BlueFly

MLR, my acrylic worktop was made by Asuka directly. So I guess it is not branded in that the acrylic worktops are not produced for sale but made-to-order. The guys came to take measurements and made the template on the spot at my place. Then they went back to the fty to produce the acrylic top using the template. Dupont (producer of Corian brand) was the first to make and market worktops that competed directly against wood-based worktops that were mostly used 20 yrs ago. Now there are many who have the technology to produce worktops similar to Corian: simply buy the relevant polyesters and other chemicals, mix them together with dyes in a mould, allow to cure, and you get the finished product, which can be sanded and polished to give a lustre appearance. Prices have thus come down with the competition. To keep off competitors, Dupont came out with new innovations, to justify Corian's high price. So Smartfool, I am not persuaded Corian or any other branded acrylic worktop is superior in one way or other -- to me they are all basically the same as the base chemicals are the same -- some kind of acrylic polymer material that is generic. Just like plywood -- many years ago plywood brands were paramount and highly promoted. Today plywood is plywood, it has become a generic product, and nobody worries about whether one brand is superior to another, because all the plywood factories produced to very high standards already and differentiation became difficult. Maybe I am wrong, but that's my 2 cents opinion. Oh, btw, I have seen Corian worktops and other acrylic tops in friends' homes. Honestly I could not tell them apart, had not the host told me the brand!

Never heard of cascading windows, if possible can someone post pictures of cascading windows? The only factor I considered when deciding to install sliding or casement windows was which type offers better seal against dust and draught. My previous apartment had sliding windows and doors, and the place gets so dusty even when the windows are shut. Nowadays the air in Singapore is so dusty with very fine dust! So I installed casement windows, replacing even the lourve windows in my bathroom and toilet. Luckily my ID's window fabricator did an excellent job: the casement windows were lined with rubber and some kind of "brush" material along the edges. When the windows are shut, no dust or draught could get inside the flat. If I open the windows my flat gets dusty within minutes, as my place is quite windy most of the time. Keeping out the draught means yr aircon operates better and uses less electricity.

Wow, mlr, i can imagine the final look -- beautiful and classy! yr stds are so high! look fwd to yr pics when the sink is completed. btw, my worries abt repairs and maintenance of the undermounted sink were unfounded when i watched the guys install the worktop. the acrylic worktop fits nicely onto the plywood base without any glue, and is simply siliconed at the edges to keep out ants, damp, etc. this means if i need to replace the worktop (eg due to discoloration?) it is easy to do so in future without damaging the rest of the worktop / cabinet underneath. simply slice thru the silicon joint with a blade and lift up the acrylic top, likewise for the sink. both can be replaced easily. pinkdewy, i think the snow sink is beautiful and equally good too!

Enjoyed yr piece, and agreed with your observations, except i think you are too kind with yr comment that "everybody needs a living." for those who passed themsevles off as ids, contractors, etc when obviously they knew nothing abt the way things work or are learning-on-the-job, that does not pass muster with me. why should we pay good money to educate them? when they make mistakes it is at our expense. renovation is not like buying furniture (eg shaky joints, can rectify), going for a meal (eg lousy cook, can leave it), etc. if the reno is bad it is too costly to redo or replace or worse, when the id refused to settle the issues, and you hv to live with the poor renovation, probably for a long time. i expect them to learn the trade first, be knowledgeable, or even go to school if necessary. the firm that employs them shld put them on the job to learn for 6 months, then apprentice to an experienced id for another 6. only after the firm has passed n graded the newbie shld he be allowed to work with clients of his own. unfortunately this is not the way the industry works. each id is an independent business person, he seeks out contracts and gives a cut to the firm on which he depends for the various hdb licenses, suppliers credit, etc. his hewbies in turn has to give him and the firm a cut. this is a lucrative industry, bec there is huge variation in prices for a piece of job, depending on how hungry the id is. let's not go into that here. i agree we shld give one a second chance, provided he is honest. One who passes himself off as an id when he is obviously learning the ropes is simply not honest. Thank you for sharing.

as this is your first renovation i suggest you search for topics (use the search function) that you're interested in on this forum to read waht the experience of other forumers has been, coz there are many issues to consider. sometimes one answer by a forumer may not give u the whole pciture... so u need to read responses from other forumers too to get a better handle on the subject u r interested in... better yet, checkout the renovation blogs of many forumers; they give their exeperience and you can learnt a lot from there too. most of all, be careful of shady contractors or ids, some hv lost money bec they were cheated...those cases are also related on this forum. all the best for yr reno.

