LLCC

Hi huggsss, Thanks! If you just want a step up bath area for shower & where you can sit on the fringe area (instead of having bathroom shower chair) & not meant to be used as bath tub then it's fine. Just wish to caution that it is not possible to fill up with enough hot water in such a big tileup "tub" with a 40L water heater tank, but that's partly because we made the tub too wide. I don't have the breakdown cost just for that bath area. The masonary works for 3 bathrooms, kitchen & 1 balcony including the tiles & cement screeding for whole house skirting cost about $12K. Hope this helps. Rdgs, CC

Hi huggsss, My sister adopted black theme for her bedroom & adjoining bathroom (hacked the wall to create direct access from her bedroom to the common bathroom on 2nd floor). Our kitchen is white & grey theme. You can view some photos at the link in my signature. Rdgs, CC

Agree with you. The only storeroom I have is under the staircase. I think it's more practical to build floor to ceiling kind of shelve cabinet on 1 side of the wall in either living room or studyroom/guestroom and store away stuff that we don't use often on top shelves. Easier to access them to check what we have too. We tend to forget what are the items we have right inside the storeroom, out of sight, out of mind.

Hi jazzfish, I knocked down original kitchen wall & sink/stove to change the entrance to kitchen from living room & repositioned the sink & stove. I hang my laundry on the wall in my rectangle balcony, using wall-mounted system. Still keep some bamboo poles for hanging bedsheets, just perched the bamboo poles on the ledge near to the lightings in balcony. Previous owner hang laundry on ceiling in the kitchen but I removed the metal brackets on the ceiling. Rdgs, CC

Yes, they'll perch on the ledge of my balcony when there's nobody at home as I found traces of bird **** on my pebble-stone flooring at the balcony a few times. I didn't fixed awning so it's an open area that will get wet when it rains. When there's very little movement inside the house, I saw birds perching on the ledge of my balcony. I thought of hanging a Japanese fish-shaped wind socket on top of the ledge but haven't figured out how to hang it there. Anyone has an effective method to scare the birds off? Rdgs, CC

Yes, White Powder Coated aluminium. Just wanted to let you know how much I paid, for your reference. I won't recommend the window contractor who did my house.

Hi Wenny, My quote dated Jul 08 was: Supply & install WPC aluminium sliding glass window (291sqft) $4,365 I selected green tinted glass too. Not sure if the price was reasonable though. CC

We can get good WiFi coverage all over the house if there is one user. Our router is on level 2 guestroom/studyroom. If more than 1 person is accessing (from laptops) or when room doors are closed, MBR & living room gets a very low 1Mbps signal. But no problem if only one user in the house. However, we are using the almost obsolete Wireless-G technology. New wireless sets are Wireless-N which offer vastly extended range (can access wireless from 10 floors below) so coverage becomes a non-issue for EMs. Note that if there is too much wireless traffic going on in the room/house/block, your connection speed can drop because everyone is on the 2.5GHz wavelength (microwave oven running very close by at 2.45 GHz can affect too). If your block has a lot of internet savy people, it's better then to get the Dual-N router so you can switch to 5GHz which is still "uncommon" and enjoy uninterrupted bandwidth while you have that headstart. That however, means you also need to get adaptor for your lappy that can work on 5GHz frequency too - a big expense if you have many sets, but the enjoyment is worth it. Your desktops will be better served with a LAN cable as LAN'll be faster than Wireless. As for whether it's better to place the router in MBR or living room, with Wireless-N, it makes no difference. If you're still using Wireless-AB, you should upgrade at least to Wireless-G to enhance your surfing experience.

Hi red devil, We paid $75 for 1 data point. We're using StarHub Broadband, and placed our wireless router in one of the bedrooms on 2nd floor which we're using as guest/studyroom. No problem with internet access even when using laptop in MBR or in living room downstairs. Rdgs, CC

Hi! Thanks for sharing your joy with us. Interesting layout indeed. I would love to have your storeroom! Bedroom 2 & 3 positioning also quite different, not side by side, so lots of privacy.

