February 20, 2012

Rice Cooker

I am sure this is a staple in every Asian kitchen.

No. I’m not talking about food here.

No. I’m not talking about rice either.

I’m talking about……. RICE COOKER!

This was the first thing my mother asked me to get when I’m preparing for my overseas studies in London. This was also the first thing I bought in the States when I landed. And as one of my friends says “We are simply 饭桶!”

Nowadays, the rice cookers are getting really fanciful with all sorts of designs and settings. It has preset settings for rice, porridge, sushi rice, brown rice, risotto, etc.

I got mine in Cold Storage where they, from time to time, had this sticker thingy. Depending on the number of stickers you have, one gets to choose from a range of cookwares, or bakewares, or porcelain wares. Mine was a range from Royal Doulton, from rice cookers to microwave to an oven. Anyway, I’ve never heard of Royal Doulton having their own range of electrical goods. Aren’t they famous for china, dinnerware and figurines?

Anyhow, I’ve been using my Royal Doulton rice cooker and getting really frustrated. Well, there’s only my ‘Ang’ and I so I typically only cook 3/4 cup of rice. It was always the first thing I cooked when preparing for a meal. Then, I went on to prepare other dishes so by the time I’m done with the dishes, the rice should be ready.

What gets on my nerves was when I finished cooking the other dishes, the rice is still not ready!!!!

Wah Piang Eh!!

Wait. I need to clarify. I typically prepare 2 dishes, 3 at most. I always start preparing when my ‘Ang’ text that he’s on the way home. His journey takes about 1 hour so I have a whole hour to prepare (excluding defrosting). By the time he reached home, piping hot food will be on the table liao. Zhun Zhun one!

And I don’t cook canned food, OK??!! I prepare food that requires skinning, washing, chopping, frying/stewing/steaming and the whole garlic-and-ginger kind of cooking. My cooking got standard one, ok!!?? Not those simply blanched kind!

So, I was frustrated with my rice cooker. It took so long. I could even sneaked in a 15 mins 步步惊心 on TV while the dishes are getting cold on the table.

So I started to time the cooking time the rice cooker took.

For a 3/4 cup rice, it took bloody 45 mins!!! That’s the price I pay for using the stickers! Imagine the energy consumption for that 3/4 cup rice??!! This continued for a few months until I am super buay tahan already. I decided to get a new rice cooker which has a shorter cooking time.

Went down to Tangs, none of the auntie promoters there helped. They were simply trying to push for the $300+ rice cookers which comes with like 10 preset settings and 90 mins rice cooking time, WHICH I DON’T NEED! Who makes sushi everyday? I don’t need a sushi setting! Arrgghhhh!

Best Denki and Harvey Norman pretty much sent my frustration level to new highs. They don’t even know the cooking times!!

So I came back home and relied on the ever reliant GOOGLE!!! And WAH LA……….

17 mins!!! 17 mins!!! 17 mins!!!

Their rice cooker cooking time is 17 mins!! That’s a time savings for almost half an hour, and my electricity bills!

I got to know more about Zojirushi when I googled about them. Most people recognised them as the elephant brand because of the elephant logo they adopted. Apparently they are almost 90 years old and survived through World War 2! Here’s their range of rice cookers’ cooking time.

Royal Doulton on the left. Zojirushi on the right.

I realised the Royal Doulton rice cooker was retailing at 20 pounds (about S$40) in Amazon UK. My Zojirushi costs me S$58. Yes, I know. The Zojirushi looks dated. Royal Doulton wins in terms of looks. But I DON’T CARE ABOUT LOOKS!

Besides the cooking time, one more thumbs down for the Royal Doulton – THE LID. It cannot be removed which makes cleaning absolutely painful. It can’t be washed. It can only be cleaned.

I don’t need any fanciful rice cooker, just one that simply cooks….. rice.

