Sengkang Rivervale 150 series (Chip Huat Construction)

[esp]

i am also not sure. cos you see ours is standard flat without flooring and the contractor charges us for flooring one sum and sand another sum and all this adds up. So its better to ask them clearly. BTW, fyi on top of the lift there is the contact for the Haulage and Debris removal contractor, our contractor will called them cos they are so call appointed by HDB. Any updates on this issue kindly post here. My contractor also wanted to charge me $280 for HDB renovation permit. I am going to see what they going to say on this. (if he tell me this is the haulage still acceptable)haizz..fed up.

just went to choose my tiles yesterday and my ID was late, we nearly drop him cos of this.

 

[tarepiggy]

Hi Daisy,
Thanks for ur concern .... me still having dizzy spell & no apetite ... later my mum bringing me to see Chinese phyiscian ... hopefully will recover fully soon =(

Pauline,
U r right, there's metal hoardings surrounding blk 152 & 153 , but u know, there's this shelter area behind blk 152 which is still under construction? We walked into the shelter area & then walked st towards blk 152, & fr there, went over to our blk - 153! Our lifts are working! The household shelter door is beige in colour, and open outwards.

Oh yes, u can sneak in fr another way too, u know facing the metal hoardings if u stand from Rhumbia LRT station? There's quite a high gap in the metal hoardings, just crawl under & u r inside liao ...kekeeee .... we went out from there cos din wanna make one big round to go Rivervale Mall....hee

 

[mosaic_fish]

Hi Dolphin, where did u all went to choose your tiles? Any pointers u can share with us when u choose tiles? wah.. your ID late har... did he give good reason why he is late?

 

[esp]

oppooss.. its me again. had called the town council again. Was told that the haulage and debris charge of $263+(4room) is payable upon application of HDB renovation permit. However, the HDB reno permit is FOC, only the haulage and debris charge is payable upon application. kindly take note.

 

[orith]

Hello Dolphin
Thanks so much for the information.

So are you saying that our ID "by right" should only charge us for $263 for 4 room, for the haulage, debris fee?

The guy (kent tan), todl me it's $650 for 4 room. how come the difference is sooo much?

 

[pauline12sg]

Hi Mudpie,

Oh... My bf & I didn't walk over to the other side, no wonder we can't find our way in, to our blk. Hee... We tried to go up to the rooftop of the multi-storey carpark but it's locked. Our view from the living room is very nice, facing the LRT in a sideway angle, where there are alot of fantastic lightings!! Did u notice that? (We should be having the same view right from our living room?) HEhehe... SO happy!!

Thanks Dolphin for updating us on the haulage & debris charges, wow... have to fork out another $200++, haiz...

Hi all,

Can I know how much is the homogenous tiles (psf)which ur contractor quoted u? From what I know, there are too many ranges of homogenous tiles. My contractor advises me to take those ranging from $5 to $6 psf wan.

 

[esp]

orith, the $263 is payable when you apply for your HDB renovation permit (had check with Town council)the fee is for haulage and debris removal. As for the $650 that you mention it could be including the sand your contractor buy for the flooring for your flat. can you imagine sand cost sooo much (a few hundred dollars)argg.. haizz.. i am recently very fed up and thought of dropping my ID cos he always return my calls late and always late for appt and slow in work. i am having second thought now..

 

[piper]

Hi pauline,

$5-$6 psf one is one the high end liao...he could be quoting u those tiles from italy. those china tiles costs abt $3 to $4 psf.

 

[orith]

Dophin, yah lo....sand only. Why need to cost so much...sigh

Does that mean we still need to pay $650?

Btw, my ID says we do NOT need to pay for Town Council fee. It's not charged by our Sengkang town council.

Who is your ID? My ID is not bad la, very responsible and accommodating. If you want, can recommend to you.

 

[orith]

I choose homo tiles on last Sat. It's 3.50, from China, 600x600mm. My ID says that tiles company is not bad, says they will QC and will do 1-1 change if any prob with the tiles. Hopefully it's true.

 

[pauline12sg]

Hi Piper,

Mine is not those tiles from Italy, it's China polish surface homogenous tiles. Erm... I thought all homogenous tiles are from China, think I am abit "sua gu", didn't know that Italy do produce such tiles. Heehee...

There are many different types of tiles from China, some do look like marble, granite, but of course abit more exp lah. Still thinking should I take up the $5-$6 range wan. $3.50 wan is attractive in terms of pricing. Maybe when it is my turn to choose the tiles, I might feel it is afterall worth it to choose the higher range wan.

