My House Renovation Project

Discussion in 'Adrian Wong' started by Adrian Wong, Oct 30, 2012.

  1. karhoe

    karhoe Newbie

    Yeap correct! It was in newspaper sometime ago, one of the owners of some low cost house complain that his house is breaking up and to his horror it's foam inside, but then the developer came to assert that foam is commonly used.
     
  2. yorker

    yorker Newbie

    foam??? lolz.. I've been standing on it!!! dang...

    Gateman? keng...:) Don't think its for me ..for now.

    Nah, not now I think. In 2 years time maybe I'll get the vacuum. :p Pm me the cutoff date. My friend might want.
     
  3. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Eh, I think that case is different. Their window frames were made of foam. That's why they were so worried about thieves breaking into their homes.

    I can't find the news report though...
     
  4. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Why were you standing on the window ledge?

    I inspected them after installation and they really look like concrete ledges. Seem really solid even though they are made from foam inside a concrete case.

    Cutoff date for the bulk? Well, I suppose I have to order both the Gateman F100 door lock and the LG Roboking in mid-February, after Chinese New Year.
     
  5. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Some updates on the progress...

    1 - They built this small shed for the cooking gas tanks.

    2 - They started building the support for the bathtub.

    3 - They corrected the size of the walk-in wardrobe's window. We purposely put a window there to let in light from the skylight.

    4 - They removed the staircase railing and started hacking off its wooden flooring.
     

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  6. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Check out the front of my future office. I will have a full length table right there. Possibly a C-shaped table.

    Originally, I planned to install a TV on the wall to display the CCTV feed or Astro, but I realized it wouldn't be practical since my back would be to the wall-mounted TV most of the time!

    So I'm thinking - why not install four monitors on a multi-monitor mount? That way, the whole setup will take up only half of my table and I can view everything at one go.

    What do you guys think? BTW, anyone has any recommendations for a multi-monitor mount? I'm thinking a 4-display mount would do.
     

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  7. goldfries

    goldfries www.goldfries.com

    couldn't visualize it.

    would your back be towards the window?
     
  8. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Sorry, I should really explain more. Hmm.. I have an older design here (the ID never updated it yet...) which should better show you what I mean.

    In this (old) design, I will have an inverted L-shaped table top with a tall cabinet on the left (to store the modem, router, etc.). I will be facing the windows.

    In the newer design, I did away with the small wall on the right side, and extended the table top to replace it. So the table top looks like an inverted J. I will similarly be facing the windows, with my back to the door.

    I'm thinking of placing either one 4-display mount on the left hand side, or at 3-display mount, because I don't have much table space for so many monitors. It's actually a pretty small room once the built-in cabinet and tables are installed. I will also need quite a bit of table space for at least two open testbeds.

    Instead of a custom-built light box, I will probably DIY my own light box and take my photos on the free wall near the door.
     

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  9. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    I'm thinking of something like this really neat-looking XFX Triple Display Mount. A quad monitor mount would save space but is probably much rarer and more expensive. :think:
     

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  10. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Renovation Fact of the Day

    Take a look at these decorative strips on the outer wall of the roof. That wall was originally plastered flat. Guess how they made them.

    They first cut the original lines out of the plaster. Then they inserted what looks like ordinary PVC conduits that electricians use to cover electrical wiring! That's it! :shock:

    I asked the contractor and he said that the PVC conduit serves two purpose - it provides the white decorative strip required by the designer, and protects the wall from water seepage, because cutting into the plaster exposes the brick wall to rainwater.
     

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  11. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    How they rebuilt the stairs

    Check out how they rebuild the staircase. To save cost, I'm reusing the staircase. To expand it would mean knocking down several columns - extremely expensive!

    1 - This is how the original staircase looks like. We decided to remove the wooden railing and replace it with glass panels topped by a wooden rail. This should make it slightly wider... or at least LOOK wider than it currently is.

    2 - First, they chopped off the old wooden and steel railing. They also hacked off the parquet flooring on the stairs.

    3 - They then build a U-channel concrete base for the glass panels. To do this - they use strips of foam! After the cement sets, they remove it and voila! you get a nice U channel in the center.

    4 - They plaster the rail base and the top surface of the stairs. The U-channel is covered but the plaster is easily removed later when they want to install the glass panels.
     

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  12. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    1 & 2 - This is what the new stairs look like, after the cement screeding dried.

    Later, we will install wooden panels / strips on the stairs. Maybe even WPC (wood-plastic composite) panels like Floor Depot's Charmwood, followed by glass panels embedded in the U-channel.
     

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  13. peaz

    peaz ARP Webmaster Staff Member

    This is one heck of a renovation going on man...
     
  14. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    More like demolition...
     
  15. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Well, once you decide to knock down just one wall and extend a few feet, this is what you get because you will have to add columns to support the extra weight, replace ALL of the floor tiles, etc.

    What's really sad about this is that the local council laws only allow me to extend a maximum of 3 feet (or a meter). Kinda expensive to extend just 3 feet but what to do... :wall:
     
  16. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Yeah, that's basically it - demolishing the walls and rebuilding it. It's certainly a lot cheaper to build from the ground up.

    Too bad this is a terrace house. Otherwise, I would have considered using a wrecking ball to demolish the whole house and built it from the ground up.

    That would probably be cheaper and free me from the constraints and costs of keeping the present structure in place.
     
  17. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Building The Main Gateway

    Just before Chinese New Year, they tore down the front gateway to build the new gateway. By the time I got there that day, they already hacked most of the other wall away, leaving only the garbage compartment and the meter box.

    1 - This worker is hacking away at the old garbage compartment.

    2 - After hacking it away, this is what the front of the car porch area looks like. The meter box will remain for some time to come, because they have to get the power company to move the meter before they can hack off the meter box.

    3 - In the meantime, they started to build the new pillars.

    4 - Here, they are building up the new meter box, with a two-way garbage compartment and a water filter compartment.
     

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  18. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    1 & 2 - The next day, they completed the bricking up of the new letter box compartment (left) and the garbage compartment + meter box + water filter compartment (right).

    3 - This is how they look like from the front. The gate will be a folding gate that's about 4.6 meters (15 feet) long - the maximum allowed by the local council, if I'm not mistaken.

    4 - There will also be a small side door.

    5 - The two-way garbage compartment is on the left, with the power meter box on the upper right, and the water meter box on the lower right.
     

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  19. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    I copied and modified the letter box design from Chai's father.. Heheh...

    1 - Looks like a mini pillbox with a firing hole in the front. LOL!

    2 - The entry hole is large enough for newspapers but I think I made a mistake in making it too deep. Now, the mailbox just leaves the mail on that slope! :wall: :wall:

    3 - Inside, it's sloped to make sure that if any water gets in, it won't stay in.

    We will be redoing the letter box soon. But overall, I think the concept works.
     

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  20. Jeremy

    Jeremy Black Sheep

    You should have a door covering your mailbox so the newspaper/mail man can "toss" it in and the door will prevent it from flying out the other side and rain coupled with strong windows won't wet your mails.
     

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