leen

see, a rice cooker can do many tricks already. just that around and read the functions it can offer. the best area is go shopping centers and ask aunties many many quesions and go home think about it 1st before commiting to buy unless you are sure that's what you want. of coz the more function, the more expensive it will be. rice cooker can do double boil tonic chicken soup also. surprise right? my bro-in-law more clever, he uses rice cooker for cooking many dishes, use normal pot to cook rice. the expensive range of fujoh hob is made in japan. the cheaper one is made elsewhere according to the many salesmen but i forgotten where, think somewhere in asia, maybe indonesia. for those oil catching type, rinnai also has something similar, the cheaper version but equivalently gd. the last time i saw it is at citygas gallery. but do mind you, rinnai is made in indonesia. but since its cheap and readily available, if its spoil, can change easily without major heart pain. hope the above helps

don't mention. just to share a bit of small knowledge. hope many of you who works at shopping center (no choice), take chances to go out for lunch breaks as the more fresh air you breathe outside (no matter how much pollution it has and also no one ask you to go breathing in vehicle exhaust at carparks ), the more beneficial to you. during non working days, its best to bring kids, old folks and your own self for walk at farms, gardens, parks, seaside for a change, instead of frequenting shopping centers. for those who likes going to shopping centers, take a change as well. you will find that fresh air is good. and also nowadays the govt has refurbish the parks well, eg. changi village, labrador park, botanic garden, etc., take the opportunity to explore some little area at a time with your family and sure there are 'gold' that you can have/find where others don't have. wish all of you have good health

nowadays, the electric rice cooker which cost abit more (say around $100+ onwards), they have options for making stew or soup or porridge. this type of rice cooker is gd enough. you can use it to make stew or soup. i have already use it for such purpose regularly. 1 thing to note is that read your manual instructions and the recipes given. they will state, eg. cook porridge how many minutes, cook soup how many minutes etc. just follow and you will not be wrong. (1 sample of my steam fish dish:) and also it can do steaming of fish/meat as well by filling up with some water, putting the plate of fish/meat (that is going to be steam) with a bit of water/thin long slices of ginger/tomato (eg) on it with a bit of light soy sauce, on a rack and leave it to steam. if it comes with a steamer rack (which i saw nowadays many rice cookers have included), use that will do also. hope the above help you.

hi, rinnai brand is from indonesia. la germania is italy. but rinnai is well known to be lasting. i got 1 auntie who use that hob for past 10years and its still working fine (running on cylinder gas as she's conventional type who don't believe in the safety features and cost effect of using PUB gas). ellane & techno brand is local. techno if for light use is ok. ellane use to be an old brand and is durable. my grandma uses ellane. only 2 burner type coz she don't cook much. my mum only uses techno hood. replaced 1 after it broke down after 20 years of usage. it only cost her less than $300 for the new hood which she gotten from the techno sales. for oven, maybe can read up on what i have posted here: http://www.renotalk.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=13623 hi babyiguana, hob is cooker where there are burners on top. there are options of 1 burner, 2 burners to up to 4/5 burners. big standing cooker can have up to 6 burners. i think you refer to smoke extraction hood. where cooking smoke are suck up by an extraction hood. frankly imho, i think such hood is no use. reason: to REALLY AND EFFICIENTLY extract out smoke, you have to have a ducted system. whereby the duct is use to suck out the smoke and disperse out of the house roof/window and out with the help of an extraction fan. with hood meant for hsehold use, do you ever wonder where did the smoke being extracted to and what happen to it? there are no ways for the system to disperse out the smoke. just like a clog toilet bowl, and in long term, all the oils etc. are going to deposit in the hood on top of your cooking hob. so you have to do regular cleaning and maintenance. cleaning means able to open up the hood and clean the whole internal area. maintneance mean able to change filter every few months. its just like air-con maintenance routine. the logic is when there's an inlet, there must be an outlet. if its all sealed up, how to disperse out? even if those slimline/chimney hoods that are being recommended by many salesman nowadays, its still not that useful. only make your kitchen looks nice but not practically functional / useful. i hope i didn't pour cold water on all those who have this hood thing becoz im in constrn line, and when we open up a duct which is 'choked' due to breakdown of fan, whew!!! you can imagine how many tons of dirt and everything is accumulated inside. that is why spending huge time in shopping center with centralised air-con is not healthy for people in long term. and that is why many shopping centers are doing alot of additional & alteration works to improve the ventilation system by changing ducts, mv system, etc. not that they are rich but mostly is the system problem. the older the system, the running cost and energy consumption is high and so the bill to the owner is high. i have seen many many type of acmv systems in commercial buildings, offices buildings, condos, etc. at areas where normally people will not have access to. there are also certain mechanical calculations for calculating airflow rate, etc. for acmv system. but if hsehold require a hood for cooking, just a normal cheap brand will do. so long spare parts are cheap to replace & easily found, easily maintenance & cleaning. if its spoil, replacement by a new one will not cause heart pain, burn big hole in pocket.