Why not go for Pergo at $4.50 psf (Malaysian made, not the expensive Swedish-produced one)? At that price Pergo is compeitive with other brands. Pergo has beautifully grained floor planks (see blog). Pergo was the first in the world to produce and market laminated floors and I believe it is superior to laminated floors produced by other factories, because of the many innovations and patents that Pergo has taken out. Had I known Pergo offers made-in-Malaysia floor tiles under its name @$4.50 psf including installation I would have gone for that instead of the Premier brand floor planks I ended up with. I am certain the Malaysian-made Pergo would have most of the features of the Swedish produced one, but with 15-yrs' guarantee instead of lifetime. That may be because as a marketing strategy, Pergo has to differentiate its more expensive Swedish product from the cheaper Malaysian cousin.

Yes, MLR, in Australia mold growing on damp walls and ceilings is a deadly serious issue, prospective house buyers look for that before anything else. If mold or damp is present they walk away without even looking at the rest of the house. Few ppl have died from mold inhalation, it seems. The mold strains here are less deadly, but still prevention is better than cure, right? The carpenters came on 21-Apr Mon 10.45 AM (at last!!) to fix up the kitchen cabinet. They were professional and meticulous, took only 30-40 min for lunch break, then continued until 9 pm at night. I did not expect kitchen cabinet installation to take so long! Actually they didn't cut a stepped groove in the plywood to seat the sink but used two pieces of plywood, the upper piece with a larger hole than the lower piece. The sink sits on the lower plywood piece, the thinner piece then goes on top and surrounds the sink edges. The picture below shows the plywood support structure much clearer. The acrylic guys (separate team) came to take measurements to make the worktop template for the acrylic top. They brought the template back to the workshop to produce the acrylic worktop for installation on coming Friday. More pics will be uploaded onto my blog later. er, sorry for the messy kitchen, as we had to move in on 1 Mar, when reno was supposed to have been completed. despite the delays and hiccups, our id did his best and is a good guy, so we were quite understanding & patient with him.

A friend pm'ed me asking why apply silicone sealant when the plumber already used white cement to seal the toilet bowl to the floor? Well, the silicone sealant is applied to the pan collar -- the piece that is connected to the sewage pipe hole. If the pan collar is not sealed, foul air (and soil too) will seep into yr toilet bowl chamber due to the air presure at work. Like others, I did not ask my plumber to seal the pan collar when he first installed the bowl. After installation, my toilet smelled badly, particularly when someone on higher floors flushed the toilet. My toilet was a 1-piece design, and had 2 rectangular holes at the back of the toilet bowl. Hence I could detect the foul smell. More importantly, I realized the risk I was putting my family to, breathing in bad air, particularly bacteria and viruses from sick neighbors upstairs after they had flushed the toilet. If not for the toilet design I had chosen, I would not have detected the foul smell, and the problem probably would only surface several years later. You don't get any foul smell if your toilet bowl has no openings and is fully sealed by the white cement onto the floor. But over time the cement will develop tiny cracks, that is when you begin to detect foul smell from the toilet bowl area. That happened to my old toilet (after 5 yrs), although at that time I did not know what caused the bad smell. Maybe the earthquakes from Indonesia over last 2 yrs was a contributory factor, causing tiny cracks in the cement to appear, thereby allowing foul air to seep into the toilet space? Anyway, when my plumber told me he never applied silicone sealant to the pan collar I realized probably all plumbers in Singapore also install toilet bowls without applying silicone sealant! That is very unhygienic. Ask yr plumber if that is true. Probably he will tell you he don't use silicone sealant for your toilet bowl's pan collar too. With unsealed toilet bowls we are probably breathing in all sorts of viruses and bacteria discharged from sick neighbors in the block without knowing it. The HK health authorities at first were mystified how the SARS virus were spreading in the same apartment block. Finally they traced the spread to faulty sewage pipe. The authorities did not reveal what caused the leak (in order not to spread public panic) but the culprit was the unsealed toilet bowl that allowed foul air (carrying the virus) to spread from one upper flat to another lower down. If the toilet pipe had merely been leaking water, do you think the affected flat owner would not have noticed that and left the leak unattended? Of course not! So I believe SARS had spread via the unsealed toilet bowl pan collar! Now that my toilet bowl has been re-installed, there is no more foul smell ! So, please remind yr plumber to apply silicone sealant to the pan collar.