Singlish Translation

Wah Piang Eh = OMG x 2

Zhun Zhun = Right on the spot

Liao = Already

饭桶 = Rice Bucket, meaning people who eats a lot of rice.

February 10, 2012

Visiting Showflat Tip 2

I am sure everyone is familiar with this – Air-conditioner!

We are so familiar and dependent on it that, without it, we would probably not have a good night sleep.

The air-conditioning system comprises of 3 components – Compressor, Box-up that holds the pipes and the Fan Coil Unit.

What we see here is called Fan Coil Unit or FCU for short. In HDB and mass market private condominiums, this type of air-conditioning system is being used. Why? For a very simple reasons. It is efficient to cool small spaces like bedrooms, living and dining. Also, it only takes up wall spaces.

Note, some FCU are also ceiling mounted, we called it the cassette FCU.

However, some developers have adopted a different type of air-conditioning system.

Can you see the two black strips? And two squares?

The photo above actually shows the ceiling.

The photo above actually gives a better perspective of the ceiling and the room.

The two black strips are actually the air-conditioner’s outlets. How it works is actually very similar to what we see in HDB and mass market condominium. The only difference is the FCU, which in this case is actually hidden.

See the silver shiny thing inside?

The FCU is actually something like that, mounted below the concrete ceiling i.e. the underside of the floor slab of the upper floor.

Just to sidetrack a bit, a lot of things are actually mounted below the concrete slab, like the water heater below and all its associated pipes.

Coming back to the air conditioning system, the openings (i.e. the black strips) will be covered with grilles or what we call, diffuser. Cold air will be blowing out from there.

The square opening is the access panel. This type of air-conditioning system is typically known as the ducted system simply because ducts are used. Their capacity is higher, thus can cool a bigger room, especially when there is a double volume. Our typically floor to floor height is about 3 meters high, less slab thickness, floor screeding, floor finishes, gives us floor to ceiling height of about 2.7 meters. Double volume means a floor to ceiling height of more than 5.4 meters. Therefore, we normally see ducted air-conditioning in higher end homes such as landed properties, high-end condominiums or SOHO dwellings.

Ducted system are typically ceiling mounted compared to our wall mounted FCU. Aesthetically, they look better and are more seamless because no box-up is needed. Frankly, they are more or less similar system to this (below) where we see them in older offices now.

Oh! And as a Quantity Surveyor, we do not forget that installing ducted air-conditioning system is double the price of the normal wall mounted FCU system.

Why do I say so much about this air-conditioning system?

First of all, when one visits a showflat, very little is talked about the air-conditioning system, maybe because it is so common that no one wants to know more about it or that no one thinks that an air-conditioning system can vary that much! At the most, the salesperson at the showflat will mention the brand of the air-conditioning system and whether it is energy saving, etc.

Secondly, it is not that one will not buy an apartment simply because of the type of air-conditioning system that is being used. There are more determinants than deciding based on the air-conditioning system.

What I am trying to drive at is this. People forget about the maintenance of their air-conditioning system!

With a FCU mounted 2.5 meters on the wall, no one really bothers about the maintenance. If you are hardworking enough, grab a stool, clean your FCUs yourself. If not, well, these days, we can get air-condition maintenance pretty cheaply, say $150? They clean the filters, pump in gas, etc.

Now, imagine you have a ducted air-conditioning system with a FCU mounted above the ceiling board, 5.5 meters high. You tilt your head up, can’t see a thing! The only way to see is to open up the access panel. So imagine the air-con maintenance crew coming up to your place not with a A-framed ladder, but a mechanised hydraulic ladder!

In the world of a quantity surveyor and according to Standard Method of Measurement (SMM), anything above 3 meters high warrants additional cost. This is due to additional scaffolding, safety measures, access difficulty, additional workflow, etc, etc.

So, with ducted air conditioning system, maintenance can blow a hole in your pocket and your bills may chalk up pretty hefty.

Wait, having said that, if one can afford a landed property or high-end condo, I don’t think the maintenance of the ducted system will bother them.

