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Ks Toh

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Everything posted by Ks Toh

  1. Ks Toh
    Sniper I already bought and installed both the Vento Uragano and Libellula. See the pictures above. Will PM you.
  2. Ks Toh
    gryffindor & Harriete I have no idea whether this accoya wood can be used for toilet vanity tops or vanity cabinets. Vanity cabinets I think should be no problem, but I used normal wood. Do you really need such good (and more expensive) wood for the vanity cabinets? Vanity tops, I think not suitable as wood is by nature soft and easily scratched. I used Silestone Quartz from http://www.buildersshop.com.sg/collection/quartz/cosentino-silestone/ for all my vanity tops and kitchen counter top. This material supposed to be extremely scratch proof, being the 4th hardest mineral found in nature, the only natural minerals harder than quartz being diamond, sapphire and topaz. It is best you check with the company I got the accoya wood from, http://www.evorich.com.sg. This is new generation "ang moh" wood which your parents will probably faint if you want to use them. So far so good for me, and it comes with 50 year warranty. But it's been only 6 months. Too early to tell if it is really good. But at my previous place, a condo, I was recommended Palm wood by Evorich. After two years, the Palm wood decking was still good. No cracks or anything. I actually went back to Evorich looking for the same wood but was recommended this Accoya wood.
  3. Ks Toh
    Some worker do the silliest things. The workers who did my Accoya floor decking apparently painted it when it was not completely dry. And the result was that when I stepped onto it, the paint peeled off and stuck to my foot. Then they sent one worker to rectify. This worker cleverly painted around my flower pot, and left a design. When he was painting, I did see the flower pot and offered to help him carry it to a place that was not being painted, but he declined, saying it was not a problem. However, just to clarify, all have been rectified. It's just that I find that many times, workers have to redo several times when they could have done it properly on one trip.
  4. Ks Toh
    I do not know the source of my chengai. I think it is no longer safe to use new chengai, and old chengai will have nail holes etc. My chengai was good when new, but after a few months, all the planks have warped slightly upwards at the side, meaning if you walk on it, you can feel it. It is not perfectly flat. I was pre-warned about this "natural" characteristic so I accept it. All of them also have hairline cracks, Again I was warned, so I also accept it as "natural". Nevertheless, I should add that my more than 10 year old chengai bench (the one you see in my yard) have not warped at all. However, two of the planks had much more severe cracks after only a few weeks. Initially, the contractor told me he would change them, but somehow the workers that came down merely rectified it by sanding down, touching with wood putty and repainting. I was willing to accept it if the problem goes away. But it keeps coming back. They have already repaired it twice. Just yesterday, I spoke to the contractor and told him that I have had enough. He said he would come and investigate and let me know whether the planks should be changed or this is natural. He claims he already feedback to his wood supplier and was told this is natural. He says they will only change if the cracks are right through the wood. I told him I do not accept it, and if this is a natural condition, then he should let me know the name of the supplier so that i can inform everybody (meaning post on Renotalk and everywhere) to expect this if they decide to order Chengai from him. I also told him if I have to spend thousdands of dollars to sue him for two silly planks (which apparently costs $100 or $200 only), I have done so before and I would do so again. It is a matter of principle. I am already willing to accept the wood as long as the problem can be rectified but they can't and you cannot expect me to be sanding and repainting them every few weeks. Maybe those of you who are familiar with chengai wood can advise whether this is "natural" or not. This is the picture I took last week. On the other hand, my Accoya wood decking (see picture of my other balcony) is as good as new, save that some of the stained colour seems to have worn off. But the wood is still flat. No warping or peeling or cracking. P.S. October 2018 - Few years later, I have come to realise the problem with Accoya Wood Flooring (and possibly other types of composite wood flooring). Unlike Chengai, it is impossible to paint/dye this wood. It keeps blistering off. And it is easy to replace planks of Chengai. DIfficult to replace each piece of this special wood. My Accoya Flooring 5 Years On
  5. Ks Toh
    For those interested in my vertical garden, here is how it works. It is highly automated. Basically, a rubber hose connected to a tap delivers water to the top of the vertical garden 4 times a day, allowing the water to drip down. The water supply is controlled by a battery operated timer, which opens the valve 4 times a day, each time for a few minutes. The water passes through a container of liquid fertiliser, which provides the plants with nutrients. Maintenance is limited to pruning every 2 to 3 weeks, and topping up of the liquid fertiliser and changing of the timer battery. P.S. My tap timer broke down after about 2 years 4 months and I had to change it. See here. For chasing away insects which may be attracted to the plants, I installed 2 simple Shieldtox NaturGard Automatic Insect Repellent System. These spray a fine mist every 15 minutes. There are the same as those you find in toilets spraying deodorant.
