Simple 4Rm Reno @ Costa Ris

[Danmify 16]

Some updates on my ID/Contractors selection Process:-

There is not much difference between ID/Contractor. I meant specifically pricing & Site coordination/supervision. Maybe most ID draws using computer softwares but contractors draws on your actual walls.

I must have met up and gotten quotes with at least 15 IDs/Contractors and have decided not to detail the reasons for rejection but to generalise as below and hopefully benefit the readers to take some notes on these aspects:-

1. Quote exceeds budget / Too vague with potential hidden costs

2. Saleperson's attitude / Responsiveness / Lack of Technical knowledge / Integrity

3. Not HDB Registered and potentially using other partners' assistance to get HDB approved permit

4. Do massive advertising / Mostly outsourced workers or business partners = higher priced

5. Mixed & Negative reviews in Forums

6. Too busy with a lot of projects / pass on work to assistant or colleague which defeats why you shortlisted him in the 1st place

7. Lack of Chemistry / Gives a feeling that he cannot understand your requirements or theme

8. Too many 3D drawings without actual completed site photos / Keep delaying your requests for actual site viewing to QC

Despite experiencing the above, i cannot say I am already 100% certain. A good 50% is based on referral by Marcel, a fellow renotalker here and i am privileged to be able to follow his blog and got confirmation of his satisfaction. Maybe another 30% is after meeting up with the contractor and verifying the end results of an ongoing project with our own eyes. The balance 20% is really on gut feel. Quality work definitely outweighs my cheapest quote!

Hopefully after key collection, invite him down to go through my requirements and revise the quote again before signing contract! I shall RTF upon completion.

Edited October 12, 2015 by Danmify

[Danmify 16]

I got to admit I have been really fickle minded. There are so many changes compared to when I first started this blog. I am referring to my TB purchases, shortlisted furniture / furnishing purchases and most importantly my Reno budget. [Need to eat bread & (wheat)grass after moving in]

Actual Key Collection Appt Date:- 02 Sept 2014

Looking forward to receiving my 1st shipment of TB purchases and will review especially as a 1st timer user of online TB Shopping & using Amcon Express as my Forwarder.

Looking forward to sharing my joy of self designing my home, shopping for materials and partnering with my confirmed contractor to achieve the dream home that my wife and I are going to adore!

Edited October 12, 2015 by Danmify

[Songz 132]

Good luck and hope to see more updates coming soon.

[binzz 10]

Just to share on the floor trap, the dimension may not fit, i had bought 2 from Taobao as well and both cant be fitted onto my floor.

[wyx03 12]

Thanks binzz for the heads up....

Any comments from anyone who have bought or used this floor trap from taobao? Thks!

[Danmify 16]

@Binzz: Yah! My contractor was commenting that it will not fit too! Hopefully can find ways to overcome it. Too late to cancel purchase.. shipment left the port on route to SG

Edited October 12, 2015 by Danmify

[Danmify 16]

Long Post on Taobao shopping ahead!

My Taobao purchase arrived on 18 Aug. It was a rather eventful experience for a Taobao first timer like me. My previous online shopping = Qoo10sg. Let me share my detailed experience.

There are many forwarding agents who can help you bring your goods to SG, namely Amcon Express, Prouter, 65 daigou, Oops SG, etc.

Some quality check the contents of your purchases, monitor that pricing is consistent, do repacking worthy of overseas freight at a higher cost.

I selected Amcon Express who does non of those value added services and therefore slightly more competitive in pricing. May has a Guangzhou warehouse for consolidation of all your TB purchases with different TB sellers domestically within China. After consolidation, she will ship via ocean freight and arrange for delivery right to your SG doorstep.

In chronological sequence:-

1) Whatapps May from Amcon Express @ 93862818 on 17 Jul and she emailed back the following information:-

- Warehouse Address: 广州市越秀区北站南路69号义庆商储仓A座135仓转“YOUR NAME”

- Contact Person (联系人)：倪先生/康先生 13392684638 or 刘先生 13711601896

- Phone/Fax No (电话/传真)：020 - 3637 7718

- Postal (邮编)：510403

- Special Remark to Sellers: 请把唛头写在箱的外面，以便确认是"YOUR NAME" 的货, 谢谢!

- Optional Remark to Sellers: 请加较厚的包装, 最终是要送海外的. 谢谢!

You will need to indicate the above information during your payment check out with the individual TB sellers.

