Et209 1 Report post Posted April 28, 2011 This is to document our experiences and to share them with like minded friends like you all. Owning a HDB was a daunting dream. After getting married, and started a new business, investing in a long term investing was really at the back of my mind. But wife wanted a place we can say is ours. So we just dived into it.After a month of home hunting; we went to about 30; we chance on this unit. We really liked it immediately; plus no COV!! So we grabbed immediately and was finally a HDB owner!That was in 2006! We slowly renovated the place. I had a keen interest in Reno. So I did not engage a ID.'plus to save cost, we did only the necessary stuff at that time and it had evolved into what it is today... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted April 28, 2011 This is the layout. So far I have not seen another similar one in renotalk. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted April 28, 2011 The block wad built in the 80s. These were the pix in the evaluation survey: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sleek 2 Report post Posted April 28, 2011 welcome to RT, that is really a unique LO and wow , original condition! Looking fwd to the photos of it now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hafiizh 0 Report post Posted April 29, 2011 agree layout is one of a kind. i can already feel the hacking itch - are you planning any major changes?nothing beats $0 COV! corner unit somemore is that right? i think with a little sprucing up, your place can be a real gem.best of wishes on your reno Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted April 29, 2011 Yes. It was the "original condition" that attracted us. Everything was original, including metal door frames, air vents on top of each door, metal toilet doors.. Haha..Plus the unique layout makes the place look bigger. We have hacked the store room away. That opens up the whole place too.The reason why bishan was because we can be near to my parents. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted April 29, 2011 A prelude to the almost completed living room.I don't have a theme. Probably something uniquely Asia rustic, cozy, woody, using lots of photos of my kids and some hand me down furnitures. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted April 29, 2011 (edited) Some more pictures of the "original" conditions.These pictures are after we have cleaned the place. Believe me when I say we probably used half of Pierce Reservoir. Some of the walls were black! Literally!The main door:Facing the storeroom and entrance to the kitchen. Hack hack hack!!!Standing outside the common toilet facing the kitchenThe storeroom which I wanna lackA panoramic view of the L shaped living-dining room: Edited May 4, 2011 by Et209 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted April 30, 2011 More pictures:The kitchen The living roomThe common toilet Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted April 30, 2011 (edited) Throughout the few years we have spent approximately the below cost in the total renovation:DescriptionToilet and water renovation cost:Toilet bowl 1882 basin 300Basin piping 95Hotwater champs 146Copper piping 4902 toilet B/F doors and rubbish chute 748Fix glass panel in common toilet 1803 unit aircon includes installation of piping:Aircon 1719Furnitures and household appliances: LG fridge 288Sofa 400Maytag washer 369Panasonic microwave 129Coffee table 59Cabinet1 199Cabinet2 1992 stools 78Mirror 99Art 3 pc painting 130Master bedroom art. 2011 purchase 50Fan 155Ikea mirror @ common toilet 99Ikea single bed x2 200Ikea drawers x2 200Ikea cupboards x2 200Ikea plants. X5 30Ikea pots. X5 30Cushions 100Small ikea mirror x4 20Ikea lights x3 in bedrooms 150Ikea lights in hall n kitchen n toilets 200Ikea kitchen n toilets accessories 200Cut glass for table tops 150Wall decal stickers in kids room 100Ikea shelves. X4 150Curtains 200We re-wired the whole house and did the points according to where we want. I will elaborate the actual breakdown later. This electrician is **** good. Peter was recommended by a friend and used to do wiring for many major commercial projects. His work was meticulous. Electrical points and re-wiring 1512Kitchen was done up by my carpenter friend at Art Decor. Speical pricing of course! But good workmanship: Kitchen cabinet. Bottom 12 ft @ $90/ft 1080Kitchen top 8ft @ $50/ft 400Hack old kitchen support and built kitchen base 330PCS kitchen top 12ft 180Kitchen stove 320Kitchen sink 150Kitchen hob 300Got a friend's brothers (part time house painters also) to repaint the place. I bought the paint and brush accessories for them. They took 3 days for undercoat and paint. Thanks guys!!Painting labour 300Paint 300Hacked away some stuff. Got rid of those 80s air vents. Recently I got another contractor friend to hack away the store room. something I'd wanted to do for many years! Hack air vents and patch back 120Hack storeroom wall n door 450Box up 3 bedroom door ventilation 100Got new wooden door and a metal door grill. Bought at a Reno fair 4 years ago.Bad idea! These guys were late for the appointment. The grill started to rust within a month! And they would not change a new one. Just came and touch up paint over some rust spots. 3 bedroom doors and 1 main door grill 1100Most recently, just got Krono-O to do laminates over those 80s floor tiles. thanks Steven. The Kronostep range is the best laminates I'd seen. Reasonable pricing. Wow factor. Even my sis is considering redoing her flooring.Laminate flooring 4500Total $19192This total includes all furniture and accessories. Edited April 30, 2011 by Et209 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted April 30, 2011 The living room is almost complete. I plan to get a mirror for one side of the wall and maybe another art. Also may mount another picture of the kids on top of the tv. The ikea standing lamp uses warm white; for a cozy ambience.The wooden feature wall was purchased from another renotalk forumer. Alvin! Thanks!!the shelves below is from ikea.The other side of the living room. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted April 30, 2011 I m not really ready to show you the incomplete bedrooms. But here you can see the art I bought from another renotalk forumer. Also we have retained the metal door frames and box up the air vents on top of the door. We chose a darker colored laminate for the bedrooms. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GetFuzzy 0 Report post Posted May 1, 2011 any pics of your completed kitchen? I like your living room! The floor and furniture matches very well. I love all the woody elements you use (the table, tv wall etc) very resort feel. Sigh, unfortunately my fiance does not like such woody feel in the house =(. He wants simple, plain (to me is bland haha) and modern..... sianzzzz Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted May 1, 2011 Hi getfuzzy, here you go. Total 20 ft kitchen. 12 bottom and 8 top. It is a L shaped layout. I did not hack the existing wall tiles. A good scrub and a lot of DIY grouting. Also, using stickers, i covered the blue tiled motifs with colors that are earth tone. It's easy and the stickers are cheap and waterproof too. We did not hack the floor too. But in a later stage, I may cover the floor with wood too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Et209 1 Report post Posted May 1, 2011 Another picture I took of the kitchen with lights on.The othe side of the kitchen. Notice the original wall tiles. Also ikea mirrors. Ignore that big piece of glass. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