  6. Ks Toh
    It's very useful to install surveillance cameras. These days, there are many IP cameras on the market. All you need is a power source plus an internet connection (wired connecton preferred though a strong WiFi connection will suffice). Having asked the contractor to lay a network cable and electrical wire to the desired location, I installed most of my D-Link IP cameras myself. I am using a combination of D-Link DCS-522L (PTZ camera) and DCS-942L (fixed direction). View of all cameras on my iPad Night Vision view of my yard captured by my webcam as viewed on my iPhone (total darkness) Same view of my yard at night as captured by my iPhone camera with flash off This is one model I am using:
  7. Ks Toh
    Here are some of my random thoughts, in no particular logical sequence....... I don't know whether you guys have this problem, but every time you engage a painter and pay for ICI Dulux or Nippon paint, you wonder if they actually used the type of paint you paid for, or that they simply used a cheaper equivalent, Super Maxilite or Matex paint, which they buy in big containers. You see these containers and you ask them, they will tell you oh, they had to mix your ICI or Nippon paint, and they need to use these big containers. True or not, we do not know. Unless you go and buy the paint yourself and have them delivered to site. Anyway, I am so fed up with all these painters that for this new place, I decided not to use my ID's painter. Instead, I decided to engage directly my team of auntie painters. I found it quite hard to believe at first, but they are true. According to the auntie boss painter, she only employ auntie painters because they are more conscientious. I hope so. There were still places where I think they could have done a better job but overall, I think they were ok.
  8. Ks Toh
    There are a couple of lessons I learnt from my experience. 1. Monitor, monitor, monitor - No matter how renowed or expensive your ID or subcontractor, the level of competency and common sense is at the level of their lowest sub-contractor. We engaged a reputable ID company. But of course, you deal with the young designer who gives instructions to some supervisor, who in turn instructs a foreman, but finally the worker who does the job is a guy who turns up on a Malaysian motorbike. Don't get me wrong. Many malaysian workers in this trade are very skilled. But due to many reasons including different expectations or ideas, changes in the message after being passed through too many people, the final product may not be what you envisaged. You have got to be there to monitor, monitor, monitor. 2. Trust your instinct & do not follow blindly - Often, we think something should be done in a certain way, but the ID or contractor tells us that is not the way things are done. Don't just accept it. Your instinct is already trying to tell you something. Check with others. Ask. Maybe you are right. There were many such instances in my case. LIke when I wanted to put a spare power point in the false ceiling and both my ID and contractor thought I was mad. At that time, I had no idea of the potential use but now that I am thinking of mounting an IP camera on the ceiling, where to get the power source? Like what Steve Jobs said, you cannot connect dots moving forwards, but often you can connect them backwards. 3. Lay network points from your OpenNet TP to every room - This is important. In the near future, many services (internet, TV etc) will be delivered via this network. WiFi does not work for everything. 4. Protection, protection, protection - This is very important yet many IDs and contractors do not seem to understand. So, in my case (as in many cases), they just put a simple cardboard. What a joke! With hacking, sand, tiles, marble etc etc passing though, what do they expect but to spoil the marble and wooden floor? Then they have to rectify. But it is never the same. 5. Do not put all your eggs in one basket. Don't sign a contract with your ID or contractor for everything in one lump sum. Breakdown into different parts of the work e.g. hacking, flooring, painting, kitchen etc. Have a clause that allows you to omit any part of the work. This was how my wife engaged specialist subcontractors directly for parts of the work. 6. When buying expensive equipment (refrigerator, TV, washing machine, dryer etc), buy 5 year extended warranty if possible. In the past, such equipment lasts a long time (more than 10 years). But if you noticed, most of these companies have gone out of business as the consumers do not need to buy replacements. These days, most consumer items are build to last only just past the standard 1 or 2 year warranty period, so that they can sell you another replacement. Assume a fridge sells at $1,399 at Best Denki but $200 cheaper at the neighbourhood shop, I will still buy from Best Denki because for another $97.93, I can extend the warranty from 1 to 5 years. For just under $1,500 (or $299 per year), I get to use the fridge for a minimum of 5 years. Without the extended warranty, for $1,199 I get to use the fridge for a minimum of only 1 to 2 years. Based on my claims experience (fridge, washing machine, dryer, TV, oven), I can confirm that extended warranty is definitely worth buying. Some machines do come with 3 or 5 years warranty on certain parts but these are normally not the parts that will fail.
