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TSWarn3r
post Jan 15 2018, 01:48 PM, updated 7y ago

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Hi all

I got my keys to my new condo in Dec 2017. I have a few questions that I wasn’t able to find answers from previous posts. Thanks for your time.


1) Paint
According to user manual, the unit was painted using 1 coat Dulux Eco Guard + 2 coats Dulux Pentalite. Is it true that even if the paint appeared to be good quality on paper, most developers would add chalk/dilute to make it easier/cheaper to paint but is bad for health as the paint quickly comes off the wall as ‘dust’ / ‘powder’?

2) Plaster Ceiling
I was trying to avoid installing plaster ceiling in the living & dining area because the ceiling height is already not high (~ 3000mm) to begin with and also I hate the plaster ceiling ‘hole’ that would be built around the air-cons (came free from developer).

I was advised to do plaster ceiling with these reasons:

a) Without plaster ceiling, surface mounted lighting would be restricted by the no. and where the light points are. This is because the ceiling wall is very hard to drill and the patching will inevitably leave a scar.

Is this true?

b) I was told the ‘drop’ of the plaster ceiling can be minimized to 6-8 inches. And to avoid building boxes around the air-cons, it can be detached from all 4 sides of walls. So there will be like 1 foot distance from the wall.

Can the plaster ceiling be kept to just 6-8 inches while still having led light (tube) inside/on top to bounce light out from the side?

c) I was told that from the plaster ceiling design above, I can even further make the centre hollow, so it would be like an empty photo frame with 4 edges. This allows the ceiling fan to be higher. Refer to picture.

Is there any potential problem with this design?

Generally for a small 14 foot x 23 foot area (living + dining), will this design look weird? Taking the short edge for example, 1 foot gap each side (gap from walls) means the plaster ceiling is left with 12 foot in length, if the plaster ceiling is 2 foot wide each side it would leave 14 - 2x1 - 2x2 = 8 foot wide hollow at the centre. Would this look nice? The side facing wet kitchen / dry kitchen would have a wider gap (following the width of the walkway from the rooms side + 1 foot).

Thank you all!

This post has been edited by Warn3r: Jan 15 2018, 01:54 PM


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Pucca&Garu
post Jan 15 2018, 06:41 PM

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If you already engaged ID for your design, why don't you discuss further with them to come out a design that you prefer?

TSWarn3r
post Jan 15 2018, 08:31 PM

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QUOTE(Pucca&Garu @ Jan 15 2018, 06:41 PM)
If you already engaged ID for your design, why don't you discuss further with them to come out a design that you prefer?
*
Hi Pucca&Garu

The information I mentioned above that ‘I was told’ are all from the so-called interior designers. Really, many are furniture store, windows solution, contractor, cabinet companies, etc masked as ID.

I have filtered some information myself after some research. I concluded that they really are subject matter expert in just one area so they had to pretend and ended up giving me the wrong information/advice when I asked them about possibilities / options in areas outside their expertise.

But even if I found a true ID, it’s still a matter of chance whether he/she is someone who is adventurous and dare to push some boundaries / creative enough. One might have seen broad enough to tell me exactly what is possible and impossible and also explain why something is impossible/impractical. Another might just tell me the design choice of ppl who pay money to make their home look like it went through some ‘ID’.

I’m verifying some of the information that I’m unable to check myself at the moment. I like being able to speak knowledgeably, stating my preference in a sensible manner and exchanging ideas as I go through more ID’s but as I said, they’re not always correct.

I just haven’t gotten the chance to speak with a ceiling specialist and I never base my understanding on a discussion with one single guy. So one efficient way is to check here, at least that’s what I initially thought.

If I may use an analogy, I like learning how to examine whether fishes are fresh and what kind of fishes are available instead of asking the fish monger if his fishes are fresh and whether he is selling all possible types of fishes one may get.

Thanks anyway.

This post has been edited by Warn3r: Jan 15 2018, 08:45 PM
SUSadvocado
post Jan 15 2018, 11:09 PM

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QUOTE(Warn3r @ Jan 15 2018, 01:48 PM)
Hi all

I got my keys to my new condo in Dec 2017. I have a few questions that I wasn’t able to find answers from previous posts. Thanks for your time.
1) Paint
According to user manual, the unit was painted using 1 coat Dulux Eco Guard + 2 coats Dulux Pentalite.  Is it true that even if the paint appeared to be good quality on paper, most developers would add chalk/dilute to make it easier/cheaper to paint but is bad for health as the paint quickly comes off the wall as ‘dust’ / ‘powder’?

