diy Top @Kew Drive

[Ks Toh 74]

We finished our rather major renovations few months back but just found time to share some pictures. We engaged an ID but in the end, he was doing mainly the wet works (hacking, cementing, marble, tiles, electrical, plumbing etc) and playing more the role of a project co-ordinator. We engaged specialist contractors directly for many parts of the works (cabinets, kitchen, wardrobe, glass works, painting, landscape, pond etc) with my better half doing a lot of the "interior designing" herself!

The result is not too bad. Learnt quite a number of things which we can share. This will also serve as a record of our renovation journey. Please excuse me if my posts are not in chronological order, "terbalik" or all over the place.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Living Room, Vertical Garden, Indoor Koi Pond
Ceiling Fans and Dining Area
White Dry Kitchen
Black Wet Kitchen
Storeroom & Bomb Shelter Racks

Yard
Toilets Part 1 including Japanese washlet (bidet)
Decking - Glass, Chengai & Accoya
Roof Terrace Part 1
Useful Renovation Tips

Auntie Painters Part 1
Web Cameras Part 1
Vertical Garden
Wardrobes & Cabinets
Burmese Green Vases Part 1

Wood Tiles for Kitchen & Yard
Toilets Part 2
White Marble Selection & Laying
Marble Polishing
Not My Job

Pole System Wardrobe
Web Cameras Part 2
Roof Terrace Part 2
Water Outlets
Pest Control Part 1

Koi Pond Part 1
Burmese Green Vases Part 2
DIY Tips
DIY Sanding & Staining Wooden Bench
DIY Lock Change

LED Down Lights
Cove Lights & LED Strip Lights
LED Wall LIghts
LED Track Lights
LED Flood Lights

LED Table Lamps
DIY - Basic Tools for Every Home
DIY - Drilling & Fixing Things on Walls
DIY - Drilling into Tiles (Marble, Ceramic etc)
Wall Art

Wall Prints
Brianform Sofa
Philips Smart TV
YouTube Karaoke
Philips Sound Bar

Naos Action Table
Elan Dining Table
Bubbles Mirror
Arco Lamp
Eileen Gray Side Table E1027

Barcelona Chair
Ikea's Egg Chair
Bubble Chair
Horse Lamp
Toto WC

Auntie Painters Part 2
Air Conditioners
Outdoor Furniture
Laundry Area
Nurseries @Jln Lekar (Lim Chu Kang)

Frangipani Tree
Network Cabling Part 1
Chinese New Year 2014
Side by Side Refrigerator Part 1
LED Lights Driver

Ladders
My Toys
Steam Cleaners
Buying Fans from JB
Shower Area Kerb / Drop

Removing Stains from Marble
Side by Side Refrigerator Part 2
Broadband Speed Test
Koi Pond Part 2
Bringing Frangipani Tree up to Roof Terrace

Potted Plants
Nurseries @Bedok South Road
Water Pump Change
Instant Water Heater v Storage Heater
Types of Water Heaters

Another Pump Bites the Dust
Articulated TV Wall Mount
Alkaline Water
Potted Plants - Lechuza Sub-Irrigation System
Posting to Blog with Pictures via Mobile

Leaking Roofs
Inter-Floor Water Seepage
Spalling Concrete
LPG Gas from Union Gas
Sudden Storm

Optical Glass Cracked
Power Trips
Water Leak in Hollow Polycarbonate Roof
LPG Gas from Tan Brothers
Little Giant LadderMulti Purpose & Telescopic Ladder
Digital TV
CATV Signal Amplifier
Wall Mounted TV and Soundbar - Concealing the Wires
Tiny House on Wheels

Slow Juicers - Hurom, Kuvings, Hyundai
Manual Slow Juicers
Nurseries @Bah Soon Pah Rd (off Sembawang Rd)
Recycling
Chinese New Year 2015

Long Reach Prunner (Fruit Picker)
Fire Extinguishers
DIY Sub-Irrigation System (Self Watering/Draining)
Tap Timer
Hose Bib Fertilising System

Smoke Detectors
National Day (and Durian Party) 2015
Gas Detector
Power Trip
Mooncake Festival 2015

