Let's Go Punggol!

[WhiteCookie 0]

Heya beng, one tip i would like to share with you. Try to replace t5 tube for led strips! They will not have any blackout spots inbetween tubes.

[juxstapose 2]

Does beds.sg have a shop to let people try out their matresses?

[mrmerry 2]

Wa why your id let the aircon guy do the trunking untill likddat . Id have to ensure where it goes if not it will affect the whole look .

[Bengologist 1]

Just dropping by. Happy reno too!

Hi Niko,

Thanks for dropping by. Have an awesome week! Yeah!

[Bengologist 1]

Heya beng, one tip i would like to share with you. Try to replace t5 tube for led strips! They will not have any blackout spots inbetween tubes.

Hey WhiteCookie,

Thanks for the tip! I will heed that advice and try to replace t5 tube with led strips where possible. Thanks thanks!

Have a fantastic week! Woohoo!

[Bengologist 1]

Does beds.sg have a shop to let people try out their matresses?

Hi juxstapose,

I have given them a call last time and was disappointed that they do not have any shop for people to try out their sofa or mattress. Hence, I took a risk and purchase them based on the reviews of the users. Hopefully the products are good.

It's worth a try since the prices are really very attractive!

I will leave a comment after my stuff arrived in June.

[Bengologist 1]

Wa why your id let the aircon guy do the trunking untill likddat . Id have to ensure where it goes if not it will affect the whole look .

Hi mrmerry,

I have no much choice. The technician told me that in order to ensure that the air-con system can last for the next 10 years and doesn't rust within (he uses more technical terminology), I got to do it in that manner. However I really did not expect it to turn out this ugly.

I have just consulted my ID last weekend and he proposed a feature wall to cover the trucking totally. But the issue is if there's any problem with the air-con piping, I have to remove the whole feature wall for piping repair work. I'm now in heavy discussion with him on how to create a solution to beautify the wall without compromising the trunking of the air-con pipes. Sigh...

Edited May 13, 2013 by Bengologist

[jus4fun 4]

Hi bro, hv been following ur progress though no time lately to respond. Looks like shopping spree in full swing huh! Can feel all ur excitement. Best of all, applaud to ur efforts in penning dwn ur shopping experiences!

Sorry to say, but ur air-con trunking can indeed be done better. Perhaps that’s one of the risks of engaging own air-con contractor directly. But didn’t ur ID at least give u some pre-advice?

Typically, an air-con vendor/installer shd go down at least twice: 1st to do a site survey & discuss with the owner the optimal capacity for the hse (i learned that, for example, even a simple System-3 can have many combi of cooler units of different BTUs, hence the price variations), the best way to run the pipes & the best location of the units taking into consideration the layout, carpentry, aesthetics, etc.; then f/b installation on another day according to the reno progress. In my case, I was fortunate the vendor came thrice: install the pipes on the 2nd, then install the units on the 3rd after the painting & carpentry were completed.

Originally, I was thinking of engaging my own directly too but decided to go with my ID’s recommendation. Though not the cheapest in town it's comparable to the bigger names (including GC) & importantly it's almost a care-free process for me.. heng arh!

Sorry didn’t share this with u sooner but at least urs was done quite smoothly, compared to some horrible experiences by others.

Hope ur ID could provide some good after-solutions to u yah! Cheers!

Edited May 13, 2013 by jus4fun

[Bengologist 1]

Hi bro, hv been following ur progress though no time lately to respond. Looks like shopping spree in full swing huh! Can feel all ur excitement. Best of all, applaud to ur efforts in penning dwn ur shopping experiences!

Sorry to say, but ur air-con trunking can indeed be done better. Perhaps that’s one of the risks of engaging own air-con contractor directly. But didn’t ur ID at least give u some pre-advice?

