Leon & Jenna Reno Experience

[leonjennawong 53]

Hahaha my sister was telling me that nowadays she don’t even need to talk to me about my house renovation anymore because she can just read everything right off my blog here at Renotalk… Wahahaha…

Anyway, today’s update will be on my CEILING FAN PURCHASES FROM JOHOR BAHRU!

My buddies #MrPW and #MrMuscleDF recommended me to buy my ceiling fans from this store in JB… As I have mentioned before (I think I have), CFO & I have decided to install ceiling fans for our living/dining area & for all 3 bedrooms.. So we’re going to have 4 ceiling fans in total.

OK so here’s the deal: I heard from my buddies that the ceiling fans in JB are so much cheaper that they can be up to as much as 50% savings off the price you get in Singapore due to the favourable exchange rate & lower cost of living in JB. This was and still is too good a deal to miss. Till then, CFO & I hardly ever go into Malaysia for anything; because we are so “sua-ku”, gullible and scared. We were too frightened by all the robbery/bribery stories that we heard, and what’s more, you are talking about venturing into an unfamiliar territory compounded by the fact that we have next-to-no grasp of Behasa Melayu… *eerie music in the background*

Oh well, I exaggerate. (But eh we really didn’t enter Malaysia that often one lei.)

#MrMuscleDF was nice enough to drive CFO & I in during a weekend (thank you to #MrsMuscleDF also for letting us have your hubby for the whole day HAHA. ) to allay some of our fears and to give us an orientation somewhat… We spent about close to 1.5 hours at the shop choosing and conversing with #CalvinTan & #Edgar about suitable designs... We were assisted by a nice young man called #Yan.. Recommend readers to go and ask for him if you do decide to pop by and take a look... hehe..

ADVICE FOR WOULD-BE JOHOR BAHRU VENTURISTS & BUYERS:

- Bring enough ringgit; because they apparently don’t take credit cards,

- SGD150 tax-free limit per person; if you are in JB for less than 24 hours. (e.g. if you have 4 people going in & out from JB to buy fans, you can purchase goods (no poultry hor) to a consolidated and maximum cost of SGD600 tax-free!!)

- Find out your maximum-allowed fan diameter & preferred colour from your ID first before you go in, so as to avoid having to pay roaming charges.

- Fan models sold in Malaysia are slightly different from those sold in Singapore. (e.g. You can get 48” KDK baby fans in Singapore, but the KDK Baby fans in JB only go up to 44”)

- Bring trolleys, or lorries, or cars, or muscle-men… ANYTHING that will help you heave those heavy-donkey fans WILL BE MUCH NEEDED. Wahahaha..

In total, we bought a total of 6 ceiling fans (bought 2 for my parents’ house cause the old ones were spoiling )… Exact ceiling fan models, pictures and price comparisons are duly stated below, ENJOY EVERYBODY!

TAMPOI LIGHTING CENTRE SHOP FRONT (despite the lack of the word 'fan' in their shop name, they. do. sell. fans.)

Address and Contact Number:

No. 2, 4 & 6, Jalan Titiwangsa 3/1,

Taman Tampoi Indah (Batu 6 1/2, Jalan Skudai)

81200 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia.

Tel: 607-241 8999/ 8990/ 8963

Fax: 607-241 9888

Email: tampoi@hotmail.com

1x white ELMARK AERONAMICS 56" CEILING FAN & 3x white KDK K11Z1 44" BABY FANS – Can't wait for them to be installed!! Elmark fan for the living/dining area & the other 3 KDK baby fans for all the bedrooms...

- Elmark Aeronamics 56" Ceiling Fan bought for SGD480 in JB compared to Singapore retailing at SGD600

- KDK 44" Baby Fan bought in JB for SGD140 each. This fan model is not available in Singapore, with the closest being the 48" KDK R48SP retailing in Singapore at SGD288. A little more than twice the price, for a meagre 4" more... I will take my 44" baby fan anytime... Yeah Baby. (pun totally intended)

SHOP ELMARK FAN IN ACTION – I had to exercise my ninja-esque reflexes to capture this rare footage of this grey Elmark fan within the shop because they apparently don't allow photos in there. Kenna scolded by one of the more senior employees. Hahahahaha...