In the same email, May also provided a excel form 淘宝&快递 货物装箱报关单(PACKING LIST & INVOICE) for you to fill up. The information are easily available on your "myTaobao page" which gives a summary of your activities.

Take note of Courier No 快递号码, Courier Company 快递公司 & Date of Receipt 签收时间

2) Set up my Taobao Account on 27 Jul which also includes creation of Alipay Account (Chinese Paypal) and Aliwangwang (Chinese MSN)and made my 1st shipment purchases all on the same day.

3) Whenever goods reached May's warehouse, she either whatapps or email me the courier nos for my verification. You need to check against Courier No 快递号码, Courier Company 快递公司 & Date of Receipt 签收时间 to prevent short / wrong / extra shipment. May does not handle discrepancy, so you got to Aliwangwang the seller and enquire further. Note: Selecting reputable sellers in the first place is the most important step.

4) After consolidation and my verification, Goods shipped on 12 Aug. Usually take about 6 - 9 days for ocean freight. A delivery guy called me on 18 Aug to schedule for delivery date and time. Note that there is no night delivery when I tried to schedule after office hours.

5) Final Shipping Invoice consists of 3 billing components:- Shipping Fees chargeable @ RMB$550 per cubic metres (Cbm) / 7% GST paid on behalf (variable depending on your purchases) / Fixed SGD$35 Documentation Fees

For my case, total amount was SGD$309.

My goods are received in great condition. The sellers packed my glass lights and other fragile items well. Here are the links to my confirmed purchases:-

1st rd of Shipment (About 1 cbm worth)

Lightings

Tracklights (Shortlisted Qty 8 - White)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a220m.1000858.1000725.211.IZo325&id=14800808078&sku=20397:494072105;9228689:3250781&cat_id=50105504&rn=27ec2ba24850939d68cdd7f9764c65e7&user_id=797585128&is_b=1

1.5 metres Track (Shortlisted Qty 2 - White)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a220o.1000855.0.0.YNYpg9&id=13503986380&bi_from=tm_comb

Dining table lights (Shortlisted Qty 1 - White)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a220o.1000855.1998025129.1.XEDWBO&id=21944748280&rn=&acm=03054.1003.1.65793&uuid=dJPo9TVK&abtest=_AB-LR32-PV32_504&scm=1003.1.03054.ITEM_21944748280_65793&pos=1

Master Bathroom, Corridor light (Shortlisted Qty 1 Big & 1 Medium)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a220o.1000855.0.0.Rs62Q7&id=21629940045&bi_from=tm_comb

MBR, BR 2 & 3, Foyer Ceiling light (Shortlisted Qty 4)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a220m.1000858.1000725.132.9SkyZN&id=19784418578&user_id=741620912&is_b=1&cat_id=50030199&q=%B5%C6%CA%CE&rn=b365e7f7b6bdeb3bf81b221d70ac6a20

Common Bathroom / Bomb Shelter (Shortlisted Qty 2 - Gold)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a1z10.4.w4004-5777828591.26.WXKKb6&id=15431136216&acm=03131.1003.1.53417&uuid=xC5AHoE2&abtest=_AB-LR130-PR130&scm=1003.1.03131.ITEM_15431136216_53417&pos=13

Kitchen & Service Yard (Shortlisted Qty 3 - White)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a1z10.1.w4004-3412660906.12.SVyLGb&id=19279366940&acm=03068.1003.1.32803&uuid=pdXmCQ68&abtest=_AB-LR73-PV73_510&scm=1003.1.03068.ITEM_19279366940_32803&pos=6

Kitchen

Kitchen Faucet (Shortlisted Qty 1 - White)

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=2013.1.0.0.MnhLEK&scm=1007.10009.518.0&id=37614315646&pvid=7a7521bd-bcc8-4554-a1f7-296683da400d

Bathroom Accessories

Common Bathroom Basin (Shortlisted Qty 1)

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a1z09.2.9.9.JWWoW3&id=17003135638&_u=r212arup2ffa

Common Bathroom Shower Set (Shortlisted Qty 1)

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=2013.1.0.0.pn8Hu5&id=35069084980&scm=1007.10115.744.0&pvid=079719ee-773f-41c9-bf94-93f58e1b858d

Common Bathroom Faucet (Shortlisted Qty 1)

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=2013.1.w4018-4818481343.11.9N7izR&scm=1007.170.0.0&id=4250725060&pvid=f00c878b-b378-4dd8-a154-36ef7f471c7a&jlogid=p1622311473d89