hi, i think you are asking conventional oven vs convection oven vs microwave oven. nowadays all ovens are multifunction type. multifunction type of ovens: many different cooking options, temperature etc. pls read my above postings on "conventional oven and microwave oven are different..." the following descriptions on the differences between convection oven & conventional oven is found from this website: http://ezinearticles.com/?Convection-vs.-C...?&id=190510 convection oven vs conventional ovens: If you are in the market for a new oven and you’ve already begun shopping for one, you’ve probably noticed that there are a few different types. Two of the most popular oven types are conventional and convection, and many newer ovens have the option of cooking food in either fashion depending on the set mode. The difference in these two types of ovens is the way in which the heat in the oven is dispersed during the cooking process. Convection ovens A convection oven uses a fan which is usually located on the back side of the oven. The purpose of the fan is to force the heated air inside of the oven and circulate it around the item being cooked. The heated air is constantly pushed over and around the food, and therefore a convection oven cooks food much faster than a conventional oven. Not only does a convection oven cook food more quickly than a conventional oven, but it can also thoroughly cook food at lower temperatures. The average amount of time saved when cooking with a convection oven is about 20 percent of the food’s normal cooking time. The temperature a convection oven uses to cook food is also about 20 percent lower than a recipe’s suggested cooking temperature. Typically, convection ovens are known for their popularity in the restaurant industry as well as in commercial cooking facilities. However, it is becoming more popular for individuals to own convection ovens in their homes… or at least a conventional oven that can switch to a convection mode upon request. Convection ovens are speedier and more efficient than conventional ovens, and therefore may be more expensive. However, professional chefs from around the world swear by them and rely on them for delicious tasting food. Also, since the air circulation in a convention oven is the same throughout, food will cook at the same rate no matter where it is placed in the oven… on the top or bottom rack or near the front or back. Conventional Ovens Traditionally, most personal residences in the United States come equipped with a modern conventional ovens. These are the most common types of household ovens, and are used every day by men and women to cook all sorts of meals, desserts, breads, and many other types of food. Conventional ovens are similar to convection ovens in that they both cook food using heat. They both have the ability to use either gas or electricity, depending on the hook-up in a home. Some may have the versatility to use either gas or electricity simply depending on what is plugged in to them, and some are made to be either gas specific or electricity specific. The most obvious difference between a conventional oven and a convection oven is the fact that in a conventional oven, air is not forced throughout the oven on a constant basis with the aid of a fan, as it is in a convection oven. In a conventional oven, the heat circulation in the oven can become blocked by pots and pans inside of the oven. The blocking of the heat can cause uneven cooking. Uneven cooking is especially noticeable when both the bottom and top racks in the oven are being used at the same time. The items on top will cook faster because heat rises to the tops of conventional ovens and when there is a lot in the oven, the heat gets trapped there. There are pros and cons to both conventional and convection ovens. Conventional ovens have been serving people for years and years and food has been cooked successfully in them for many decades. Convection ovens have many followers and fans, but these types of ovens can be hard to get used to… especially for novice cooks. My own experience: i prefer convection oven. from my cooking & baking experience and the cooking/baking classes that i have attended, there are sometimes certain recipe call for fan forced cooking/baking. if you don't have this function, you will have to gauge from your own oven's cooking capability. there are pros and cons of it. eg. if you don't have a fan force function, heat may still circulate but not evenly, therefore certain portion of the food may be more well cooked than other portion, eg. a turkey or chicken. but if you have a fan force fuction, most baking recipes do not prefer using it as the top will be burnt more faster without the middle of the cake being cooked unless you are able to watch over it carefully and turning it oven, switching racks at certain time etc. which will be very troublesome. if you use a fan force with heating element on at the same time to cook, eg. turkey, chicken, meat, the outer portion of the meat will be more dry. to solve this problem, you can wrap it up in a aluminium foil to cook. for beginners, ususally its best if one can start cooking without the fan force function to try out first. until you understand the logic of baking/cooking, understanding how your oven cooks, have learn special technics in cooking/baking in using the ovens and are confident to try out the fan force, do not fear of spoiling the food, then go ahead and try out the function. or just try out the functions with different food and you eat it and will know what is the difference. ususally the oven will come with a manual which will have quite a list of recipe teaching you how to cook/bakes. just follow the instruction and you will be safe most of the time. if you want to try other functions with the same recipes, go ahead and you will know how the result is. but having a fan forced function is gd so that if you need it, there it is. i have looked at many ovens and so far the reasonable priced is the one that i have bought which also receive adverse critiques from other forumers who recommend those ovens which are at least $3k and above!!! maybe they are selling those ovens. mine is La Germania, Itay made, standing cooker. those type that have cooking hobs on top and a oven below. mine is connected to and runs on PUB gas. it only cost me S$1.3k for the whole set. so if i need to replace a new set, i will not feel heart pain. and this standing cooker cum oven has many functions. it has 9 (if i remember correctly) basic different type of cooking/baking functions including fan force combining with heating element options. the functions are basically required for cooking/baking. nothing fanciful but it delivers. why did i choose such a set? because i use to stay at Australia and the old angmo landlady is one full time hsewife who is also a heavy cooker, uses that standing cooker cum oven for ages and it still performs well. and the angmo lady did not specially takes care of it, only cleans it after cooking. just a note, some expensive ovens have alot of functions but most of the time you do not use them. just like having a complicated, multi-function handphone nowadays, do you use all the functions? how frequent you use the functions? what are the basic functions that you normally use? i hope the above answer your questions. do feel free to ask aunties, especially those who cooks alot, have a basic oven, who is a miser to part with unneccessary $$ to buy something, and you will get many beneficial answers to your questions coz they are frequent and long time cooking experts.

