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Ks Toh

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Everything posted by Ks Toh

  1. Ks Toh
    Hi home-maker Yes, there are not many blogs on landed properties in this forum. Glad you found mine useful. Using the airway as a vertical garden and koi pond below was indeed one of my best decisions. Water seepage is still a problem. I have not completely solved it yet. The answers to your questions (for most of them, I had discussed them in this blog somewhere):- 1. I kept most of my flooring. Hall and dining area - I re-polished the white marble, relaid some pieces due to reconfiguration of walls etc. Rooms & staircase - I re-sanded all the parquet and timber flooring. Had to redo some parts due to re-configuration of wall and water damage. For the small area I relaid new parquet, they supposed to put cement then lay the parquet. But now it feels hollow. Not well done. Outdoor decking - I used Chengai for one area and Accoya for another. Kitchen and yard - I used wood tiles. Feels very good. I did not overlay any floor. All toilet, kitchen, yard tiles were hacked out, cemented before tiles laid. Yes, the wood tiles for my kitchen are really good. 2. We fell out with our pest controller due to some misunderstanding (see my post on this), so he never finished the job. Hence, never came back. The only thing he did was to prepare the ground i.e. inject chemicals into the ground before renovations. So, other than that, we have no protection, unfortunately. Lesson learnt here. I don't recall him checking for birds or rat infestation. I don't have a rat problem. At least not known to me. Birds (mostly mynahs) do come to my house to drink water from my koi pond. I have no issue with that. But few times, some birds have flown into my house, got trapped and ****ted on my sofa. 3. Waterproofing is normally only for the toilets and kitchen, I believe. My ID/contractor supposed to do the waterproofing for these areas, but obviously they did not do a good job. I saw them applying some blackish looking stuff on the floor and a bit of the wall. They claim it is waterproofing chemical. Hence, there was water seepage from one toilet to the room below. But it is not clear if the water was seeping from the floor or the floor trap. I got a specialist contractor to rectify this plus other areas of water seepage. (see my post on this). This guy was quite responsible. The problem is not totally solved but he did come back when asked. I recommended them to some others and based on some feedback, they were not bad. But I give no guarantees. It seems that they are now very busy. If you use them, please don't forget it was me who recommended them. Just say from the Kew Drive house.
  2. Ks Toh
    Truth be told, I totally forgot about this. I went to check the box. It does say Connection: 3/4" male/female. But when I measured the pipe, it seems to be 1 inch wide. What is this 3/4" measurement? As you can see from my pictures, the top female end has no problem connecting to a normal Singapore tap male end. I tried it and there is no problem. However, when I tried to screw a normal water hose part with a female end to the bottom male end of this device, I thought the screw threads did not quite fit, even though the overall width was the same at 1 inch. I did not force it.
  3. Ks Toh
    Smoke Detectors Having told my friend about my fire extinguishers, he asked me to consider smoke detectors. That was when I realised that in many fires, the occupants are unaware of the fire. Hence, a smoke detector should be used in conjunction with fire extinguishers. I went to Selfix DIY and found a smoke detector on sale at $37.90. Made in Germany. I installed it on the ceiling of my yard kitchen, away from the stove area. I tested it, and it worked fine. http://youtu.be/blYuWMWZ5lU P.S. During dinner, my helper was frying a fish, and the smoke detector went off! I had to stop the alarm by removing the batteries. So, I guess it works and I have to relocate it further away from the cooking area.
  4. Ks Toh
    You just have to ask the plumber to lay one hot water pipe to your kitchen, and buy a mixer tap. However, I am not sure if your gas heater can supply hot water to three locations. In my case, I am using storage heater. The kitchen tap takes hot water from the nearest toilet. No problem.
  5. Ks Toh
    Hose Bib Fertilising System My EZ-FLO 3/4 Gallon hose bib fertilising system has also been spoilt for some time. The inlet tube inside the container broke. I am still using it as it is still usable. However, since I was buying the Tap Timer, I thought of buying one of these system online as well. I saw it selling on Amazon at US$65.09. But unfortunately, the item does not ship to Singapore! I had no choice but to call the local agent. He quoted me S$260.00. I think I will live with my current container.
  6. Ks Toh
    [back to Table of Contents] Tap Timer My vertical garden tap timer broke down over the weekend. I realised it when I noticed some of the plants on my vertical garden wilting. The timer did not water the plants during the pre-set times. The 9V battery was flat. When I took longer to replace the battery (more than 30 seconds), the pre-set timings were not retained. After that, I found that I could not programme the timings as the display was not working. It was fully "lighted up". I found the exact tap timer on sale at the nursery. But it was S$214.00! I searched on Amazon and found it at only US$28.86 with free shipping to Singapore for orders over US$125. So I ended up ordering two plus some other stuff.
