K's Reno Journey

[BlurRhino 0]

wow wow!! big purchase u have make.. hmm.. ya we are still researching on these appliances.. but think after we engage Id then make purchase lor.. one of the Id we visit already say why we so fast buy furniture liao, then our reno options will be lesser coz need to match the furniture we bought..

ya everyday check hdb website and mailbox to see whether hdb got any updates anot.. going crazy liao! haha

[Kerio 2]

wow wow!! big purchase u have make.. hmm.. ya we are still researching on these appliances.. but think after we engage Id then make purchase lor.. one of the Id we visit already say why we so fast buy furniture liao, then our reno options will be lesser coz need to match the furniture we bought..

ya everyday check hdb website and mailbox to see whether hdb got any updates anot.. going crazy liao! haha

Haha I know what you mean! I was checking the Hdb website every 2 hours when I heard someone in my block had gotten the Key collection letter

My ID told us to buy the stuff on discount if we wanted to, though to play safe we only bought electrical appliances for the kitchen, and tv tv should be standard black mah, so quite ok heehee:) all our accessories are stainless steel to match the black and s/s theme in the kitchen. So far haven't gotten actual furnitures yet:)

Which ones did you already get?

[reizzz 0]

Wah, so siong! Think maybe have to save up for it then.. actually can probably get a hob+hood combi with Everjoint within the month Maybe I go Kallang Leisure Park Mega Discount see first; if they have the gas hob types then can consider doing a transfer

i went to kallang outlet. their selection is not that big also. but what you mean by gas hob ah?

[Kerio 2]

i went to kallang outlet. their selection is not that big also. but what you mean by gas hob ah?

Hahaha, I meant stainless steel gas hob My wife was thinking of getting an induction hob, but some of her colleagues told her the heat may not be as high (i.e. not good for chinese stir-fry), and of course, the standard cast iron or steel pots and pans for induction hobs are quite costly. Did you happen to see air-conditioning systems there?

We saw another type of hob at the United Square Mega outlet; it's a ceramic glass hob (looks like an induction hob), except there're heated rings below the glass that heat up the pot when you're cooking. Quite ex though, and not sure if really hot enough or not.

Then she considered a tempered glass hob with a cast iron ring and gas cooker, and thought it was alright, though I was worried because :

1) If you search for "tempered glass hob shattering", you'll find quite a lot of posts, although mostly from 2007 - 2008. Not sure if there's still that problem now, but the shattering usually occurs after the 1 year warranty, so replacement of the tempered glass may not be free.

2) The sales person told us to be careful with the hob, don't chip it or scratch it, don't drop things on it, don't use too much force when cooking etc etc. That really cramps my style, because when I cook, I tend to violently attack the hob with a frying pan, then toss the food in the pan by moving the pan on the iron rings with a great deal of vim and vigor. And why spend so much money to stress myself? A stainless steel one would do, I think.

Still considering whether or not to swap our glass hob for a stainless steel hob. Anyone else have any experience with glass hobs?

[reizzz 0]

Hahaha, I meant stainless steel gas hob My wife was thinking of getting an induction hob, but some of her colleagues told her the heat may not be as high (i.e. not good for chinese stir-fry), and of course, the standard cast iron or steel pots and pans for induction hobs are quite costly. Did you happen to see air-conditioning systems there?

We saw another type of hob at the United Square Mega outlet; it's a ceramic glass hob (looks like an induction hob), except there're heated rings below the glass that heat up the pot when you're cooking. Quite ex though, and not sure if really hot enough or not.

Then she considered a tempered glass hob with a cast iron ring and gas cooker, and thought it was alright, though I was worried because :

1) If you search for "tempered glass hob shattering", you'll find quite a lot of posts, although mostly from 2007 - 2008. Not sure if there's still that problem now, but the shattering usually occurs after the 1 year warranty, so replacement of the tempered glass may not be free.

2) The sales person told us to be careful with the hob, don't chip it or scratch it, don't drop things on it, don't use too much force when cooking etc etc. That really cramps my style, because when I cook, I tend to violently attack the hob with a frying pan, then toss the food in the pan by moving the pan on the iron rings with a great deal of vim and vigor. And why spend so much money to stress myself? A stainless steel one would do, I think.