  9. Ks Toh
    This is my roof terrace. And it is the single most important reason why I bought this place. I can see the planes taking off from Changi Airport in the east, golf course at Tanah Merah, Bedok Camp, Costa Del Sol all the way to Bedok in the north. A nice place to have BBQs.
  10. Ks Toh
    Yes, no problem. I have similar requirements, perhaps more. Where your OpenNet Terminal Point (TP) is located, your service provider (StarHub, SingTel, M1 etc) will put a Optical Network Terminal (ONT) supplied by Nucleus Connect followed by a Residential Gateway (RG) (basically a wireless router from Linksys, D-Link etc). The ONT connects to the TP and converts the incoming optical signal from the TP to an electrical signal for your RG. This RG is the starting point for your home network. You must think very hard and plan carefully. Where do you want your RG to be located? Many people do not bother to cable their home and just rely on a single WiFi network for their entire home. This is possible, provided the RG is located in the centre of the home, perhaps at the TV console area. But for this to happen, you must arrange for OpenNet to lay the fibre and install the TP at your TV console area, not your utility room. This was what I did for my previous place. On the other hand, if you lay your fibre and therefore locate the TP at your utility room, then your ONT and RG will be located there. If this is your bomb shelter, just remember that you will likely not be able to use WiFi from the RG. You will need to cable out (not sure if this is possible for a bom shelter) to another WIFi router. From this RG, you can use WIFi throughout your house, if the signal is good. But best to cable to every room in your house. You never know when you need a wired connection. In practice, 2 cables to each room would be ideal. If one cable connection spoils, you have a reserve. But my contractor wanted to charge me double. So, in protest, I laid only one cable to each room or location. I have 9 cables running out from my utility room. So, I have a small D-Link gigabit 8 port switch here. If you have 4 or less cables running out, you can simply use the 4 ports on your RG. In theory, you can of course lay 6 cables to your living room. But I don't think anybody does that. From this cable point in the living room, you just need to connect a switch. I used another D-Link gigabit 8 port switch. You can connect 8 devices to this switch, using only one LAN point. Not enough, buy a 16 port switch, but that one is big in size. You can connect your WiFi router to this switch, in bridge mode. For IP camera, you need to think carefully. Are you fixing the camera at the TV area? There will be a cable from the switch to the camera. Alternatively, you can rely on WiFi connection for your IP camera. Works fine if your wifi router is near and signal strong. Otherwise, connection by WiFi is unreliable.