So, next time you are in a showflat, try looking out for the type of air-conditioning system they use.

Happy house hunting!

January 17, 2012

Visiting Showflat Tip 1

Just 3 months ago, we put our apartment on the market. Since then, MND had probably dished out the most changes to regulate the property market in their entire history. And because of that, we decided not to sell our apartment, but instead, we are now looking to buy another property! What a change of events within 3 months! Well, we are not really buying NOW but we plan to in the near future. So we have been visiting show flats.

Since my work life revolved around the construction industry, I am involved in building show flats. A temporary structure like a show flat may cost up to $2 million, at times even more, for a mere display of 6-9 months. Then it will be completely torn down to make way for the permanent structure. At times, when a site has space constraints, the show flat is located away from the actual site, which is absolutely fine by me if it is 500m or 600m away. However, some developers have situated the show flat in Tanjong Pagar when the actual site is at say, Pasir Panjang. Yes, I know, Singapore is small. But, are we that small?

This has actually become more common that had prompted URA to look into the matter on Housing Developers Act and Housing Developers Rules, among many other issues.

However, looking into the matter and making a change in legislation takes time. URA had since carried out public consultation during Mr Mah Bow Tan’s time (March 2011) and results was scheduled to be published 3rd quarter 2011. But we are still waiting. Perhaps 改朝换代了吧, our Mr Khaw Boon Wan has hotter issues in the property market than show flats. Don’t mistaken me, I think Mr Khaw has been doing a good job ‘spring cleaning’ the dust and dirt his predecessor had left him.

Anyhow, coming to my showflat visits.

Have you ever realised that you never see a door in a showflat?

Source

When I asked friends about it, they replied “Oh ya huh! You didn’t say, I also didn’t realise leh. No doors hor!”

And that’s the reality. No doors.

Doors are typically not installed in showflat and one only sees the door frame. Without doors, crowd movement in the showflat can be better managed. It also opens up a space. Doors are pretty much the same, except for the veneer used. Whether they are oak or maple or ash, we can determine the veneer used based on the door frame veneer. They are usually the same.

There are a lot of different kinds of doors – swing, sliding, bi-fold, timber, glass, glass inserts, PVC, aluminium framed, etc. I’m not going to bore you here. To find out more, I found this website pretty good since photos speak a thousand words.

A few things to note when a door is not installed for viewing.

(1) Ask whether the door is sliding or swing, especially for bathrooms, yard and utility areas. I don’t know if you have visited a common bathroom with a swing door that is so tight that you can hardly turn your body to close the door when inside the bathroom. Try standing in that space and imagine the door opening and closing, it will help visualise the space a lot!

Otherwise, scrutinize your unit layout plan. Different types of doors will be indicated in the plans. Here are some examples:

Bifold

Sliding

(2) Without displaying the doors, it also means that we do not know what ironmongery will be used. What is ironmongery you ask? Hinges, door knobs, door handles, lock sets, door stopper, door closer, door viewer, pull handle, etc.

So, this is just one tip. More tips to come!

January 17, 2012

Recycling – Where are all the bins??

This has been something that has been bugging me. There is no recycling bin in my estate!? I was so used to the regular yellow recycling bag left outside my door, regularly by the recycling companies.

Over here, there’s none. So I enquired with my neighbours.

“What?! You mean there’s no recycling done here??? How can that be?”

“When’s the *garang guni coming to get the old newspapers?”

“Garang Guni is not allowed in here?!”

Oh my oh my! Ah hah! We have the internet at our fingertips, don’t we? I went online to search for the nearest recycling bin. I shall not be deterred! It brought me to this website. The nearest recycling bin is 10-15 mins’ walk away? I picture myself lugging the huge bag of recyclable stuff, sweltering under the hot sun…. This will not do!

According to the National Environment Agency (NEA)‘s guidebook, private apartments are not included in the National Recycling Programme (sigh!) as they are managed by their respective Management Corporations (MCs).