hi, since you are new to cooking & baking, i suggest you go and look at many different type of ovens that are within your budget, hse design constraints, etc. before deciding on whether you are going to be a long time user of the oven, if not, even if you buy the best oven in the whole world, its going to sit in your kitchen, taking up space and become a white elephant and most importantly wasting your resources and earth resources. and not to mention that electrical applicances require regular usage or turning on the power & the heat to prevent it from breaking down after long time of not using them. to start, many salesmen or sales aunties will persuade you on their ovens pros, new technology etc. but it has been proven for so many decades that the most basic normal type of ovens is the safest, fool proof type of cooking/baking (provided you follow strictly what the recipe instructions are and also dependent on your type of oven), and many recipes that you can find from the books, internet, blogs, cooking forums, cooking / baking schools, etc. actually based their recipes on normal ovens. you can easily understand the type of food that you are going to cook require what temperature, heating element, with fan or no fan, etc. and also if possible, put your oven on a table top if possible or if space allow. reason: use simple logic thinking. 1) firstly, how are you going to bring out your cables & plug into wall socket? if there are cabinets, etc. you will need to drill holes right? and if you need to bring out the whole oven for repair, maintenance, etc. wouldn't it be a hassle? 2) experience tells me that such kitchen applicances has high heat when they are operated. and if you put them in a build in cabinet or inside a cabinet, heat from the applicances are not able to circulate into the air and are build in the cabinet. think in long term, are you going to change your cabinets often? cabinets' quality will deteriorate fast. if you have an oven, show it, don't hide it. trust me, alot of guests, relatives & friends who come to your hse will go gaga over it, and complimenting "wah! you can cook well leh, that's why you got an oven!" do shop around or go attend cooking/baking demo classes at CC which are cheaper and see what applicances and utensils (pots & pans) they use in order to bake a cake or cook a fish/chicken/turkey, then decide are you going to do that for a long time, then do your research and go shopping at many different areas to find out the mkt prices & functions of ovens before deciding to buy an oven. because the accompanying lot of 'necessary' utensils will be a tidy investment as well. eg. you need a mixer, mixing bowl, spatula, cake knife, baking tins, for baking cakes, etc. hope the above helps