GREY KDK V60WK 60” CEILING FAN FOR PARENTS – Installed in parents’ living room

- Costs SGD208 in JB compared to Singapore retailing at SGD563

SILVER KDK K11Z1 44” CEILING BABY FAN FOR PARENTS - Installed in parents’ study room

- Same model as what I got for my bedrooms... Bought in JB for SGD140 each, not retailing in Singapore.

CFO & I are indeed blessed to have friends like #MrMuscleDF and #MrPW to bring us into JB for this kind of lobang... I promised to share good lobangs here and in my opinion, this will help to reduce the tension on those purse strings of ours... CFO & I probably saved about SGD560 from ceiling fan purchases, which would go a long way...

OH WELL, IT'S LATE.

HAVE A GOOD & PRODUCTIVE MONDAY TOMORROW GUYS!

LET MY OPTIMISM FOR THE COMING WEEK INFECT YOU ALL!! CHEERIO!

Edited July 20, 2014 by leonjennawong

[gashapon05 3]

Continued......

MASTER BATHROOM FLOOR & WALL BEING PREPARED FOR OVERLAY - My sink & WC were removed in good order.. Currently residing in my household shelter.. Totally excited about the master bathroom make over!

ASSORTED DESIGN MOTIF FEATURE WALL SUPPOSED TO BE HERE (below picture)

COMMON BATHROOM FLOOR (ONLY) BEING PREPARED FOR OVERLAY - As mentioned before, only overlaying with a simple beige-coloured Hafary rectangular tile here.. The photo had to be reduced in size, but it totally didn't do the skill of the cement worker any justice.. Very good workmanship so far!

That's all today! Will be dropping by my place tomorrow to check out some more of my house renovation! Apparently the air con piping got installed earlier today, with #Edgar on-site to supervise.. Fingers crossed that I do not have to suffer the reputed poor Gain City workmanship... Till I see you all next time, take care fellas!

hello, how much did you spend each at MBR toilet & Common toilet to overlay floor & wall tiles plus labour?

[rappers 1]

Hi Leon & Jenna,

I love Scandinavian interiors. If you are comfortable, please share with me your quote breakdown and Calvin Tan contact, my email is lee_wei99@yahoo.com

Thank you.

[zen_zen 0]

4.3K is only for the flooring ; how about labor and material fee? are you getting your ID to do it for you?

i am looking at homogeneous tiles, cheaper and should be easier to maintain than vinyl ( we are concern of the water spilling part).

how much does it cost for 4 typical 4-room BTO of 92sqm to do homo tiles? inclusive of labor, material and supply of tiles?

[leonjennawong 53]

Hi LeonJennaWong,

May I know how much is your total cost of your flooring from Bilrich?

Any idea why most people choose vinyl flooring compared to homogeneous tiles?

Hello zen_zen! I got an updated quotation from #MayTing the other day... My quotation amounted to about 4.3k in the end... That is inclusive of the dining area, living area, room corridor and the 3 bedrooms combined.. #MayTing told me before that they will measure the dimensions at the site on the actual day of installation to determine the exact cost, but the 4.3k quotation that she calculated for me (based on the area coverage derived from the HDB floor plan that I sent her) should be a very good representative cost...

ERM. Why most people choose vinyl flooring compared to homogeneous tiles ah? I can only say that in MY case... Vain lor. Wahahaha... And I think that the vinyl flooring design looks better than the standard HDB homogeneous tiles lor... Vinyl flooring nowadays can have various kinds of designs; such as the wooden floor plank look... the cement screeding look... etc. etc. Other than looks, you can look at functionality when you decide too... Hmmmm. I'm sure you have experienced homogeneous tiles before, so I won't talk much about that... But as for the characteristics of vinyl flooring (and incidentally laminate flooring too!), you can look at my previous post, Post#282 for more information!Really hope I helped!