Hi Orith,

Are there a wide ranges of tiles for u to chose from last sat?

 

[orith]

The china Homo tiles ranges from $1 plus to around $6. The Italian homo tiles are more expensive.

From what i heard is besides the tile quality has to be good, the workmanship has to be very good too.

Mm...the design is not a lot. Initially we are thinking between $2.20 (another company) or $3.5. At the end, we choose the $3.5 coz that company's tile quality is better.

 

[pauline12sg]

Orith, which tiles company u referring to?

 

[orith]

Pauline, u mean the tiles i get it from at the end? It's from MTB (if i am not wrong abt the spelling). It cost $3.5

 

[mosaic_fish]

The other time when i go to a few tile shops those from china with the better quality is at most $4. Those from Europe or Italy are above $5..
Pauline those china tiles cannot be so exp at $5-6. U take note when u choose your tiles, in case your contractor may overcharge u.

 

[444]

Hello!

Could I just ask what cement screeding is? Just wondering if I should get that done first, when we collect our keys or wait till we're ready to do reno.

 

[esp]

orith, i think the $650 is the lump sum for purchase of sand and haulage and debris removal charges that the sub con from hdb charge for each hse. my id say that one sure need to let them earn else they will give you trouble etc. so i think that one is really bo pian one. think at least need to settle wet works before anything else

 

[piper]

hi hi,

need to check something with u all. For the cement screeding, do we have to inform HDB by a certain date that we need them to do it or we can even ask them to cement screed the house 2 mths after we've collected our keys.

also, can we request them to just screed the bedrooms only?

 

[pauline12sg]

Hi Morning!

Thanks Mosaic_fish, I'll take note of that. Do u know how much psf for granite tiles? My bf wants to use better tiles for our living room, I'm confused now which wan to use.

DJ, u will only need to do cement screeding if u r doing laminate flooring for your hse. It's better to do cement screeding when u r ready to renov ur hse, cos there is a need for co-ordination between ur contractor and the ppl who do cement screeding for u. (Provided u r doing laminated flooring for ur bedrooms only) It is to make sure that the flooring is even throughout the bedrooms and living room.

Piper, if u are not doing laminate flooring for ur living room, of course u can request them to cement screed the bedrooms only. As for ur previous question, I'm not able to answer u, have to chk with e HDB.

 

[mosaic_fish]

Pauline, granite tiles are more exp... I can't remember, i tink is ard $8-$9.. came from China and India.. India ones are more exp and is more exp than marble... granite design is with small black spots.. maybe u let your contractor show u some sample granite tiles and u see if u like it or not... I initally wan to do granite bcos it is easy to maintain and durable... but dun like the design..

 

[daisylove]

Mosaic_fish & Pauline,
glad to know u r better

Mudpie,
drink more water and eat more fruits!

I didn't have time to go to the exhibition last week to take a look at Pergo design. I have decided to let my contractor do the job and he'll be getting the 8 mm wood laminate from Supreme. Ha ha.... but after u all mention Pergo and its design, I also feel like taking a look

Pauline, my ID also charges a reasonable rate, that's why I'm getting from him

Dolphin,
thanks for ur info, it really helps clear a lot of our doubt! Now we even have tel no to call to enquire, initially still think have to call HDB to ask

Hi all,
just to let u know, cement screeding (FOC) is done on floors for wood laminate or parquet just like what DJ has mentioned. If I'm not wrong, for floor using tiles, then we need to purchase sand lor

 

[daisylove]

Hi all,

new updates!

I called up the Town Council using the tel no. Dolphin provided. The prices that Dolphin stated do not include purchasing of sand, they are purely for haulage / debris removal only. I list down what Dolphin indicated:

$296.10 (with GST) 5-rm standard
$263.55 (with GST) 4-rm standard

Sand charge is separate. Town Council staff gave me this hp no 90099758 to contact Ken, a haulage contractor who can give us a quote for sand. Alternatively, you can get your own ID to quote for you and then compare to get the lower rate. I tried calling Ken but he didn't answer, may be try later

 

[mosaic_fish]

Daisy thanks for the updates...

 

[eugvel]

hi orith,
can check with u ur $3.50 is for per pc of 600x600 china tiles or $3.50 psf??
thanks..

 

[esp]

hi daisy, if you manage to get ken can you kindly post his prices for sand..

 

[daisylove]

Hi all

I've managed to contact Ken. He was surprised that I called him. He said all this should be arranged by our ID contractor. Our ID contractor needs to apply through Town Council for the haulage / debris removal and purchase sand separately from HDB contractors such as Ken himself. Not only that, our ID also has to apply permit for hacking wall(s) at the same time.