1 thing to add. i have attended baking classes conducted by Ms Valerie Kong at CC and Safra, she is 1 practical person. when the places that she teaches don't have those big built in oven, she carries her own Aerogaz portable oven. but its the bigger type. she say that this type of oven can bakes well also and she has demostrated it as well. so if there are budget constraint, or if you are not sure you are going to bake or use the oven for a long time, can try the more inexpensive oven. just that get a bigger capacity unit so that you can roast at least a turkey if you need to so that you can put a casserole pot in it. if you buy a too small type, you may face constraint if you want to roast or bake bigger size food/cake. just buy something that you need within your budget/constraints/usage pattern, frequency if not it will become a white elephant at home. hope the above helps.

a point to note. i have used instant heater and storage heater before. there are things to note of. instant heater: eg. when you want to shower, you on the electicity, turn the tap on and you will have instant hot water. initially may not be that cold but the heat comes on quite fast, maybe about 1 sec. the hot water comes on quite fast and instantly. so when you need to use the next time, you do the same thing. storage heater: eg. you on the electricity to heat up the water. you wait for about 10 to 15 minutes for the water to heat up. when you turn on the tap, you have to let it run for about 5 sec before the hot water comes on. it has a longer waiting time than the instant heater and thus you kind of waste a bit of water. (tips: but you can use a pail to save the water for cleaning toilet or toilet bowls). you have to regularly on the electricity about every 2 days or when the water is not hot anymore. the water will stay hot in the storage heater for about 1 to 2 days. so the next time you use, eg. the next day after you on the electricity, the water will still be warm on the 2nd day and you don't have to on the electricity. if you have many toilets, many ppl in the household, many washing points that you want or have to use hot water, a storage heater will benefit. eg. you want to have hot water to wash at basin, at toilet for showering, some have washing machine that can use hot water to wash clothes, etc. but a need and a want is different. so have to consider and assess your choice carefully. this is in consideration of energy saving for the earth. the more outlet points that you want to have hot water, more electricity will consume and thus more energy used and will generate more heat to the environment. and finally help to contribute to global warming. do bear in mind that its a vicious cycle. hope the above helps.

Hi all, 1) for gas heater, its details, specs, price, installation, refer to city gas: http://www.citygas.com.sg/ 2) for storage heater type, depending on the space you have in your toilet, you can either choose to install the vertical or horizontal type. eg. scenario: if you install shower head, the shower head has an installation instruction manual where drawings & specs of the shower head will be drawn and written. your contractor will use this to install the shower head. the shower head will be high and thus the room area from your shower head to the roof of the toilet will be limited so you will have to install the horizontal type. 3) to compare / understand the reasonable type of electrical applicances to use and their electricity consumption, you can refer to the following: a) tips on home appliances http://www.nccc.gov.sg/ELS/tips_intro.shtm# b)Household: energy saving guide for consumers http://www.nccc.gov.sg/Households/es_guide.shtm c) The energy label http://app.nea.gov.sg/cms/htdocs/article.asp?pid=2844 d) registration of energy label for aircon: http://els.nea.gov.sg/mels/aircon.asp hope the above helps.

woodlands got many area to explore also. not to mention got big shopping center. but of coz can't compare to those town area la. neighbourhood area how to compare if you go see those newer estate's shopping center, shopping centers lagi small and things more ex and there r not much shops around. even if u stay at center area, eg. yishun, u will also get bore of the shops there after sometime.