  11. Ks Toh
    I am not staying in HDB, so I stand corrected. Both can be partially correct. In the past, all flats are not OpenNet ready, meaning you have to run the OpenNet cable from the Telecom riser outside your unit all the way into your unit. The OpenNet contractor will not do concealed wiring, so you will have holes drilled in your ceiling, wall etc, and have trunking into your house. When you do renovation, your contractor can lay concealed trunking from the telecom riser to your desired OpenNet point, then he puts a string there. So, when OpenNet contractor comes, the OpenNet contractor merely use the string to pull the OpenNet cable all the way in. Now, I do read that in some new HDB flats, the contractor has pre-laid the string. So, you can use it.Yet, many OpenNet contractors are apparently unaware. Read this:http://www.punggol.sg/forum/general_discussion/open_net_for_new_hdb_flats-t43745.0.html to check if yours have a string. If yours have, you are in luck. If not, sorry. Your existing telephone wires cannot replace the OpenNet cable which is fibre. You still have to run the OpenNet fibre cable into your house. From your OpenNet point in your house, you still need to run computer cable to your room. Apparently, most telephone cables now use the computer Cat 5 cables. So, you just change the face plate, and that can be a LAN point. This is of course provided your OpenNet Terminal Point is the same as your telephone wire starting point.
  12. Ks Toh
    This is my outdoor patio constructed by my landscape contractor. He saw my level 2 Accoya wood and pulled me aside. He told me there is no way this type of "ang moh" wood can last 5 years, let alone 50 years. He says only tropical hard wood like Chengai is suitable. When I told him that I heard that it is not possible to get good Chengai anymore, he told me to trust him. So, I agreed to use Chengai for this decking. From this: To this: Initial results were impressive and the contractor even used this picture of my decking for his advertisement in the ST Classfieds. All the wood planks warped slightly (I was pre-warned this is "natural") and there were hardline cracks here and there (again pre-warned this is "natural"), all of which I accept. But what I cannot accept is that after a month or two, a few of the planks had serious cracks that became bigger and very obvious, with the top layer of wood peeling off. I am still chasing the contractor to do something, but it seems like he is not responding.
  13. Ks Toh
    I tried various types of decking in my new place. On my second level balcony, by the side of the vertical garden and above the koi pond, I tried 12mm + laminate + 12mm tempered glass decking. Then I suspended a bubble chair there. Many of my visitors do not dare to step out to this balcony, But it's perfectly safe. For the other room, I tried this high technology wood from Accoya. It comes with 50 year warranty (not sure if the house can even last that long!). Having been told by so many people that only tropical hard wood like Chengai is suitable, I was sceptical. But I was shown pictures showing Accoya wood being used in every situation including bridges. And hey, after almost a year, some of the staining may be a bit discoloured but the wood itself is as good as new. No warping, peeling or anything. If you are interested in Accoya wood, you can watch this video:
  14. Ks Toh
    Thanks Tengfamily & snowblind. Photographs are misleading. My hall is not that big. But the front part (TV area) does have a high ceiling (2 storeys). We go for simple clean looks. No sophisticated hifi sound system with wires and speakers everywhere. Just a smart TV and soundbar below. Both wall mount with ooncealed wiring.
  15. Ks Toh
    I have a Chengai bench from 10 years ago, and it is still good. However, I made a mistake in painting it some years back, so now when I want to stain it (to let the natural wood texture come through), I am not able to unless I remove all the paint. I used an electric sanding machine to remove the paint layer but to no avail. It is therefore best not to paint it. Shido85, I am guessing your chengai has holes because they are from somewhere and being reused. Many people say that it is hard to find old chengai now, and that new chengai are young, and will crack easily. It is true, I tell you. For my previous condo, Evorich recommended me some kind of Palm wood instead. I used it for the balcony. Two years later, no problem. For my current place Evorich recommended me Accoya wood decking with 50 years warranty. Again, no problem so far. My landscape contractor saw my Accoya wood decking and told me confidently that it will not last. He says must use Chengai. So, I let him do my outdoor patio with chengai wood. Few weeks later, a few planks cracked. He says it is normal, and that the gaps will join back. They did not. He came and sand them, and re-stained. Happened again, and again and again. Last week, happened again. I sms him, he has not replied me for few days. Seems like you can't get good Chengai anymore.