[4ddd 18]

Hahah reading your characters size lends volume to your expression...

[zen_zen 0]

Hi LeonJennaWong,

May I know how much is your total cost of your flooring from Bilrich?

Any idea why most people choose vinyl flooring compared to homogeneous tiles?

[leonjennawong 53]

YOU KNOW HOR,

the other day my sister suddenly came over to me and went like “Hahaha! Heart Attack Inducing tiles!! Does Jenna know?! Hahaha…” For those who just joined me at my humble T-blog here, my sister was referring to my dearest CFO’s choice of kitchen flooring tiles mentioned in Post #248…

By the way, I did show CFO my post about her… She laughed lei. Hahaha..

ANYHOWWWW! Today I have a few pictures to update on my Master Bedroom wardrobe & Master Bathroom vanity cabinet progress!! Actually we had already confirmed our Master Bedroom wardrobe laminate choice before… But we asked for a re-selection of the laminate due to our worry that it will not suit our new choice of the whitish-coloured #Alsafloor Eden Oak…

MASTER BEDROOM WARDROBE LAMINATE CHOICE

#CalvinTan actually already took the initiative to recommend a couple of laminate colours that he thought would be most suitable for our theme and for matching against the #Alsafloor Eden Oak, and even took pictures of the laminates and sent them to us… ERMMM… But CFO & I (actually mostly me la) didn’t have a good feeling & wanted to wait till we went down to their showroom to have an actual look at the laminate in real life!

As it turns out, WE CHOSE THE EXACT SAME LAMINATE CHOICE THAT #CALVINTAN RECOMMENDED. Following which I felt both happy and sad.. Happy that we managed to snag such an intuitive and suitable ID for us; but "sad" that we.. Aiyah not sad la. Well, it was more like a feeling of “Err.. what the…? We should have just trusted his judgement right.” Wahahahaha…

We finally went ahead with #Lamitak Oak Granada for our Master Bedroom wardrobe carcass and #Lamitak Designer White for the wardrobe doors

PICTURE OF #LAMITAK OAK GRANADA AGAINST THE EDEN OAK #ALSAFLOOR (As the wardrobe carcass will be sitting right on top of the vinyl floor, we were comparing them against each other for colour suitability & contrast!)

PICTURE OF #LAMITAK DESIGNER WHITE (CFO’s fingers very shiny hor. *hwing hwing!*)

MASTER BATHROOM VANITY CABINET COUNTER-TOP/ LAMINATE CHOICE

The colour choice for the Master Bathroom Vanity Cabinet counter-top & laminate was also tough… But luckily we have the trusty #CalvinTan and #Edgar!! Read on to find out why I’m so relieved to have them on my project…

The 2 of them actually took all colour elements within that bathroom and put them together in front of CFO & I.. It was a joy to watch them work their designer brain juices at the discussion table.. Heh heh heh... Out came #Edgar’s iPhone with a picture of the greyish stone-like tiles.. Then out came the physical samples of the assorted design motif wall tiles… All the different laminate catalogue books taken out & strewn across the table… And they didn’t even push the decision back to CFO & I; They had a good couple of minutes to think about the existing look & feel of the Master Bathroom, and gave a proposed choice for us to consider. I must commend them again, for their showed really very good ownership on the design. #Edgar even took the initiative to retrieve the big samples of the #Lamitak laminate for CFO & I to visualise!

Once again, CFO & I were all smiles, because our decision to engage #PoshHome was vindicated once again. We avoided a potential sticky situation, and finally decided on the not-too-light-and-not-too-dark #Kompacplus 10.20 Boston Cherry and the dirty-scratched-stone-finish #Lamitak Carlo Marmo Flavio DXP 1333K! See picture below!

PICTURE OF MASTER BATHROOM VANITY CABINET COMBINATION (#Kompacplus 10.20 Boston Cherry and #Lamitak Carlo Marmo Flavio DXP 1333K)

I shall end this late-night Saturday post with a hearty goody nighty to all my dear readers… Have a peaceful Saturday night and the tip of today is: Try to empty thy bladder before watching Transformers 4.

