The Diary Of A Wimpy House Owner

[Livinstyle 0]

Am using the electric mosquito and insect killer currently. Seems to work a little.

A stupid question.. what to do with the neem oil mixture? leave it around the house like essential oil or spray it at the mosquitoes?

Check the coverage stated for the electric insect killer. Think the small one only covers 100sqft, so probably has to place it around the sitting/sleeping area. Remembered seeing some that covers 400sqft of space.

No la, am also a neubie. The neem oil mixture, just spray it in your garden/plants and drains... they act as a pesticide. Recommended by gardening friends.

Oh btw, are you doing the bamboo screens for your side boundary as well? Or leaving it to your plants to act as a natural screen?

[wind30 2]

wow, at least it was tempered glass so no sharp edges when it shatter.

We have a glass sliding door at the family hall area... must be more careful. My 2 year old girl is not strong enough to open/close the door though...

We don't have a maid and my wife does all the housework so we seldom "dirty" the house.... The cleaning up of ovens look very tedious. We got the bosch induction hob and hood. The fridge we chose a Japanese brand as my wife says the european brands cannot take singapore climate. I wanted the bosch frdige but she has the last say for things in the kitchen.

I have a solution for insects and mosquitoes. Air con we almost never open any of our windows....

The handleless frosted glass door looks good but it came with a lesson learnt on balancing aesthetics and safety/practicality especially when we have young children. Originally, there was a long translucent rubber stopper along the edge of the glass door but ID said to remove it and replace with round rubber studs on the top and bottom of the glass door. Before the rubber studs were fixed, our super strong 2 year old tried to close the sliding door and this was the result of aesthetics over safety. Thank God he was not hurt.

We have replaced the frosted glass door and now we have a short strip pf rubber stopper at the top and bottom of the door. So far its working fine and everybody in the house is more carefully when opening and closing doors.

Yes, we also have the Bosch oven and steam oven. In fact, its a Bosch kitchen. The fridge and dishwasher also from Bosch. I agree with your wife....they do look good and can double up as deco pieces but its such a waste cos the ovens are also very easy to use. We are learning to bake currently starting with Betty Crocker idiot proof pre-made mix and my 11 year old has become the oven expert in the house. Grilling chicken, fish, chicken wings etc is also a breeze. If it is still too daunting, can also call Bosch to send someone down to give you a demo.

Edited October 18, 2010 by wind30

[Livinstyle 0]

BCA ruling for full length windows is 1m from ground, must be in tempered glass. Wonder why no such ruling for doors? Kind of weird logic.

[wind30 2]

I like your backyard. Do you have a contact for doing something similar?

We wanted to do something like this but ran out of budget at the end so that item was cut out. We were thinking of doing it later on as it is outdoors so hopefully not too messy...

Plantissimo

Our first foray into gardening. Plants at the back garden.

[Beeblebrox000 0]

GG,

You've really decorated your house well. It looks gorgeous!! Will it be featured in a magazine spread anytime soon?

Are your wooden stools and the dining table from d'bodhi?

BTW, thankfully your child wasn't hurt by the shattered glass door! It must have given him quite a shock. Hope you gave him a big cuddle after the incident.

Edited October 22, 2010 by Beeblebrox000

[whisky 0]

wow, at least it was tempered glass so no sharp edges when it shatter.

Tempered glass when shattered will have sharp edges and it will cut. But it is still safer than float glass in the sense that it shatters into small pieces so the cut will not be as serious.

[whisky 0]

BCA ruling for full length windows is 1m from ground, must be in tempered glass. Wonder why no such ruling for doors? Kind of weird logic.

If the glass acts as a barrier, ie it serves to prevent you from falling onto a lower level of more than 900mm, then it needs to be tempered.

Full height windows usually acts as a barrier; whereas for doors it doesnt.

[green giraffe 0]

You can try introducing China lemon grass/ Citronella because this plant could repel mosquitoes.

On the other hand, many species of insects feed on heliconia leaves. Maggots, bacteria and protozoans make their homes in pools of water in Heliconia bracts too.

Hope this info is useful for you. Cheers!

Thanks leechaorui. Will keep a look out for Maggots!!! and what nots among the plants. Maybe the Neem oil solution can help get rid of these scary things....Am delegating Gardening Portfolio to my brave husband with immediate effect.