me also using la germania but its those standing cooker cum oven type and its by electricity for the oven & gas via PUB gas. so far, vy gd & useful. and yes, u r rite, this is italian made. its really value for money as my standing cooker cost less than 1 expensive / branded oven's price but does my cooking beautifully. i hv cooked, baked, roast, double boil tonic herbal chicken soup & all r came out beautifully & deliciously. there r many possiblities with an oven, microwave oven, rice cooker. rice cooker can cook soup also. and normal pot can cook rice well also. my bro-in-law likes cooking so we always share tips on how to use the applicances for different type of cooking and the recipes. btw, bullwrath, wah seh... your signature tak kong leh

infor for all, la germania did not withdraw from mkt. in fact its doing well in europe mkt where its manufacture. (i think) the local company that is responsible for distributing and repair of the product is American Appliances Pte. Ltd. (i must check my warranty card to double confirm coz now don't hv infor on hand).

glad that the above helps. and happy using your oven. there r many possiblities that you can try with a conventional oven. some are convection oven. you can google search to see their difference. just remember that the oven must hv a: 1) top element 2) bottom element 3) fan function 4) combine use of top & bottom element 5) combine use of top element with fan 6) combine use of bottom element with fan 7) glass door big enough for you to peep at your food / temperature gauge that you hv put inside the oven to measure the temp. 8) glass door is best to be double layer so that the outer layer will be cool to touch even when you r cooking. you don't want to scald yourself, or older folks or kids accidentally touch it when its cooking coz the heat is really high and hot. 9) hv a rack and a baking tray. 10) hv at least 3 layer for you to choose the appropriate layer to place your food to cook. eg. top layer for baking cookies, where its small in size & qty and cooks easily with a light browning on top. mid layer for baking of most cakes and cooking of most food that require longer time to cook. seldom we use bottom layer as it will burn the bottom of the food with the top uncook and the middle of the food (eg. cake, or chicken, turkey) half cooked. 11) light inside the oven (can be on for you to see the inside of the oven clearly without turning on the cooking function. once cooking function is selected and used, it will be on till you turn it off). 12) timer on the oven (the rest are optional coz you may not be using many functions most of the time) and some ppl may persuade you to spend $4k & above for ovens, do seriously consider if your usage of the oven is high and you are into full time cooking or professional cooking coz: 1) 1stly, technology changes vy fast, so if the oven last you for 10 years, there may hv spare parts if it broke down. 2) the more expensive an electronic item is, the more intricate and complicate component it has and thus any maintenance or repairs will be costly. eg. if you buy a jap car, there are plenty of cheap parts readily available, if you buy a beemer, the repair / maintenance cost is vy high. 3) self cleaning function i find this unnecessary. coz after every use of the oven, the heat will melt away all food / sauces that are splatter on it which is ususally not so if you protect your oven by putting the food in casserole pot to cook or wrap up the food in aluminium foil to cook. and if you are grilling a chicken (eg.), you poke a bbq stick through the chicken and you can place in a casserole pot without the lid to grille so that it catches the dripping sauce or have the bbq stick hang across the internal oven for a more rounded grille but do place a tray below to catch the dripping sauce. after the you hv finish the cooking, you will also wash your dishes right? so its the same thing, once the oven is cooled down (really cooled down), use a damp cloth to just wipe it will do. 4) turnspit this is a function where it have or allow a bbq stick in the oven where it will rotate the roast automatically while cooking. this will not require you to turn your roast to get it cook. but do be mindful. are you doing alot of heavy roasting? eg. every week there's roast ribs, roast turkey, roast chicken, etc. coz if not you will not need this additional function. 5) electronic selection vs knob turning selection ovens electronic selection press button oven: pros: more precise as you can choose the exact time and degree to cook the food. cons: some are hard to choose as its not well labelled on the oven itself, so you hv to keep refering to the manual for the settings. LCD display is small. once spoil, that's it. you hv to send for repair and its costly. knob turning selection oven: pros: you can see what you choose cons: the knobs can drop out due to wear & tear and you may plug it out to clean it, and forgot you hv turn to which function or accidentally turn to which function after that. never take out the knob for cleaning. selection of cooking temp is estimation, coz the temp selection comes in: 20deg, 50deg, 80 deg, 100deg, 120 deg, 150, deg, 180deg, 200deg, etc. so when you need something that is in between, you hv to estimate. if you go to baking / cooking schools to learn baking / cooking, do look at what type of ovens they use. most of these ovens are choosen by the schools coz they hv the basic functions that they want and can perform the job well. just like buying handphone. one can buy a handphone with plentiful of functions but honestly, most of these functions are not fully utilised. eg. your handphone hv gps logging system but do you ever use it? your handphone hv wireless function, how many times you use it or use it to send your infor to printer thru wireless printing or faxing from your handphone? hope you put your usage pattern, lifestyle, logic, experience, budget ($ no enough even if its for the richest ppl) etc. & combine them into your choice of buying an oven.