Ken quoted for 5-rm standard flat at our area is around $800 and for 4-rm standard flat is around $650. So, for 5-rm standard flat, total is around $296.10 + $800 = $1096.10 and 4-rm standard flat, total is around $263.55 + $650 = $913.55.

Depending on how our ID does it, some ID quote this total into our reno quotation whereas some don't, and we'll then have to fork out cash for it. Of course, some ID may charge us higher to earn from us but we can request for receipt and pay only what is charged.

If we go through Ken directly, he cannot guarantee that Town Council will waive off the $296.10 (5-rm, haulage / debris removal) or $263.55 (4-rm, haulage / debris removal) even though in his $800 (sand for 5-rm) or $650 (sand for 4-rm) , he can help us do the haulage / debris removal. He said all depends on how our ID negotiate the price with Town Council. Just remember to ask for the receipt from your ID so that you know he didn't charge u extra to earn from there.

By the way, the cost of sand will be additional price of $100 for 5-rm and $50 (if I remember correctly) for 4-rm if granite tiles are used. The above quotes are for homogeneous tiles and wood flooring only.

 

[444]

Thank you Pauline & Daisy for the explanation and details!

Had no idea it'll be this difficult just to do the floors!

It'll be good to know can still do the screeding FOC after a certain time. Cos if they'll only do it for a certain period, then we'll probably have to get it done then rather then wait. Although, we aren't really sure what thickness of laminate we're looking at yet!

The reason why most of you are only doing laminate for the bedrooms is because it's warmer, right? My husband is thinking of doing laminate for the whole apt! I don't really have an opinion on this one...it all seems fine to me. In fact, I've seen some pictures and some photos even show laminate in the kitchen!

The tiles thing is cheem man. I think I'll leave the flooring decision to "da-boss". It's too complicated for me.

 

[mosaic_fish]

Daisy, thank you so much for the info...the $800 for 5rm, is for if we doing tiles for the whole hse... do u noe if we are doing laminate for 3 bedrooms and only living and kitchen is using tiles.. will it be cheaper?

 

[mosaic_fish]

Hi All, I will like to ask u all who is staying in 5rm doing homogenenous tiles for living and kitchen.. how much did your contractor quote u? I will like to know bcos I feel mine is exp...mine was $5k

 

[piper]

hello Daisy,

Thanks for ur detailed explanation. Now we got a clear picture of the haulage & debris cleaning fees.

Hello Mosaic_fish,

I was quoted abt $3600 for the homo tiles for living, kitchen & bomb shelter. But tat will depends on wat is the price of ur homo tiles per sqf. The one who quoted me $3600 states tat the quote is based on homo tiles of $3.10 per sqf. Even for someone who quoted me $4 per sqf, the cost of the flooring for the entire flat is abt $7k.

 

[bbnn]

Hi mosaic_fish,

I suggest u break up the pricing between kitchen and living rm tiles in order to get a good comparison.

Most of the reno package do not include pricing for doing kitchen floor becos not all flats need to do up kitchen floor as it may be done by HDB.

Reason being kitchen tiles got to do water proofing b4 lying them. Also, most pple use ceramic tiles for kitchen instead of homogenenous.

For me, the total cost for doing up kitchen tile and water proofing comes up to $1.1k. Thats the most ex liao. The rest of the quote I got hover from $800+ to $900+.

For living rm tiles, check with your ID to see if the total cost quoted to you is based on each tile costing how much per square feet?

Meaning, at the cost quoted to you, each tile that you buy must not exceed a certain $ range.

Example, say the cost for doing up living/dining rm tiles is $3k. The tiles that u going to buy must not exceed $3 psf based on the quote of $3k.

If you buy tiles at $3.5 psf, you will having to top up the differences.

Same goes for kitchen tiles. The price quoted also based on each tile not exceeding a certain $ range.

Help the info helps.

 

[mosaic_fish]

Hi Piper, mine was only $2.50psf and is not inclusive of the bomb shelter yet.. wow yours is $3.10psf.. is cheaper..

 

[mosaic_fish]

Hi BBNN, thanks for your info.. Can I ask how much is your living area? My contractor said that the $5k include the workmanship, homo tiles($2.5psf max) for both kitchen and living area. The water proofing is another $250(not included in that $5k)for kitchen area. Wat do u tink of this pricing? Exp rite?

