edward

Hahaha... they are the same. Arent they beautiful? The "fake" version of those italian tiles but look as good. BTW do you have problem maintaing the tiles? Especially algaes?

Continue from previous post (because I attached too many pictures, have to post on 2 replies) With the completion of the renovation getting closer, I really look forward to the end of next week... The schedule will be plumbering, electricity and aircon. Attached below is the photo of the toilet bowl (claytan brand) I got, I think it looks sleek and importantly, not very expensive

Back to the renovations. Haizz the mystery of the oil droplets not solved, but life has to move onnnnnn. Over the weekend, went over to check on the progress of the house. Despite the oil droplets mystery, I must say that I am very happy with the work done so far. All thanks to my project manager Yen for putting in effort to make sure that our many requests are fulfilled. As of today, all the tiles are completed, plastering of all the walls are completed and all floors/walls are washed (and chemical washed). Below are some of the photos, pardon me, I think I am not good with taking photos, they all seem the same as the previous ones MASTER BED ROOM KITCHEN LIVING ROOM I must say I am particularly happy with the feature wall in the kitchen as well as the tiles selected for my toilet. Think they make the house look like condo (hahaha, I know I sibei thick skin). BEAUTIFUL FEATURE WALL FOR KITCHEN NICE WALL TILES FOR TOILET Despite all the nice work done, of course there were some problems along the way. Intially, I got a main door gate from my in-law's due to their house upgrading (they decided to use their old main gate and pass the new one to us), under the HDB ungrading scheme. So we thought can save a few hundred bucks from the gate. But 2 weeks back, after we brought it over to our house, realised that the gate is too long. Cannot fit our main door. So I asked Yen if he could get us a new main gate, but he was really nice to tell us that it will be more expensive to get through him (he quoted $450). Instead, through the newspaper, he found a supplier and told us to buy the main gate directly from the supplier (But of course he warned us that anything happen to the main gate, cannot be covered under his reno warranty). For that I think he deserve some credit.

Thanks dexufto and neubie for your advise. I managed to read a thread with regard to HTS & sound systems in the forum. Many like neubie thinks that the sound quality of BOSE is inferior as compared to brands such as Onkyo, Yamaha or Marantz (see link below). But on the other hand, I totally agree with your argument, the trouble with the cables running around and with many pieces of speakers in our already small 3-rm. http://www.renotalk.com/forum/index.php?sh...=25083&st=0 In addition, since the house is a super old 3-rm, hence, everything cannot conceal, so the problems are (1) untidy appearance of the house and (2) traps a lot of dirt when everything left exposed. As such, I will have to comtemplate between quality vs convinence and appearance. My wife is a music lover, who will love to own a piece of high quality sound system, in contrast, I am more a fuss-free person (fuss-free because I will have to clean the house eventually hahahahahaha). Think for now, I will put this aside, let me discuss with my wife, do some more research and comparisons on the speakers before making a decision. By the way, I think its amazing so many of you bros and sis knows so much about everything.....

Ya, my contractor got it cleaned up. Today went back to check but there isnt anything at the moment, just that the area looks a little shiny. We will continue to monitor. Worse case think we will go up to knock on the neighbour's door. If still cant, then we have to go to HDB. But my wife kind of worried its "something" else

Mystery! mystery! mystery! Went over to my house over the weekend to check on the progress. Finally all the tiling for the floor and the walls are done. Happy. While inspecting, suddenly saw this yellowish looking "oil" droplets on the ceiling of my guest room. See the attachment. Ask the contractor if the tilers accidentally applied anything on the ceiling, he said 'no'. Then went upstairs to try figure out if the neighbours let oil sip into the floor, but the room above seem quite normal (never knock on their door, just peep from outside). So now my wife and I are wondering what are these droplets of "oil" and where did they come from? Especially if there are any sipage from the floor above, there should be an obvious oil stain on the ceiling, but there is none.... hmmm...... headache.... Anyone experience something like that before?

