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kstoh

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Everything posted by kstoh

  1. kstoh
    DIY Vertical Garden I posted a video on my DIY Vertical Garden but some people asked me how to to do the Auto Irrigation. This is the abridged version: You can purchase the tap and plumbing tape from local hardware stores. For the water timer, you can purchase from most nurseries like Far East or World Farm. You can purchase much cheaper online but many of those do not last. The one that I have receintly bought and used is from https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_A5dycT For the 13mm supply hose, 4/7 micro hose, connectors and sprinklers, you can buy from Far East or World Farm if you are not confident of getting the correct part. Otherwise, you can get them much cheaper online: 4/7mm Greenhouse Garden Irrigation Automatic Watering Pipe - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_AlbB5v 4/7mm Garden Irrigation Nozzle Adjustable Dripper Sprinkler - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_AaNnyJ Mini 360 Degree G Type Rotating Refraction Sprinkler - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_9A3OJ1 4/7/9/18/25/36/49/72 Pockets Garden Wall Hanging Planting Bags - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_AAicWP Garden hose 16mm 20mm to 1/2 "3/4" Female Connector Barbed Plastic Hose Fitting Micro Irrigation Adapter - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_AslLsn
  2. kstoh
    8 Years On ..... It has been 8 years since I renovated my place. Now, I am mainly in maintenance mode, and doing mostly Youtube videos on how to do this and that.
  3. kstoh
    The following information for anyone interested in the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum Cleaner & Mop. The best is the Roborock, which is Generation 2. 4 Versions of Xiaomi Robot Vaccum Cleaners & Mop 1. Mi Robot (Mijia) Highly rated Robot Vacuum Cleaner with Laser Mapping & Intelligent Route Planning. No Mopping. This is my original robot which had an accident. 2. Roborock (S50) Improved Mi Robot with Mopping function. Higher suction power & slightly bigger dust bin. This is my current robot, featured in my video above. This should be the flagship model. 3. Xiaowa Lite (C102) Budget Mi Robot. Smaller battery, reduced suction power and cleaning area. But big dust bin. No mapping or route planning, recharge & resume. Not advised to buy this unless your budget requires it. 4. Xiaowa Route Planning (E202 & E352) Improved versions of Xiaowa Lite. Slightly improved suction power. With mapping (not laser) and mop function. BACK TO TABLE OF CONTENTS
  4. kstoh
  5. kstoh
    Xiaomi Roborock (Mi Robot Generation 2) Few months back, I came home from a run to find my Mi Robot (Generation 1) overboard in the water! The robot has drop sensors and should never go off the edge, so I have no idea how it happened. For some reason, security camera at the vicinity failed to record the event. However, a suspect, the iRobot Braava 380t robot mop was spotted nearby stranded at the edge of my pond. My helper had set both the Mi Robot vacuum and iRobot Braava 380t mop to work at the same and it seems they may have collided. Or could it have been the work of the iRobot? I sent the robot to the RobotCare Centre but due to water damage, it was beyond repair. Which meant I had to buy another robot vacuum. By this time, Xiaomi has already released their Generation 2 robot, the Roborock, which has both vacuum and mop function. It is really, really good. I highly recommend it.
  6. kstoh
    Oh, not sure if I solved the problem but for the past 2 years, I have not been hit by the same problem. Not sure if it is because I put bio-enzyme every two weeks or so. Or because I managed to grow some duckweed on top. But this is referring to my smaller front pond. It is very clear in the morning but gets a little cloudy in the afternoon. My bigger pond inside - has been very clear from day one. No problem at all. Never changed water. But that pond receives rain water and run off water from my vertical garden. So, in a way, the water is circulated a little.
  7. kstoh
    *Deleted because duplicate post*
  8. kstoh
    Thanks for dropping by. I have not been updating this blog for some time. Some things I am very happy with, like my vertical gardens and koi ponds. Some others like my Silestone counter-tops, they have all turned off white. I also wished I had more than one network point to each room, and more water points everywhere. I did only A&A, never touched anything structural. My roof is an open roof terrace. I merely changed some of the timber decking. There is a small roof where the staircase goes up, but I never touched that roof. p.s. I am surprised that the photos on my first few pages are still showing. I thought Photobucket already pulled the plug because I refused to pay?