Still considering whether or not to swap our glass hob for a stainless steel hob. Anyone else have any experience with glass hobs?

i see. i didn't really go and look at every hob on display. but i got a turbo stainless steel hob. my grandparent-in-law's place is using turbo and the fire is strong enough for chinese cooking, so we decided to get the same one. lol

not too sure about their air conditioning systems there. we only went to the outlet selling kitchen appliances. they have another outlet, which is just diagonally opposite, selling all the tv, fridges etc.

as for glass hob, many ppl have been telling us not to get a glass hob. reason being when you're cooking, you also got to take extra care on the glass. i think that alone is enough to make me choose stainless steel. lol

[Kerio 2]

i see. i didn't really go and look at every hob on display. but i got a turbo stainless steel hob. my grandparent-in-law's place is using turbo and the fire is strong enough for chinese cooking, so we decided to get the same one. lol

not too sure about their air conditioning systems there. we only went to the outlet selling kitchen appliances. they have another outlet, which is just diagonally opposite, selling all the tv, fridges etc.

as for glass hob, many ppl have been telling us not to get a glass hob. reason being when you're cooking, you also got to take extra care on the glass. i think that alone is enough to make me choose stainless steel. lol

Agree. Wifey tells me s/s hob hard to clean, but I'm quite used to them though. We consult our ID first lor Maybe tomorrow will go check out the Kallang Leisure park Mega also lol.

Currently looking through the Opennet Installation details on RT... The accepted method appears to be to get the contractor to drill a hole from top of the front door, and run trunking all the way to the SCV point, pulling a draw rope throughout to facilitate the pulling through of the fibres. Not very clear, however, on what is required for the 13A Powerpoint/Sockets (are they like, normal sockets?), RJ45 patch panels, and Cat 6 cables (which apparently should be run throughout the house? How to run? Through false ceiling? I read there're only 4 ports, so what if we need to pull to 5 places?). Mwaaa so confused

[BlurRhino 0]

Agree. Wifey tells me s/s hob hard to clean, but I'm quite used to them though. We consult our ID first lor Maybe tomorrow will go check out the Kallang Leisure park Mega also lol.

Currently looking through the Opennet Installation details on RT... The accepted method appears to be to get the contractor to drill a hole from top of the front door, and run trunking all the way to the SCV point, pulling a draw rope throughout to facilitate the pulling through of the fibres. Not very clear, however, on what is required for the 13A Powerpoint/Sockets (are they like, normal sockets?), RJ45 patch panels, and Cat 6 cables (which apparently should be run throughout the house? How to run? Through false ceiling? I read there're only 4 ports, so what if we need to pull to 5 places?). Mwaaa so confused

did you go to the opennet website to take a a look? quite informative imo.. there are also 2 short clips here that u might want to watch too..

http://www.opennet.com.sg/consumers/what-to-expect/hdb/

[Kerio 2]

did you go to the opennet website to take a a look? quite informative imo.. there are also 2 short clips here that u might want to watch too..

http://www.opennet.com.sg/consumers/what-to-expect/hdb/

Yes I did! I read from the opennet thread here that wireless may not fully optimize the high speed capabilities though, which is why I'm considering getting the Belden cat 6 wires and the RJ 45 faceplate. Getting them is not as big an issue as actually using them. Most likely I'll just hand them to the electrician and see what he can do. If I understood it correctly (not sure if I did), I'm supposed to pull the Belden cat 6 wires through the house to the various rooms, and use the RJ45 faceplate in the various rooms to plug in the PCs, TVs etc.

In other more non-hysterics causing news, I've changed my tempered glass hob to a stainless steel gas hob! And also, gotten myself 2 sound systems:

- Philips HTS-5560 5.1 5 channel Hi-Fi Blu-Ray System (for the living room, 5 speakers with 2 behind and 3 in front, including subwoofer)

- Philips HTS-5120 Soundbar (for the Main Bed room; SUPER overkill, but they didn't sell the smaller one it seemed a pretty good deal)

Total price of purchase - $1100.

Will get electrician to help me set up wahahaha

[BlurRhino 0]

Yes I did! I read from the opennet thread here that wireless may not fully optimize the high speed capabilities though, which is why I'm considering getting the Belden cat 6 wires and the RJ 45 faceplate. Getting them is not as big an issue as actually using them. Most likely I'll just hand them to the electrician and see what he can do. If I understood it correctly (not sure if I did), I'm supposed to pull the Belden cat 6 wires through the house to the various rooms, and use the RJ45 faceplate in the various rooms to plug in the PCs, TVs etc.