[green giraffe 0]

Check the coverage stated for the electric insect killer. Think the small one only covers 100sqft, so probably has to place it around the sitting/sleeping area. Remembered seeing some that covers 400sqft of space.

No la, am also a neubie. The neem oil mixture, just spray it in your garden/plants and drains... they act as a pesticide. Recommended by gardening friends.

Oh btw, are you doing the bamboo screens for your side boundary as well? Or leaving it to your plants to act as a natural screen?

Okie Dokie, will spray the neem oil mixture instead of putting it around the house (silly me).

The initial idea was to have it along the back and side boundary but the shop ran out of stock. So now only one third of our side boundary has bamboo screen. The stocks have arrived but we are undecided now whether to get it to fill up the rest of the side boundary or leave the plants to act as a natural screen cos

a) the bamboo screen will last only about 2 years so it's a short term solution.

b) currently, our plants look very anaemic. They need lots of tender loving care and time to grow healthy and lush. We are not confident that we could nurture them to be lush enough to act as a natural screen given the dismay experience we had with our previous 2 small potted plants from ikea which died on us.

Sigh...still pondering on our options and have not bought the rest of the bamboo screen yet.

[green giraffe 0]

I like your backyard. Do you have a contact for doing something similar?

We wanted to do something like this but ran out of budget at the end so that item was cut out. We were thinking of doing it later on as it is outdoors so hopefully not too messy...

The backyard water fountain and outdoor platform were designed by my ID and the contractor did up according to her drawings. I can give you his contact if you want. Alternatively, you can engaged someone to do the water feature (Nature Co at Upp Thomson rd) and another supplier to do the outdoor decking. As for the plants, we engaged a gardener to buy and plant for us.

[green giraffe 0]

GG,

You've really decorated your house well. It looks gorgeous!! Will it be featured in a magazine spread anytime soon?

Are your wooden stools and the dining table from d'bodhi?

BTW, thankfully your child wasn't hurt by the shattered glass door! It must have given him quite a shock. Hope you gave him a big cuddle after the incident.

Hi Beeblebrox000,

Thanks for the compliments. So far nobody came knocking yet....not even the zoo (i thought our place was quite a nice abode for my monkeys and I've a nice dustbin for bears to rummage) or my kids school magazine. Jokes aside, there are lots of beautiful houses around... dont think ours is good enough for the mags, am happy enough to share with RT forummers.

Yes, my dining table, candle holder, wall lamp, bar stool and living room square stool are all from d-bodhi.

Bar stool at kitchen counter.

Really like their recycled wood furniture. Their new range is quite cool, wood with aluminum/steel with an industrial accent, i like!

The brave boy did get a shock but did not cry much. Hope no psychological damage is done.

[green giraffe 0]

What time is it, Mr Wolf?

A quarter clock in the kitchen. All visitors under 10 yrs will inevitably ask their parents why the clock stops at 3.

[everton 0]

What time is it, Mr Wolf?

A quarter clock in the kitchen. All visitors under 10 yrs will inevitably ask their parents why the clock stops at 3.

Errrr.... Why does the clock stop at 3? did the movers drop it?

[green giraffe 0]

Errrr.... Why does the clock stop at 3? did the movers drop it?

hi everton,

Nope...not the movers fault. It's a teaser clock. It reveals some numbers and you have to imagine the rest (definitely not child friendly). Am prepared to take the blame when my kids cant tell time by the age of 21. My dad asked me what's the purpose of buying a clock when you have to guesstimate the time. Good question dad. When i grow up i want to be as wise as you. But in the meantime, there's another "useless' clock in my house.

The Bird Nest clock. Not easy to tell the time from a distance cos of the crisscrossing wire but is a statement piece in the living room. Love it!

[Beeblebrox000 0]

OMG Green Giraffe!

I have the Juicy Salif too!

I'll be displaying it on a kitchen shelf once the (slow) contractor finishes building it. I bought it in April (have always wanted it - esp after the Men In Black II movie) but I haven't displayed it yet.

I bought it as a kitchen display piece - not as a functional thing. Do you actually use yours???

Edited October 24, 2010 by Beeblebrox000