hi, wondering if you are looking for those type of heater meant for winter country? i know there are some units that have vy gd wind and with the marble flooring, the whole place feels like autumn where its vy cool and sometimes get abit cold. eg. of a few type of units i saw before. point blk and the unit is high flr, units that r situated in between, in or near to eg. hilly areas, eg. bt timah hill, sunset way (right inside those pte units), 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th ave pte hses which are right at the end of the hill top will hv this type of feel. so some ppl, especially for older folks will appreciate a heater as they tend to feel cold easily and some may hv rheumatism. and this is one of the reason why some ppl put carpet at hm if they got gd tiles/marbled flr. i used heater while staying at australia b4. it really can get real hot at times and definitely 200% vy dry, so after a while, you hv to switch it off, and when it gets cold and you need to warm the unit again, you hv to switch it on again. and not to say it consumes alot of energy. if you can't find such heater, you can utilise your hm air-con. just turn the temperature up to 26-28 deg. it will get warm pretty fast. rule of thumb: if daytime, your air-con temp is set to 25 deg, outside temp is 30-32 deg, the room temp will be around 27deg. if at night time, if your air-con temp is set to 25 deg, outside temp is 26-28 deg, the room temp will be around 23deg. this is due to the fact that its hotter in the day time, and cooler at night. but i did not do a comparison on the electricity, energy and cost of aircon to a heater. hope the above helps.

conventional oven and microwave oven are different. they are different in terms of the way they cook the food. microwave oven: - vy fast in cooking the food (follow the manual or the selection indicated on the oven) - after cook, the food tends to be drier, eg. if you cook chicken in soup in microwave oven, the chicken meat tends to be drier inside. - cannot really bake cake / pastry properly as most baking requires top & bottom heat element to slowly bake the cake internally without burning the exterior. even if the microwave oven indicates that it can bakes or hv baking functions, it cannot be compare to a conventional oven. - a handy and gd kitchen appliances for quick cooking but consumes electricity conventional oven: (hope you refer to those that can bake type) - can bake cakes / pastry - can grill food / meat - can do double boil by cooking in aluminium foil or in casserole pot (eg. double boil chicken meat tonic food) - try to choose those that got more functions, meaning can bake and cook meat type. - depend on what you intend to do, eg. if you grill turkey, then hv to get a bigger oven, or if you bake many cakes at 1 go, also need a bigger oven, if not you have to queue them up. otherwise a mid size type can do already. above appliances are tried, tested and certified coz i use them all to try many things bakes, grills, double boil, warm, cooked many many.... even use microwave to warm up my cold milk (from fridge). hope the above helps.

hi, rinnai is from Indonesia. la germania from italy. quality wise: - depends on your usage. some ppl can use rinnai for 10 years without problm. price: - rinnai is cheaper due to is country of mfg. - if buy cheaper type, if spoil, change it also no heart pain. expensive type will make you faint if spoil within 3 years. function: - same for cooking but... - look at the burner area. for italy design, its fully concealed type where (eg.) if your soup spill, your food drop out onto the hob, the food are trap in this conceal area where you can easily clean it by scooping out the food or wipe it. but if its those non-conceal type, things dropped into the burner will not be able to clean it out unless the bottom of the hob is not conceal. some of the hob's bottom are concealed. - the burner where the fire comes out, the sales ppl will tell you that the difference got inner ring of fire, outer ring of fire, etc. all will come to the same thing, still can cook the food well no matter the ring of fire is inner or outer where you can choose, the most impt is how many ring of fire. if there is only 1 ring of fire, the food takes a longer time to cook, that means you waste more gas, but also means food will not easily be burned. and the vice versa for 3 rings of fire etc. - some things are vy logic. just ask lots of aunties, who cook, on wat type of hob they use and how is the function, performance, quality, maintenance, etc. replacement: - you hv to consider the length, width & height of your hob area. coz if spoil, you hv to get something of abt the same size to fit in. hope the above helps.

