RimBlock

Well I would imagine 41 light points don't help. You are not having a separate light point for each T5 are you ? We paid 3k for a full rewiring of our 3 room 3.5 years ago including lots of double sockets (6 in the master bedroom, 5 in the living room etc). I am sure others will be able to give a good idea as my wiring for my EM was just a flat package price and used existing wires. RB

Have updated the the timing after talking to my wife who quite rightly pointed out the younger kids will be sleeping around lunch time or will get very grumpy. RB

Wet cloth, dry cloth . This is all we use. Normal wet cloth with a little soap to clean and rinse, then a dry cloth to wipe over and remove the surface water left. Has worked for us for the last 4 years and we are using the cheaper China Granite. RB

I think that is the reaction most people have . Post it up if you want a comparison with others quotes. RB

Ans was the plaster wavey like the wall picture 2 before they painted because it looks to me like the plaster was too wet and so has sagged. Did a proper plasterer come in and do the work or was it the painters ?. 3 days for the plaster to dry is really a long time. A couple of days maybe. Again this indicates too much water in the plaster mixture. Painted 5 times doesn't make up for a bad job the first or second time. The first wall pic is clearly showing where patches of paint has been pealed off as it was semi dry and had not adhered to the wall properly. The smearing in the third wall pic is where the plaster is wet and soft and so a top layer has smeared and been pushed around. RB

I would guess this was a rule made a very long time ago for some reason and is no longer relevant but it has not been receded and so HDB just turns a blind eye to it now. I would have no concerns plastering the ceiling at all. If you really want clarification the check with your local HDB officer and if they say you cannot then raise it at your local 'meet the minister' session and lobby to get it changed as it is a common occurrence. Depends on how far you wish to take it. RB

My kids are the same and we have to be careful as our 3yo likes dropping things over the bannister like mini basketballs. At least they have not yet gone sledging down the stairs on a dinner tray which, I am reliably informed by my mother, I used to do when I was younger in the UK . RB

Looks like the plaster mix was too wet and so you have the ripples. Also looks like the painting was done when the previous coat was still wet. Did they let the plaster dry properly and then seal it before painting ?. A pic of the whole wall with the area affected would be good to give a scope of the issue. Ok, firstly, the light switch covers should be removed for plastering so the plaster doesn't spoil them. For the light switches it should be easy to fix. 1. Remove the light switch cover. 2. Sand the area around the switch. 3. Fill any indentations and wait for it to dry. 4. Rub down with sandpaper to give a smooth finish if needed. 5. Apply sealer to stop the paint soaking in to the plaster. 6. Paint, usually 3 coats making sure the underlying coat goes off before the next is put on. The sanding will be a problem as it will generate dust. There are ways of trapping the dust (clear plastic bag with the sanding block inside taped to the wall to create a sealed area) to minimise the effects. Personally both look like the result of a half-arsed job. Rushed and without care. Paint too quick before dry to rush job (possibly due to Dragon Lady blow her top ). I can take a look if I come over at the weekend as it should not be too hard to rectify but may take more than one day in order for stuff to dry before painting. RB

Having a living room extended on to the balcony area, I miss not being about to sit outside and have a BBQ or the like but then I am on a main road and so it is very noisy and I am not sure how people will take the smoke signals . It is coming along but there are always some bumps in the road. Think about enjoying the projector when it is all finished . RB

It will just be Ethan as Nat is in Auckland (the lucky devil) for a school exchange program. Ethan is very boisterous but I am sure would love playing with your pets. Just need to keep him from becoming too boisterous. Well you are pretty close and as my wife is at my MiL and so doesn't require my assistance. It would be no trouble and dare I say it, probably fun. I could expose you to 'The IT Crowd' TV series which I believe you will fully appreciate and maybe a few other UK shows you may not have come across before. Oh and I have a fair amount of Top Gear for your hubby too. RB

You could always measure the area tiled and compare against the quote .... or not . Rb

She was a little distressed to see they were not tiling behind the kitchen cabinet. To me it makes sense. RB

Thanks Potatoes. If he turns out as cheeky as our 3 yo then I think we all may be in real trouble . We have enough trouble with the 3yo as it is . RB

No youtube at work so I think I am spared the assault by both of you . If you can take a pic or two then I may be able to offer some suggestions but would need to see it first. RB

Mine also is not tiled. Better connection for the cabinets to the wall and when securing the cabinets, some of the tiles behind will be broken anyway. Lets face it, if you are going to change the cabinets then you are likely to change the tiles also with a whole kitchen reno so should not be an issue. Saying that, my wife was not so happy about it . RB

