rulz

Hi Hanna, great looking house. I'm getting my keys next month. Do you mind giving me the pakcik's contact? mdhairul @ gmail . com

Hi, can you share with me your contractor's contact details? His work looks nice.

Can you PM me Mr Seah's contact?

Protect your home and loved ones with this innovative home security CCTV camera. Super-easy to install - no hacking, no messy wires and no trunking needed. Best of all, it is cheaper than the cheapest CCTV system you can find at Mustafa. And it is so much better too. The camera is HD quality so videos are crystal clear. It records sound too, which is crucial for evidence gathering. Best of all, it has a bright LED light that tells any potential intruder that they are being recorded so they would think twice before trying anything funny. How it works: 1. When the CCTV detects motion, the bright white LED light comes on and the camera starts recording. 2. Homeowners will get an instant alert on their mobile phone. 3. Open the mobile application and view the recorded video instantly. 4. You can download the video for safekeeping or even share the video online instantly on social media. What are you waiting for? This totally wire-free CCTV is suitable for: 1. Homeowners who work during the day, leaving their homes empty for large chunks of the day. 2. Those going on holiday and wish to secure and protect their home. 3. Those who want to protect their homes at night from any burglary. 4. Those looking for a good and affordable CCTV 5. Those looking for easy to install CCTV. 6. Those who do not want hack or run wires across their home just to install a CCTV. 7. To check the home or the kids when you are at work. 8. Business or shop owners who want to monitor their premises. This CCTV is made using US technology so it lasts longer than those made in China. Best features: - Totally wire-free. The camera has no power cords. It runs on normal AA Energizer batteries that you can buy everywhere. - Because it is completely wire-free, you can place it anywhere, even at hard to reach corners with no power points. - Monitor your house from anywhere. Just use the mobile app on your phone and see live video from your CCTV. - Built-in FREE LED intruder deterrent light - Comes with FREE wall mount to securely hang your CCTV anywhere. - Guaranteed to work in Singapore. Other CCTVs in the market don't even have half the features of this innovative system but they cost so much more. Protect your loved ones. Get one today for just $299 nett. No GST and FREE DELIVERY islandwide! Why you should buy from me: - FREE delivery - FREE setup - Personally tested this CCTV system for my BTO flat Get yours now just in time for the Chinese New Year Holidays. PM me if you are interested.

Hi guys, I'm a homeowner, father and works during the day. I was in the same dilemma as you. Furthermore, I wanted a affordable system and not those costing more than $500 bucks. I also realised most IP cameras need a power cord and a power point even if they advertised that they are wireless. I wanted something totally wire-free because I did not have a power point where I wanted to place the camera. Did my research and found this TOTALLY wire-free system. Tested in my own home and it works. Decided to bring in to help others like myself and also to make a little side-income to subsidize my monthly expenditure on the kid. I posted about the CCTV in another thread . PM me if you are interested. It costs only $299. Cheaper that the cheapest FULL CCTV home security system you can find in Mustafa.

Protect your home and loved ones with this innovative home security CCTV camera. Super-easy to install - no hacking, no messy wires and no trunking needed. Best of all, it is cheaper than the cheapest CCTV system you can find at Mustafa. And it is so much better too. The camera is HD quality so videos are crystal clear. It records sound too, which is crucial for evidence gathering. Best of all, it has a bright LED light that tells any potential intruder that they are being recorded so they would think twice before trying anything funny. How it works: 1. When the CCTV detects motion, the bright white LED light comes on and the camera starts recording. 2. Homeowners will get an instant alert on their mobile phone. 3. Open the mobile application and view the recorded video instantly. 4. You can download the video for safekeeping or even share the video online instantly on social media. What are you waiting for? This totally wire-free CCTV is suitable for: 1. Homeowners who work during the day, leaving their homes empty for large chunks of the day. 2. Those going on holiday and wish to secure and protect their home. 3. Those who want to protect their homes at night from any burglary. 4. Those looking for a good and affordable CCTV 5. Those looking for easy to install CCTV. 6. Those who do not want hack or run wires across their home just to install a CCTV. 7. To check the home or the kids when you are at work. 8. Business or shop owners who want to monitor their premises. This CCTV is made using US technology so it lasts longer than those made in China. Best features: - Totally wire-free. The camera has no power cords. It runs on normal AA Energizer batteries that you can buy everywhere. - Because it is completely wire-free, you can place it anywhere, even at hard to reach corners with no power points. - Monitor your house from anywhere. Just use the mobile app on your phone and see live video from your CCTV. - Built-in FREE LED intruder deterrent light - Comes with FREE wall mount to securely hang your CCTV anywhere. - Guaranteed to work in Singapore. Other CCTVs in the market don't even have half the features of this innovative system but they cost so much more. Protect your loved ones. Get one today for just $299 nett. No GST and FREE DELIVERY islandwide! Why you should buy from me: - FREE delivery - FREE setup - Personally tested this CCTV system for my BTO flat Get yours now just in time for the Chinese New Year Holidays. PM me if you are interested.