 

[daisylove]

DJ, Mosaic_fish & Piper, welcome

DJ,
my hubby also would like to do wood laminate for the whole house except toilets and kitchen. Reasons are that wood laminate is cheaper and it suits our theme. However, we are still deciding whether to do homogeneous tiles for the living room

Mosaic_fish,
I also asked Ken this question. He said still have to pay for sand fees even if we do more wood laminate than floor tiles. The sand will be used to mix with cement for screeding (I think he said that, if I remember correctly). Although cement screeding service if FOC by HDB but we still need to pay for haulage / debris removal and sand. Ken didn't tell me in details as he felt that I should leave this for my ID to contact the Town Council to negotiate a price. I have a feeling the price can be cheaper if we do not do floor tiles for whole house. I'm going to ask my ID to find out when I meet him. May be you should also ask ur ID to enquire and let you know, remember to ask him to show u the receipt of all costs at the end if u r not willing to pay extra for his profit

By the way, my ID quoted homogeneous tiles for living room at $2240 + $200 (cost for grout for homogeneous floorings) and bomb shelter at $450. Hence, I think the homogeneous tiles he would supply will be those less than $3 psf type, right? He didn't quote the tiling for kitchen floor as he thought it was done by HDB, have already asked him to add into quotation and will see how much when I meet him again

 

[piper]

hi mosaic_fish,

$2.50 psf shud not add up to $5K. Ur house is not 2000 sq feet leh....the floor area for a typical 5-rm hdb, is around 1000+ sq feet only. Ask ur ID to rework his sums...maybe he calculated the price wrongly.

 

[mosaic_fish]

Hi Daisy, wah... seem like mine is really exp..

Hi Piper, I already ask him to check again.. he said he recalculated and is still the same amt..

 

[piper]

hi Mosaic_fish,

tat means his charges for workmenship is on the high side lor. Then u gotta gauge for yourself if it's worth is or not.

But seriously, i think ur flooring price is quite expensive. Maybe u can negotiate with ur ID to see if he can bring down the price.

 

[bbnn]

Hi mosaic_fish,

I got one quote for half of living rm+dining area and 3 bed rm @ about $4.2k for homo tiles @$2.5psf.
The qoute is based on my ID design that other half of my living rm is using raised platform.

Kitchen is about $900+. So in total, tiles for half living/dining/3 bed rm/kitchen comes to about $5k.

See the difference between yours and mine?

My personal opinion is $5k for living & kitchen homo tiles @ $2.5psf max is a bit too high.

BTW, is yours a package or break down into individual items?

Ask your ID to break down the cost of $5k and how he arrived at that figure.

How to calculate no of tiles needed?
Just for everyone info, 1 feet is about 304.8mm.
A homogeneous tile 600x600mm is approx 2x2 feet = 4sqf

Actual size of 600x600mm tile is 3.875sqf.

To make calculation easier, assume each 600x600mm tile is 4 sqf.
Assuming a homogeneous tile 600x600mm @$2.5psf
=$2.5psfx4sqf = $10
So each tile of 600x600mm (4sqf) cost $10.

To see how many tiles is needed for your living rm, convert your living room dimension to sqf.

Use that to divide by 4, you will get the figure for how many tiles is needed to lay your living rm.

Once you got how many tiles is needed, multiply that by $10 per tile and u should get the total cost for the tile u buy.

Based on that cost, we can see that cost of tiles is about 1/3 of the total cost involved in lying the floor. That is just estimate.

I will use this method to ask my ID to justify the cost of lying my floors.
It is not very accurate and based on estimation so please DO NOT take that as final figure.
It is to help us gauge the estimated cost for purchasing tiles.
The figure also have not take into account skirting tiles and grout used.
The figure help us gauge the labour cost involved in lying the tiles.

How to convert to sqf?
Our flat dimension is in mm.
Convert that into metre.
Multiply the length & width to get sqm.
1 sqm = 10.76 sqf

Legend
sqm = square metre
sqf = square feet

Hope everyone is not too confuse by my post.

 

[mosaic_fish]

Hi BBNN, really thank you for your detail explanation.. appreciate your efforts.. Can u do me a favour? Can u help me to calculate how much sqf is our living+dining rm and kitchen? Our floor plan(except bedrooms) is the same I tink. Then i can double check with my contractor the total sqf he calculated. I do the calculation also then I see if get the same sqf as yours....THANK YOU!!

 

[orith]

My ID charged me $4240 for $3.5 homo tiles, for the entire unit, except kitchen and toilets.

 

[orith]

Yeah BBNN, thanks so much for the explaination. I will go calculate tonight...hehe

 

[bbnn]

Below is based on my floor plan @ Blk 152.
Some dimension is different becos I excluded the walls measurement.