Peace out!

[lohhuiqian 1]

Hello, thanks for so kindly sharing your great experience with such a reliable ID. may i get ID Calvin's contact and the quote? Thanks alot!

[Takaishi 44]

Hey ho paintedlady140!

Hehe... No la my beloved darling TV console won't be too high for my 60" TV... Actually I've come across quite a few t-blogs and facebook pictures that show a very low-height TV console, with the TV sitting on it.

Erm, personally... I think it's a bit too low for my liking leiiiiii.. hahaha... I prefer to be able to slouch backwards in my delicious sofa; and if you can imagine, my line-of-sight will be angled upwards a little bit.. I think there will be lesser strain on the neck when you are slouching in the sofa because your head/ neck is supported.. (aiya but apparently not so good for your spine.. Hehehe.. )

I believe that if the TV is located too low, your neck will be forced into a sub-conscious forward flexion (think of your chin being tucked into your chest)... And that's when neck strains are more likely to occur... I would like to think that ergonomics is something that I should share around as part of my passion for my work in workplace safety & health.. But do take note that while there are general guidelines for ergonomics; it in itself is a very personal matter... What feels comfortable for me might not be deemed comfortable by someone else...

Anyway for your information! I am going to mount my TV onto my supported false wall, and not going sit it onto my beloved darling TV console...

CAN'T WAIT! HEHE.

that is because the universal 'wrong' position is the 'right' position.

the line of sight for your eyes to the tv should be exactly at the middle of e screen. that is e most 'ergonomic' suggestion by experts.

anything else is your preference.

so your sofa plays an impt part. that tv console you are talking about is low but is the most 'ergonomic' soln if tv is placed on it. but if peeps like it to be high and slouch all e time then thats a preference thingy liao. whichever floats your boat

Edited July 11, 2014 by Takaishi

[leonjennawong 53]

I'm considering Posh Home too.. Would like to get your opinion on their default Berry laminate Floor vs the vinyl Alsafloor that you have chosen? I am definitely tempted to get Alsafloor because of the huge cost savings, but feeling very confused between laminate and vinyl, seems like some ppl say laminate very good and vinyl not good, and vice versa. What do you think?

Aiyooooo MESSIECAT!!

I'M SO SORRY I MISSED YOUR MESSAGE!! *gulp* sorry sorry make you wait so long for my reply... hahahaha...

Firstly, I'm very humbled by your question and I will be glad to share what I have found out... Let's get this kick started with the standard face-off of Laminate Flooring Vs. Vinyl Flooring.. *rubs hands together in glee* heh heh heh... (btw fellas, if i missed out anything in this comparison or got some facts wrong, please correct me... Then we can all learn from my mistake! )

CHARACTERISTICS COMPARISON BETWEEN LAMINATE & VINYL FLOORING

EXPANSION & CONTRACTION - Laminate flooring apparently expands and contracts a lot more as ambient temperature changes throughout the day. As such, installers will leave a small gap at the sides (joining-line-between-your-floor-and-your-wall). The purpose of the gap is to leave some room for expansion of the laminate flooring to take place. Without which, your laminate flooring may buckle and pop up as the excess matter have nowhere to go. That being said, since there is a gap left against the wall, you may want to install a wall skirting over the gap to hide it! I've been told that vinyl doesn't expand that much and you can cut out the vinyl panels such that they flush with the wall very precisely and beautifully...