  16. Ks Toh
    These IP cameras need two things near the location where you want to fix your camera: (a) power source (b) LAN point. For (b), you can use WiFI but my experience is that connection via WiFi is not reliable unless your WiFi router is really near and gives good signal. I am currently using 4 D-Link IP cameras. All I fix myself. Check out my cameras here: http://www.renotalk.com/forum/topic/62505-top-kew-drive/?p=824181
  17. Ks Toh
    We have been using Toto washlets for several years, and we love them. All my toilets have them. You don't really need the electric powered ones. Those are rather expensive, and you would need to run a power point to near the WC, which I am not sure is approved by PUB. You just need a water supply. Can tap from the water supply to the WC, but I had a separate valve for my washlet. There are many brands available but my personal preference is Toto. Check out my blog athttp://www.renotalk.com/forum/topic/62505-top-kew-drive/
  18. Ks Toh
    I was under the impression that if the ceiling fan can support remote control, you should have purchased it with the fan.
  19. Ks Toh
    This is the master bedroom toilet. The other toilets are similar except smaller. All my toilets use white marble for walls and black granite for floors. I know many people will say that you cannot use marble/granite for floors as it is very slippery. But for many years, I have used marble or granite for floors without any problems. If you keep it reasonably dry, it is ok. Even if it is wet a little, it is still ok. From this: To this: Every since I went Japan and fell in love with the Japanese toilets, I have installed Japanese bidets for all my toilets. I use the Toto WC with Toto washlet. Once you use them, you will feel very uncomfortable using a WC without the water spray function. The kind of Japanese toilet seats we install in Singapore do not need any power supply. You just need a water supply (can tap from the WC water supply or separate valve as in my case). The water pressure (as you adjust the knob) controls the spray head, bringing it in and out, and adjusting the force of the spray. You just need to find a suitable washlet to fit the size and shape of your WC. Mine works something like this: But of course you need a power supply if want one of those top of the line models like this:
  20. Ks Toh
    The rest of the things that cannot go into the storeroom goes to the yard. This is also the washing, drying and ironing area. From this: To this: To this:
  21. Ks Toh
    I got http://www.yee-sin.com to construct racks in my bomb shelter / storeroom. Simple but it does its job. Holds 200 to 250 kg uniformly distributed load per panel.
  22. Ks Toh
    Hi Pororo27, my vertical garden was done by the vertical garden contractor. My ID and contractor do not know how to do it. I am not sure if those vertical garden companies will do one with artificial plants. In any event, I think it is not worth paying them to do one with artificial plants. If your wall is not too big, why not try to DIY? You go to the nurseries and you can find artificial plants with the base mat. Just ask your contractor to mount them to the wall, or maybe you can do yourself?
  23. Ks Toh
    Thanks mark & CullTail. Hi blackainmamba, which aspect are you referring to? Because we have a wet kitchen, we don't do heavy cooking here. But at our previous place, we also has a similar kitchen where we did heavy cooking. Maintenance is no different from any other kitchen.
  24. Ks Toh
    Depends on what type of lights you are looking for. If you are looking for branded, design types, go to Light Craft or similar shops. If you are just looking for standard ceiling, wall or down lights, you can try the many shops along Jalan Besar or Geylang Road. My favourite is A Lighting Enterprise at 463 Geylang Road. Look for Alex.
  25. Ks Toh
    This is our wet kitchen in our yard. The colour scheme is basically black. The usual way, which is what our ID wanted to do, is to build the structure with a big space below, and to put sliding doors there. However, my wife insisted on this design, with doors that open outwards. Note the number of LPG cylinders left behind by the previous occupier. I made the mistake of returning them to the LPG supplier when I moved in. Do you remember that when you first buy the LPG, you have to place a deposit for the cylinder? I thought I could get back a handsome amount of deposits but the supplier asked me for the deposit receipts! Without the receipt, I think he paid me only $5 or less each. But when I subsequently had to buy one for my BBQ set, I had to pay much more! Read my complaint about LPG Gas supplier here.
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