Jump to content
Find Professionals    Deals    Get Quotations   Portfolios
Sign in to follow this  
ygkt

Our Dream Home Journey_3 Storey Inter Terrace

Recommended Posts

Updates:

So we had our meeting today with contractor. We resolved the kitchen cabinet issue. it will be 620mm and the wall will be extended by a bit for us. We also talked about the yard and how we needed a longer base as we decided to place our dishwasher and 2 washing machines in the yard. 

Waterproofing:

sigh, had to also extend waterproofing to the yard too. gonna cost us more :~ again. 

Air con:

The air-con piping is almost complete for the whole house. 

Tiling:

nice to see that some tiling works have begun. Our 3rd storey toilet wall one side has been tiled. :)

image.png.efd9fab0d983e9ebf2d4a178a827fdd2.png

Our neighbour has also started their renovation today! Saw the huge dumpster in their car porch. They just bought the place just after us. Looks like we may complete our reno around the same time. At least, when we move in by the end of the yr,  they may have completed their reno!  :)

Edited by ygkt
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Join 46,923 satisfied homeowners who used renotalk quotation service to find interior designers. Get an estimated quotation
2 hours ago, ygkt said:

Yes, indeed. just checked the model specs we bought. its less than 600mm. :)

just had a closer look at your picture. the protrusion of the existing cabinet seems to be more than 20mm. that wall (I assume which is the one where the gate is mounted to) doesn't look like 600mm wide. looks to me to only about 500mm wide. so even if your new cabinets are 600mm deep, they will still not be flushed to the wall.

if you are going to extend that wall to 600mm wide and keep the door opening to be same as existing, you will need to hack the opposite wall which you already mentioned. the stairs will need adjustment but you are constrained by the IC which is at the bottom of the stairs.

if you do not hack the wall, your door opening will be smaller by maybe 100mm and you may need to customize a gate, door frame and door which might cost slightly more since this becomes a non-standard door size.

the cheapest option is just live with the protrusion and install some corner bumpers to prevent knocking against the cabinet corners.

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
On 9/11/2018 at 8:29 PM, snoozee said:

just had a closer look at your picture. the protrusion of the existing cabinet seems to be more than 20mm. that wall (I assume which is the one where the gate is mounted to) doesn't look like 600mm wide. looks to me to only about 500mm wide. so even if your new cabinets are 600mm deep, they will still not be flushed to the wall.

if you are going to extend that wall to 600mm wide and keep the door opening to be same as existing, you will need to hack the opposite wall which you already mentioned. the stairs will need adjustment but you are constrained by the IC which is at the bottom of the stairs.

if you do not hack the wall, your door opening will be smaller by maybe 100mm and you may need to customize a gate, door frame and door which might cost slightly more since this becomes a non-standard door size.

the cheapest option is just live with the protrusion and install some corner bumpers to prevent knocking against the cabinet corners.

Hi Snoozee!

Woah, been a very crazy week  so no time to update. Yes, everything that you said is correct and we did consider it as well. Today we are meeting our contractor again to discuss and settle it. 

There will be some changes to the yard - he has suggested raising the level up to the IC level and flush everything. So lets see again the whole plan after today's discussion.

Updates:

More waterproofing to be done above the yard area too. Sigh. Money flying away! 

One toilet tiling is almost done. And the second one is almost finished. nice to see the tiles up! 

On the whole, work, we feel is a little slow. We dont have a schedule (cos our contractor says its hard to give one but he assures us work will be completed within the time frame) Having always been to IDs during our previous renos - this time its quite tough for us as now we really have to coordinate like crazy and check and check and check. Take tons of photo. 

Sometimes a bit tough to talk to so many people and along the way the message can get mixed up! Have to be on the ball all the time. 

So far, we have been looking around for sofa, fridge and still thinking about the lights - the 2 important lights for the foyer and living. Sigh - dunno when we will get the ideal ones without bursting our pockets. 

 

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

hmmm... why is your contractor asking you to do waterproofing for the yard area? the yard area is supposed to be wet area but since it is outdoors, there's no need for waterproofing at all. doesn't make sense to me.

also, there's no need to raise the yard level to be same as the IC level. honestly it's wasting $$$ on your side and more $$$ to be earned by the contractor.

 
  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Busy like crazy and only had time to post now. 

Our yard area has a roof (done by the previous owner) and one concrete (i don't know what that's called) ceiling wall from the original house - it is considered indoors as none of the yard is exposed above. And we can see  concrete ceiling part its leaky. and the ceiling paint is peeling off. Anyway, our contractor said he will see to it and not to worry. I believe we are in good hands. 