to all those who are going for ready made curtains, this is my experience and what the guy at the curtain shop taught me. 1) measure all your window sizes Length of window = XXX cm, XXX inches Height of window = XXX cm, XXX inches 2) indicate clearly on a piece of paper or you can type out a format for you to key in the datas of the location of your window eg. for illustration: MBR Length of window = XXX cm, XXX inches Height of window = XXX cm, XXX inches Living Rm Length of window = XXX cm, XXX inches Height of window = XXX cm, XXX inches Study Rm Length of window = XXX cm, XXX inches Height of window = XXX cm, XXX inches 3) Requirement = a) color of curtain considerations eg. need darker color curtain so that it can provide shade in the day time as lighter color (especially cream or white) will make the whole rm brighter, bigger and glaring also. b) Location of window which will affect the type and color of curtain you need eg. if study rm is next to corridor, get a darker shade so that ppl will not be able to peep into your hse especially if you are not hm. scare wait got robbers break in. eg. bedrooms. you need more privacy so can choose a thicker and darker shade. c) height of curtain required depending on your liking. when you tell the curtain salesman half height or full height, they will know what it is. full height is those that can touch the floor of your rm half height is those that cover up to just below bottom of your window eg. living rm may need full height so that is looks more prettier and able to tied it up more properly and especially if you have a vy long length window. study rm, may only need half height. if you have full drop glass type of window (those type where its fully window glass from the top of the ceiling to the bottom of the floor, you have to opt for full height curtains. d) unit / flat / rm features not all flats are the same design. some have curve type of balcony window where you need to customise curtain racks. if standard design flat, can use aluminium racks (cheaper for normal type) or wooden rods (slightly more expensive than aluminium racks) 4) aluminium racks or rods? it depend on your choice. if your rm is of round shape (which is a killer as the price is more expensive), you have to specially tell the salesguy. he will be able to recommend you the best option. aluminium rack = using hooks to secure the curtain and hook onto the loop provided rods = can use hook or button type of curtains. you can use the metal hook to hook onto the loops of the rod if you hv hook type curtain. for button type curtain, just button the strap over the rods will do. if you have a long window, standard length of rods may not be enough, can buy a longer rod and saw it shorter to fit the window. both the ends can be attach later so don't hv to be afraid of sawing the ends. if you have a L-shape window, and if you are using wooden rods, there is something call a joint whereby both end of the wooden rods can be connected via the joint. its quite cheap, ranging from $6 onwards for 1 joint. you can go curtain shop and ask if they have but many of them don't have this joint. 5) photos / floor plan if you have any of the above which will help to describe your window / rm features, length & height more clearly, it is recommended to bring them to the shop. as the saying goes, a picture is worth more than a thousand words. once you have gotten all the above informations, you can go and hunt for your curtain. hope the above helps.

hi, just saw this topic. i have 2 toilets, 1 at MBR and 1 common toilet. we have install a swing glass shower screen at MBR coz dun want to let other area of the toilet to get too wet. the door can swing both way. but no problem if you have a smaller toilet, opt for a smaller panel and open into the shower area. you just have to study abit and adjust where you going to put your toilet acceories (eg. the rack for putting shampoos, etc.) as for common toilet, i dun want any shower screen so that i can have a bigger space. reason being that can use for washing clothes where you need to put pails, shower baby where you need to put bath tub, can lie there and have shower massage etc. but of course no matter what type of shower screens material / made, have or dun have shower screens, there will be fungus / mold growing in toilet but sliding type can trap more dirt, fungus & molds and difficult to clean it.