In other more non-hysterics causing news, I've changed my tempered glass hob to a stainless steel gas hob! And also, gotten myself 2 sound systems:

- Philips HTS-5560 5.1 5 channel Hi-Fi Blu-Ray System (for the living room, 5 speakers with 2 behind and 3 in front, including subwoofer)

- Philips HTS-5120 Soundbar (for the Main Bed room; SUPER overkill, but they didn't sell the smaller one it seemed a pretty good deal)

Total price of purchase - $1100.

Will get electrician to help me set up wahahaha

oh seems like a gd deal! but i dun like philips.. haha.. how u intend to mount the 2 back speakers? i planned to convert one of my rooms to a movie/entertainement room so actually i intend to do false ceiling for the room and pull the wires all the way back for the speakers.. but not too sure whether issit feasible.. hmmm..

that mean u going to lay the cat 6 wires through the whole house? how much is the wire psf and the rj45 faceplate? didn consider this option before lo coz it sounds expensive..

[Kerio 2]

oh seems like a gd deal! but i dun like philips.. haha.. how u intend to mount the 2 back speakers? i planned to convert one of my rooms to a movie/entertainement room so actually i intend to do false ceiling for the room and pull the wires all the way back for the speakers.. but not too sure whether issit feasible.. hmmm..

that mean u going to lay the cat 6 wires through the whole house? how much is the wire psf and the rj45 faceplate? didn consider this option before lo coz it sounds expensive..

Ya, I don't like Philips very much either haha.. but it's cheap and functional, so as long as I don't damage it by being too rough with it, it should be fine. Anyway, I have a TCL television (think it's some obscure china brand) and it's lasted me for 8-9 years with no issues until recently, so Philips can't be lousier than that right? (I hope)

I intend to get my ID to help mount it, though Mega does offer installation and mounting I think - most likely it'll be on the top left and right of the living area; since I have a false ceiling should be easy to pull the wires through (if they're long enough). Considering philips doesn't have a really good reputation and I may change the system in the next few years (and shift the philips one to the study room), I think I'll assess the area first to see if I can hide it somewhere at ear level diagonally in front, so the speakers spread out in the front like a fan.

My study room will be my entertainment room! But it's my KIV-ed project until the rest of the critical reno is done up.. considering a projector and sound system - hopefully will be able to conceal the wires properly then. Think if the wires are messy then bo pian lor.. just have to organise the wires properly and tape them to the walls where necessary (neatly of course).

I'm not sure about the cat 6 cables leh; I think there's a thread on it, but I can't really find it; based on my notes, the cat 6 cables should be around $1.5 per metre, and the faceplate is $18.75 per piece - can get at sim lim tower LHS level 2. But do note that I'm not quite sure how the set up should be like, or what those things are used for hahaha.. I read through the thread once and everything was greek to me -..- Think I'll just email opennet to check about the details before meeting our ID on Wednesday night

[BlurRhino 0]

Ya, I don't like Philips very much either haha.. but it's cheap and functional, so as long as I don't damage it by being too rough with it, it should be fine. Anyway, I have a TCL television (think it's some obscure china brand) and it's lasted me for 8-9 years with no issues until recently, so Philips can't be lousier than that right? (I hope)

I intend to get my ID to help mount it, though Mega does offer installation and mounting I think - most likely it'll be on the top left and right of the living area; since I have a false ceiling should be easy to pull the wires through (if they're long enough). Considering philips doesn't have a really good reputation and I may change the system in the next few years (and shift the philips one to the study room), I think I'll assess the area first to see if I can hide it somewhere at ear level diagonally in front, so the speakers spread out in the front like a fan.

My study room will be my entertainment room! But it's my KIV-ed project until the rest of the critical reno is done up.. considering a projector and sound system - hopefully will be able to conceal the wires properly then. Think if the wires are messy then bo pian lor.. just have to organise the wires properly and tape them to the walls where necessary (neatly of course).

I'm not sure about the cat 6 cables leh; I think there's a thread on it, but I can't really find it; based on my notes, the cat 6 cables should be around $1.5 per metre, and the faceplate is $18.75 per piece - can get at sim lim tower LHS level 2. But do note that I'm not quite sure how the set up should be like, or what those things are used for hahaha.. I read through the thread once and everything was greek to me -..- Think I'll just email opennet to check about the details before meeting our ID on Wednesday night

haha true true.. electronics is a hit n miss thing.. buy very branded also will not guaranteed that u might not get a lemon.. haha initially i oso plan to kiv this entertainment room as well but think think better do it one shot during my reno.. so that when i do the false ceiling, i can incorporate the placement of the speakers into the design too.. haha but then think these are all excuses to get my own play room.