The yard area - being prepped to be flushed and filled with concrete. At the area, we will be doing a concrete sink and base for our washers and dishwasher. 

image.png.e2ecb3669efcd25de0221c96a722a698.png

Also, the leveling of the yard to the IC level (anyway what does IC stand for? I know its the drain thingy on the ground though - just dont know what IC stands for) is something that he is not charging us. He told us don't worry, that it will all turn out well. And knowing him and how we had the opportunity to talk other clients and see their several he has done, we are confident it will all be ok. We can see he isn't calculative and so far we are happy with what he has done in the house. 

Updates:

  1. toilets on 3rd floor tiling all completed! 
  2. the wall to make one huge bedroom into two is completed!
  3. Aircon piping (first round is all done)
  4. Electrical first round all done. 
  5. Piping done! 
  6. First flight of staircase from the 3rd storey is tiled! Yeah!  
  7. 2nd storey huge toilet is half way tiled. 

In terms of tiling, still have a lot more to do. Had a chat with the guy and he said the tiling will be done from the top floor first and then slowly move down. So now with the 2 3rd storey toilets done and the first flight of stairs completed, the next is the 2nd storey bathroom and then he will continue with the stairs. Well, we just cannot wait for the tiling and wet works to be done! Truly cant wait to see the newly tiled house! All the tiles have been delivered to the house. Been rainy these past few days. 

Mango Tree:)

Also had the pruners to come prune the mango tree cos the leaves were growing so fast! cost $250. then now we just purchased a tree pole pruner and i think we can do it on our own after we observed how they did it and now that we got the equipment. 

 

Water Feature:dunno:

We have been thinking about getting a water feature for the car porch area. is good for the fengshui! Saw one really nice fukai one! but it was oh so expensive. We also saw one in Fu Luo Shou building - much less expensive. But not as pretty as the one from Fukai. Still mulling over it. Not a need at the moment - probably get it much later when we move in. I got to think about maintenance too. Wondering cos i have to put it at the corner of the car porch area which is exposed to rain/sun/ So wondering how it will be like to maintain. 

Saw this (photo taken from Website) feature at IMM. So nice!

image.png.a0779b841fdc53e071897771ce8a7fb0.png

Other one the HB liked at Fu Lou Shou:

image.png.5bbda794e5a761c2022482691633c2cf.png

Carpentry Meeting :good:

Just met our carpenter - and finalized all the drawings. We haven't selected the laminate and colours yet. We told him that we would like to do it after the house is tiled so that we can see what suits the house best. So far, happy with our carpenter. He is very proactive and helpful and nice guy! From simplecloset. 

So on the whole - now house is pretty much being tiled. really wish it can be tiled faster. Cant believe it is already coming to end of sept! We are moving mid dec. So hopefully all works goes on smoothly. 

Tiling of 2nd storey Bathroom:

image.png.226999e855321fef16418463c4c876b6.png

Staircase - we chose to tile it. Got really nice and huge tiles for the staircase. 

image.png.f2b98b3cf67215be82a21d0c91e01a09.png

We will varnish and repaint the skirting for the stairs. All skirting for the house will be the same colour as stairs. As for the rooms and walkway and family area - we are going to overlay vinyl. We have selected something that is similar to the staircase tiles.

Selected Vinyl Flooring:

image.png.9bb3513a7ba93ee801b1eb747d3252e1.png

All Tiles are here!

image.png.a58d929a439412b7bf1c495d991aba4e.png

Tiles for Living, foyer & Dining:

Love these tiles! Really want to have the house looking bright and big!

image.png.1cd1496000c92a166e370e5b28dc3191.png

The tiles are here!

image.png.8792bd65c9e4bc319d67edce84ea3fe1.png

That's all for now! :seeya:

 

 

Edited by ygkt
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

:DUpdates:

Toilet on 3rd floor has been tiled! Realised I didnt take the photos of the other toilet. :blink:

Timage.png.fc03829f05edc228dda0ef48d32b0fd5.png

image.png.8ae72b2d9c40ead3bf71f407c8fe3cbc.png

Wall to make two rooms:  :yeah:

image.png.8da7317414888136c0db88064af10c62.pngimage.png.09c095a31142ea20268bbeb8cd9a0880.png

Prepping walls in Kitchen to be tiled soon. Cant wait to see the kitchen all tiled up cos we LOVE our tiles. Really simple though but we want a really bright house. Cant seem to find the photos of the  tiles of the kitchen. 

image.png.a314c9c6d3ed63b7c40bd48cc82db1e0.png 

Beams for the yard:

image.png.88dcd5acb0c68275d96808ad6eb60fc5.png

 

 

 

 

Edited by ygkt
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

IC = inspection chamber. all the waste water pipes in your house will lead to an IC. the last IC in the house will be connected to the public sewer. if you have only 1 IC in your house, that will be the last IC as well.

you mentioned your yard is fully sheltered. I believe this could be an illegal addition done by the previous owner. accordingly to regulations, there should not be any structure built within the 2 m setback from the rear boundary. what is allowed is a roof eave or ledge which can be built up to 1m from the rear boundary. your concrete ceiling should be this roof eave/ledge. so anything after this roof eave/ledge is actually not allowed.

