我家就是 易财二世

[purecat 0]

012 Renovation Week 2

5 Apr Lay Waterproofing in Toilet

Not certain if it is lucky or unlucky. When the tiles was delivered to our flat on sat, two HDB officers and neighbour Mr XX immediately below our unit came upstairs to check on our kitchen. Apparently the unit below Mr XX complaint that their ceiling was leaking and they complaint to HDB. When HDB came to Mr XX unit, Mr XX in turn complain on us ( say our contractors may be the one causing the leakage after the hacking ?? We find it puzzling how will the bottom two levels's problem be caused by us ? Is Mr XX pushing the blame to us ?

Anyway Allan assured us that with this complaint, the more he will make his guys pay attention to the water proofing that will be done.

6 Apr Tiling of toilets commenced - only a few rows.

Husband's findings :

He used his knuckles to knock knock the tiles... u will hear a different sound if the tile is not fully coated with cement. (Note : If bathroom fittings are " drilled " onto tiles that are hollow, they will cracked, this happen to my inlaw's case when they did their renovation couple of years back !)

Master Rm Toilet : So far so good , water proofing side walls ( some high, some low ? )

Common Toilet : Some hollow tiles, inconsistent gaps, didnt use gaps divider , waterproofing on the side walls are not high enough ( was told that it will be done at 1foot for side walls but we saw only 3 inch )

Allan's explanations :

1) Cement not dry yet, not accurate in checking but promised that if hollow tiles are found later , he will get the guys to change.

2) Tiles are not entirely fixed shapes and sizes ? Tilers normally rotate to get the best fix ? once the white cement is up, I may think differently? ( Ok we shall see !)

3) Gaps divider result in bigger gaps... closer gaps is prettier ? ( Any comments in this ? - Though I agree closer gaps are nicer but adequate distance is required to allow expansion due to heat ? If not sufficient , will the tiles pop out ?? or cracked ? )

4) Was told they will do another layer later. Also with the bottom neighbour complain, they will be even more careful ?? ( hope so but we shall see ... can someone share normally how many layers of waterproofing were done for your flat ?? )

Some pictures taken by hp on 6th Apr

Inconsistent gaps.

The tape that was used to bundle the tiles was used as dividers ?

Inconsistent gaps.

The difference in colour will show the water proofing height for the side walls

Edited April 8, 2010 by purecat

[purecat 0]

Renovation Week 2 continues

7 Apr - More tiles in Toilet

Master bedroom workmanship is definitely prettier... all evenly spaced

[purecat 0]

7 Apr - More tiles in Toilet

Common bedroom toilet is not acceptable. I shoot an email to Allan and ask him to tell me what he think of the condition if he compare the two toilets in his next site visit. Hope to receive a satisfactory reply.

More Inconsistent gaps

Edited April 8, 2010 by purecat

[samgalz 2]

7 Apr - More tiles in Toilet

Common bedroom toilet is not acceptable. I shoot an email to Allan and ask him to tell me what he think of the condition if he compare the two toilets in his next site visit. Hope to receive a satisfactory reply.

More Inconsistent gaps

wow common toilet is really big difference in workmanship!

[marshmallow 0]

Not certain if it is lucky or unlucky. When the tiles was delivered to our flat on sat, two HDB officers and neighbour Mr XX immediately below our unit came upstairs to check on our kitchen. Apparently the unit below Mr XX complaint that their ceiling was leaking and they complaint to HDB. When HDB came to Mr XX unit, Mr XX in turn complain on us ( say our contractors may be the one causing the leakage after the hacking ?? We find it puzzling how will the bottom two levels's problem be caused by us ? Is Mr XX pushing the blame to us ?

Aiyo, how come ceiling leakage 2 floors below became your problem?

btw, noticed that you're in JE, me too~ are you around Street 32 area?

[purecat 0]

wow common toilet is really big difference in workmanship!

Allan reverted today that he will have the tiler changed . What a big relief !

He will have the unsatisfactory tiles changed.

[purecat 0]

Aiyo, how come ceiling leakage 2 floors below became your problem?

btw, noticed that you're in JE, me too~ are you around Street 32 area?

Actually i am thinking why can HDB officers come up to my unit without our permission to begin with ?

I think the one below us ( who i understand also did his reno not too long ago ) is trying to blame the problem to the structure of the building maybe ?

Yah in fact currently at St32 moving to just blocks away also heehee...

[marshmallow 0]

Actually i am thinking why can HDB officers come up to my unit without our permission to begin with ?

I think the one below us ( who i understand also did his reno not too long ago ) is trying to blame the problem to the structure of the building maybe ?

Yah in fact currently at St32 moving to just blocks away also heehee...

Haha i guess so, else it is really difficult to argue that you cause 2-floor below's neighbour's problem.

Oh we'll be neigbhours btw, finally saw your photos now (in office cannot see), the c/toilet tiles were really quite bad... glad that your contractor will rectify the problem

[purecat 0]

Haha i guess so, else it is really difficult to argue that you cause 2-floor below's neighbour's problem.