Today, went to Isetan at Shaw. Saw this nice sleek looking BOSE Companion 5 speakers. With only 2 speakers and 1 woofer, it can actually give surround sound, quite amazing. Considering there are only 3 components, I believe the number of wires running around will reduce significantly as well. Anyone used these speakers before? Able to advice if BOSE produces good speakers?

testing = toilet wall..... hahahahaha.... finally got it onto the page..... why cant reno talk make this process less tedious? 1st must upload it onto a web page, then extract the html code, then paste onto here. for those who are less IT savvy, think it will be very challenging.

Haha... Went to the house yesterday. Finally saw the tiles for the wall and floor of the kitchen and the toilet. At least for now, I feel that they look really **** good. All thanks to my project manager Yen for giving me solid advice on the color combi. Nevertheless, there is one particular tile (for my toilet walls) which Yen advised me not to use because it has many small lobangs (which make it look like marble tile, see the TOILET COMMON TILES), but I like it soooo much, so bobian, I still use it. Hopefully next time wont have a lot of trouble trying to get rid of the algae.... Sorry, was trying to insert the picture onto the page itself, but cant seem to do it. Anyway, below are the pictures to my kitchen wall and floor tiles. http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/5025934205/ ==== KITCHEN WALLS / FLOOR http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/5026554788/ ==== KITCHEN FEATURE WALL http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/5026560676/ ==== KITCHEN COMMON WALL http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/5026563818/ ==== KITCHEN FLOOR http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/5026544054/ ==== TOILET WALLS http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/5025930747/ ==== TOILET FEATURE WALL http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/5026557808/ ==== TOILET COMMON WALL By the time i left yesterday, I saw the tilers working on the living room floor. Think they should be up by tomorrow. I am so looking forward to see the result of the selected floor tiles for the bed and living room

I agree with you. We are quite worried that we may face storage problems in further. All of us no matter what will definitely have junks to keep somehow. Maybe we may get the contractor to erect a storage cabinet in the kitchen for us in future, now no $$$$ hahahahaha..... This is the problem of a small house, not enough space.

Hahaha... this one i got no experience, this is the first time i buy house. But I think in general everything is going up in terms of price. And it is especially painful when we see so much of our hard earn money fly away for doing a reno.

Ya lo, the other day i was looking through the t-blogs, like i dont see so much sand leh..... hmm... u never say i also never thought of askin my contractor. U brought up a good point, think i better ask him tomorrow. Dont know if it is for the fridge base and things like that. No picture to show, haven met my contractor, will be meeting him tomr night. I think he was telling me that the length of the wall and floor tiles different. So when he paste it on, visually will look ugly cause, wall tiles longer then fall tiles.

These few days really busy no time to see the progress of my house. But my contractor told me the tiles for the toilet and living should be up. He also highlighted that the size of the kitchen wall and floor tiles are out. So the gap between the tiles will be big. Now in a dillemma if I should change the tiles or take his recommendation, that is to lay the tiles from the centre of the kitchen out to the sides, then the gap dont look so huge...... hmmmmm..... anyone able to advise me?

Thanks Nuebie.

Ya they are still facing each other. Do you have a store room in between the 2 bedrooms? If you notice, the previous owner hacked away the store room and turn it into the wardrobe for the master room. So I am keeping that concept. But then we will have storage problems

neubie, can you please teach me how you insert all the photos onto the page itself?

I think many like me bo pian, the house 3o years old and in original condition hahahaha...... In addition, no money to buy condo, so want to renovate the house to look like a condo, if possible. So the only way is to do a major overhaul to the house and pray it will turn out to be like a condo.

Yesterday (18 Sep 10) morning, went down to see the progress of the reno. Before reaching the house, heard some Chinese songs coming out from my house. Took a peep, saw 2 Chinese man. Initially thought from China, later on realised they are Malaysians. Kind of surprise that my contractor did not engage those Banglas / Chinese (from China). In fact, I thought it is better to use Malaysians rather than those Bangla / Chinese. The reason is my in-laws are doing HDB upgrading, the HDB contractors uses the Banglas / Chinese, mostly dont seem bothered about doing a good job. Tell them to do properly, they give all kinds of excuses. So I must credit my contractor for a good job done so far. Hope they keep up the good work Anyway, below are the photos, basically, hacking all done, main sewage pipes changed and window / grills are installed. The Malaysian workers are now doing water proofing for the kitchen and bathrooms. Think from tomorrow onwards, they will be tiling. By the end of next week, I think I can see all my floor and wall tiles up. Sadly, I still cant think of the concept for my bedroom (low budget have to be my own ID) hahahaha..... Nvm, I think I will jio jio my contractor to give me some ideas http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/ ---> Look at STAGE 3 for the latest photos. On a side note, after visiting my house, decided to go to Crawford Lane, Blk 466 for the famous Pork Noodle. Was really excited when we reached there, a long Q. I queued for 25-30mins finally got my hands on the food. Ordered a $5 noodle for myself, $4 for my wife and a $4 meat ball soup for sharing. I will have to admit that the noodles are really nice, very Q and will not stick together when dry (think is home made), but the soup that comes with the noodle is a real disappointment (not tasty). So overall, I will give it a 7.5 - 8 /10. I think the Mince Pork Noodle at the ION is better.

How much your COV? Also in AMK?

Thanks, thats really helpful, let me go and try how to do the signatures

Hello, just got back from work and a quick run to my place to see the progress of the hacking. The workers very fast hand fast leg, 2 and half days all the hacking done. Below are the photos of the hacked house. Sorry, the resolution not good, forget to bring my camera, had to use hp to take the pictures. Also, I have put all the photos under 1 link, I think it will be easier to access all my photos at one go. http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/ BTW, my COV is 3k. During these tough times, I think quite lucky to be able to get at this price. I think partly because it is low floor and really near the train track. I will sure check out your blog for ideas. Thanks much

By the way, can anyone teach me how to add the "Purchases to date" at the bottom of your replies? Is it automatic or you have to copy and paste each time you post?