Hi everyone, Please take note that the CCTV does not come with installation. It is very easy to install though and should take less than 15 mins to get it up and running. For those interested, I still have a few sets left. Delivery will be done over the weekends. Thanks.

Thanks for the support. I only have 4 units left. The CCTV will arrive next week. I will update accordingly.

Hi everyone, I'm bringing in 10 sets of Netgear Arlo HD CCTV which should be arriving next week. The unit comes in 2 pieces - the BASE STATION which connects to your existing router via LAN, and the 100% wire-free HD camera. The HD Camera is totally 100% wire-free, meaning you can place it anywhere. Very suitable for installation in HDB, especially in the space between the metal gate and your main door. What is in the Package: (1) HD, 100% wire-free, indoor/outdoor camera with night vision(1) Smart home base station with power adapter (240V)(1) Ethernet cable(2) Magnetic camera mounts(2) Mounting screws(4) Batteries(1) Quick start guide(1) Window decal(7) Days of FREE cloud recordings(1) Screw in secure CCTV mountI have included a 240V AC adapter into the package so it definitely works in Singapore. I have also supplied an additional screw-in secure CCTV mount for your convenience. Selling for $399 each without installation. You can view the product description on their official website - www.arlo.com.

Things are finally looking up for the renovation. Got the keys in early August but renovation has not started. Part of the reason is because we had some defects to rectify (lucky minor ones) and also because we now are in the queue to get the cement screeding done by HDB. The process is taking ages since almost everyone is looking to either lay vinyl, laminate, parquet and wood flooring somewhere in the house and there's only 1 contractor doing the screeding for each development. Anyway, we have already done some shopping for the house, together with my ID. He's quite a nice guy and very easygoing and seems to have quite a lot of lobang for all the tiles, electrical and fitting needs. He also owns his own carpentry workshop, and thus the cheaper carpentry costs. We decided on him because of the good vibes he gave us. Very honest with this opinions and he is very fast. He sent our quotation via emails, and then have a basic layout planned all within a 1 week. So much faster than some of the IDs I went to previously. Best thing, his quotation is actually lower that what we budgeted as he doesnt really charge manpower costs and he does his carpentry inhouse. For tiling, we went to this shop in Balestier - Lian Seng Hin Trading. Wah, there was so many diff types of tiles. Got our homogenous tiles - retail price is at $3.30 (new style mirroring marble finish). I'm sure ID has discount. Straightaway, we went to hunt for lightings. Also in Balestier, - Chan Huat Lighting. Man, that place is so big and so many different types of lights.. Got LED downlights for around $40. All in all, spent around $2k for the whole house - LED downlights for living room, LED hanging light for dining area, hanging lights for the walk-in wardrobe, a circular led light for the master bedroom, 2 toilets, normal lights for the 3rd bedroom and kitchen, and a simple light for the service yard and bombshelter. So expensive.. hard pain. Better be worth it! We also went around shopping for kitchen and toilet fittings the same day. Another shop, cant remember the name but in the end, got a stainless steel undermount kitchen sink for around $218, a kitchen sink tap for around $90 and the usual toilet fittings. So excited that everything is starting already. now just have to wait for HDB to start doing the cement screeding!!