No problem for plastering the ceiling. Our last place we plastered the ceiling and had a number of visits from our HDB officer due to spalling concrete. Never mentioned any issues. The valuer didn't mention when we sold, our current place we plastered the ceiling and found a leak. Called HDB and Town Council. Both viewed and I even told them I needed it fixed quickly due to ongoing reno and a need to plaster the ceiling. From this I deduce that plastering the ceiling is currently acceptable . What floor are you on. We find that cockroaches tend to come out when you are not in the bathroom and not when you are showering. Of course you may see them when you are showering but they will not likely be coming from the drain but another hiding place they went to earlier. Centipedes are a bit different as they like wet environments but we never had them coming from the drains when showering. They may be hiding under something in the shower area though. The worst I had was a 5-6" centipede come out from under our vanity unit in the toilet as I was err.... 'sitting and reading'. Tracking its every movement whilst not being in a position to do anything about it. not the most fun experience..... Our old unit was ground floor though. Our 10th floor unit we have only seen lizards and the odd tiny spider and 3-4 cockroaches but expect they came with us hiding in boxes and stuff that was packed. Oh I believe we have a largish centipede living in our fridge though . Just caught a glimpse of something long disappear to the back of the fridge and our fridge has vents to circulate the cold air. I suspect it is living in there. Shhh, haven't mentioned it to the wife yet . Oh you may want to host pictures you link to in a site like photobucket or tiny pic or one of the others as linking from a site you have no control over can be dangerous. At worst they could change the pic to something very offensive but with the same name and then the admin and members here may not be so happy . RB

Yep, it was taken as such . Not so sure... if they were expecting to see your good, although not so good by her own admission it seems, lady wife the last thing they wanted is a hunky guy . It may have been enough to make them drop the spoon in their preschool frosties . Haha. not required but a lift to your place would be good as we have no car. Will clear it with my boss but would have thought it would not have been a problem. Yep I had eczema when I was younger and long haired dogs and grass pollen really brought it out. I also have a very acute bronchitis attack when I was in Switzerland for a couple of months for work. Couldn't breath due to the crap in my lungs that was so thick I couldn't cough it up. I quit smoking after that experience. Have a rough idea what Ely is going through and also understand her determination to not let it stop her interaction with animals. My wife is not a pet person but I am. We had a puppy for a little bit but my wife couldn't stand the cleaning up of the dirt box even though I was doing it. We were lucky enough to find him a good home with a close friend. No more pets for us which is sad as the kids would love them as well. Anyway, hope Ely recovers soon. Let me know your WhatsApp number and I will add it in as I only have Elys . RB

Haha. Did you take note of how many people had viewed before you posted that link . Do you realise how many people you have now corrupted . Some poor impressionable youths will never be able to look the same way at a bar of soap again . Nothing pervy about a young attractive woman fully clothed being a bit pouty and wriggly. Now if she shed said attire then that would be a different matter but then that would only be for you if you could get your head out of your subwoofer . RB

Well if I can get a pickup then I may be able to come over and help you two with the network stuff. I will be with my 3yo but he likes cats and probably dogs although someone will need to keep an eye on him for his sake as he is not so experienced around animals but he has at least had some exposure. RB

A bit later would be better or alternatively we could just come a bit later as the younger kids will be taking a nap around 1pm. Thanks RB

Well my good lady wife with her sixth sense has just sent me another pic . RB

Thanks, will take a look now. Cool, I like car shows too . Oh I have just installed FPse on my ANDROID phone. I can now play PS1 games on my mobile like Tekken 1/2/3, Silent Hill, Crash Bandicoot 2 and just getting FF VII . They may be slumming it and have a version for the i[sigh]phone. Expect it to have half the features missing and cost 4 times as much though . RB

Now don't you get cheeky with me young lady...... I was thinking about something coming from the side wall along the light box. A tree branch or something like that. A lot we saw on the push carts has white backing which is really no good for our light yellow walls. I shall have a browse and let you know. Oh it doesn't have to be at your place. You could video it for your hubby for when his HTS desire drops . I am sure he would only distribute to a few people . . Cool, pics are always good. Thanks Ely, have passed the info on. Rb

His brother got in to the Young Mothers cute babies photo pages a couple of years ago so he has a lot to live up too.... I am sure he will do fine. Strange that he has quite a bit of hair though as his brother was born with none and it took around a year for it to grow with any enthusiasm . RB

Nope, that was my wishful thinking... it is only 1 week paternity Yep my wife was like a queen with a butler for the week RB