Oh, we have a bamboo tree too! We didn't built a roof over our service balcony so our tall bamboo can stay in the open & get the sunlight. Every morning there'll be a bird perching & "singing" on our bamboo tree. The bamboo tree was seated along the corridor in our previous flat. We had problem moving it to our EM cos' it's too tall to get into the lift. We had to tie rope around the pot and lower it slower down our previous flat, with someone on every floor to catch hold of it & keep it in position. We used the same method to lift it up to our EM flat but gave up after it reached the 4th floor as it was too heavy & the angle of lifting is not very right. In the end, LL & his 3 friends took turns to hand carry it on their shoulder & walked up the stair case to the 10th floor! With a rooftop garden, you can line the side with bamboo trees to create a piece of nature in your own house, lovely!

Unfortunately no, I don't have the floor plan. That Bishan penthouse belongs to friend's friend, I happened to be in my friend's house & tagged along to visit the penthouse cos' I was so curious. The big difference is the view. Imagine a bedroom or study room with a sky view (good for daydreaming), or having a drink or BBQ with friends at the L-shaped open air balcony with a sky view (so cool!). You're basically paying a premium for the view. EM is rare. EM with such a view is lagi rare. Private condo unit at $750K price range cannot offer such a view. My guess is those who go for such unit are ex-private property owners who are retirees with spare cash and have plenty of time to seat at home & sip tea & chat with their spouse & friends. A convenient location where they can shop for necessities is important too.

I visited one penthouse EM in Bishan last year, quite near Bishan MRT. My friend's friend got it for $600K+. There are several of those point blocks where you have 4 units of 5-room flat on each level, then the top floor is EM. But from outside it looked like the very top floor is single floor Executive Apartment. The 2nd & 3rd top most is the EM, with L-shaped corner outdoor balcony, very nice view.

Hi, Broke the glass turntable tray in our Ariston MWA222 microwave oven Called up Mayer Marketing, it'll cost $70 just to replace the glass turntable. Does anyone know where to buy microwave oven turntables in Singapore besides Mayer? CC

Saw 1 feedback on Fanco fan, seems ok but most Renotalk people are talking about Crestar. http://www.renotalk.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=20451 Quote vin13: "Fanco is not bad.. using the model: FF9 close to 5 months liao... for us, we usually on the medium speed.. the low speed not useful while high is too high, newspapers starts flying.. maybe we have lower than norm ceiling bah tongue.gif"

Hi blownup, Thanks for sharing, now we have better idea on the cost of a really nice glass & parquet wood staircase. So this is the highlight of your house. My hubby LL said there should be only 1 highlight in the house, or 1 highlight in each room. If we aim to put too many highlights in the house or a room, the look is too busy, overkill. I guess I can appreciate what he said now Rdgs, CC

So nice! Can share with us how much did you spend on this?

I can understand your concern as a parent to want to protect your children & let them grow up in a safe environment. Many kids grew up in landed property with staircase too. My hubby LL says sometimes the only way to let kids learn how to manoeuvre themselves around something & be steady is to expose them to it. Just like if we always walk on nice & flat ground, our balancing skill will not be so good. Walking on rocky or unbalanced flooring can hone our balancing skill, different parts of our muscles are being used. So generally speaking, the more we climb up & down the staircase, the more steady we'll become. Of course if you have toddler learning to walk, better to add baby gate as a safety precaution. So far all the children who came over to my place think it's cool to have a staircase at home

Neighbours in my block mostly quite friendly, we greet & hold the lift door for one another. But unfortunately my immediate neighbour next door is rather weird & unfriendly. Only the maid & old granny have eye contact with us & greet/smile at us. The middle aged couple & their 3 young daughters avoid eye contacts with us at all costs. My chatty mom tried to strike up a conversation with the wife (my immediate neighbour) when we first came to view the our unit by asking a silly obvious question (you know how is it like when sometimes you just want to find a topic to start a conversation), something like" "the family who stayed here last time was Chinese family right?", but was met with a black face and cold reply: "you want to buy the place, you don't know meh?" Wah! My mom couldn't sleep for the next few days because of the prospect of unfriendly immediate neighbour. But at least our neighbour's problem is just unfriendly & keep to themselves, better than those who make lots of noise or quarrel & fight often. At least that's how we console ourselves.

We were tempted to post their company name on RT to warn people about their bad service, but in the end didn't have the heart to, cos' the contractor who liaised with us is a salesperson who works for them & he is a nice guy. It's just that their company's carpentry team is irresponsible & full of attitude. Hacking, tiling, electrical all no problem, very fast & efficient. Only the carpentry team caused all delays. Those who want to ensure their contractor is not the one I've used can PM me to verify.