Wow, it sure seems a while since I updated this t-blog. But there was really nothing much going on since the last update except for the usual ID hunting and stuff. In short, we decided not to use any of the IDs we talked to before. Either they are too expensive, have no creativity, think we got no money, or we just cannot get along with them. And we are not a fussy couple to start with. This really dampens our excitement to get our keys! However, our laminate flooring company saved the day for us. We got the Berry Floor Riviera Laminate flooring for the 3 bedrooms at one of the home fairs at the Expo. We liked what we saw, especially the HydroPlus water resistant tech. It is a bit more ex than normal laminate but we thought the extra waterproof coating is worth it. As usual, the laminate is scratch resistant and we got upgraded to another base so the entire floor is not hollow-sounding. After hearing that we are getting our key soon and our plight in finding a contractor/ID, the salesperson was nice enough the recommend an ID that they usually work with – ID at a contractor price. We had our reservations about this guy in the first place but after meeting up with him and hearing him out, we engaged this ID! Wuhuu! Finally! His story is for another post. J

I contacted them and received a reply from Jessie that a senior salesperson would call, arrange a meet-up with me. The call never came. We had to call him instead. Met up and felt he was pushy and keep insisting to know our budget when we really havent thought about it since it was going to be our first home and we havent really met up with many IDs. He shared a few things... and promised to get back when he is done with the quotation. 3 weeks later - still nothing.

I'm wondering how long it will usually take for an ID firm to get back to you for the 2nd meeting? Is 3 weeks usual or even longer than usual? During this period, I met up with Thom Signature, Plush Living, Surface Living and Inside Living. Thom Signature: Went to visit one of their completed projects at Buangkok. Was very impressed with the workmanship and design. They are very into design and the theme at the showflat was really what I wanted. Supposed to have 2nd meet-up on Monday (about 2 week plus from 1st meetup), but got postposed cos he was down with fever. Arranged to meet on Sat instead. Can’t wait. Plush Living: They have a nice office with a mini-showroom. Impressive and wifey liked! The ID that met up with us was very efficient, knowledgeable and most importantly, friendly and we can click! Took him 1 week to give us quotation and then another week for a requote. He was patient and educated us on design some concepts (since we are first timers and have no idea what is going on). Got the quote from him already but told him nicely I have to wait for the others to get back to me first. Surface Living: Met the ID outside as they don’t have an office at the moment after moving out of their current one. Very friendly guy with a focus on helping us find cheaper alternative to everything. Still waiting for meet him again after first meeting (2 weeks ago) but he requested another week cos he was busy with an urgent commercial project. Inside Living: Met up with this guy (sales manager) at the office. Appreciate he was willing to meet up after 8pm since both me and wifey are both working. He showed us some stuff but didn’t really clicked. Till now.. no news at all from him. Enough said. I’m now just waiting for their quotations and designs.Hope it’s worth the wait.

Hi Dreamzgal... Have been following your T-blog. Can't wait to see the final outcome of your renovation. BTW, your toilet tiles looks awesome. And I like the Blanco sink. Looks unique.

Have been a little quiet over the past 2 weeks since I was busy meeting up with several ID. I must say.. it is a very tiring process having to repeat the same things over and over again to different people. I only meet up with 4 IDs and am already exhausted.. Not sure how some people can meet up with 10 or more IDs! I respect you guys! In any case, I must say the search for an ID to build my dream house has been… quite….Blah! Some of the IDs I met do not seem to have much creativity and there is also one who seem to be more interested in “helping” me cut budget even before knowing my actual budget, suggesting me to use some cheap materials instead cos “nobody will know unless they know on the board”. I believe these are the salespersons instead of the actual designers themselves. Very obvious from their sales pitches and they don’t really contribute much ideas. That said, there were 2 who were really good and these are the actual designers. So very different from their approach and very creative and was able to show us some innovative ideas even on the first meetup. Right now, I’m just waiting the IDs to meet up with me again for the second time with their proposal and quotations. Hopefully, they can conjure some magic. If not, the search continues…

Thanks summersann. i think it should be a simple hack, but that's my opinion. Who knows what else is involved in the hacking process! As mentioned before, I have begun my official ID hunt. Already emailed Thom Signature, Omus Living and Fuse Concept to arrange a meet-up. I also tried to email Ideal Living but somehow the "contact us" page on their website doesn't work. Anybody has any contacts for them? On another note, I'm looking for a ID who can do modern contemporary well. I like ArtistRoom but I find the works shown on their website to be more "au natural" with cement flooring and wood all over.. not really keen on this. Do they do other concepts as well? At this moment, I'm still contemplating whether to contact the big names such as Rest n Relax and Distinct ID. Not sure if they will be too busy for me and somehow I kinda suspect that their prices will be sky-high. Oh well, let's see what the first 3 ID have to say first..

Just checked with my development's Facebook Group. Apparently, HDB has pushed the completion date for some of the blocks to 3rd of this year. Mine is still stuck at 4Q though. Nonetheless, I think its time i really sit down, flex my finger muscles and send some emails to IDs and call them up for a meetup. Haha. In any case, anybody knows how much does it generally cost to hack down a kitchen wall? Was planning to let the IDs play around the idea of hacking the thing up cos it really makes my kitchen small and cramped. Nontheless, if it is expensive.. i might just ditch the idea and spend the money on other stuff like electronics. Hahah.

Hi dreamzgal, do you have a blog I can "look-look see-see"? i would love to follow the progress of your own renovation. Must be exciting times for you.

Hi jus4fun, Thanks for welcoming me to RT! How was your experience renovating your own place? Do you have your own blog that I can see? Who knows... i might learn a thing or two from your own experience. In any case, I just visited Megatex today and the Samsung display set TVs (new models) are selling at ridiculously cheap prices. Can't wait to start my electronics shopping. hehe.

Hi dreamzgal, Thanks for sharing your experience. I am currently looking around for some IDs/contractors. Currently it is a blank slate although we have been to one open house organised by Thom Signature. Right now, wifey and me are in the “what kind of theme and look we want” phase and are trying to compile a list of IDs to call and meet up. I must say that this forum has been a great help in educating us about the horror stories and we are slowly striking out some names from our initial list. Do you have any recommendation? I believe word-of-mouth recommendation is better than relying on photoshopped advertisements.

Hi Macwood, Thanks for the link. I found it particularly useful to see which ID/contractor has the experience and certifications to install the Blum fixtures. I like! However, I find the various Blum product categories to be quite confusing - AVENTOS, TANDEMBOX intivo, TANDEMBOX antaro, etc – they are all kitchen fixtures right what! On a side-note, seeing all these nice cupboards make me think about demolishing the a wall and extend the kitchen. Seeing that wifey is not going to cook that much, maybe an open kitchen is nice. That said, how much will hacking a wall generally cost? Is it worth hacking away walls in terms of future resale value or even practicality?

Ah.. Finally able to log in to Renotalk forum again. I hit the bookstores yesterday and went straight for the home designing magazines. Squarerooms and Home & Décor seem like the magazines for SG interior designs! I quickly realise that I am drawn into the kitchen appliances and toilet fixtures advertisements more than the living room or bedroom pics. Haha. Weird but true! I was simply drawn to the sleek wash basins, toilet bowls and even the colourful shower heads by Grohe. Droolicious. Just look at the pic above. I think I will look forward to work a little bit more in the morning. Just wondering how much it would cost in the first place. In any case, I was in the bus yesterday when I passed by the Singapore Expo. There seems to be 2 events there at the moment – Classic Living 2013 and Megatex. Are they worth checking out? I know of some forumers who went, liked what they saw but was subject to some hard-sell tactics.

Hi summersann, Thanks for the tip. U managed to pay only the day works started? Wow, you must be good in negotiating. Not too sure if other IDs would follow suit though. In the meantime, the search for an ID/contractor continues.. haha. I am also looking at the various electrical appliances. Aircon, TV, wireless sound system (I don't like wired items. I think it just makes the room messy..

Hi bubble-ling, Thanks for the advice and two-thumbs up on Thom Signature. Really appreciate the honest opinion. My first opinion of Thomas is the same as yours. I would definitely put the company in my shortlist. The problem is.. I would need to start my shortlist first. Haha! As you rightly mentioned, I am also a firm believer in surveying around before committing. Renovating a house is no small deal and after reading so many horror stories shared on by other forumers, there is a little part of me that is afraid of being conned! In any case, what should I look out for in an ID other than the designs, workmanship, rapport and pricing? Any hidden things that I should really look out for? Another ID which I am contemplating asking a quotation from is OMUS Living. The designs on their FB page are to my liking. They also have more than 9000 fans. That’s a lot! But I can’t seem to find any reviews on them. Anyone engaged them before?

Hi Z3phy, thanks very much for the greeting! Am definitely looking forward for recommendations and feedback from other forumers! I currently live in the east.. so Punggol seems to be somewhere in between my parents and in-law's place. hehe. Decided to be fair find a place in the middle. So, next time, if have kid, we can alternate between my parents and in-laws' place. Saying that, Punggol was the only option available to us when we applied for the BTO. Got more than 5 friends there already. Haha. It is going to be easy to visit them during festivities. In any case, with the mall and future plans for Punggol, wifey and me also felt that there could be some appreciation in value in the future. Heard that 5-room flat in Punggol now are selling for around $500k +..