WATER-RELATED PROBLEMS - An age-old bane of laminate flooring is the warping and discolouration that comes with the DREADED WATER SPILLAGE & SOAKING! *cue horror music!Frantic laminate flooring owners can be heard scurrying off to find the nearest mop* While this is true for laminate flooring in general, I have come across many laminate products that claim that their laminates have wax-coatings on the sides of their laminate panels, which essentially stops this water-soaking phenomenon and the horror that comes with it. Wahahaha... On the other side, vinyl is basically a form of plastic. So you will never have to worry about water-soaking problems. HOWEVER, do take note that if either are not installed correctly (tightly) on a flat surface, you may find that the Makansutra-KF-Seetoh-Endorsed-Maggie-Curry-Gravy that you accidentally spilt on the floor the other day may have SEEPED UNDER your surface flooring and PONDED in the small crevice between your surface flooring & your true flooring. You will never be able to get at the grease trapped under your surface flooring, and that will invite many kinds of nuisances to visit you... Think of algae growth, the 'damp smell' that comes with it, festering of numerous types of pests, and the occasional nightmare that Makansutra's KF Seetoh will come and haunt that patch of flooring where his Maggie-Curry-Gravy lie. HAHA!! I digress yet again.

NEW PRODUCT APPREHENSION - Do take note that if an elder chides you for going with vinyl flooring, sometimes it's just because the 'vinyl flooring' they have in mind are those 'hospital vinyl floorings'... If I'm not wrong, BOTH are called vinyl flooring. Other than that, sometimes it's because of the fear of the unknown and the inclination to opt for the familiar, which is laminate flooring in this case...

TOXICITY - Both types of floorings have this concern which I cannot stress enough. Toxic gaseous emissions; usually the main culprit are VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) and Formaldehyde in particular. If my memory serves me right, formaldehyde is a CLASS II carcinogen (i will not bore you with the details, it's just really super duper bad for your health) the last time I checked.. If this is even a factor for your consideration between laminates & vinyl flooring, please don't just go for the cheapest product (from China and/or dubious sources)... Your home is meant to be a safe haven for you & your family, not a stewing pot of cancerous gaseous emissions! (Dear readers, if in doubt, I'm happy to lend my expertise to look at the Material Safety Data Sheet of any laminate/vinyl flooring product, just send to leonjennawong@gmail.com! )

Now that we got most of the Laminate Vs. Vinyl conundrum out of the way, if you ask for my honest opinion about the #Berry Laminate flooring against the #Alsafloor Vinyl flooring...Well if I were to make a decision again, shockingly enough, I would go for #Berry Laminate flooring. My reasons are below:

- #Berryflooring have many many MANY more choices of colours to choose from!

- Also considering the fact that you will not be able to get the same cheapo price per-square-foot which I got for my #Alsafloor anymore because they have since increased their price.

- #Berryflooring is thicker than #Alsaflooring; as such it gives a more solid feel when you walk on it (no hollow feeling), and it has a higher noise reduction rating, that will really help especially if your house is facing a busy road or the MRT tracks.

- Though #Berryflooring is inherently a laminate and not vinyl, I am very impressed & confident of the water-proofing capabilities of their #HydroPlus technology in the #Berryflooring Riviera range

- Checked that health requirements are within limits

Well hope I helped! Laptop no more battery! Gotta go see ya good night sweet dreams!

[leonjennawong 53]

Hi,

Just to enqure regarding the TV console. will it be too high for the 60" tv which you bought? i mean in terms of the eye-level when you are sitting on the sofa.

Please advise. Thanks

Hey ho paintedlady140!

Hehe... No la my beloved darling TV console won't be too high for my 60" TV... Actually I've come across quite a few t-blogs and facebook pictures that show a very low-height TV console, with the TV sitting on it.

Erm, personally... I think it's a bit too low for my liking leiiiiii.. hahaha... I prefer to be able to slouch backwards in my delicious sofa; and if you can imagine, my line-of-sight will be angled upwards a little bit.. I think there will be lesser strain on the neck when you are slouching in the sofa because your head/ neck is supported.. (aiya but apparently not so good for your spine.. Hehehe.. )

I believe that if the TV is located too low, your neck will be forced into a sub-conscious forward flexion (think of your chin being tucked into your chest)... And that's when neck strains are more likely to occur... I would like to think that ergonomics is something that I should share around as part of my passion for my work in workplace safety & health.. But do take note that while there are general guidelines for ergonomics; it in itself is a very personal matter... What feels comfortable for me might not be deemed comfortable by someone else...