Cooker Hoods in Ventilation (Evacuation) Mode
Cooker Hoods in Recycling Mode

D-Link IP Cameras
Electrical Overloading
Ants, Ants, Ants
Exercise Equipment

Virtual Private Network (VPN)
Network Cabling Part 2
Crimping RJ45 Connector
Intruder Caught on Camera!
Herb Garden

Civet Cat Came Visiting Again
Gas v Electric Water Heaters in Singapore
Parrot came Visiting (subsequently established to be a Macaw)
Changing Broken Window Handle or Lock
Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum Cleaner
Accoya Wood Flooring Problem

iRobot Braava 380t Floor Mopping Robot
Xiaomi Mi Robot Voice Packs (Including English)

UPDATES FROM MARCH 2018

Vertical Garden Systems
DIY Vertical Garden (Green Wall) with Automatic Irrrigation
Xiaomi Roborock Robot Vacuum & Mop (Generation 2)
4 Versons of Xiaomi Mi Robot

UPDATES FROM JUNE 2021

DIY Vertical Garden
DIY Insect Screen for Mosquitoes and Other Insects

 

Edited June 26, 2021 by Ks Toh

[Ks Toh 74]

First, pictures of my living area. Highlight would be the indoor koi pond right in the middle with a vertical garden which extends to my 3rd floor. Previously, this was an airwell enclosed with sliding glass doors.

This was what the place looked like during renovations.

On how my vertical garden works, read here.

As to how I reach my fan and vertical garden, check out my write-up on ladders.

Edited August 10, 2014 by kstoh

[Ks Toh 74]

One good thing I did was to install ceiling fans (in addition to air-con) everywhere. Often, you just want a fan to cool things down, and do not want to turn on the aircon. It is quite untidy to place standing fans all over. However, the installation of the ceiling fan in the living area proved to be a challenge. My ceiling here is 6.09m with another 0.21m false ceiling.

Originally, we wanted a Haiku but the new agent in Singapore raised the price to an unreasonable level. I also found out subsequently that for Haikus, the rod is fixed length. The agent then recommended me the Big A.S.S. Fan (the type you see at MRT stations). I needed to engage a PE to oversee the installation! He must be mad.

In the end, we settled for the Vento Uragano. Really good choice. Good wind. Quiet.

I had to rent a scaffold to allow the installer to reach the ceiling. Two installers were needed as this fan (together with rod) was also heavy. I had specified a 9 feet rod, which (together with fan motor's 1 foot) would have put the fan at a respectable 10 feet from the ground. The supplier brought only a 6 feet rod, claiming this is the longest they have. So, now I have a very long ladder (10 steps) and this barely allows me to touch the blades for cleaning. Is there is fan blade cleaning rod?

P.S. I have since bought an even taller ladder, the Little Giant Ladder. Read about my ladders here.

Although fan came with remote control, installer advised me against using it as the remote receiver is at the base of the fan at ceiling level. So, if there is something wrong with the remote, I have to rent scaffolding to reach it. So, we installed the simple regulator switch which apparently can last a long time.

This is the dining area. At our previous place, we could only sit a maximum of 8 persons around our table comfortably. This time, we went for a glass table which could sit 8 persons normally but extendable at both ends to sit up to 14. Unfortunately, if we extend both ends, the place is a bit cramped, so we normally extend only one end, which means we sit a maximum of 12 persons.

This area is one where our viewpoints clashed with our ID's. He insisted on a hanging light and almost fainted when we wanted a fan with a light. Nobody puts a fan above the dining table, he said. The food will get cold. Anyway, we ignored him and chose the Vento Libellula for the fan here. The design is nice and the two blade is unique. Specifications looked ok, but unfortunately, the wind is lacking. Not a good buy. Originally, I wanted the Vento Sole here. Not sure if it would have been better. Both fans give us wind and light.

Edited November 15, 2015 by Ks Toh

[Ks Toh 74]

Our dry kitchen is totally white.

During construction:

Markings were done by me to tell electrician the points for:

1. Cove lights
2. 2x13A, switches for hob, hood, cove lights
3. Hood
4. Cove lights
5. 2x13A
6. Built-in oven, standalone oven
7. Hob (30A)
8. 13A (water purifier) under counter

Note the opening in the wall for my duct out cooker hood. More information on duct out cooker hoods here.