  9. kstoh
    So I mentioned earlier that I was going to DIY a Vertical Garden myself. I finally did it. Not under 10% of the quoted cost but still not too bad, under 15% of the quoted cost. Instead of posting lots of pictures, I will post a video. P.S. After this video was shot, I added a U shaped drain at the bottom to drain away the water to the left. I used an aircon duct casing, spray painted it black and inverted it!
  10. kstoh
    The company that did my koi ponds were Phyto Water Arts but they seem to have closed down. So much for their warranty that the water will be "lifetime" crystal clear. But I still have the contact number of the sales guy. He says can call him. I will PM you his number. At one time when I redid my front pond, the contractor that came was from ZL 22 Pool Pte Ltd. Maybe they are the subcontractor. I will also PM you their number.
  11. kstoh
    5 years on, my two ponds are still doing fine. The inner pond has been clear from day one. The outer pond had some bad days in the beginning but these days it is ok. Just some days not so clear but it will become clear after a while. Every 1 to 2 weeks, I add some bio enzyme to keep the "good bacteria" in the under gravel filtration working. Every half a year or so, when I remember, I will flush out the dirty water under the gravel. There is a discharge pipe outlet. I just connect a water pump to this outlet and pump out the dirty water. But the water usually appears to be not dirty. Other than the above, no maintenance is required. I think easier than maintaining a fish tank.
  12. kstoh
    Permitted and Not Permitted Works for Household Shelters
  13. kstoh
    Please refer to Page 1 for the Table of Contents for this entire blog. TABLE OF CONTENTS
  14. kstoh
    There are many vertical garden systems. The most common system is the one where a frame or panel is mounted on the wall and pots are hung from the frame. However, once you start to add up the panels, planters and accessories, the cost will escalate. This system is also bulky as in it protrudes from the wall quite a bit. BACK TO TABLE OF CONTENTS
  15. kstoh
    It's been 5 years since I renovated my place. Some things I wished I had done differently. Some things I am very happy with. Most of all, I really like my vertical garden. Still looks good. So, I am thinking of doing vertical garden on some of my other walls as well, starting with a small wall at my backyard. Got a quotation. $4,200+ for this wall that measures about 3m x 1.6m. Ouch. I am going to try to DIY this wall for one tenth the cost. Don't know whether I can do it. Maintenance is quoted at $200 per month. But I have been self maintaining my current vertical garden, so no need. p.s. I last posted a year ago and this place seems very different. I have not been able to edit the Index page on my first page! And how come every post has this "Request to get contractor" link? DIY Vertical Garden (Green Wall)
  16. kstoh
    Not sure if you hope you will face the same situation.
  17. kstoh
    Voice packs available
  18. kstoh
    Mi Robot Goes English My sister also bought the Mi Robot. Today she reported that she could enter Singapore (recommended) as location without any issue. Then she reported that English and other voice packs are now available. Now my Mi app is in English and my Mi Robot speaks English!
  19. kstoh
    Actually, it is NEVER a good idea to buy a 110V appliance for use in Singapore where the electricity supply is 240V, unless this device is one of a kind which you cannot get in Singapore. If it is a simple non-heating device which consumes little power, a small transformer will suffice. But if it is one with heating like your toaster, you need a transformer that is 2 to 3 times the wattage. This means a ridiculously big, heavy and expensive transformer. Using an underpowered transformer can cause the transformer to blow up, like in your case. It can cause a fire, so be careful. If you plug your device into the power socket carelessly without the transformer, your toaster will be toast!