Living room is 6175x4200mm
=25.94sqm=279.11sqf
Dining area is 3300x2850mm
=9.41sqm=101.25sqf
Kitchen is 4050x3000mm
=12.15sqm=130.73sqf

Total sqf
279.11+101.25+130.73=511.09sqf

511.1sqf divide by 3.875sqf per tile
=132 tiles of 600x600mm needed
Add 10% for wastage and cut up to use for odd corner.
132x10%=146 tiles needed

Assume actual tile size of 3.875sqf per tile.
$2.5 per sqf x 3.875sqf = $9.69
$9.69 per tile x 146 tiles = $1414.74

Therefore, approx cost for 146(600x600mm) homogeneous tiles @ $2.5psf per tile is $1414.74

Of cos that is not the final figure.
It is based on the estimated sqf of the rooms involved. Dun forget there are odd corners of rooms which may need a whole tile cut into smaller pieces so actual tile usage may be higher.

Not forgetting cost of skirting tiles and grout used too.

For mosaic_fish case, $5k - $1415 = $3585
Skirting tiles + grout + labour is $3585.

Assume Skirting tiles + grout is $1k.
That means labour is $2585.
Half of your cost goes to labour.

Well, of cos that is based on estimation only.
It may not be the way ID based their price on so dun blame me.

Hope that helps.

 

[pauline12sg]

Hi all,

Wow so many posts today... Just read through what u all have written!

Seems like most of you here are taking up tiles that is either $2++ or $3++ psf. Erm... think I need to discuss with my bf already since my contractor quoted me $5++ psf.

 

[esp]

hi, i had choosen my ideal tiles already. $3psf. its ceramic tiles. I am choosing different shades from living to guest to MBR.

 

[bbnn]

A further thot on tiles issue.

If your ID quote u $5k for floor tile and the range psf is any tile psf costing <$5psf, I think still reasonable.

Comparatively, if your quote is lesser, be prepared to expect a lower price range for floor tile psf that u can choose to buy.

Remember, for whatever price that ID quote you, make sure u ask if the price range for tile psf cannot exceed by how much.

Example, ID quote u $3k for living/dining room and cost psf cannot exceed $2.5psf. That means you can only choose floor tile that psf cannot exceed $2.5 or you have to pay the difference.
If you can bargain the price psf to $2.9 while still paying at $3k, then u "tan tio" liao.

I am not too sure if you choose tile psf <$2.5, will the total cost be less than $3k. Got to check.

Hope I dun further confuse people here.

 

[bbnn]

How to use google to do calculation?

Go to www.google.com.sg

enter the following in the search box

1 square metre in square feet

and google will return you the answer.

It can perform all sorts of maths calculation.
More instruction on google calculator
http://www.google.com.sg/help/calculator.html

It's amazing. Try it today.

 

[esp]

hi, does anyone of you here know how long it takes to get your renovation permit approve by HDB and what documents did your ID ask you to submit ?

 

[mosaic_fish]

Hi BBNN, Thank you very much for the detail calculation.

I try to calculate, my total is 521.94 sqf. There is a bit difference in the length and width I used after comparing to yours... anyway is ard there.

I ask my contractor already, at most can give me is up to $3psf for the tiles.. if is more than $3 then I will paid the extra. From your calculation, ard $2k++ go to labour and profit.. tat is quite alot.

Seem like the rest of u got good deals ... mine is a bit exp..

 

[bbnn]

No problem. Glad to help.
Your figure is based on what is written on the floor plan, that's why different from mine.
I minus out dimension that include walls.

If your ID is too ex, why dun u drop them and look for another? Or you already sign up with them?

Your ID can let u choose tile not more than $3 psf based on quote of $5k? So that means if you choose tiles up to $3psf, u pay $5k?
What if you choose tile that cost <$3psf, do you pay less?

I wonder how they answer that question.
I will make sure my ID that I choose can answer that before I choose them.

 

[pauline12sg]

Hi Mosaic_fish,

Don't worry, U can actually go to ur contractor and try to further negotiate the price with him. Contractors need to earn profit, it is understandable. I think that ur contractor is earning his profit through tiles. He might have quoted u reasonable price for other areas. Different contractors earn their $$ throu different ways. Some will give u good pricing for tiles but they charge higher for other things, eg. kitchen cabinets. Just have a nice talk with ur contractor will do!

Hi Dolphin,

Wow... U have chosen ur tiles already, another load lighter for u!