My contractor for kitchen cabinets, TV console, dining cabinets & all wardrobes. OPSH. You can also check out their blog HERE.

Edited December 14, 2015 by Ks Toh

[Ks Toh 74]

This is our wet kitchen in our yard. The colour scheme is basically black.

The usual way, which is what our ID wanted to do, is to build the structure with a big space below, and to put sliding doors there. However, my wife insisted on this design, with doors that open outwards.

Note the number of LPG cylinders left behind by the previous occupier. I made the mistake of returning them to the LPG supplier when I moved in. Do you remember that when you first buy the LPG, you have to place a deposit for the cylinder? I thought I could get back a handsome amount of deposits but the supplier asked me for the deposit receipts! Without the receipt, I think he paid me only $5 or less each. But when I subsequently had to buy one for my BBQ set, I had to pay much more!

Read my complaint about LPG Gas supplier here.

Edited August 10, 2014 by kstoh

[mark 0]

very nice, high ceiling rock

[blackainmamba 2]

Our dry kitchen is totally white.

If you want to know the material used for our dry kitchen, you can check out our kitchen contractor's blog HERE.

Hi kstoh, how is ur dry kitchen so far.. Any maintenance issues? Im also going for the same type of kitchen as recommended by my contractor...

[CullTail 0]

The vertical garden and koi pond is a very impressive centrepiece of your living room.

[Ks Toh 74]

Thanks mark & CullTail.

Hi blackainmamba, which aspect are you referring to? Because we have a wet kitchen, we don't do heavy cooking here. But at our previous place, we also has a similar kitchen where we did heavy cooking. Maintenance is no different from any other kitchen.

[blackainmamba 2]

Thanks mark & CullTail.

Hi blackainmamba, which aspect are you referring to? Because we have a wet kitchen, we don't do heavy cooking here. But at our previous place, we also has a similar kitchen where we did heavy cooking. Maintenance is no different from any other kitchen.

the OPSH cabinets... It looks soo good...

[Pororo27 0]

Oh I love your vertical garden feature. very impressive. I wonder if your ID or contractor is willing just to do this project ? I am looking for a simple vertical garden but I prefer it to be artifical rather than real plants.

[Ks Toh 74]

Hi Pororo27, my vertical garden was done by the vertical garden contractor. My ID and contractor do not know how to do it. I am not sure if those vertical garden companies will do one with artificial plants. In any event, I think it is not worth paying them to do one with artificial plants. If your wall is not too big, why not try to DIY? You go to the nurseries and you can find artificial plants with the base mat. Just ask your contractor to mount them to the wall, or maybe you can do yourself?

Edited October 19, 2013 by kstoh

[Ks Toh 74]

I got http://www.yee-sin.com to construct racks in my bomb shelter / storeroom. Simple but it does its job. Holds 200 to 250 kg uniformly distributed load per panel.

Edited November 9, 2015 by Ks Toh

[Ks Toh 74]

The rest of the things that cannot go into the storeroom goes to the yard. This is also the washing, drying and ironing area.

From this:

To this:

To this:

Edited November 11, 2013 by kstoh

[Ks Toh 74]

This is the master bedroom toilet. The other toilets are similar except smaller.

All my toilets use white marble for walls and black granite for floors. I know many people will say that you cannot use marble/granite for floors as it is very slippery. But for many years, I have used marble or granite for floors without any problems. If you keep it reasonably dry, it is ok. Even if it is wet a little, it is still ok.

From this:

To this:

Every since I went Japan and fell in love with the Japanese toilets, I have installed Japanese bidets for all my toilets. I use the Toto WC with Toto washlet. Once you use them, you will feel very uncomfortable using a WC without the water spray function.

The kind of Japanese toilet seats we install in Singapore do not need any power supply. You just need a water supply (can tap from the WC water supply or separate valve as in my case). The water pressure (as you adjust the knob) controls the spray head, bringing it in and out, and adjusting the force of the spray. You just need to find a suitable washlet to fit the size and shape of your WC.

Mine works something like this:

But of course you need a power supply if want one of those top of the line models like this:

Edited November 14, 2013 by kstoh