Common Bathroom Towel Rack (Shortlisted Qty 1)

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=2013.1.w4018-4818481343.19.ewNGvs&scm=1007.172.0.0&id=19845541514&pvid=694d8284-7a87-4ba5-9bfa-10d23d59d710&jlogid=p2112183174c36

Floor Trap Type 2 (Shortlisted Qty 1)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.14.18.tFwpQL&id=21083124862&ad_id=&am_id=&cm_id=140105335569ed55e27b&pm_id=

Water S Trap (Shortlisted Qty 2)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a1z0d.6639537.1997196601.4.df9u8A&id=39787296760

Master Bathroom Shower Set (Shortlisted Qty 1)

spm=a220o.1000855.1998025129.2.IsrtHS&id=18474958140&rn=&acm=03054.1003.1.67386&uuid=BAEWKTM2&abtest=_AB-LR32-PV32_675&scm=1003.1.03054.ITEM_18474958140_67386&pos=2

Master Bathroom Towel Rack (Shortlisted Qty 1)

http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a1z10.1.w5833598-6645540212.4.9ZcjLk&id=36198031128

Master Bathroom Faucet (Shortlisted Qty 1)

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a1z10.5.w4002-5050455461.33.AhYLXg&id=20850923323

Master Bathroom Basin (Shortlisted Qty 1)

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a1z10.1.w5003-3680533803.8.YNWqMd&id=15623565664&scene=taobao_shop

Toilet Roll Holder (Shortlisted Qty 2)

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=2013.1.0.0.s8onIV&scm=1007.10009.518.0&id=39299260044&pvid=9cff7067-aa76-4a37-b623-1f7f2346e29e

Floor Trap Type 1 (Shortlisted Qty 1)

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=36432996659&ali_refid=a3_420434_1006:1104598592:6:%B5%D8%C2%A9+%C8%AB%CD%AD:42b8efd521d7a5b22e398cd3b97d78f0&ali_trackid=1_42b8efd521d7a5b22e398cd3b97d78f0&spm=a230r.1.17.11.tFwpQL

Edited September 10, 2014 by Danmify

[hellonub 5]

Hi Danmify, I bought the same guest chairs you did! Can I trouble you to review it once you receive it? Thanks!

[Danmify 16]

Hi Hellonub,

I didn't buy those guest chairs in the end. Kept changing my shortlisted TB purchases in Apr and ended up with different confirmed ones in Jul.

[hellonub 5]

It's alright! I guess we have been TB shopping a lot so the list gets longer and longer, inevitable to change some of the items.

Hopefully mine turns out ok! Haha

[Danmify 16]

:jammin:

Woot!! A long outstanding post on Key Collection & Opening House!

Summary of our day on 02 Sept 2014

- Reached HDB @ 0830 hrs, checked in with queue no at level 1 kiosk & went Level 2 to get Etiqa Home Insurance

(Gotten the $300++ for 5 yrs coverage)
- Went down to level 1 again and met up with the Sales Officer @ 0910 hrs on time to settle all paperwork. Gotten a cement screeding form

and also requested to pay 2 mths S&C fees in advance
- Went up level 3 for payment and gotten a receipt
- Went down to SP at level 2 to open Utilities Account
- Went back down to level 1 to pass receipt copy to the Sales Officer

The entire handover of flat process took less than 1.5 hrs.

We followed in accordance to the Fengshui designated timings for the "Opening House" and then done the procedures as per instructed before leaving straight after that. We only came back for proper check of any defects, submission of defect listing and taking pics of the house on the weekends.

Without further ado, allow us to present our humble abode in its original state. We shall witness her full transformation to a Scandinavian Modern Farmhouse inspired home in due time.

Edited September 29, 2014 by Danmify

[Danmify 16]

:sport-smiley-018:

We did not opt in for flooring and doors, so there was not much to check for defects. Moreover, since we will be overlaying the toilets and partial areas of the kitchen, we were left to check only the electrical points, main door, gate, BS door, windows and paint work. Thankfully, we were blessed with no major defects and those minor ones which we submitted were rectified within 5 days.

I bought a SGD$6 number lock for the BSC contractors who were doing those rectifications. I will switch to using the padlock provided by my main contractor Andy when his works commenced. There will be a clear line of handover of my home temporarily to him during this Reno period and also the liability in the event of unwanted circumstances.

Andy is a super fast and efficient man!