Actually, it is not the amount of money you spent on renovation but how you spent it. For instance, some ppl spent 50-60k but the outcome don't look nice to my eyes because the workmanship was bad or the design looked too artificial and ornate. On the other hand, I hv seen some interiors which look classic and really beautiful because the flat owner wisely avoided designs that were too "stylish" and instead opted for the simple and uncluttered look, spending not too much (less than 20k) for basic renovation like the floors, windows, doors, wiring, aircon. Next, they spent money on good quallity furniture, and especially use lighting creatively to give "mood" to the home. The result is simply stunning! Don't forget you can take away good furniture and expensive light fixtures -- so money spent on these are not wasted. In fact, good expensive furniture like rosewood or teak can be passed onto yr kids, provided you select classic designs that never go out of style. I hv a square rosewood coffee table that cost me $1.5k that was bought 15 yrs ago and still looks wonderful today! If I did not buy it then and hv to buy a coffee table I still wld buy that particular model today! that is the way to make yr money work harder for you. Also, when you get quotes, the idea is not to compare total amounts but individual items e.g granite flooring (not more than 8-10K for 4/5R) or windows (about $1,500-2,000 depending on 4, 5, or Executive). When you first start to seek quotation from IDs, etc use the ID's firm promotional offers as a starting point to negotiate and work the package from there to yr flat's renovation requirements. You will find you can save a bundle Will post the amount i spent on flooring, doors, windows, etc later on my blog (by next week) so you can compare against yr own quotations, and you can also check out the workmanship you should expect for the money you spend. Ppl sometimes feel pai-seh e.g. they think if they spend too little, they should not expect excellent workmanship. Surprise -- just see how much (or how little!) I spent and the good workmanship I got against the reasonable pricing (not big) I got in my contract. I used the money saved to spend on better quality toilets, light fixtures and furniture. And check out the light fixtures at Lightcraft. My ID told me to avoid the shop (it was well-known for expensive light fixtures) but I was surprised i cld get some really really wonderful and high quality light fixtures for a reasonable small price at Lightcraft, compared to prices in those lighting shops at Balestier or Jln Besar. Don't want to make my post toooo loong. So will stop here.

Sure, MLR, will post after work has been completed. Don't forget to post yrs too! ID said he's trying to push the carpenters to do the installation on Fri. That was yesterday but I expected that to happen la... Anyway, probably cabinets will be installed next week. Actually the sink usually sits on the wooden plywood base which has a step groove or depression cut into it so that the sink edges sit perfectly on the plywood base. Then the acrylic top sits over the sink, covering the edges completely. My goal behind undermounting the sink is : (1) to achieve a streamlined look, that means the acrylic top has to be flushed (or overlap slightly) with the vertical side of the sink. Dunno if the carpenter can do that properly. My experience has been that sometimes what you expect is not what turns out eventually and then have to wait for re-do's... (2) to avoid silicone that comes from top-mounting the sink, as the black alge stuff grows on the silicone after some years.. thus if i have to top mount my sink i will ensure no silicone is applied outside the edge, but inside and underneath the sink edges. Undermounted sink avoid the algae problem, as water seeping underneath the sink edges is less of an issue. (3) so that water is swiped clean on the acrylic top into the sink without collecting on the sink edges. Now, to prevent water and moisture around the sink edges seeping into the plywood base (altho the plywood base is waterproof grade), use silicone under the sink edges and/or have the acrylic top overlap slightly the vertical edges of the sink. That way water is unlikely to "sit" or collect on the sink edges. Will also mount the sink towards the front and leave a wider area behind so that the plumber will have less problem replacing the tap and/or soap dispenser in future, if need arises.

mlr: u'r welcomed. cindy-monekeybone / applefeak: thanks for the heads up. think i will bite the bullet and have the sink under-mounted, altho i am keeping fingers crossed that i wldn't hv to replace the tap, soap dispenser, etc that are attached to the sink underneath in future. previously my kitchen tap developed problems after 12 yrs and luckily the plumber was able to lift up the entire sink easily (it was top-mounted) to replace the tap. Otherwise it wld hv been impossible to do the replacement as the mounting nut to the kitchen tap was not the regular type seen here.