Hi, We just broke the glass turntable tray in our Ariston MWA222 microwave oven. It'll costs $70 just to replace the glass turntable. Does anyone know where can I buy microwave oven turntables in Singapore besides Mayer? CC

We gave our contractor 5 weeks. Kept floor tiles in living, dining, storeroom, staircase, 2 balconies & all 4 bedrooms. Hack floor tiles in 3 toilets & kitchen. Bathroom amenities, aircons & partial carpentry & partial electrical were ready when we moved in. Most carpentry work not finished. The worst was the solid table tops in kitchen & bathrooms were not ready, which meant taps, sink & cooking hob cannot be installed, we didn't forsee it'll be such a nightmare. It's not fun having to eat out for 3 weeks everyday, and can't do basic washing over sink. Prioritise what must be done by the time you moved in & tell your contractor. We made the mistake of not ensuring that cooking facilities must be ready & all sink & tap must be installed when we moved in. Be prepared to bear with the din of on-going carpentry work after you moved in. May need to touch up cement on corners & edges around windows if you've changed windows as they may not be patched back evenly, and having the workers coming into your rooms with pails of cement walking around your beds, sofa & stuff can be rather nerve-wrecking.

I'm also trying to figure out the best way to block the rain in the balcony. Was thinking of roller blinds but am afraid it'll flap violently at the 2 sides when wind is strong (& tear?), plus how to prevent the rain water from flowing down at the 2 sides? Sunshade.sg suggested installing a permanent U-shape drain by the side onto the wall, which we think will look kind of ugly. Anyway, sunshade.sg service is very poor, got to chase & remind them to come my house to give suggestion & never come on time. Started contacting them before Chinese New Year, and until now no one follow up with me with a price quotation. I think their main business is coffee shop, perhaps too busy with their commercial projects & can't be bothered with business from 1 residential unit. If anyone has a good recommendation of other roofing contractor please share it with me too.

Hi everyone, We also have bad experience with Co'zy. First chance upon them during an exhibition in Singapore Expo. The arrogant Indian man said the same thing to us, that they are wholesaler, can only order during exhibition, they don't have any retail outlet. Then a few days later, we discovered their retail outlet at IFC in Beach Road. The sales lady was very nice & patient, so we put a deposit for 2 beds & 1 table. A few days later when she faxed us the drawings, one of the beds with attached table was positioned wrongly. 3 months later when we got the key to the house, we called them to arrange for onsite measurement. A Malay guy came down to take measurement onsite, he was nice and friendly, but when the drawings was faxed to us, the sideboard design was wrong (we wanted a sideboard that's half the length of the bed, but the drawing showed a full length sideboard). We called up to inform them of their mistake, and they said they'll rectify. We were told to give them 1 month advance notice once we confirm the delivery date. When I called up to confirm delivery date (about 33 days advance notice), I found out that the lady who took our order has left the company, and another woman who answered my call said she wasn't sure if they can meet our delivery date cos' we gave too short notice. When I said I was told to give 1 month notice & have placed the 3 months ago with a tentative delivery that has already overdued, she bragged about their too many orders and we must give them more time. When I asked so when can they deliver, she said she has to check & get back, but never call me back after waiting for a few days. I handed over the matter to my sister to chase them for delivery, and after my sister kicked up a big fuss and raised her voice over the phone about their bad after sales service, they grudingly concede to the delivery date we want. And guess what? They delivered the bed with the full length sideboard (supposed to be half length). As the China delivery cum installation guy was very diligent & careful when he installed the bed, we didn't have the heart to complain about the wrong sideboard, otherwise this poor man has to dismantle it & carry it back & come back again another day to install. We accepted the bed with wrong design. The other bed was fine. But what a hassle we had to go through. CC

Hi hello88, So we're still HG neighbours. 5-room flat in HG is more spacious than Punggol & Sengkang, especially the master bedroom. I'm sure you will still have fun building your new kitchen. A house is a house, doesn't matter if it's EM or 5-room, it's the memories & lives shared in the house that counts. At some point in future LL & I may have to consider moving out of EM too, when knee problem gets too serious (it's a love hate affair with the staircase), if not all have to sleep in living room liao. CC