I guess the answer can only be found at the MC office. For the sake of recycling, I will have to pay a visit to the MCs office. I will keep you posted on that.

~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, some little tit bits on the waste situation in Singapore and why recycling is so important.

The solid waste in Singapore has increased 6-fold over the past 30 years!! The size of Singapore island is simply not big enough to accommodate all that waste. Not only that, we are wasting Earth’s resources unnecessarily. We need to REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE!!

I am very much guilty of not practising the above diligently. One of the easiest everyday thing to do is to refuse the disposable cutlery provided by the eateries when you do a takeaway.

This is my *Dabao lunch. Using my own chopsticks and my own spoon from home.

*garang guni – small time recycle item collector

*dabao – takeaway

January 10, 2012

DIY – Better than Herman Miller chair

Continuing from my revamp of the Study room, I had planned to embark on this project pretty long ago but never got around to do it. Primarily because I was not very confident that I would complete it.

First of all, I need this for my project.

Can you guess what it is?

Yes! It is a sewing machine!!!

I had always failed my sewing subject in Home Economics class during my secondary school days. I only managed to pass the subject simply because I scored higher for my cooking and craft subjects and help pulled up the overall grading. That was how I survived through Home Economics class!

And why do I have a sewing machine to begin with? I don’t think anyone my age has a sewing machine!!! I only know of 2 friends who actively sew. One being a Korean, and the other being a Malaysian. Singaporean girlfriends? None that I know!

Anyway, this was my wedding present from my grandmother. Super old school right? My grandmother actually intended to pass down her decades old sewing machine to me. Yes, those SINGER brand type that has a manual iron pedal and one that looks like a table! My grandmother wanted to pass it down generations as an heirloom and wanted us to remember how her little machine help raise 9 kids in her times!

But why pass down to me leh? I have so many cousins! And I have never ever displayed any tinge of sewing talent! I only mentioned that I would love to have the sewing machine because I loved the iron pedal base and I would have remove the sewing machine that sits on it and convert it to a nice little console table using a glass or marble top.

Anyway, my aunties came to the rescue, intercepted my grandmother’s idea and bought this on her behalf. Never would I know it would come handy one day.

So, here it is! My before and after!

This chair was actually salvaged from my previous office. It was about to be discarded but I thought it was still in a pretty good working condition. So I lugged it back home 6 years ago.

Over the years, this chair served me well but some wear and tear had shown. Look at the stains. Wouldn’t it a waste to throw it away simply because some stains appeared?

At first, I intended to strip the old upholstery and gave it new ones but after some thoughts, I decided to leave the old upholstery intact. Well, I wasn’t very confident that I will complete this project, much less do a good job. And if I completely mess it up, I can still use the chair with the old upholstery. The chair is still functioning well!

I removed the backrest and basically did a reverse engineering.

With no basics in sewing and no available sewing patterns to follow, I practically did a voodoo on the chair.

Look at all the pins! I realised it was really difficult to sew the back rest because it was curved and the top was rounded. There was no way I could draw a template. I spent a lot of time on the measurements but in the end, I decided to do my usual style – Agaration.

I was holding my breath on the first fit and unfortunately, it turned out too loose. Then I was at a cross road. Unpick? I remember those Home Economics class that I spent more time unpicking than sewing. That thought practically made me want to give up this whole project. But thanks to the sewing machine, it came with several preset stitches. Then an idea came, I might as well sew it over the existing seam with a zig zag seam…….so I tried and ……….GENIUS ME, it actually works!!! Wahahahahaha!

There are no photos to show my sewing partly because the stitches looks quite terrible, but mostly because I was very focused and tensed throughout the whole sewing process. My mind didn’t stop and say “Eh, take photo on this step”.

I’ll skip my torture on the sewing part and jump directly to this. As usual, my ‘Ang’ stepped in to be my handy man and helped me staple.