I had a bad experience recently with my toilet bowl installation. To cut a long story short, you need to ensure your plumber applies silicone sealant to the pan collar before he sets down the toilet bowl onto the sewage pipe. When I asked my plumber why he didn't apply silicone sealant to the pan collar, he shocked me when he replied "no one does that!" Consequently, my toilet smelled. I learnt an important lesson and felt I should share it with forumers. Recall how SARS was reported to have spread in HK from one floor to adjoining floors below through the sewage pipe? The (long) story of how the problem was solved for my smelly toilet has been detailed on my blog.

A better option is to get yr ID to show you around to select your tiles. You don't always have to accept the ID's recommended tile supplier, as you could ask him to go to yr chosen tile supplier if you think his supplier does not have the tiles you like. At least you have a price benchmark for the tiles you like from looking around on your own first. Besides, choosing the right tiles for your home is, in my view, probably the single most important step in your renovation because the color, pattern and size of the tiles should match the concept / theme for yr flat renovation. My ID suggested color schemes, tile sizes, patterns and threw in some ideas during the tile selection so that I was able to decide within a relatively short time of 30 minutes. It helped that he was experienced and knew his stuff. e.g. had he not used words like "oh, see this granite piece and how it looks 'cleaner' than the other granite grade" the small but perceptible difference b/w the 2 grades of granite would have escaped my eyes. Only someone who has had long years of experience with selecting tiles could note the differences and I valued that contribution. P.S. Please note I am not saying all IDs have good color sense and knowledge! Some IDs in my view are color blind! Or suggest wacky ideas! You need to know what you want, and how the chosen tiles all fit in.

Yes, Applefreak is right -- most sinks can be over- or under- mounted. However, the ones that are made specially for under-mounting have very thin lips or edges, as applefreak mentioned. BTW, if you undermount, the look to achieve is as shown below, although the undermounting was not perfect but better than most I've seen. I have seen other undermounted sinks where the edge of the worktop is completely flush with the sink edge and that, to me, is the perfect undermounting goal to meet. MLR, that sink is available from Poh Joo @ Jln Besar. I hv tried to get my Blanco undermounted too, but local plumbers I've asked said the way they undermount is the sink will "sit" onto the plywood layer that supports the acrylic worktop, then the acrylic top is cut to "cover" the sink edge. i.e. the plywood layer supports the sink. That means if I need to replace the tap in future I will have to hack away the acrylic top to take out the sink. No plumber seems to use the other methods: (1) screw the sink to the countertop from beneath (2) fix strips of wood to act like "shelves" to hold the sink edges so that the sink could slide in / out from the front for future repairs if needed. Seems I am resigned to top-mounting my sink (like shown below) because I need to provide for the strong possibility of lifting up the kitchen sink in future. Applefreak, you mentioned earlier yr plumber was able to fix the tap AFTER the sink has been under-mounted. I am most curious as to how he did that. So applefreak, can you kindly tell how did yr plumber undermount yr sink? If you have to remove or replace the kitchen tap, how will you do that? If you have any photos to show, will appreciate most as then I can show my silly plumber what to do. TIA!