Thanks! hmm.. think i will go research more on this opennet thingy.. me also very confused about this..

oh ya u getting your keys on wednesday right?? congrats! happy for u!

[Kerio 2]

haha true true.. electronics is a hit n miss thing.. buy very branded also will not guaranteed that u might not get a lemon.. haha initially i oso plan to kiv this entertainment room as well but think think better do it one shot during my reno.. so that when i do the false ceiling, i can incorporate the placement of the speakers into the design too.. haha but then think these are all excuses to get my own play room.

I want a play room too!! But wifey is all pumped up for the housewarming, and I also think it's more critical to get the main stuff like living room, kitchen, toilets and MBR up, so these are the items we're doing first.. budget constraints, so bo pian Looking on the bright side, at least I can build up the project room and customise it slowly hee

Thanks! hmm.. think i will go research more on this opennet thingy.. me also very confused about this..

Ya, the opennet thing is a major headache adding on to all the other headaches!! At least the SCV point has been standardised so don't need to think too much -..-

oh ya u getting your keys on wednesday right?? congrats! happy for u!

Heh heh, thanks! I'm getting keys on Thursday afternoon, so should be in time to pop by with our ID to do an on-site survey Has HDB given you a date yet? HLE approved le?

So far ID's progress a bit patchy - 3D designs not confirmed yet, so we don't have a very clear picture of how the house will look like haaaaiz. Meeting her tomorrow night to discuss some stuff (missus wants to change the kitchen configuration, and we want to see the 3D drawings if they're ready).

Edited September 14, 2010 by Kerio

[BlurRhino 0]

I want a play room too!! But wifey is all pumped up for the housewarming, and I also think it's more critical to get the main stuff like living room, kitchen, toilets and MBR up, so these are the items we're doing first.. budget constraints, so bo pian Looking on the bright side, at least I can build up the project room and customise it slowly hee

Ya, the opennet thing is a major headache adding on to all the other headaches!! At least the SCV point has been standardised so don't need to think too much -..-

Heh heh, thanks! I'm getting keys on Thursday afternoon, so should be in time to pop by with our ID to do an on-site survey Has HDB given you a date yet? HLE approved le?

So far ID's progress a bit patchy - 3D designs not confirmed yet, so we don't have a very clear picture of how the house will look like haaaaiz. Meeting her tomorrow night to discuss some stuff (missus wants to change the kitchen configuration, and we want to see the 3D drawings if they're ready).

yup HLE approved le.. now really have to see hdb will drag how long to gve the keys..

my missus wan to wait until we get the keys then confirm ID but i persuading her to make the decision beforehand.. otherwise even if we get keys in oct, unlikely we can complete our reno before cny lor.. wan to get keys liao immediately can start!

think i will go research more about the opennet thingy and share it here.. haha guess i will be a parasite here since i dun have my own blog yet!

[Kerio 2]

yup HLE approved le.. now really have to see hdb will drag how long to gve the keys..

my missus wan to wait until we get the keys then confirm ID but i persuading her to make the decision beforehand.. otherwise even if we get keys in oct, unlikely we can complete our reno before cny lor.. wan to get keys liao immediately can start!

think i will go research more about the opennet thingy and share it here.. haha guess i will be a parasite here since i dun have my own blog yet!

Think the subsequent blocks should be quite fast! We were thinking there'd be at least a month from our HLE approval to the actual key collection, but it turned out to be less than 3 weeks

It's definitely a better idea to get your ID now rather than after key collection! Even barring issues like actual selection and shortlisting of ID, there's still design and space planning and 3D designs, all of which take quite some time. My ID, for instance, has had to change the designs 3-4 times so far over 2 months, and we're still not satisfied because what we requested just isn't in there. Today going to see her again to finalize some details before actual key collection tomorrow, and Reno is expected to start the following week! So in the next week, colors, materials etc all have to be chosen and confirmed. Super rush! >.<

[Kerio 2]

Just met with ID again just now - she was super-efficient! Decided on tiles, wall colors, laminates, etc all in he space of 2 hours. Also walked us through the designs again and confirmed some details. Starting work next Tuesday if the Reno permit doesn't present any problems.

Collecting keys tomorrow afternoon!!