Our Cosy Hideout!

[lancified 3]

Hi lancified, did u use T5 tube?

Hi Yeocando, I used t5 originally but realised the lights are not even, certain spots brighter than the rest. Also it is harder to mount as they are heavier. Eventually I changed to 3528 led strip warm white colour with water proofing. Very even lighting, easy to mount cause its very light, use double sided tape can liao. Its cheap, $20+ for 5 meters and uses a fraction of the electricity used by T5 tubes.

[lancified 3]

Everything's looking good, lancified. A few minor hiccups which are resolved switfly. congrats! When is the final handover date?

Thats the bad part, my ID is so busy with other projects that he is neglecting mine. So no handover date so far. Already late by 10 days.

I have given my ID an ultimatum, if no handover by Thursday, I will deduct $100 per day off the last 10% payment. See what he says.

The recent updates were all done by myself, as I can't sit and wait for the ID to do his work. Later on still going back to install handles for my sideboard, install side makeup shelf and maybe fix the common toilet shower tap selector which is damaged by his plumber.

[lancified 3]

Hi there! Mind share all the contacts? Thank you

Hi,

I really love how your house reno turn out to be especially the beautiful blinds that you bought from Korea.

Mind to share all your ID contact and places you bought all your stuff from? Thank you and have an awesome Christmas in your new home!

Abby

I will list everything out here, lazy to PM one by one

Lights:

Tampoi Lighting Centre Sdn. Bhd

No.2,4&6 Jalan Titiwangsa 3/1, Taman Tampoi Indah 81200 JB

M1 Lighting

No. 22 Jalan Indah Satu, Taman Bukit Indah, 79100 Nusajaya JB

LED strips for mood lighting (local supplier, cheap and provide delivery):

http://list.qoo10.sg/item/MEGA-SALE-70-DISCOUNT-3528-5050/407342594

Kitchen/bathroom accessories:

Pro-Field Home & Living Sdn Bhd

5&7, Jalan Titiwangsa 3, Taman Tampoi Indah, 81200 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia.

Aldeco Living (higher quality bathroom/kitchen products)

Go to http://www.aldeco.com.my/inquires/ for their branches addresses.

Light in the box (for designer taps and faucets direct from China)

http://www.lightinthebox.com/

Curtains and blinds:

Combi roller blinds from korea

http://list.qoo10.sg/item/ROLLER-BLIND-BLACKOUT-ROMAN-VENETIAN/406118278

AA Curtains (local supplier and installer, very knowledgeable, helped me choose a correct texture for my U-shape track)

Aaron, 91006974 (say Eugene from sengkang recommend for discount)

Electrical appliances:

EJ @ AMK

Mustafa centre (some things are really cheaper! just make sure to check for warranty, as some are export sets)

Others:

King Furnishing (sofa)

Star furniture (dining table set)

Posturecare Gallery (Bed with storage frame)

IKEA (sideboard, makeup shelf, study tables and chairs - the chairs come with rubber wheels so it does not scratch my timber flooring)

[lancified 3]

Finally! Official handover tonight at 7pm! Can't wait!

[Sygnur 0]

Wohooo!!! Congrats!!

[alexng 0]

Can you please share the contact with me. Thank you

[Charmainecc 0]

Hi Lancified,

Congratulations!

My house reno started since 6 weeks ago and supposed to hand over this week but nothing much was done. Only False ceiling, partial electrical & pelmet for sliding glass door @ kitchen have been done up. Still pending for carpentry works, fan installation, glass door @ kitchen, mirror @ MBR, painting, Windown grill & window glass installation. Angry!

We were really dissapointed with our ID.

When i sms/called him that i will go down during kitchen & fixture wall installation. I was questioned the reason for appearing during installation as he & his workers don't feel comfortable with my existence and said that if i do not trust him till now,we better end here and asked me to look for another ID. Was **** angry about his replied. Paid about 55% of reno and i could not afford any further delay. I told him i have to move in next week. He didn't even bother to advise a definite completion date even though i have been asking so many times.

If i argue, then he would threaten that he would not want to do, ask me to get someone else. I have been suffering in silence, dare not say anything. Only sms him to ask, ask , ask to provide with exact completion date but never replied.

If i call him i am worried i would lose control and ending up quarreling. Then, my reno will be gone with big hole and suffering again for searching ID to clear the back-log this ID left out.

All brothers & sisters, how shall i deal with such case?