Hi all, I am so excited that my renovation has finally started today Before I start, I must thank all fellow renotalk bros and sis for giving your valuable feedbacks on this forum. Though I am not a very active participant, I have learn lots from everyone here. In turn, I will also like to sure my experience thus far as well as sought feedbacks / recommendations from all of you. Ours is a 3rm, 30 year old, original condition flat located in AMK. Below is the layout of my 3rm flat. http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/4986493391/ The contractor selection process was a really tedious one. While we haven't got a huge budget, been a kiasu Singaporean, yet we want everything cheap and good With our tiny $28k budget and with the intention of renovating the whole house, my wife and I started the contractor / ID hunting process by invited around 12 contractors + IDs to quote for the reno over a period of 2 weeks, just before the hungry ghost festival. (I must say that this is a SIBEI tiring process, almost everyday after work have to go to the house to meet contractors/IDs). I remember one of my friends commented that "wah lao, million dollar project also dont ask for some many quotes", which I thought we may really have over done it Nevertheless, out of the 12, minus those that have priced us out, mainly the IDs and some more popular contractors, we short-listed 3 contractors. We requested for viewing of their current on-going projects, out of the three, of course, we were most impressed with our current contractor, CT Square. Largely, this was due to the professional approached they adopted. While we engaged them as contractors (I think they can do ID as well, never ask though), the boss, Daniel gave valuable advice & drawings on how we can approach the project. Additionally, the workmanship of the 2 houses renovated by my project manager, Yen, in Seng Kang as well as the nice words from the house owners certainly gave them more brownie points. So, I hope, pray and dream they can also do a good job for my house After talking so much, below are the photos of my 30 year old house before the reno. I think the house is really turn off... Hahahaha... Luckily my COV is low. Too bad today got to work late, cant go down to take photos of my house http://www.flickr.com/photos/53912514@N06/ Quotation given by my contractor : Demolition Works - Lump Sum $2200 1. Provide labour & tools to hack off existing floor tiles for living, store & 2 bedrooms. 2. Provide labour & tools to hack off existing floor & wall tiles for kitchen & 2 bathrooms. 3. Provide labour & tools to hack off existing wall between living & kitchen. 4. Provide labour & tools to dismantle existing kitchen cabinet & bathroom's fitting. 5. Provide labour & tools to dismantle existing cabinet at store room. 6. H.D.B permit submition fee. Masonary Works - Total $10160 1.Provide labour & raw materials to lay 60x60cm homogeneous floor tiles for living & 2 bedrooms.($3.00) 2. Provide labour & raw materials to construct L4ft full height wall to seal up store entrance. 3. Provide labour & raw materials to screed 3 in 1 water proofing cement screed & 1 additional layer of water proofing membrane for kitchen. 4. Provide labour & raw materials to lay floor tiles for kitchen.($3.00) 5. Provide labour & raw materials to lay wall tiles up to ceiling height for kitchen.($2.40) 6. Provide labour & raw materials to construct kitchen cabinet & fridge base. 7. Provide labour & raw materials to construct L3ft half height wall c/w tiles finish. 8. Provive labour & law materials to construct L6ft x H4ft half height wall. 9. Provide labour & raw materials to screed 3 in 1 water proofing cement screed & 1 additional layer of water proofing membrane for 2 bathrooms. 10. Provide labour & raw materials to lay floor tiles for 2 bathrooms.($3.00) 11. Provide labour & raw materials to lay wall tiles up to ceiling height for 2 bathrooms.($2.40) Plumbing Works - Total $2250 1. Provide labour & materials to run s/steel cold water piping for whole unit. 2. Provide labour & materials to run s/steel hot water piping for 2 shower & 2 basin. 3. Provide labour & materials to change 3 X pvc main pipe for kitchen & 2 bathrooms. 4. Provide labour to install 2 x toilet sitting bowls. (included common squat bowl to sit bowl) 5. Provide labour to install 2 x toilet basin with tap c/w outlet pipe. 6. Provide labour to install 1 x storage heater. 7. Provide labour to install 2 x toilet accessories. 8. Provide labour to install kitchen sink & washing machine c/w outlet pipe. Electrical Works (34 points) - Total $2010 1. 14-way DB box x 1 2. Lighting point x 14 3. Single power point x 2 4. Double power point x 12 5. TV point x 2 6. Heater point (two way) x 1 7. Air-con point x 1 8. Telephone point x 1 Tempered Glass, Work, Aluminium Door Works - Total $2010 1. Provide labour & materials to install new solid nyatoh door for main entrance. 2. Provide labour & materials to install 2no's of classic door c/w door stoper for 2 bedrooms. 3. Provide labour & materials to install 2 sets of aluminium bi-fold door for 2 bathrooms. 4. Provide labour & materials to install L6ft x H4ft 10mm tempered glass fix panel for kitchen entrance. 5. Provide labour & materials to install L3ft x H8ft 10mm tempered glass swing door for kitchen entrance. Aluminium Grilles and Windows - Total $2200 1. Provide labour & materials to install aluminium naco window for living & bedroom 2. 2. Provide labour & materials to install aluminium casement window for kitchen & main bedroom. 3. Provide labour & materials to install aluminium louver window for 2 bathrooms. 4. Provide labour & materials to install aluminium sliding window grilles for living, kichen & 2 bedrooms. False Ceiling Works - Total $900 1. Provide labour & materials to install false ceiling c/w light holder for living & dining. Carpentry - Total $2855 1. Design & fabricate L13ft laminated bottom kitchen cabinet at kitchen. *All door in ABS trimming *Soft closing system hinges *Full extended track for drawer set 2. Design & fabricate L6ft laminated shoe cabinet c/w cushion sitter ****. 3. Design & fabricate L6ft laminated tv console ****. Solid Surface - Total $910 1. Provide labour & materials to install L13ft solid surface worktop for kitchen. Other Works - Total $3260 1. Provide plastering of interior wall & ceiling for whole unit. 2. Provide painting of interior wall & ceiling for whole unit. (5 colours plus ceiling white) 3. Provide new rubbish chute. 4. Provide haulage & clear debris fee. 5. Provide chemical washing.

i am getting my new home soon. will any bro pls share the details of this contractor with me. thank you veryy much.