  7. Ks Toh
    I also agree that the lack of a waste bottle trap is strange. This is a basic plumbing requirement. It prevents the smell from the sewers below entering the flat. And if you drop your ring or something, this trap will catch it first. You must insist that the plumber install a waste bottle trap. Is that the power cable hanging on the hot water pipe? If so, I think it is not safe. Must get the electrician to move it away or put some protective casing.
  8. Ks Toh
    I totally agree that the design is odd. You will need a table for simple dining. Your little kid will soon need a table to do his homework. The additional door should not be there unless there is a purpose. Siting the fridge outside the kitchen is workable. At my previous place (a condo with layout similar to yours), as a result of reducing the kitchen and expanding the dining area, I sited the fridge outside the kitchen but next to the dining table. It worked well for me.
  9. Ks Toh
    Did you supervise the works? The following is my advice:
  10. Ks Toh
    You can add a layer of Hydroton or LECA to the surface. And this is the end result. We will only know if this works in a few months' time By the way, if you spent $600 in combined receipts within 6 months, you can apply for a free Gardening Club card which gives you 10% off regular priced items. [back to Table of Contents]
  11. Ks Toh
    Instead of filter wool, you can also use green netting which you can buy from the hardware shop (or take from some disused table tennis nets). But I find the holes too big, so you may need to use a few layers. After that, you need to transfer the plant into the new pot. I normally use a small shovel to loosen the earth around the plant, then transfer the whole plant with earth to the new pot. Since the new pot is bigger, you need to top up the soil. One bag cost about $5.
  12. Ks Toh
    Is this from TB? It is definitely very useful for those with: 1. Problematic neighbours 2. Problematic ex-owners who may have owed monies 3. Problems with SingPost delivery men who always claim non-delivery of items
  13. Ks Toh
    I cut the drainage cell to size and placed it at the bottom of the pot. Then I placed the water level indicator to one corner of the pot, using one of the holes in the drainage cell to hold the device up. I added some water and confirmed that the water level indicator was working. Next, you need to add a layer of cloth or some material. This is to hold the soil and prevent it from dropping to the bottom of the pot, clogging the intake of the water level indicator. I found some filter wool and decided to use it instead.
  14. Ks Toh
    Next, we need to create a water reservoir at the bottom of the pot. The nurseries normally recommend pouring a layer of Hydroton pebbles sufficient to cover the water intake holes at the bottom end of the water level indicator. These are basically lightweight super-heated expanded clay pebbles that you normally find strewn at the top of flower pots and trays. Far East sold to me a bag of these at $8.90 but when I looked at the bag at home, it says LECA for Lightweight Expanded Clay Aggregate. Apparently, it is similar to Hydroton except that LECA pebbles are irregularly shaped whereas Hydroton pebbles are generally round. However, as the Hydroton (or LECA) does not hold up the water level indicator very well, I decided to improvise and use a sheet of drainage cell instead. I have a few sheets of these left over from my pond. You can find them at most nurseries. $6.20 per piece.
  15. Ks Toh
    First you need to choose an indoor plant. In this case, my wife chose a Water Alocasia as she wanted the plant in the study and it should grow upwards instead of sideways. We bought this at $15 from Pioneer Landscape @Jalan Lekar. Next you need to find a pot with no drainage holes (or the hole can be plugged). My wife chose this $39 pot from Far East Flora @Bedok. You also need to buy a water level indicator that is suitable for the pot. The bottom of the indicator must touch the bottom of the pot and the entire glass section at the top must be above soil level. These are sold at around $1.50 to $5 at Far East, depending on size. I bought this big one at $5. (Ignore the black strip of drainage cell I used to prop up the water level indicator for photo taking)
  16. Ks Toh
    So I tried to DIY one pot of Philodendron Imperial Gold at the grand total of $34.65. Philodendron Imperial Gold With this success, I set out to DIY a bigger pot this time documenting all the steps. All materials are available from the Far East Flora nurseries at Thomson, Queensway or Bedok: http://www.fareastfloragarden.com/retail-outlets/
  17. Ks Toh
    DIY Sub-Irrigation System for Indoor Plants Plants are great indoors. Apart from making the place look nice, it has been claimed that some plants can help clean the air and beat the haze. No idea true or not. I guess all plants can help to clean the air to a certain extent. However, most people encounter the following problems with indoor plants: 1. Difficulty in deciding when to water and how much to water 2. Troublesome to deal with the excess water that flows out from the pot The solution is the sub-irrigation system, sometimes called the self-watering or self-draining pot. You can purchase them from most nurseries. The water is totally contained within the pot. It does not drain out. There is a indicator that tells you the water level. If the indicator falls below the "min" mark, you just add water to bring it to somewhere between "min" and "max". You can buy such systems from most nurseries. This is the Lechuza AIO Cubico Cottage 30 (White) Pot which I purchased previously, planted with a Philodendron 'Imperial Green' (Common Name: Luck Pair Plant). However, these systems are not cheap. This pot alone cost about $180. Furthermore, they come in standard shape, size and colour. You may want something different.