Typically, an air-con vendor/installer shd go down at least twice: 1st to do a site survey & discuss with the owner the optimal capacity for the hse (i learned that, for example, even a simple System-3 can have many combi of cooler units of different BTUs, hence the price variations), the best way to run the pipes & the best location of the units taking into consideration the layout, carpentry, aesthetics, etc.; then f/b installation on another day according to the reno progress. In my case, I was fortunate the vendor came thrice: install the pipes on the 2nd, then install the units on the 3rd after the painting & carpentry were completed.

Originally, I was thinking of engaging my own directly too but decided to go with my ID’s recommendation. Though not the cheapest in town it's comparable to the bigger names (including GC) & importantly it's almost a care-free process for me.. heng arh!

Sorry didn’t share this with u sooner but at least urs was done quite smoothly, compared to some horrible experiences by others.

Hope ur ID could provide some good after-solutions to u yah! Cheers!

Hey just4fun,

thanks for dropping by again!

Yup, I should have consulted my ID before the installation. I have called him when I purchase the air-con system and arrange for him to be there during the installation so that he can provide advice but he brush it off saying that it won't affect the renovation since I'm not doing any wardrobes in the room.

Prior to the air-con installation, the Gain City technician had also gone through with me about the layout of the air-con cable trays and due to the fact that I cannot visualize how the final layout will look like, I gave the green light to him. I subsequently went out to take a walk around my neighbourhood and when I'm back, the air-con trunking has already been fixed up. I actually wanted them to make adjustment to the layout but the technicians are rushing back to Malaysia for the voting, so I told them it's okay to leave it like that. Hahaha...

Guess I have no choice but to think of an idea with my ID to make it aesthetically appealing while keeping the trunking layout intact.

Anyway thank so much for sharing the information with me. I won't be needing it but I'm hoping the others reading it will benefit from your wise words.

I will update this T-blog soon. Thanks for following it.

[Bengologist 1]

7th May 2013 - Window Grilles Installation Day!

By now, everyone who has been reading or following this T-blog will realise that I have a habit of commemorating every installation in the house as it symbolise a milestone in the renovation process.

The progress was much slower than what I have expected but nonetheless, I did not give too much pressure to my ID in meeting the deadline in fear of sub-standard work. However, I did reiterate my point to him that I would wish to move in before mid-June. Hahaha!

For the window grilles, instead of giving the job to my ID, I had sought grille specialist on my own so as to save 3rd party transaction cost. After a week of searching via this forum and flyers, I met up with Andy from Home Aluminium Metal Work. He was a nice chap (with bad time management) who is in this industry since the tender age of 19 years old and started this company not long ago. His quote was comparably much lower than what I received from my ID and he reassured me umpteen time that the workmanship will be satisfactory, therefore I awarded the job to him.

His worker went to install the grilles when I was busy churning out reports after reports in the office, so I only get to see the result after I visited my place in the late evening.

These are the pictures:-

1) View of the grilles in the Living Room

2) View of the grilles for the Master Bedroom

3) One of the few casement grilles

[Bengologist 1]

On top of the window grilles, I also found some "evidence" that the workers are indeed working on my renovation (although they are still guilty for the slow renovation progress).

1) City-gas pipeline installed

2) A close-up on the gas valve and its rubber tube

3) Bags of sand and tiles on the floor for the construction of the base for the kitchen cabinets, washing machine, fridge and also the shower kerb in the toilets.

4) Cardboards laid for the floor (that's my beautiful mom in the background. Happy Mother's Day to her again! )

Edited May 13, 2013 by Bengologist

[Bengologist 1]

11th May 2013

I head down to Harvey Norman @ Parkway Parade on this warm Saturday afternoon to meet up with my sister's boyfriend who is working as a promoter there. Took a walk around the store and purchased a few electrical appliances at very good prices (of course, these prices are only available after I seek "special help" from my him ).

