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Ks Toh

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Everything posted by Ks Toh

  1. Ks Toh
    This morning, I read from the newspapers that a PE Teacher fell to her death from a ladder, while checking the lights in her newly renovated home. Please be careful. Make sure you buy the correct ladder and use it correctly. Some tips here: http://www.renotalk.com/forum/topic/62505-top-kew-drive/?p=837895
  2. Ks Toh
    Hi. For my dry kitchen, it is one single piece of Silestone Quartz. Actually two pieces joined. No concrete support. All wooden cabinets below. It is only for my wet kitchen that there is concrete top with supports. The tiles are black homogenous tiles. This is in the yard.
  3. Ks Toh
    Hi. If I understand you correctly, you are unhappy that the contractor added more leg support in between the two ends? That is the opposite of my case. My counter top is L shaped. Both the contractor & ID wanted to have just one more support at the bend but my wife insisted on adding 2 more to achieve the look that you see from the final result.
  4. Ks Toh
    Just when we thought instant gas heaters will be the best of both worlds, I read from lemoncandy's blog about instant electric multi-point heaters! 2010090727d18d92_img_1
  5. Ks Toh
    HDB now lays dual concealed pipes (one hot, one cold) to the shower and basin area? Nice.
  6. Ks Toh
    Your multi-point electric instant heater is interesting. Is it left switched on all the time? If not, where is the switch located?
  7. Ks Toh
    Thanks. I tried both methods but could not figure out how to do the link to enable the picture to display on this blog. Sorry, how to do it? For Flickr, I got this bbcode: IMG_2678 by ks_toh For Google+ (Picassa brings me to Google+), I somehow could not find the link. P.S. Ok, seems like the Flickr link works after all!
  8. Ks Toh
    If you are asking me, this is what I bought: http://www.renotalk.com/forum/topic/62505-top-kew-drive/?p=835711
  9. Ks Toh
    Test Flickr
  10. Ks Toh
    Yes, I have. Can Google+ allow me to do image display here?
  11. Ks Toh
    Hi, it this what you want? https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9DCcfkrQ-Xvb1k4U2MzenE5QkU/edit?usp=sharing Underside and back not tiled. Side and bottom tiled. P.S. My Photobucket account keeps running out of bandwidth, so I am trying to use Google Drive above. Is there a way to do Image Display like what can be done for Photobucket images? Or is there a better service provider?
  12. Ks Toh
    Can Storage Heaters Improve the Flow Rate for your Water Supply? I read some anecdotal evidence that if the flow rate of your water supply is not strong enough for your rain shower, you can improve it by using a storage heater. Is this true, and how can this be so? I googled and could not find any answer. I had a theory but was still doing research until I read what you said, which coincided with my theory, which I must stress, is based entirely on pure speculation! Hopefully somebody more knowledgeable can assist. So, here is my theory .... Assume the water flow from your tap was supposed to be 100% and you just bought a rain shower set which operates optimally at 100% flow rate of water. (I have no idea how to measure flow rate but I just use a simple figure. I am also kind of mixing up water pressure with flow rate, but they are actually two different though related measurements). However, you live on a high floor (with water supplied from pump on ground floor) and the water flow rate is only at 80%. You can still install a rain shower (directly to the tap) but it operates only at 80%, not at its optimum performance. If you install an electric instant heater, the flow rate goes down to say, 60%. And if you connect your rain shower to the instant heater, I think maybe the rain shower will not work, or it will not work properly. Insufficient flow rate at 60%. Now, if you use a storage heater, the shower head is receiving water from two pipes, one from the cold water supply, one from the hot water storage tank, both at around 80% but forced into one shower head. So the flow rate becomes 160%, or certainly more than 100%. In other words, the flow rate increases. If the new instant gas heaters work the same way, I think they can also improve the flow rate. However, I assume that for instant gas heaters, the flow rate out of the heater will still be reduced, though not as much as electric instant heaters. Hence, the flow rate at the shower head will still be lower than what you can get with storage heaters. The above make sense or not???
  13. Ks Toh
    Hmm.. Maybe you should just post your LED contact on your blog. Coz 9 out of 10 people asking for it!