Anyway for your information! I am going to mount my TV onto my supported false wall, and not going sit it onto my beloved darling TV console...

CAN'T WAIT! HEHE.

[paintedlady140 0]

Hi I'm back... Quite a few people have asked me about the beautiful TV console that I'm aiming for & of cos about other furniture too.. I'm happy to attach the hyperlink to the #PoshHome website below:

http://posh-home.com/index.php/table/dining-table.html

I have also taken the trouble to do a printscreen (albeit a little small...) for the TV console that you all have been asking for~~ I'm still not sure as to whether or not there is a hole at the back, but will let you all know once I do... anyways I'm not worried because #CalvinTan can help me to modify it if it doesn't have a hole currently...

#CalvinTan told me that my 3D drawings will be ready on 28 Feb (Friday)! Super excited I'm telling you. Will share my 3D drawings with everyone once they are ready! In the meantime, here are some photos that I secretly took of the #PoshHome showroom while #CalvinTan was preparing my pre-contract agreement... (Anyway I think I didn't mention before, they sell furniture & lighting too!)

Industrial/ Eclectic/ Scandinavian fanatics will LOVE this place.

• Pencil-legged furniture (leather/fabric sofas, lounge chairs, eames chairs, wishbone chairs name it they have it)
• Cement screeding floor finish, as well as other sections with vinyl BerryFlooring finish (the raised platform with the woody laminate grain flooring)
• Bold coloured, as well as gentler-coloured furniture
• DIY tables that have legs that are basically struts from metal scaffolding for that metal industrial-theme
• They even sell beds lor. Wish I hadn't bought my bed so soon. hahaha...

CFO & I absolutely love this TV console & the pencil legs. Will fit in quite nicely for our scandi-theme... love it to bits. Also see the functional coffee table that allows you to keep magazines/newspapers below for hiding clutter

(take note of the #EUBIQ track below the wall-mounted TV, #PoshHome is their main distributor in Singapore I think)

One half of the LeonJennaWong checking out the hinges and the spacious interior of the beloved TV console. Yes that half supports the current laughing stock of the barclays premier league... (in case you still don't know, I'm talking about the manchester united jersey)

OTHER PRETTY SNIPPETS OF #POSHHOME BEAUTIFUL SHOWROOM

Hi,

Just to enqure regarding the TV console. will it be too high for the 60" tv which you bought? i mean in terms of the eye-level when you are sitting on the sofa.

Please advise. Thanks

[leonjennawong 53]

Heh Heh OceanEleven good morning to you!! Selamat pagi, zao an! Sorry to be so hyper so early in the morning.. Wahahaha but I am on my way into JB with CFO and my good buddy Mr DF Muscle to go shopping for fans!

Anyway hor, CFO is not very technically inclined also, but #CalvinTan will go through step by step with us how to read it.. Of course I already know how to read it but I kept quiet and let him explain in case I missed something out or I misinterpreted something...

Let me try to check later if I can upload a picture with better resolution and edit the post above... Yeah can't really read the dimensions hor.. sorry sorry..

Lastly CFO & I decided to get internal white PVC cause we feel it's not really visible cause we won't leave it open most of the time for ourselves/others to see.. So go for the cheapest option lor.. Hehe..

[OceanEleven 203]

DRAWING #1 - FRONT ELEVATION FOR SHOE CABINET

DRAWING #2 - FRONT ELEVATION FOR SIDE BOARD AND COLUMN - the back of our living area

DRAWING #3 - FRONT ELEVATION FOR KITCHEN GLASS DOOR

DRAWING #4 - FRONT ELEVATION FOR KITCHEN CABINET - view when at kitchen entrance

DRAWING #5 - FRONT ELEVATION FOR KITCHEN CABINET - view with service yard on right

d

It does look detail but of course we cant see the measurements due to the fine print.

Kinda too technical for folks who arent familiar with reading technical drawing.

Anyway why All internal white PVC? Have a fancy for white?