Here are the loots (as for the damages, I guess it's a little inconvenient to share it here, apologies on that )

1) Tecno 3 Burners Hob (Model: T-333TG)

2) Tecno Slim Hood (The one which I had purchased is not in this picture but pretty similar to these)

3) Samsung Blu-Ray Home Theater System (it's an old model but the sound effect is much powerful than the new ones)

4) Samsung Soundbar (It's a new model which comes along with a wireless subwoofer, with vacuum tube built-in and 3D Sound Plus & Crystal Amplifier Plus. The salesman highly recommended this and after a few rounds of testing, it's indeed excellent. My ears are in for a splendid audio experience! Wooohoooooooo! )

5) Samsung full HD 3D 46" Smart LED TV (it's not available in the store, so I grab this picture from Harvey Norman's website).

Edited May 13, 2013 by Bengologist

[Bengologist 1]

13th May 2013

OMG OMG OMG! The 3D drawings for the kitchen and living room is finally out!

These are the pictures:-

1) The 3D drawing for the kitchen - The depth of the kitchen is not exactly as deep as what the picture suggest, although the layout and colour are very close to what I have chosen. Kudos for the effort!

2) The 3D drawing for the living room - With the exception of the L-box and ceiling fan, the rest of the picture is totally different from the actual idea. Firstly, the chosen colours were reflected on the wrong walls. Secondly, the furnitures I had purchased are mostly black in colour. Lastly, I did not do any TV feature or console. Therefore I rejected the picture and requested for a revised copy so that I can have a clearer idea about how my proposed living hall will look like.

As for the drawings for the bedrooms, my ID will only provide me in one week's time as I have made a sudden U-turn on my decision and requested him to install wardrobes in all three bedrooms (I'm such a terrible customer, hahahahahaha...)

[jus4fun 4]

13th May 2013

OMG OMG OMG! The 3D drawings for the kitchen and living room is finally out!

These are the pictures:-

1) The 3D drawing for the kitchen - The depth of the kitchen is not exactly as deep as what the picture suggest, although the layout and colour are very close to what I have chosen. Kudos for the effort!

2) The 3D drawing for the living room - With the exception of the L-box and ceiling fan, the rest of the picture is totally different from the actual idea. Firstly, the chosen colours were reflected on the wrong walls. Secondly, the furnitures I had purchased are mostly black in colour. Lastly, I did not do any TV feature or console. Therefore I rejected the picture and requested for a revised copy so that I can have a clearer idea about how my proposed living hall will look like.

As for the drawings for the bedrooms, my ID will only provide me in one week's time as I have made a sudden U-turn on my decision and requested him to install wardrobes in all three bedrooms (I'm such a terrible customer, hahahahahaha...)

hmm.. wonder why they gave u a 3D image of wat ur living hall is not eventually turning out to be.. mayb because they can't throw in images of ur own furnishing ba! ask them if wat u see is wat u get at no xtra cost.. kekeke!

so u decided to hv built-in wardrobes huh? (anything to do with ur air-con trunking? hope they not in ur way..) looks like the start of more VOs (variation orders) to come.. kekeke!

[Bengologist 1]

hmm.. wonder why they gave u a 3D image of wat ur living hall is not eventually turning out to be.. mayb because they can't throw in images of ur own furnishing ba! ask them if wat u see is wat u get at no xtra cost.. kekeke!

so u decided to hv built-in wardrobes huh? (anything to do with ur air-con trunking? hope they not in ur way..) looks like the start of more VOs (variation orders) to come.. kekeke!

Hahaha, maybe there's miscommunication between my ID and me or between him and his 3D artist about the furnitures, colours etc. Anyway he's going to amend the pictures at no additional cost and promise to give me within a few days.

I have decided to throw the wardrobes back into the renovation plan after visiting my new neighbour's house just below mine. Their wardrobes are skillfully done, so this prompt me to have custom-made wardrobes instead of buying them off the shelves.

I have just informed my ID to add in a shoe rack into the VO, guess he must be jumping mad at me for giving him so much work. Hahahahahahaha! !