Officially, if you want to keep this illegal structure, you can write in to URA to seek permissions to retain this structure since it was erected by the previous owners. if not, you will either need to tear it down or just keep quite about it and hope no one complains about it. else if URA find out, you will be fined.

 
  • Thanks 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
43 minutes ago, snoozee said:

IC = inspection chamber. all the waste water pipes in your house will lead to an IC. the last IC in the house will be connected to the public sewer. if you have only 1 IC in your house, that will be the last IC as well.

you mentioned your yard is fully sheltered. I believe this could be an illegal addition done by the previous owner. accordingly to regulations, there should not be any structure built within the 2 m setback from the rear boundary. what is allowed is a roof eave or ledge which can be built up to 1m from the rear boundary. your concrete ceiling should be this roof eave/ledge. so anything after this roof eave/ledge is actually not allowed.

Officially, if you want to keep this illegal structure, you can write in to URA to seek permissions to retain this structure since it was erected by the previous owners. if not, you will either need to tear it down or just keep quite about it and hope no one complains about it. else if URA find out, you will be fined.

gulp! ok, maybe i must say it is NOT fully sheltered. showing photos here to show what i mean. 

image.png.1b9eca1a0ba4a5542f84d5b44e0177b5.png

so this is the roof that the previous owner has done. its just an extension of the concrete ceiling from the original building. 

image.png.0ad025ce32a94b5c343dfc7c724e7093.png

this is how the yard looks like. so correction it is not fully sheltered. 

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Question about carpentry laminate:

I really need help with this. I saw some designs which i really like. And would like to do this for my cabinets and feature wall in the house. These "V" shape design. 

See below:

image.png.3d6b50e9df951fc49990577cd94f49ae.png

image.png.f7d84fbe0b05789e3ba8d6f453d1abfb.png

really like these vertical lines design. my carpenter said i got to choose a laminate that has lines and he will paste it in such a way that the lines form these "V" shapes. is that correct?

any suggestions/advice?

Thanks everyone!

Also saw this carpentry (see below) LOVE the colour and think it will be a perfect match for our living tiles.

image.png.0b27f8fb8f7fc86815f8d5c674588cd1.png

image.png.46d2de62b9f084a5fdf172a75ce20f1a.png

Both of these photos above were from the same project. I love this laminate. wondering why it had a strip strip look - as in it looks like they were strips pieced together (especially the first photo). maybe my eyes are not seeing it clearly and it is the design. anyone familiar with this? Sorry if this is a really silly question. Anyone done these kind of designs in their home? Appreciate the advice. :help:

Thanks for helping out with this. the HB says choice of laminate is up to me! :yeah: so  got to make sure i better choose properly. 

Edited by ygkt
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
6 hours ago, ygkt said:

gulp! ok, maybe i must say it is NOT fully sheltered. showing photos here to show what i mean. 

 

so this is the roof that the previous owner has done. its just an extension of the concrete ceiling from the original building. 

this is how the yard looks like. so correction it is not fully sheltered. 

 

your photos don't show much actually.

if the part with the roof tiles are extended all the way to the rear boundary wall, then it is not legal. if there is still a 1m gap measured from the outside of the rear boundary wall to the edge where the tiled roof ends, then it is legal.

simplest way to find out is to stand at the rear boundary wall and look up. if you see sky, then should be legal. if you see roof tiles, then "ahem".

the "meaning" of sheltered is shelter from the sky, not from the sides.

with reference to your 2nd photo, your opposite house which has the tiled slopping roof should be legal. the house next to it with the flat roof looks suspiciously illegal as the extension seems to be until the rear boundary wall.

Edited by snoozee
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
6 hours ago, ygkt said:

Question about carpentry laminate:

I really need help with this. I saw some designs which i really like. And would like to do this for my cabinets and feature wall in the house. These "V" shape design. 

See below:

 

 

really like these vertical lines design. my carpenter said i got to choose a laminate that has lines and he will paste it in such a way that the lines form these "V" shapes. is that correct?

any suggestions/advice?