Oh we'll be neigbhours btw, finally saw your photos now (in office cannot see), the c/toilet tiles were really quite bad... glad that your contractor will rectify the problem

the morale of that complaint story is i probably have fussy (yim jim) neighbours upstairs and downstairs .... dangerous. Interesting thing is my immediate neighbour upstairs is also renovating... and the opposite unit to that unit has a pail of water outside the house.

we are not certain if they are upset about the renovation works or what ? As we need to come down by lift and everytime we pass by that unit, the stairs are always wet ( in puddles kind ) so must always remind my daughter to be careful when she walk down.

And on the ugly workmanship, we hope that problem will go away with the tiler being replaced.

Btw you mean now u in St32 eh ?

You know we have nice food stalls at our hawker right... Nice bah Ku Teh, fish soup, porridge , chicken rice, you mian. And not forgetting Zu Lin Coffee shop. Remember to check these out if you havent.

My most favourite is still the fish soup selling between 10 to 2pm only. And long Qs on sunday !

Next time i got to walk further since we shifted to near the polyclinic area.

Edited April 9, 2010 by purecat

[purecat 0]

Renovation Week 2 - continued

8 Apr 2010

Allan replied email confirming change of one tiler ie the one for the ugly workmanship in common toilet. ( presume the one for master bedroom will stay) He also advise that the grout lines for the wall tiles and floor tiles may not align as the wall tiles n floor tiles dimensions are different. ( ok we understand , didnt even think about this.)

Didnt visit my new flat. giving Allan a breather... machiam later avoid my calls since i continuously call him everyday... add things, change things, complaint haha....

9 Apr 2010

This evening visited my flat after work but cannot enter. For some reason, only manage to open the number lock but the main door is too tight until I tot is locked ... Thought my key has problem or my contractor change the door lock ???!! . Haiz so no pictures to share here.

Husband check out the flat again after his shower. Actually the main door isnt lock... just that there were some cardboard " protecting the door " that make it so tight! ( as if locked )

Anyway they remove the lights already... so if want to check on flat in future, we have to either go in the day or only on weekends.. haiz haiz.

But husband vaguely with the lights from outside the window , can tell that part of the kitchen walls are done. and the hollow tiles in the common toilet are replaced.

Tomorrow will check them out and have a look myself .

So await photos from my olympus cam either sat or sun.

Edited April 9, 2010 by purecat

[marshmallow 0]

the morale of that complaint story is i probably have fussy (yim jim) neighbours upstairs and downstairs .... dangerous. Interesting thing is my immediate neighbour upstairs is also renovating... and the opposite unit to that unit has a pail of water outside the house.

we are not certain if they are upset about the renovation works or what ? As we need to come down by lift and everytime we pass by that unit, the stairs are always wet ( in puddles kind ) so must always remind my daughter to be careful when she walk down.

And on the ugly workmanship, we hope that problem will go away with the tiler being replaced.

Btw you mean now u in St32 eh ?

You know we have nice food stalls at our hawker right... Nice bah Ku Teh, fish soup, porridge , chicken rice, you mian. And not forgetting Zu Lin Coffee shop. Remember to check these out if you havent.

My most favourite is still the fish soup selling between 10 to 2pm only. And long Qs on sunday !

Next time i got to walk further since we shifted to near the polyclinic area.

You mean that neigbhour keeps trying to wash the floor with water? They're quite "yim jim" also lor...

Oh I will be moving there haha... That's why camping in renotalk and looking for contractor now will be near the market... and my frens have told me about the bak ku teh they used to frequent there when they stayed at the polyclinic area~

I am trying to find contractor near our area but seems like there is no highly recommended contractor in the west side? strange isn't it? *scratch head*

[purecat 0]

You mean that neigbhour keeps trying to wash the floor with water? They're quite "yim jim" also lor...

Oh I will be moving there haha... That's why camping in renotalk and looking for contractor now will be near the market... and my frens have told me about the bak ku teh they used to frequent there when they stayed at the polyclinic area~

I am trying to find contractor near our area but seems like there is no highly recommended contractor in the west side? strange isn't it? *scratch head*

near our area actually have one ID call decormark ( a shop near the MRT - next to the kopitiam ). The thing is... the quote came up exceeding my budget.. then the funny thing is when i tell him i shortlisted another because of the pricing. He say he can also give me contractor pricing ??! maybe really no biz

There are a few other contractors ( shops near market ) but i didnt try out. actually too many quotes also quite a headache.

The other is Meng Design ( at Jurong West ). They have very very nice brochure ( it is one booklet almost 1/2cm thick ) You go try lah... take the brochure, get the idea also not bad heehee... Think they are around for very long already but price is also above budget

then next to consider will be tradehub, there are quite a few reputable ones there. Good or not you can check out the RT forum for the reviews ( some of them were mentioned )

Suggest shop around for IDs , some design very nice layouts ( they will give u free ), some dont give u... but u can remember the idea roughly. Then see which quote meets your budget then decide whether u stick to ID or contractor .

actually we dont really just rely on recommendations... they are good ones who will sometimes get bad reviews. It really depend on who the ID hire for as contractors. ( for all you know some famous IDs may get the same contractors ) so end of the day is which ID is responsive to your " complaints " or " demands "

Hence whether it is ID or contractor for your choice, maybe sure you have good frequency , can communicate and they can understand your needs. That should be the priority and not just because alot say they are good Hope this helps.

