Telok Blangah Heights

[pressuntilshiok 0]

While reviewing the wall tiles in the toilet, realized that some of the corner tiles were slightly chipped or were laid unevenly (resulting in an uneven grout line). Feedbacked this to Judy and she promptly replied that Uncle Cai will rectify them the next working day. Hope this is just a minor blip in what is only the beginning of the tiling process.

Any experienced RT users keen to share their experience? Is this a common problem faced by homeowners when it comes to wall tiling?

[Gazingstarz 0]

While reviewing the wall tiles in the toilet, realized that some of the corner tiles were slightly chipped or were laid unevenly (resulting in an uneven grout line). Feedbacked this to Judy and she promptly replied that Uncle Cai will rectify them the next working day. Hope this is just a minor blip in what is only the beginning of the tiling process.

Any experienced RT users keen to share their experience? Is this a common problem faced by homeowners when it comes to wall tiling?

I had the same encounter particularly with the white smooth surfaced tiles as it's obvious they protrude out. I insisted to replace those pieces that are at shower area.

Strangely for the non smooth surfaced, the protrusion wasn't that obvious.

[pressuntilshiok 0]

Tiling of house close to completion, left with kitchen and parquet in the rooms. Am glad that Uncle managed to resolve some issues over the cracked tiles and the unevenness of the grout lines. Even the living hall was completed, but since it was already covered with cardboard - I really couldn't tell or spot if there was any issues to highlight.

Electrical quotation came in and boy was it costly. For labour to change all switches and sockets in the house as well as to replace wires for the living lighting points (~15 points), bill initially came up to SGD2245 before we removed some points and reduced it to SGD1995, which was more palatable. Think a lesson learnt is that regardless of anything, always get the per unit cost (or if better, the total quotation) from your contractor/ID before commencing electrical works. For those who can get one lump sum bao ka liao - that's even better!

Oh yeah, and managed to get Legrand mallia sockets/points at a very good price from Feng Sheng Electric (Veerasamy Rd - look for Ah Guang) . Think after all the calling and the visiting of stores, this is one of the cheapest (except for the water heater switch, which I purchased from Choo Chiang instead).

Some pictures to update.

[pressuntilshiok 0]

It's been quite a while since I updated the progress of the renovations.

So much has happened over the past 2 weeks with ups and downs but overall, I think progress has been good. Next big thing will be carpentry and I have utmost confidence that their work will be good, having discussed the details with Ah Zhong the carpenter.

First, a chronology of events:

Aircondition guys came to do the pipes and trunking and I had chosen to go with a family contact from Quality Home Appliances who was strongly recommended by my parents and uncles/aunties (thanks to their good after-sales service which is true). After the whole episode, I had some reservations about their workers. Though the workmanship was still acceptable, comparatively, I believe it had deteriorated over time due to the influx of FTs. While previous teams I encountered had a local/Malaysian overseeing the execution, this time round, it was an Indian supervising a Chinese national and an Indonesian. To be fair, the Indian team leader did a good job and he understood the standards I was looking out for. Like most homeowners, it had to be neat and tidy, to use complete lengths of trunking when necessary and not do a piecemeal job. But I could not say the same for the Chinese worker as he was rude, sloppy and threw tantrums when asked to re-do something.

Another problem arose when the workers drilled too low for the drainage pipe. Apparently, when the water flows into the toilet, the hole for the pipe has to be at least 3 inches above ground level otherwise it will affect the waterproofing. Judy had explained that most aircon guys would know this but unfortunately, mine weren't aware. As a result, they had to drill 2 holes - which meant that the tiles had to be replaced. Earlier, they had also mistakenly drilled another hole, only to realize that the door couldn't open. They had also missed out filling holes from the previous aircon and making good the areas which had silicon remnants from the previous trunking...this was only rectified the next day when I requested for them to plaster up the holes that they had created.

Some pictures:

The hole that was mistakenly drilled

Master bedroom trunking (Probably the easiest and neatest of the lot)

The enormous hole in the toilet

The drainage hole that was too low

Another hole that was too low

[pressuntilshiok 0]

Apart from the fact that my place had numerous structural beams which made it a hassle to install aircon, it was also crooked everywhere. The ceiling was unbalanced, slanted from one end to another (by a difference of >1 inch), the walls weren't exactly straight which makes me wonder: where is the QC from HDB? How can they even allow the contractors to get away with such visibly major flaws?

After the aircon guys were done, the guys who did the false ceiling came next and thankfully, they helped to smoothen the areas that had been patched up by the aircon workers. But the bad news was - due to the uneven ceiling, my L-box would exhibit some of the unbalance as well (i.e. one end bigger than the other). Thankfully, the workers were all either Singapore PRs and Malaysians which made it much easier to communicate. They even shared with me some of the projects that they had done in Sentosa cove and one house was even modeled after Angry Birds!!

Aircon drainage pipe the way it is supposed to be

False ceiling in the Master Bedroom

Cove lighting in the Living Area (notice the slight imbalance on the left and right?)

From the other side (also imbalanced)

Partition for the wardrobe in the Master Bedroom

Edited September 19, 2012 by pressuntilshiok

[pressuntilshiok 0]

Following the completion of the false ceiling, the painter came to continue his work. Was happy that our choice of neutral colours turned out quite nice. Sandstone and Misty was used for the Master while Forever Blue was used for the future baby room and Grey Squirrel for the study as well as kitchen. Workmanship of painter (Ah Huat) was generally good but I think his tendency to rush through the job (because he had accepted too many) left certain areas unevenly painted. Parquet guys also came over to lay the parquet but it'll only be varnished 10 days later so that the glue can be allowed to dry.

Sandstone & Misty in Master

Master from another angle

Forever Blue in Bedroom

[pressuntilshiok 0]

Tomorrow will be acid wash day and hence, all the debris in the house was finally cleared which allowed me to review the workmanship of the living room tiles. Happy to say that first impressions were very good, overall very neat and well aligned. Will revisit it after the grout lines have been patched up.

Part of the glass works for the two toilets were also up. Glass doors and fixed panels were cut to size and fitted well. Only misgiving was the installation of the glass door locks where some of the parts were missing and this resulted in a less 'smooth' twisting of the knob (ball-bearing inside was missing). Today, Uncle Hui (plumber) is also down to fix the pipes and WC. Hopeful that everything goes well. Meanwhile, some more picture:

Living room view - cleared of debris

LED downlights up in the Master Bedroom (cool white)

Other room which was painted in Grey Squirrel

Glass panel in Master Bath

[pressuntilshiok 0]

Need help from RT Forumers:

There are some interesting 'stains'/'marks' on the wall despite a few coats of paint.

While it may look like a water mark, truth is there isn't any pipes running inside the whole. Moreover, when brushed using bare hands, the texture feels different from a normal painted wall. Any reasons why the mark remains even after paining numerous layers? My contractor is baffled and so am I.

Here are how they look like: