Lauer

Hi, Just curious. Has HDB ever gave approval for this? If yes, is the owner obliged to restore the door to its original state when selling the unit? Cheers!

Hi,It is sad to see more and more disappearing gardens in landed. Maybe a solution is to plant low-shedding tree(s)? Tree is amazing. Just feel the leaves of a tree under the blaze of a hot afternoon sun, they are cool to touch. Just my 2-cents though. Cheers!

Hi,If the building is facing west, then certainly the open terrace should be placed at the back. It wouldn't matter much if a dormer window is added to the roof at the front or not. A roof would look weird only if its profile does not match the look of the building, in terms of proportion, its shape, the pitch of it, material used etc. And add enough height to the attic roofing structure to maximum shading of the open terrace from the afternoon sun. I am not a fan of dormer window, because I haven't seen a nicely constructed dormer window in Singapore yet, viz-a-viz those you could see in Europe. I prefer installing the Velux skylight window where an opening is needed for an attic roof. It flushes with the roof line (therefore limiting the amount of sunlight getting through when the day is at the hottest hours), it comes with double-glazed glass panels (therefore reducing heat), it comes with a in-built blind (therefore looking neater, without hanging rack for curtain or blind in the case of dormer window). If the building is facing north or south, then it matters none whether the open terrace is at the front or the back. To add. The function of an open terrace is pretty much to encourage outdoor community activity (by the building occupants or visitors), so its role is more obvious for a Terraced house. For semi-d or CT, normally there is enough space at the ground level for such activity. The cost of adding an attic, in term of $psf based on the incremental GFA, is much higher when compared with the other storey's. Just my 2-cents thoughts. Cheers!

By the way, hand-sized 靠山 works? Cheers!

Well done. Cheers!

Waterloo, London. (Crazy thing that you could do with money, lots of it. Might as well give it to the needy?) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0SsiDWuODo&feature=youtube_gdata_player Enjoy!

Enjoy!

Ya lor. Novice (so-called) and his #2 #3. Oops!

6800 sqf? Whoever wants this kind of space probably wont want it as CT liao. Cheers!

Hi, It is generally far more challenging to design for a wide physical space. The ID would need to have a keen sense of proportion. For example, the size of the bathroom should be in proportion to the bedroom where it is located. Same as its wardrobe area. In addition, the entrance area to a big room should be in proportion to its size. I don't see these taken care of in the proposal. Moreover, you would have to sleep with feet facing the door? And it is difficult to open the door and enter the store. I let others to comment on the kitchen etc. I would fire the ID if I were you? Interior design is not just painting a wall, re-tiling the floor etc but to create living spaces that all pull together to create a home. Just my 2-cents thoughts. Cheers!

Hi,Why left vacant? Cheers!

David Attenborough presents. Enjoy!

Wales. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avbGBXFOy2w&feature=youtube_gdata_player Enjoy!

Nineteen years of memories, today. Enjoy!

Don't even consider this.Cheers!

West Sussex. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08jnUX-prfs&feature=youtube_gdata_player Enjoy!

Color. Enjoy!

The illusion of space. (Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen presents.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14512BzU3Qk&feature=youtube_gdata_player Enjoy!

Les Gets, France. (On how to do a major housing refurbishment without an architect or a project manager, manage it by phone and email from abroad, and dodge a disaster. Or it seems dodged, from the look of it.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cy7M8G3n4gA&feature=youtube_gdata_player Enjoy!

Creuse, France. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WjaVTv3Ozc&feature=youtube_gdata_player Enjoy!

Islington. London. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp-j1fa-oTg&feature=youtube_gdata_player If you manage to watch this in full, it is worth to recall what Kevin has said at 9:40-10:20. Enjoy!

The water could only be leaked through a pipe, and the pipe is either embedded in the wall or above the false ceiling below the slab or roof. So if the water is not dripping through the false ceiling, then it comes via the wall nearer to where it is ponding. You could turn off the valve supplying water to this section of the house and see if the ponding stops. The valve should be accessible via a false ceiling opening. (Take note that the pipe draining the air-cond's condensation could also the one leaking.) Once the culprit is identified, just replace the pipe. Good luck. Cheers!

Hello, So, you are a 15-years old? Never mind if you are younger or older than that, it is great for everyone in the family to be involved in a house improvement exercise. I always thought that it is very useful to know how a house is rebuilt or refurbished, the knowledge gained helps one to assess a property one is buying in future. I thought trying to find a continuity from the A&A process would be the start, in looking for contractors to handle the rewiring and replumbing. In the tender exercise, the architect would have produced the as-is and to-be drawings for the builders invited to bid. Therefore, these builders would have a good knowledge of the existing house architecture, and have assessed the workscope involved in a rewiring and replumbing. I suggest getting hold of the drawings (if you don't have them), the CAD files of the drawings, the contacts of the builders that participated from the architect. Approach the builders to see if they are willing to make proposals for the reduced workscope of rewiring and replumbing only, and take the next steps from there. (A builder is just a main contractor fronting a house reconstruction; he uses sub-contractors to do a wiring and plumbing.) Having said so, be aware that a rewiring and replumbing exercise of an existing living-in house would involve far more aspects. The existing wiring may be behind a built-in TV console, the existing plumbing is certainly behind the bathroom's wall tile, behind a kitchen shelving etc so accessing them would firstly destruct the console, the tiling, the shelve etc including the false ceiling and the utility column where the wiring and plumbing runs in-between storeys. So, be prepared to add ID cost as well (here the CAD files become useful.) Therefore, be very careful that a rewiring and replumbing would actually resolve the problems you have today. I am still puzzled why a 20-years old house would require these? What kind of evidence has been given by the architect? Just my 2-cents thought. Cheers! (Sorry, I don't give contacts no matter how good they are. After a while, you realized that for a house reconstruction or refurbishment, how well or how bad it turns out it has a lot to do with the owner's life journey or destiny. Moreover, a lot of builders are struggling to maintain standards because of higher mobility of supervisors and even the banglas, with so many building constructions taking place today in Singapore.)

It is strange that a 20-years old house would require a rewiring and replumbing. Maybe TS has been staying in it for 20 years but the house is actually older? While I have no experience in rewiring or replumbing a house, the process should be not much different from wiring or plumbing a house, with the additional (but massive) chore of removing the old pipings and possibly some digging of the ground depending on where the electrical and water mains are connected to the house. Old wirings I supposed are easier to remove or pull. To understand how a house is wired or plumbed, the best way is for TS to check out those houses that are undergoing reconstruction to see how they are done. (I have never been stopped checking out a construction site; ask the bangla nicely, and go only after 5 pm but before the sky turns dark. And go with the wife or girlfriend. But be very careful when walking around, check the ground and what is above your head before proceeding.) Regarding whether the incremental investment of 800K plus would increase the value of the house, it would normally, but it would increase less than the 800K plus investment. Just my 2-cents thought. Cheers!

Carmarthen Eco House, and on choosing the right architect. Enjoy