We chosen Primework because Allan can answer very technical questions we asked and his main customers are ID and they are not exactly a contractor but a builder. So they normally bid for govt or big projects . In that sense, i will think they are more stable financially. Also he has a regular team of workers / subcontractors that follow him for all projects so I think there is better quality control ( no good can easily switch and change )

Most importantly because he is consider the "main con ", he can coordinate all the different work ( some can come in same time - work in diff room ), hence we expect shorter time since we have a tight deadline to meet . Most IDs told us they need at least two months. ( as they will probably need to coordinate a few sub cons who enter flat separately hence dragging whole process)

[marshmallow 0]

near our area actually have one ID call decormark ( a shop near the MRT - next to the kopitiam ). The thing is... the quote came up exceeding my budget.. then the funny thing is when i tell him i shortlisted another because of the pricing. He say he can also give me contractor pricing ??! maybe really no biz

There are a few other contractors ( shops near market ) but i didnt try out. actually too many quotes also quite a headache.

The other is Meng Design ( at Jurong West ). They have very very nice brochure ( it is one booklet almost 1/2cm thick ) You go try lah... take the brochure, get the idea also not bad heehee... Think they are around for very long already but price is also above budget

then next to consider will be tradehub, there are quite a few reputable ones there. Good or not you can check out the RT forum for the reviews ( some of them were mentioned )

Suggest shop around for IDs , some design very nice layouts ( they will give u free ), some dont give u... but u can remember the idea roughly. Then see which quote meets your budget then decide whether u stick to ID or contractor .

actually we dont really just rely on recommendations... they are good ones who will sometimes get bad reviews. It really depend on who the ID hire for as contractors. ( for all you know some famous IDs may get the same contractors ) so end of the day is which ID is responsive to your " complaints " or " demands "

Hence whether it is ID or contractor for your choice, maybe sure you have good frequency , can communicate and they can understand your needs. That should be the priority and not just because alot say they are good Hope this helps.

We chosen Primework because Allan can answer very technical questions we asked and his main customers are ID and they are not exactly a contractor but a builder. So they normally bid for govt or big projects . In that sense, i will think they are more stable financially. Also he has a regular team of workers / subcontractors that follow him for all projects so I think there is better quality control ( no good can easily switch and change )

Most importantly because he is consider the "main con ", he can coordinate all the different work ( some can come in same time - work in diff room ), hence we expect shorter time since we have a tight deadline to meet . Most IDs told us they need at least two months. ( as they will probably need to coordinate a few sub cons who enter flat separately hence dragging whole process)

Not planning to get ID cos we more or less knoq what we want Yea actually a lot of ID firms at IMM and Tradehub, but many have bad comments or v expensive

for contractors, very little review on the west side ones... saw some contractors near the market le, but dunno if they good or not

we also have tight deadline to meet... now starting to meet with different contractors, quite excited but some already turned down due to our request for shorter reno time frame...

When's your expected completion date?

[purecat 0]

Not planning to get ID cos we more or less knoq what we want Yea actually a lot of ID firms at IMM and Tradehub, but many have bad comments or v expensive

for contractors, very little review on the west side ones... saw some contractors near the market le, but dunno if they good or not

we also have tight deadline to meet... now starting to meet with different contractors, quite excited but some already turned down due to our request for shorter reno time frame...

When's your expected completion date?

Mine target 12th April, Husband want to shift the Buddha in on 15th . Though officially we will shift in on 21st April.

Thats true if you already have an idea of what you want, then save extras from not using an ID, throw into furniture more worth it.

Yah there are a few near our market. Not harm asking them to quote.

The challenge is always the timeline.

Technically 6 weeks should be enough.

Hacking 3 days

Tiling approx. 7 to 10 days.

Some of these can be done concurrently : Plastering, piping & toilet fittings installation, cabinets & wardrobe ( abt a week to fabricate ) , rewiring, painting, installing wardrobe & cabinets ( about 3 days ), windows & grilles installation, aircon installation ( 2days )

All you need is a good main con who can supervise a few sub con in at the same time.

Allan told me after tiling, his men will be up to measure cabinets + rewiring n piping at the same time.

If everything is per scheduled, tiling should complete by end of next week.

See how it goes. so when you intend to end reno and shift in ?

Edited April 10, 2010 by purecat

[purecat 0]

Renovation Week 2 Continues

Photos taken on 10 Apr

Lintel ( basically the portion above the original door are now sealed ) completed, Door frame were up. So the blue blue thingy earlier is for holding the lintel.

More sand on the common bedrooms, tiling for floor will be next week.

To show the new height of the water proofing for the toilet side walls.

Master BedRoom Floors barely started.