[lancified 3]

Hi Lancified,

Congratulations!

My house reno started since 6 weeks ago and supposed to hand over this week but nothing much was done. Only False ceiling, partial electrical & pelmet for sliding glass door @ kitchen have been done up. Still pending for carpentry works, fan installation, glass door @ kitchen, mirror @ MBR, painting, Windown grill & window glass installation. Angry!

We were really dissapointed with our ID.

When i sms/called him that i will go down during kitchen & fixture wall installation. I was questioned the reason for appearing during installation as he & his workers don't feel comfortable with my existence and said that if i do not trust him till now,we better end here and asked me to look for another ID. Was **** angry about his replied. Paid about 55% of reno and i could not afford any further delay. I told him i have to move in next week. He didn't even bother to advise a definite completion date even though i have been asking so many times.

If i argue, then he would threaten that he would not want to do, ask me to get someone else. I have been suffering in silence, dare not say anything. Only sms him to ask, ask , ask to provide with exact completion date but never replied.

If i call him i am worried i would lose control and ending up quarreling. Then, my reno will be gone with big hole and suffering again for searching ID to clear the back-log this ID left out.

All brothers & sisters, how shall i deal with such case?

Hi Charmainecc,

Sorry to hear that your reno is not going as planned.

The only way to proceed, given the fact that you have paid more than 1/2 of the reno cost, is to review all the documentation signed by both parties and find fault. Suing them wont help since you need money to even open a case to sue, and adding lawyer fees and legal fees will amount up to too much.

I would suggest u look at the signed schedule/timetable, payment schedules and invoices/receipts.

Look at the schedule and match it with the work done. Determine if the ID is late in his delivery.

Next, look at the payment schedules and match with your invoices. Is your payment on-time or late?

If your ID is late in delivery, and provided you are on-time or advance in your payments, you have a case.

Soft approach:

I would suggest you halt all payments, and inform your ID that you need to have a meeting with him.

Ask him why works are delayed. If he really cannot do the work in time, ask him for a revised schedule. You might need to give in to his demands such as being late for 2weeks from the original handover date. This is better for both yourself and your ID and will probably make the ID like you more and thus do your place faster.

Hard approach:

If he does not agree to the soft approach, or he does not even want to meetup, you need to go hard on him. Be prepared that your reno will be indefinitely delayed.

With all your documentation and proof that he is not delivering what was in the quotation and contract, head to CASE. They will be able to help you in such cases. Also, make use of social media, print media such as Straits Times, newpaper, today, as well as this forum and other similar forums to expose the ID and the company. Hopefully it will catch the eyes of other homeowners who had signed up with them to step forward and take action. You can also go directly to the boss of the company (provided your ID is not the boss) and lodge a complain and request for another ID. If they threaten to ask you to find another ID, ask them to take back their false ceilings and refund you completely. Give them $500 for the 3D drawings for work done.

I wish you all the best.

Edited December 6, 2012 by lancified

[Charmainecc 0]

Hi Lancified,

I sms the ID many times but he refused to give me an exact date as he already knew that he could not make it.

I called him as could not tolerate anymore. He kept asking me not to pressurise him. I said i did not but in fact i need to know exactly as need to schedule my time.

We did not sign the invoice. Now i think back this probably is he tactic, to avoid any further legal issues, everything is verbal. We paid him when we confirmed the engaged him and had made known to him that must hand over within 6 weeks, max time limit. Now prolong for at least another 2 to 3 weeks.

Very angry.

[lancified 3]

Hi Lancified,

I sms the ID many times but he refused to give me an exact date as he already knew that he could not make it.

I called him as could not tolerate anymore. He kept asking me not to pressurise him. I said i did not but in fact i need to know exactly as need to schedule my time.

We did not sign the invoice. Now i think back this probably is he tactic, to avoid any further legal issues, everything is verbal. We paid him when we confirmed the engaged him and had made known to him that must hand over within 6 weeks, max time limit. Now prolong for at least another 2 to 3 weeks.

Very angry.

Aiyo, that's bad. If you don't have quotation/schedule/payment/invoice signed off by both parties, you dont really have a case since it's words vs words. Go to court also not necessary win. The average acceptable delay is 1-2 weeks. If delay until 3 weeks, try to put your situation to him. Say you need to move in else you got no place to stay - this is caused by him since he was the one who promised delivering on week 6. Make him pay for your lodging. Normally once you do that, they will deliver before the 2nd week of delay so that they don't have to pay for your lodging.