  18. Ks Toh
    Just read another news report on a fire that broke out in a Tampines HDB flat. I am not sure but I think there are no fire extinguishers or hoses on every floor in a HDB block? So I think it is a good idea to keep a small fire extinguisher at home. https://youtu.be/Jx0QW88Dhj0 For smaller flats, you can consider this 1 kg extinguisher at $48 from Autobacs. I secretly took this picture for anyone interested. They also sell a smaller (and expensive) 600g canister but the girl stopped me from taking a photo. P.S. I happened to go to Selfix and I discovered that the fire extinguishers are cheapest here! Too bad I did not know about this earlier.
  19. Ks Toh
    I am wondering how the top "L" shaped wall is being supported.
  20. Ks Toh
    The usual fire extinguishers I see are those hanging on the wall. The size ranges from 1 kg to 12 kg, with 2 kg being the most common that I see inside my office. So I checked the prices: Office supplier: 1 kg $60+ 2 kg $90+ Hardware store: 1 kg $55 2 kg $60 I thought the $60 2 kg model from my neighbourhood hardware store was value for money. So, I bought two. One for my yard kitchen, and one for my roof terrace. I mounted the first one near my washing machine and dryer. I am told that fire extinguishers need to be serviced every year. But when I asked my office admin what they do during servicing, she told me the vendor just comes and check the reading on the valve. If it is still in the green zone, he will just place a new sticker "checked ok!". I don't know if this is true or not. Anyway, the 2 kg extinguisher has this valve for me to check. I think as long as it is in the green zone, it should be ok.
  21. Ks Toh
    Many years ago, at my old place, I bought one of those small fire extinguishers and mounted it on the wall next to the cooking area. The size is that of an insecticide spray. The capacity is only around 600g. This are for one-time throw away use only. There is an expiry date (i think a few years) and past the date, there is no way to tell if the spray still works in an emergency. When I was a very small boy, I found one of these long expired extinguishers, hit it and I remembered the whole study being filled with white foam! Anyway, I found one of these and decided to put it in my car boot. Although past expiry date, I think it can still be used. It feels heavy and I am assuming that it behaves like an insecticide spray: heavy when full and light when empty. But I could be wrong! It is quite difficult to find such small extinguishers these days. They may be more suitable for cars. I saw them on sale at Autobacs but it was rather expensive. Almost $50 if I remember correctly. I tried to take a photo but the staff stopped me.
  22. Ks Toh
    FIre Extinguishers The other day, I received a frantic message from my sister on my family whatsapp group chat. Her neighbour's flat three floors directly below was on fire! After the fire, her whole house was covered with soot, and the very strong smell just would not go away. Anyway, this led me into thinking I should have a fire extinguisher at home, just in case. I think most of us do not have one at home. So I did some research.
  23. Ks Toh
    There are many stone engravers in Singapore for resting places, so I am sure there will be people who are doing for house numbers, monuments etc.
  24. Ks Toh
    Sorry for the late reply. I am sure there must be some place in Singapore where they do this. I went to check my house number and it was on a plastic or metal plate, not engraved onto stone. I did a google search and there are several companies. One is this: http://www.themakerstore.com/laser-engraving-service.html Even if the overseas supplier is cheaper, I think shipping costs back may be dear.
  25. Ks Toh
    If you are promised anything, make sure you get them to write it down. Don't every trust anyone. Even at reputed stores like Robinsons. There was a sale but I did not need the mattresses until some months later. I was persuaded to make full payment (to get the discount) but I was worried that there might be a better sale after that. It was a lot of money. I asked the salesman to write it down on the receipt. He laughed and said hello this is Robinsons, you can even get full refund anytime before you collect the goods. True enough, there was a slightly better sale down the road. We called him and he reluctantly reduced the price. Some weeks later, there was an even better sale. We approached him. He refused! Gave all sorts of excuses! And if you check Robinsons' policy, it is now different. Refund only within 7 days, and only if you produce receipts. And you get the refund not in cash but credit voucher.
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