  20. kstoh
    Apologies. I did not explain clearly. OpenNet did lay a continuous length of optical cable from the OpenNet distribution box outside my house all the way into my house up to the TP. What I meant by "breaking up into sections" is that you cannot lay one wire or string, and try to pull all the way in. You need to have a few "manholes" in between to pull the wire in, one section at a time. But I did not see what kind of fibre cable they used to pull all the way in. I don't think it is those flimsy yellow cable. Like what snoozee explained, fibre and Wifi and two different things. Fibre is laid to only one termination point (TP) in your house, most likely on the ground floor. If you want internet access on another floor, you need to cable up to that floor or somehow extend your WiFi signal to that floor. There are several ways to do it. I wrote about it at length on my blog: My Network Diagram Optical Fibre Termination Point (TP) —> Huawei Optical Network Terminal (ONT) —> StarHub D-Link DIR-850L D-Link DIR-850L (WiFi 1) Port 1 --> Store —> D-Link 8 port Gigabit Switch (A) Port 2 --> Hall —> D-Link 8 port Gigabit Switch (B) Port 3 --> Porch —> D-Link HD Cloud Camera DCS-5222L Port 4 --> SamKnows Device (Internet Speed Monitoring) D-Link 8 port Gigabit Switch (A) Port 1 <-- D-Link DIR-850L Port 2 --> Dining Port 3 --> Yard —> D-Link HD Cloud Camera DCS-5222L Port 4 --> Room 1 --> HP PC Port 5 --> Room 2 —> Buffalo WCR-HP-GN (WiFi 6) Port 6 --> Study —> D-Link DAP-1665 (WiFi 3) —> Canon wireless printer / scanner Port 7 --> Master —> Airport Time Capsule 2TB (WiFi 4) --> (1) Apple TV (2) D-Link Cloud Camera DCS-942L (3) D-Link HD Cloud Camera DCS-5222L Port 8 --> Roof Terrace —> Buffalo WCR-HP-GN (WiFi 5) —> (1) D-Link HD Cloud Camera DCS-5222L (2) D-Link DCS-6010L Cloud Camera (3) Wii (4) Xbox D-Link 8 port Gigabit Switch (B) Port 1 <— D-Link DIR-850L Port 2 —> Smart TV Port 3 —> SoundBar Port 4 —> Seagate Central 4TB (network drive) Port 5 —> D-Link Network Video Recorder DNR-322L Port 6 —> Airport Express (WiFi 2) —> (1) SoundBar (via AirPlay) (2) Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum Cleaner
  21. kstoh
    It is not true that you cannot conceal lay long fibre optic wires. The OpenNet people laid more than 40m for me (although he kindly charged me only 40m), around my car porch, along the boundary wall, through my garden, up the kitchen wall, through the false ceiling, down into my utility room. But because of the length, you cannot lay a single continuous wire. You need to break up into sections. Pull the wire from Start to Point A, A to B, B to C, C to Termination Point. But it is true that if the wire breaks, you are in trouble. So, you cannot have sharp corners. Speed wise, it is not affected. I still get exactly what I subscribed for.
  22. kstoh
    Just last week, my Electrolux washing machine broke down. Lucky, 5 year warranty up to 2018. Then my Brandt gas cooker hob and induction cooker both broke down too. Realised that although I have extended warranty up till Nov 2017 for the entire Brandt appliances I bought, I left out the gas hob at the time of purchase because the sales guy told me: 'what for buy extended warranty for gas hob? gas hob never break down." Urgh!!! Cost of repair (transport plus parts replacement) more than price of new gas hob, so I decided to buy a compatible gas hob. As for induction hob, lucky still covered under extended warranty. Repairman said something about circuit board needs replacement, expensive repair, need to get Harvey Norman to approve before they will repair. Eventually, approved and done. I think if not covered under warranty, I would have to buy new set. Great minds think alike! And welcome back to renotalk!
  23. kstoh
    Hi I can't remember the exact cost in the end. But looking at my old documents, I saw this line in the quotations: To supply & construct est. L7.5ft concrete structure w/ tiles max 3.50 psf for stove - $1,650 It may be difficult to compare cost due to differences in design, material cost, total contract sum, date of reno etc. Better to get a few quotes based on your actual design and requirement.
  24. kstoh
    Good news for users outside China. This morning I started receiving notifications from my Mi Robot in English!
  25. kstoh
    The Mi Robot is not on sale outside of China yet. So you need to purchase online. Just follow the instructions given in my earlier post here.
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