yes, that's gd sign. in fact your orchid is quite healthy. but always remmeber to keep its environment clean. it like to live in clean environment.

ya, bro MaCe is rite. I ever used those cheapo brand coz tot cheap cheap ma... and within 1 week, its gone so revert back to using osram & philips.

hi, sorry for the late reply, just came back from outstation. you can trim the 'chocolated' branch where the flowers had previously bloomed at about 2 to 2.5 inch from its base. trim it at 45degree angle. if the orchid are ever blooming type, the flower stems will have buds growing along it. when new flowers are blooming from new stems, the new stems will grow out just like the chocolate ones.

ya, you are correct. my ex-colleague's sis was a reporter and she said that unless someone called in, they will go and report. She said, "Reporter are humans leh.. not super power hero where they will know what happen at where and go to report". after a while of thinking, i think quite logic also. ya, eg. adisen case was over blown. there are plenty of ppl who do this or even more kinky stuffs where its not reported just becoz there are not stars / politicians. yes, the workers will think "wah lau, so troublesome, walk over the edge and fix that thing will do, why hook on safety belt, helmet and safety harness? can do within 5minutes but to do all these will take 30minutes to complete the job" there are toolbox meetings, safety meetings, risk assessments, etc. and workers are constantly educated about safety and sent to courses but there are still accidents happening. im from constrn industry and we have regulations to follow for employing of foreign workers. we cannot let accident happen as we have at least 350 foreign workers for 1 project alone. and the only accident we have was the indian guy go little india after work and kana knock by motorbike. but its common to see accident happening at constrn sites, only major or minor type only.

from experience, to get a vacuum cleaner to do the job, you have to consider if: 1) type / area of usage: eg. use to vacuum normal tiled /marble floor, parquet, carpets, big bungalow (must use more power and heavy duty types)s, etc. 2) cost of vacuum 3) available service centres 4) available spare vacuum bags & their cost: if you buy phillips brand, you can find that you can get their spares cheaply and easily at any supermarket. some brands are gd but their spares are either hard to find or costly. 5) available spare parts: eg. tube, vacuum head, etc. hope the above helps.

can try buying from Genova. They carry Arino brand and most of the items are from Taiwan and China. and they have sales every now and then, but have to check it out first. as for the rainshower head, can change to square or round ones. as for other places that i have been to, most of them can change the heads, just that the price maybe abit different, eg. pay abit for the differences. I got my whole set for around $250 from Genova as they were having a sale at that time when i go hunting coz need for reno. I bought 2 sets, 1 for common toilet, 1 for MBR toilet. 1 round head, 1 square head. So far so gd, no breakdown, no dripping, no malfunction. as for installation, you have to pay for it as well. you have to engage a plumber to do that. for me, i was doing reno at that time and my contractor get his plumber to do it. installation cost quoted to me about $80 for installing 2 sets. my installation was done on Nov 2007 and so are the prices. maybe now price got increase bah genova address: GENOVA INDUSTRIES PTE LTD 58 Bendemeer Road Singapore 339937 Tel : (65) 6299 0222 (5 Lines) Fax : (65) 6296 4831 Email:genova@singnet.com.sg http://www.genova.com.sg/ there are some very high end type of shower sets at Hoe Kee, some cost more than $1k for 1 set. hope the above helps.

welcome blueturtle! my total cost for curtains for whole hse, including rods, curtains & installation cost around $600+. day & night for: MBR 2 Bedrms Balcony Night type for: study rm (which is facing common corridor) We get our reno contract to help us drill and install the rods free. all the items we get from Hong Ming curtains at woodlands central (near to the woodlands checkpoint). cheap & gd. as for moving, we engage mover + we do ourself. we arrange those furnitures that we had bought for the new hse to deliver 1st. subsequently, the movers will move in the main furniture, eg. beds, bookshelfs, wardrobe, tables etc. which are all from old hse. they will arrange the furnitures according to what we had told them to. after that, the boxes will come. we had labelled the boxes on the items and where was its old location these items was packed from, etc. and we tell them to place at where so that it doesn't obstruct walkway. we spent 2 weeks unpacking... cannot finish everything at 1 go... can peng sang leh