  14. Ks Toh
    [back to Table of Contents] Hi Dwinsplace, if the instant gas heater can deliver on demand sufficiently hot water at a sufficiently high flow rate (good enough for rain shower, bath tub etc), then I think it is a good option, since it combines the best of both worlds. I am just wondering if that is the case, why is it not as popular as storage heaters? I can think of two reasons: (1) Piped gas is not available in all estates. My estate has no piped gas, so this option is out, unless I use LPG, which is super impractical for heater use. (2) Storage heaters are normally placed in the toilet itself, very near the shower area. I read that for HDB, the gas heater must be in the service yard? If the distance from yard to your toilet is far, that may be an issue. If you read one of my earlier posts, you will discover that halfway, my wife more or less decided she did not need the ID's services, and took back many of the works. This is only possible if your works are itemised, such that we could include / exclude the different types of works. Not possible or difficult for the ID to inflate another area. Of course, if yours is a lump sum contract, then the ID may just do that.
  15. Ks Toh
    So sorry. I do drink some wine but I am not knowledgeable at all on this topic. I buy all my wine from NTUC FairPrice Finest (wine card member gets additional discount). Their selection is pretty decent. They often have sales and you can get some decent good wines during these sales e.g. buy one $25 red wine get one free. I like to drink sweet wine like Moscato (personal favourite is Long Flat Moscato). But these are inexpensive table wines that cost about $18 each and friends who are wine lovers say I am drinking ribena. Probably not the sort of wine to serve guests at a wedding. [back to Table of Contents]
  16. Ks Toh
    Piping & Electrical The piping is different for instant heaters and storage heaters, so you do need to decide on what type of heater you are going to use, before the plumber lays his pipes. For instant heaters, it is very simple. At the place you want to put your shower head, you need one water outlet. Normally, people put a two or three way tap there. One is the tap, the other connects to the instant heater via a flexible hose. That is all. You of course need to run one electrical point to the heater. For storage heaters, you need to lay hot water pipes from the heater location to all your usage points i.e. shower, bath tup, tap etc. At all these usage points, there will be two water outlets, one hot (leading from the storage heater) one cold (direct from the water mains). The taps and shower sets that you buy should be those hot/cold water types with two inlets. Temperature Control For storage heaters, the water coming out of the hot water pipe is very hot. You cannot control the water temperature in the tank. Instead, you control by turning your tap (usually a mixer) by using a mixture of hot (from the tank) and cold (from the mains) water. Normally, I use 50:50 but many people will use more hot than cold water. For instant heaters, you are using entirely the water coming out of the heater. Even at its highest setting, I do not recall it being very hot. However, most heaters have at least 3 settings for you to control the temperature. Some Other Facts about Instant Heaters I don't know if anyone experience this. In the midst of your shower, your helper decides to operate the washing machine, and your shower water temperature shoots up. This is because as another tap is turned on, the water flow rate to the instant heater is reduced, and the water gets heated up more. If your instant heater has a setting to allow you to increase the flow rate, you can turn it up, and so the temperature drops back to your desired temperature. But then, when the washing machine stops, the water flow rate goes up, and the temperature drops! And if in the midst of your shampooing, there is a power failure, your hot water supply is stopped immediately.
  17. Ks Toh
    Usage The most important factor to determine which type of heater to get should be your usage. If you need hot water for places other than your shower (e.g. bath tub, basin tap, kitchen tap), then a storage heater is usually the choice. Storage heaters come in many capacities from 15L to 400L, and are designed to supply hot water to several usage points. As compared to an instant heater, a storage heater can normally deliver hot water at a higher temperature and at higher flow rates. The water pressure coming out of the storage heater should be around the same as the source water pipe pressure. Basically there is a heating element at the bottom of the tank that heats up all the water in the tank. Incoming cold water is pushed to the bottom of the tank to be heated up and discharged from the top of the tank. The tank is insulated, so it does try to retain the heat in the water even when not in use. On the other hand, most instant heaters work by passing the incoming cold water over some heating element, and then discharging it immediately via your shower head. The water flow is slowed down to allow the heating to take place, so the water pressure of the water coming out of your shower head is relatively weak, compared to the storage heater. That is why we read sometimes that instant water heaters do not work with rain showers. The water pressure is simply not strong enough. If the rain shower head is not too big, it may still work, but the rain shower is not really working at its optimum working capacity. I have used storage heaters for many years, and I like the water to shoot strongly onto my body. So when I use instant water heaters, I find the weak water spray on my body "not fulfilling" - I cannot find a better description And due to the lower flow rate, it is normally not possible to connect the outlet from the instant water heater to more than the shower head. I read that there are now gas instant heaters that can deliver hot water to more than one usage point. I have no knowledge of this type of appliance and I do not know what is the flow rate and temperature that can be achieved. So, I am not able to advise or comment on these heaters. Energy Consumption A common question is which type of heater saves electricity. Like many things in this world, there is no clear answer. Generally speaking, an instant heater should be more energy efficient since it consumes electricity only on demand i.e. you heat the water only when needed and you heat only the amount of water you actually use. On the other hand, most people have the habit of switching on the storage heater anywhere between 5 to 30 mins before they take a bath, since you need some time to heat up all the water in the tank. My wife and children all do that. And if you do not use up all the hot water in the tank, the rest of the heated water are "wasted". I personally find it unnecessary to "pre-heat" the tank. I always just switch on and go. I find that often there is more than sufficient remaining hot water in the tank, from the last time it was used. Often, I do not even bother to switch on the heater. But possibly, I am one of those who do not need hot water to bathe. I just need "not cold" water. Due to the insulation, the water in the tank is often warmer than tap water. However, my savings in not pre-heating the tank is often offset by my forgetfulness in not switching off the heater after use. Sometimes overnight. However, I read that as instant water heater makers try to build units that can heat up the water rapidly and not slow the flow rate too much, they have no choice but to put in more powerful heating elements. So, the power consumption for these units can be higher as compared to storage heaters, assuming the same amount of water is being heated (to the same temperature) and used.