Some of the milestones:-

1. Met up with him on 03 Sept to confirm exact site details required for his HDB Permit application

2. Met up with him and his recommended Electrician on 06 Sept to confirm electrical works and quotation.

3. Scheduled 1st Day Reno Ceremony to be on 13 Sept as per FS auspicious date & timing

4. Demolition Works to commence on 15 Sept

5. Received news on 10 Sept that HDB permit has been approved. Aircon installation works scheduled on 21 Sept

I am sure that it would have been faster if not for Andy having to accommodate to my Fengshui dates and timing requirements and my upcoming overseas work trip.

So far, it has been great working with Andy. You need to have a clear design concept, present clearly and visually with mood pics during your initial discussion with Andy, right down to sourcing of the materials and noting down the material codes. I got most of the tiles purchases from Hup Khiong. To avoid feeling rushed, I would advise you have sourced in advance instead of leaving it to the single joint session with Andy on the eleventh hour.

You are responsible for making sure the overall theme for your house is in sync for the different areas. Andy can only offer his technical experiences to forewarn future problems and the practicality. After you have shortlisted your materials, you can leave the actual site measurements and confirmed material purchases to him. (Not inclusive of sanitary or kitchen accessories / furniture)

He will also do site coordination and scheduling of works. But during the joint meet up, he will leave you to coordinate directly with the electrician and Aircon guy for your own requirements before involving himself at the final part of the discussion to see if any conflicting issues with other portions of the Reno works. I find this arrangement ok for me as there is a clear line drawn on the responsibility and less risk of communication lost in translation.

Hoping for a smooth sailing renovation! And to move in by end Nov 2014!

Edited September 15, 2014 by Danmify

[Danmify 16]

15 Sept 2014 - Day 02 of Renovation

Today is actually the first day for Andy's team as they normally do not commence demolition work on Saturday which was Day 1. However we had a detailed joint discussion with both the professional tiler and electrician on my requirements and purchases of renovation materials and scheduling of works was also efficiently arranged by Andy.

I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of works completed in 1 day! Well within the approved period stated on the HDB permit.
And the best part of it is I get timely pictorial updates. I was able to see today's renovation progress around 10 PM just now.




1. Demolition works for BR3 L-walls & Door frame
2. Demolition works for Kitchen L-wall entrance
3. Dismantling work for SY windows & bi-fold door
4. Dismantling work for existing sanitary accessories and toilet bowls
5. Clearing of debris to dumpster truck
6. Upload of renovation materials to house
7. On-going electrical works (About 40% completion)
8. Coordination with vendor to have SY new sliding windows measurements taken

:dancingqueen:

Edited October 12, 2015 by Danmify

[jaza0408 1]

Hi neighbour! Im from costa ris too! Blk 525C!

Your renovation is doing gooooood so far! Ive yet to start as waiting for cement screed to finish.

Love to see your update!

[Danmify 16]

I was away for work in China for 5 days and was waiting excitedly every night for the daily updates of the Reno progress via Whatapps from my wife.

17 to 23 Sept 2014 - Day 03 to 08 of Renovation



Andy's team is really detailed and experienced. After hacking & dismantling works, chipping off those embedded metal stabilizer strips and metal clips were promptly done before wet works touch up & plastering works.

Plumbing joints were also extended and sealed up well with the white tapes. Existing kitchen and toilet wall surfaces are plastered and ready for tiling works.



1st phase of Plastering works completed and the next phase will have a more smooth end results before Painting works.



Service yard windows are also up. Very satisfied with it! Tracks were well run and the windows seems thicker and solid. No annoying sound made during sliding.

I liked how the uncle mixed the "cement cocktail" using an handheld blender!

I was really worried about how both my toilet designs will turn out especially when I had "invested" a fair bit of "moolah".

For the common toilet, I wanted to create a barn like feel and initially wanted to leave the top portion raw and painted white but decided in the end to go with the white mosaic tile finishes to avoid mouldy problems. Looking forward to the grout line laying for a more defined look.

The overlaying of the MBR Toilet wall tiles is also half completed and awaiting for the other customized glass mosaic tiles to arrive around mid Oct.

Andy's subcon was experienced to point out to me that there will be a thickness difference between both tiles at the joint areas and I told him that it is something I can accept. Once in a while, he likes to put these "disclaimer statements" to avoid future disputes among all parties which is great for me as I need someone who can help me identify the "blind spots" in my design.

Edited October 12, 2015 by Danmify