Most buyers forget it is also the energy rating of the air con that is most important when considering what air con to buy. Obviously inverters are the most energy efficient, but amongst inverter types some are better than others: NEA website Buying inverters and R410A-based air cons is a no-brainer. Don't forget R22 based air cons are being phased out no matter what the sales ppl tell you, and in the future (2015) it may be impossible to get R22-refrigerant or very expensive to get R22 refills. Obviously the dealer has to sell old stocks of R22-based aircons and so will give all sorts of stories and half-truths to persuade you to buy R22-based aircons. Don't believe them! One half-truth is that R410A-based aircons are more expensive to refill. My experience? Servicing my new R410A-based Starmex fancoils cost the same as servicing my previous Daikin R22-based fancoils. What you pay depends on yr relationship with the service provider, and how you negotiate. Have you also considered that even if R22 aircons may be cheaper to refill now, in future as R22 is phased out completely, R22 will become difficult to source and it will become prohibitively expensive to refill with R22 then? If the dealer says non-inverters are better, just ask him the model number of the latest non-inverter and when it was manufactured. The answer (probably years ago) will give you an idea of the trend. I also found from my experience that most sales staff at dealer showrooms don't know a thing about cooling capacity of the aircon for a room. I was nearly suckered into paying a dp for the System 3 aircon I was eyeing (9K BTU for each of my 2 BR, and 18K BTU for my living-dining room, 28K BTU compressor) when at the last minute I put it off because somehow I felt the salesman didn't know his stuff. Going to 3 different showrooms in total, I got 3 different answers (BTUs of 18K, 22K, 26K) on which unit I should buy to cool my extended living room. I know the frustration my brother got when after spending a princely sum on his brand-new aircon, it failed to cool the living room. Another brother was exasperated by the condensation constantly dripping onto his parquet floor. Seemed there was little or no professionalism in the industry. No wonder, because most salesmen didn't know a thing or two about aircons, from my experience. Finally I found out by myself that I should get the 26K BTU capacity to cool my living space. And that was by studying the catalog and brochure provided by the aircon factory (will explain later how to read the capacity table on my blog if I have the time). I suspected the wrong advice was given either due to ignorance, or intentionally by sales ppl hoping to rip off the buyer. For instance, in one GC showroom (before I had found out the answer for myself) the sales staff recommended an 18K unit for the LR fancoil. When I told him the calculation indicated I needed a higher capacity, he said sure and quoted a different but much higher price for the 22K BTU unit, which he said was more than enough for my space. Unconvinced, I asked for the 26K BTU unit, and the final quotation was $3,450 before insulation ($40 per fancoil x 3 ) and stainless steel bracket ($150), or a total of $3,720. To cut a long story short, I got the same system from another GC showroom for a much lower price (all-in $3300) Like everyone is saying, if you don't watch out for yourself, the salesman will slaughter you!! There are also other issues to consider and it is best you find out for yourselves instead of relying on hearsay or sales talk. Some even provide -- albeit unintentionally -- misleading information on this thread(!) Sorry for the long post, but there is so much misinformation that I feel compelled to contribute this piece. The internet is the best resource for this and some websites have FAQs on aircons.

sorry for this belated response. psim: you can buy kdk fan at Hong Kwang, Kelantan Rd, Blk 30, #01-85. got mine, model 15wud -- the one you see on my blog -- for $50 bef GST. flyersummer: the kdk fan comes with a pull cord that you use to turn on/off the fan. if you need a timer switch you can buy one for abt $20 at any hardware / electrical shop. some ppl connect the vent fan directly to the toilet light circuit so that the fan is turned on when the light goes on. hope that helps.

Sorry for yr predicament. No one agency is the "proper" body to deal with disputes b/w owners and contractors. There is RADAC, Small Claims Tribunal, CASE, and the various licensing bodies e.g. HDB, BCA, EMA etc. I don't know if RADAC is appropriate or not since I think they only get involved if the contractor is registered with them and your contract is signed on their predetermined format. Note that RADAC basically is a registry of contractors accredited by them. Maybe writing to the appropriate agency with a complaint letter may help your case and/or make the erring contractor more sympathetic/responsive to your complaint. Alas, all these steps involve a lot of time, effort and maybe expense. In my view they are not effective. Because the damage has been done. Wouldn't it be better if owners like us have our own body to look after our own interests, before we start renovation or sign on the dotted line with the id firm, or contractor? Just a thought.

Huffpuff, much thanks for your enthusiastic support. We need more ppl like you for the registry idea to work. If all home owners like you are willing to put in some effort, I am sure the idea will take off. But to get the idea off the ground takes a lot of effort, time, and commitment, so most ppl will probably be frightened off from volunteering, even if they like the idea. Initially I was hoping (ideally) that RenoTalk itself -- because they have the platform and resources -- will take up the cause for home-owners. However, they probably have their own agenda and priorities, and may feel it is inappropriate to "push" the idea. Hence we will likely look to get committed volunteers like you and others instead to form the core team to develop the idea further. Obviously, anyone wishing to volunteer time and effort will need to ensure they have no links -- whether financial or otherwise -- to id firms and contractors. This is to ensure that no undue influence or bias is introduced into the scheme. For those who like the idea but couldn't volunteer due to no time, etc you could still help out by sharing your experiences. To support, all you need to do is simply put up your blog, preferably with pictures, to share your renovation experience, and rate your id / contractor / service provider, based on criteria we will put up later. Tell us whether you are happy or not with the work done, and explain why. Give us a pm and we will follow up with you. huffpuff, keep your line open, will contact you once we've got more ppl willing to commit!