Wish you all the best!

[lancified 3]

Hi all,

I've posted this in another t-blog, so I'm copying it here to share knowledge on ceiling fans.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi,

Just to advise a little on the KDK fan gap, by right it will not cause wobbling. The cone shape cover is just a cover for the ugly screws, mounting bracket and rod on the ceiling. Even without the cone cover, the fan should not wobble.

For your case, the wobbling should be caused by 2 things:

1) too close the to beams. Blade fans "cut" through the air in 2 directions, down and up. This way, air will be pushed downwards. However, air that is on top of the blade, will be pushed upwards. When air hits the beam, it rebounds back and clashes with the upcoming air, which causes a mini turbulence and that forces the blade which is there to wobble. This shakes the middle pole and causes every other thing to wobble.

2) Weak mounting points. If you undo the cone cover, u can examine the mounting bracket and screw points. Use your hand to touch the screws to make sure that they are tight, and hold the bracket with both hands and try to shake it. The bracket SHOULD NOT move at all. If it does move, u have 2 choices - Use a shorter but similar diameter screw to replace the current screws, or deepen the screw hole by drilling higher so that the screw can be screwed all the way in. The bracket should be not moving once done. Also check on the rubber/metal U-shape holder than holds the centre rod of the ceiling fan. The metal should not have cracks and the rubber should not be torn. This rubber is to absorb small movements of the fan due to external forces such as wind. If this rubber has perish or torn, the fan will vibrate vigorously.

The design of the fan makes a huge difference too. I don't understand the hype about KDK. When i look at the internal mechanics of the fan, it was built for performance. The motor powers the blades and also the centre rod, which explains why the cone cover is so big. This in turn gives excellent speed. The blades are angled more so that they cut steeper in air which explain why KDK fans produce stronger wind and has a further reach. However, these advantages have their disadvantages too. There are too many movable parts such as the blades, motor, rod. More movement = more vibration. Look at those KDK fans in coffee shops, the whole fan is swaying round and round at maximum speed. Also, there is only 1 safety catch. If the fan breaks apart, it will fall as the only safety catch is attached to the motor/rod only.

For myself, I choose Elmark due to the low noise levels and additional safety mechanisms. If the motor/blade falls, it will be captured by the lower safety cover. If the rod falls, the default safety catch will hold it. The fan is metal, which is harder and have less flex at high speed = lesser vibrations. The blade angles are also adjusted to cut lesser air. This translate to lesser wind speed with lesser wind reach, but even at max speed, the fan is rock stable. The motor powers the blades ONLY so even in operation, u can put your hands at the bottom safety cover or the centre rod as they dont move at all.

I find this very important cause I always got burn/cut by my old KDK fan when I was a child staying with my parents. Everytime I yawn and stretch my arms, I will need the first aid box. So for my new place, I dont want my future kids to have cuts all over too.

[bleucheeze 1]

Hi Lancified, how's the kitchen sink serving you so far?

I'm planning to visit Aldeco to check out their sinks. Is your kitchen sink Alcor System SUS304? Did you buy your kitchen tap there as well? Thanks in advance!

[Yeocando 0]

Hi Yeocando, I used t5 originally but realised the lights are not even, certain spots brighter than the rest. Also it is harder to mount as they are heavier. Eventually I changed to 3528 led strip warm white colour with water proofing. Very even lighting, easy to mount cause its very light, use double sided tape can liao. Its cheap, $20+ for 5 meters and uses a fraction of the electricity used by T5 tubes.

Hi lancified,

I m really interested in doing the DIY u did. Can u elaborate on how to do it? Did u stick the led strip to something before mounting it on something? Did u use a diffuser?

Also is it bright enough for doing make up if I use white light?

Thanks!

[sherting 5]

hi,

Mind sharing ur contact? I am in the mist of doing my shopping as well.

Thanks!!

Bravo!You are really resourceful in getting items at good rates without compromising on quality for your home! So you get all the kitchen sink/tap @ 1/3 price from online? Is the shipping exp? What is the address for EJ@AMK? How do you order for your korean blind? Is it similar to getting items from TaoBao?

[sherting 5]

Bravo!You are really resourceful in getting items at good rates without compromising on quality for your home! So you get all the kitchen sink/tap @ 1/3 price from online? Is the shipping exp? What is the address for EJ@AMK? How do you order for your korean blind? Is it similar to getting items from TaoBao?