  18. Ks Toh
    Instant Water Heater or Storage Heater? I find this question being asked quite a fair bit especially by first time homeowners so I thought I will share what I know and my opinion. Many people ask "which is better" and the answer is "depends on your usage requirements and priorities". Aesthetics Most people would have seen an instant water heater. It is that box in the toilet shower wall with a shower head connected to it. It is not that big and rectangular in shape. I have never seen it in any other shape. In some other countries, there are instant water heaters that supply instant hot water to the whole house but in Singapore, I think instant water heaters are normally used in the shower only. Some of the newer models are quite sleek looking. There are many brands and models available but shown below is a model from one of the popular models here from "707" brand. Perhaps not so surprisingly, there are some people who have never seen a storage heater. This is because the storage heater is normally one big ugly container (usually round or square with roundish corners) tucked away at the corner of the ceiling or hidden away in the false ceiling or below your wash basin inside the cabinet. Hot water from the storage heater is normally piped to more than just the shower area. Shown below is a model from Joven, one of the popular brands. I bought a Joven JH25 too. So I think if you do not have a place to locate the water tank and you simply cannot accept this tank visible anywhere in your home, storage water heaters are not for you.
  19. Ks Toh
    That picture was taken when the orchid was maybe 1 or 2 weeks old. I have to report that the leaves of my orchid have now turned yellow and dropped off! I guess we are in the same boat. Too embarrassed to show photo.
  20. Ks Toh
    No, mine is Vento (from Emasco). You can see from my blog.
  21. Ks Toh
    Monitor your chengai flooring. Mine did not last for long. The chengai of today is not the same as those in the past.
  22. Ks Toh
    Building the wardrobe over the laid flooring should give a better finish. Otherwise, you will have to join the flooring to the wardrobe bottom, and there may be a small gap there. Not so good for wooden flooring especially laminate flooring.
  23. Ks Toh
    I have both 2, 3 and 4 blade fans in my house. And I can confirm (double confirm) that 2 blade fans will not be more windy. In my case, the specs even show the wind power of the 2 blade fan to be rather powerful. 2 blade fans look nice. It is theoretically also possible to be more powerful but then you have to turn to highest setting, and then it is noisy.
  24. Ks Toh
    I won't comment on the individual pricing since it depends on many factors (open or concealed, distance, number, whether inclusive of the cover & brand etc). But the individual pricing is much cheaper than mine. Double point is usually just marginally more expensive than single 13A point, so go for those unless you really don't need double point at that location. With single point, definitely you end up spending money to buy ugly multi-plugs to put there. Oven/microwave point can be more expensive for those built in oven or microwave where you need a switch with a light on the wall and the wire is run to another place concealed in the cabinet. However, most people just use a normal 13A point. So, you need to decide what you want and tell the electrician. The hacking of wall for concealed wiring, and making good the same, is strange to me. First time I hear of this. I don't know what your works involve, but is this work described correctly? For electrical points and wiring, normally the electrician just quote one rate for normal surface wiring and a higher rate for concealed wiring. So, the "hacking" and "making good" of the wall is already included in the higher price per point. And they do not actually hack the wall. They cut a groove in the wall, like MRT trench, put in the wires, patch back.
  25. Ks Toh
    For the opening at the top of the partition wall, may I suggest you do not board it up first? With the door closed and without air-con, a room with no openings can be very, very stuffy and kind of claustrophobic. I had a similar problem with a created helper's room the last time and I ended up simply putting a few grilles over the opening, so that there is plenty of ventilation. Even then, I ended up creating a window (luckily able to do so). For the mosaic tiles, I wonder if you will damage the glass backsplash below, or dirty it. Good luck.
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