Thanks everyone!

Also saw this carpentry (see below) LOVE the colour and think it will be a perfect match for our living tiles.

 

 

Both of these photos above were from the same project. I love this laminate. wondering why it had a strip strip look - as in it looks like they were strips pieced together (especially the first photo). maybe my eyes are not seeing it clearly and it is the design. anyone familiar with this? Sorry if this is a really silly question. Anyone done these kind of designs in their home? Appreciate the advice. :help:

Thanks for helping out with this. the HB says choice of laminate is up to me! :yeah: so  got to make sure i better choose properly. 

 

the laminate sheets are printed with the wood grain pattern. the sheets are simply cut at an angle to create the pattern. with this said, you also incur higher cost since the wastage is higher.

 
  • Thanks 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
15 hours ago, snoozee said:

 

the laminate sheets are printed with the wood grain pattern. the sheets are simply cut at an angle to create the pattern. with this said, you also incur higher cost since the wastage is higher.

Thank you for your reply! :) 

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
On 9/24/2018 at 5:52 PM, snoozee said:

:yeah:I can see the SKY!! The beautiful blue sky! :yeah:

Hahaha! So I did the little test you mentioned - walked all the way out to check out the boundary wall (then realised there is quite a bit of rubbish there - had the urge to just sweep it all away! But no equipment:P)

So i checked it out - and YES! I can see the SKY! Yeah! So it is not illegal!  

Thank you for pointing this out. 

On 9/24/2018 at 5:52 PM, snoozee said:

your photos don't show much actually.

if the part with the roof tiles are extended all the way to the rear boundary wall, then it is not legal. if there is still a 1m gap measured from the outside of the rear boundary wall to the edge where the tiled roof ends, then it is legal.

simplest way to find out is to stand at the rear boundary wall and look up. if you see sky, then should be legal. if you see roof tiles, then "ahem".

the "meaning" of sheltered is shelter from the sky, not from the sides.

with reference to your 2nd photo, your opposite house which has the tiled slopping roof should be legal. the house next to it with the flat roof looks suspiciously illegal as the extension seems to be until the rear boundary wall.

 

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi everyone! 

It has been a while since I updated the blog! But a lot of progress so far in the reno works. Though it was rather slow initially. But after some discussion and clarification - more manpower has been put in and works are fast on the way. 

Updates as of today:

Staircase:

Entire staircase has been done! :yeah:We will be keeping the existing skirting - going to have it varnished and repainted to a dark walnut colour.

image.png.9cf39f60e29725ef005b7196e1a44123.png

Bedrooms:

False ceilings all done. First coat of base coat done for all rooms:

First coat of painting done for all rooms except our Master bedroom cos we haven't chose our colour cos we cant make up our mind. :dunno:

image.png.1ebb565f6a7bb7b218d65f50f5d9379d.png

Tiling:

All four toilets have been tiled (like FINALLY!)

Bathtub completed just a few days ago. Still have some touch up to do.  Honestly, I'm not too pleased with the tiles we chose for the 2nd storey toilet. I guess once seeing it on such a huge scale - i kinda wished we chose another design. But too late - the HB keeps telling me that once its washed and all accessories and lightings in - it will look v nice! oookay - for now I just smile more!

image.png.bd464db373369e1528be360f01839382.png

 

 

 

 

Tiling of Granny room completed today. realised i didn't take a photo of the completed look. 

image.png.4a9e6ff00227a5c8e555db5739ea4775.png

Tiling of Dining room completed. Think we made a good choice of choosing the bigger size!

image.png.8fc71d11567532dcfcd7ab3a4711f2cb.png

Kitchen is in the progress of tiling now. The walls are done. Floor almost. The 2nd photo (was taken much earlier) shows the wall tiles clearly. 

image.png.277fe9f575f009faae4bd3a90da78cc1.pngimage.png.b96f981d1ea486a22fd9c6141c3d9fc5.png

Yard - floor tiles have been completed. Now awaiting the completion of the sink support tiling. 

image.png.5809b5a78a21e98fb08a73f909a1058d.png

We had some leaks - so plumber came in to fix that. 

The TV feature wall installation is in progress now. Cant wait for that to be completed.

image.png.ff4dfeb984db6cf4e8b4dde111e1ce7d.png

Carpentry:

We told the carpenter to come and measure so that he can start works for all wardrobes and master toilet vanity asap. We still haven't chosen our laminate colour. We will by end of the week. 

until the next update! Seeya!:D

Edited by ygkt
 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  

×