that is good news! !! flat owners are so jaded with over-charging by ids and contractors that we all thought the prices quoted by them are "normal" -- until we found out from others we were "ko-tok". in fact, i asked the bangla worker how much he was paid when he hacked the wall of my bedroom. He said $25 for the 2-hr work. Do you know how much the contractor quoted in my contract? $400 for hacking that wall !!! i didn't know better, coz most of the quotes i had sought earlier ranged from $250-500!! So if the id give you something FOC it is already provided for in their contract lah. Sure, the middleman probably took his cut too, so in the end it is the flat owner like you and I who pays everyone along the line... Wise up everybody, unless flat owners exchange info and do their part, we have no one to blame but get fleeced right, left, center. good for you, babytan!

hobbes187: My ID firm handled the task of writing the letter (reasons given by me) and sending it by snail mail. A HDB technical officer is usually assigned to take charge of one or more apartment blocks -- you should contact him. The officer name i/c of yr block is in the HDB Infoweb under your account (you need a password to log in). If you wish to write the letter yourself the address is also on the web. You may call HDB directly to get your id and infoweb access password sent to you if you don't have or lost it. Pl let me know if you need further help. == Delirious_jeff: Like the humor in yr id... HDB approval has nothing to do with the screws or location of the fan. Most of their requirements are perplexing and they don't usually explain why they require approval for such-and-such changes to the flat. I was told HDB was concerned with safety issues. Someone may throw an object from higher floors that may shatter the glass panel of the casement window on lower floors, and causing injury to people walking on the ground floor. Hence my contractor had to use safety laminated glass for the casement window. Obviously if you don't change yr lourve window to casement type, and you mount the vent fan onto a plastic panel that covers the entire lourve window, you don't need approval. As explained in an earlier post, I changed to casement window and mounted the fan onto the glass panel for not only lower cost but greater flexibility / convenience.

Babytan, If you look at the photos posted earlier, you will see the new rubbish chute is very different (flat with wall) from the old chute (triangular, juts out). Hence my ID had to hack out the old chute before he could install the new flat s/s chute: Step 1: Hacking Step 2: Tiling the wall Step 3: New chute installed If you decide to install the new chute AFTER you have completed renovation, the installer has to be extra careful not to damage the newly tiled wall. If you want to source yr own chute, to minimize risk of damage ask yr ID to hack out the old chute first. In hindsight I think my ID was right to hack out the old chute before I changed my mind! PS : Try to negotiate the new chute FOC from yr ID (hint: try that with my ID lah). PSS: On my experience with the chute, so far so good as I hv not encountered any cockroaches, etc coming out of the new chute, though I am on the 3rd floor.

Bluedusk, My flat is also a 4R resale, but with only 1 toilet, 1 shower room, no storeroom, no balcony, no a/c ledge. Initially I got 5 quotes -- was shocked to see the quotes varied widely, from around 20k to 50k, all basically for the same job scope, more or less The story of how I finally settled on one quotation is too long to share here. Suffice to say I think some prices for your renovation works are too high, as hinted at by applefreak, amongst others. Don't make the mistake of trusting "friendly" IDs or contractors, they will surely "ko-tok" you, with a friendly smile of course (hehehe). I have relatives and friends who are contractors, but my policy is never to use them. Why? Simply because in any renovation there will be problems, and it is more difficult to resolve those problems with contractors who are relatives or friends. Excuse me, but don't you think yr "friend-the-contractor" is taking advantage of yr friendship with his high-price quote? There is no short-cut, your only safeguard is to get several quotes, compare, and negotiate, negotiate, negotiate. The more you know, the more informed you're, the better able you will negotiate. You will be surprised there is actually no "standard" pricing for a specific job, quotes can vary so widely! For my 4R renovation work, I spent about $19-20k, excluding items I have to buy, such as sinks, fittings, etc. Also exclude aircon and rewiring which I sourced separately myself. Check out my blog to see the extent of the renovation for that amount and you may get an idea if your quotation is fair and reasonable. Hope that helps

Hey, you're spot on, keltong! Some used the lights behind the TV set, gives a beautiful glow on the wall behind the TV -- google for how others do their "thing".

You are welcome, babytan! Have a nice renovation!

Yes, Applefreak, this (LED lighting) is the future of lighting! You simply plug it into a power socket, so you don't need an electrician to install the light for you if your kitchen cab already has power sockets. Very convenient! Why don't you install first and let me know how bright it is? !! I am also looking at other LED bulb supplier from overseas, but haven't made any purchases yet.