quartz are porous and allow moisture/bacteria to accumulate? Thanks ain advance.

Seems Quartz is quite well-received...... Can anyone give me a rough idea on how much to expect per sq ft on quartz?

Mine's a 4A as well and belongs to those Door-Door design layout i.e. each floor only 2 units other than the lift landing floor and the total area is only 104sqm........ My kitchen's shape is the rectangular one...... Maybe I should go check the length again...... maybe the ID who had quoted me anyhow measure.... he told me that one side of my kitchen is about 29ft and the other side I'm requesting for another 5ft preparation counter.....

Hi, Having fail to kick off our Reno project last year due to the arrival of our princess, we are quite determine to kick start it sometime next yeat and here I am trying to do some research on Kitchen Table Tops. Typically, we do lot's of cooking and my wife loves to bake as well hence we would like to do some research on which Kitchen Table top is 1. Durable & 2. Easy Maintenance & 3. if possible, does not cost a bomb. Btw, mine's is a 4rm HDB and I think the total length of the table top would be somewhere in the region of 34 to 36ft long. Thanks in advance!

Hi, I'm thinking or renovating my current 4 RM flat and is wanting to engage a FSM before I do anything. Came across Master Tony Tan from Harmony Fengshui and would like to check if anyone had used his services before and how's his skills... Can any kind folks who had used him before share with me some reviews on him. Thanks alot in advance.

Thanks alot for the replies and advice. Will try to go hunt for some quotes some time in March or April. Simply too busy to do anything now.

Hi, I'm currently staying in a 4 RM (4A) HDB in Hougang area and the estate is over 20+ years hence quite old but ever since shifting in about 6yrs+ ago, both myself & my wifey finds that this place is quite convenient and has the intention to stay on. When we bought this unit 6yrs+ ago, we did not do much reno.... just did plastering for the whole house + re-wiring & re-piping and since we have the intention the carry on in this house, we were thinking doing a major renovation. This renovation project will includes all the flooring, wardrobes, the whole kitchen, 2 bathrooms, changing of windows in the MBR, study room + the kitchen as well as adding some divider features in our living room to create a foyer as you enter into the house which would also double up as a "wall" for me to fixed a LCD TV on it. I am currently still in the thinking & planning stage hence would like to seek some advice to see if I were to embark on this reno-project of mine, what kind of $$ would I be looking at? As this is would be a major reno-job, we would shift out from the house temporary to maybe a chalet or rent an apartment for a 2 months or so. The area of my unit is 104sqm & the living room is the square type. Would sincerely hope to find some advice from the kind souls in this forum. Thank you in advance.