No doubt developers will water down their paint to dilute. consider lucky already if they didn't mix in cheaper paint since 90% owners won't know what paint is what. if chalk you worry, just get a cleaner to clean the walls using cloth damp with warm water it should wipe away most dust & particles. if you plan to repaint this step is a must to ensure new paint sticks. you should also check for defects like overflow, bubbles, chips etc and fix them before applying new paint.




2) Plaster Ceiling
I was trying to avoid installing plaster ceiling in the living & dining area because the ceiling height is already not high (~ 3000mm) to begin with and also I hate the plaster ceiling ‘hole’ that would be built around the air-cons (came free from developer).

300m is considered very high for high rise apartments..

I was advised to do plaster ceiling with these reasons:

  a) Without plaster ceiling, surface mounted lighting would be restricted by the no. and where the light points are. This is because the ceiling wall is very hard to drill and the patching will inevitably leave a scar.

  Is this true?

not true. ceiling wall use hammer drill and install wall plug then can install lights. the problem is adding light points the wires will be visible (in PVC conduit). if you are ok with the "Industrial" look then you can add more lights just like with plaster ceiling but you have to go for surface mounted and pendant lights.

alternatively you can use 1 lightpoint but install Track Lights that allows you to install multiple lights with just 1 point without extra wires. it will give a "studio" look.



  b) I was told the ‘drop’ of the plaster ceiling can be minimized to 6-8 inches. And to avoid building boxes around the air-cons, it can be detached from all 4 sides of walls. So there will be like 1 foot distance from the wall.

Plaster Ceiling can go as minimum as 3 inches. as long enough space for plaster support bracket and downlight (thickness between 2"-5").


  Can the plaster ceiling be kept to just 6-8 inches while still having led light (tube) inside/on top to bounce light out from the side?

plaster ceiling minimum 3". to install another cornice for LED would require at least another 10" just for the plaster so that's already 13".

normally people put the Light Box around the edges, so the edges will sit maybe 13-15", while the center area will be 3"-5". so you won't feel so cramped.

so i don't recommend the Light Box. it also attracts dust and might have heat ventilation issues if the clearance is too tight.




  c) I was told that from the plaster ceiling design above, I can even further make the centre hollow, so it would be like an empty photo frame with 4 edges. This allows the ceiling fan to be higher. Refer to picture.

  Is there any potential problem with this design?

the only problem is with that design if the central hollow is not big enough radius, the air flow of the fan will be restricted. but still your fan will be sitting on 3" plaster, unless you tell them you want central to be "empty" no plaster just mount on ceiling. Panasonic has 2 length of fan pole short & long, so you should check the length of the fan you plan to use to ensure the fan is not sitting too low. use this chart as reference:
https://www.lowes.com/projects/build-and-re...g-guide/project

another problem with plaster ceiling is you can only mount light fixtures directly on the plaster. for fans & pendant lights recommend add a support. those things cost money to install.






  Generally for a small 14 foot x 23 foot area (living + dining), will this design look weird? Taking the short edge for example, 1 foot gap each side (gap from walls) means the plaster ceiling is left with 12 foot in length, if the plaster ceiling is 2 foot wide each side it would leave 14 - 2x1 - 2x2 = 8 foot wide hollow at the centre. Would this look nice? The side facing wet kitchen / dry kitchen would have a wider gap (following the width of the walkway from the rooms side + 1 foot).

Thank you all!
*
in short you have more than enough space to do

This post has been edited by advocado: Jan 15 2018, 11:17 PM
ChuanHong
post Jan 16 2018, 09:06 AM

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QUOTE(Warn3r @ Jan 15 2018, 01:48 PM)
Hi all

I got my keys to my new condo in Dec 2017. I have a few questions that I wasn’t able to find answers from previous posts. Thanks for your time.
1) Paint
According to user manual, the unit was painted using 1 coat Dulux Eco Guard + 2 coats Dulux Pentalite.  Is it true that even if the paint appeared to be good quality on paper, most developers would add chalk/dilute to make it easier/cheaper to paint but is bad for health as the paint quickly comes off the wall as ‘dust’ / ‘powder’?


2) Plaster Ceiling
I was trying to avoid installing plaster ceiling in the living & dining area because the ceiling height is already not high (~ 3000mm) to begin with and also I hate the plaster ceiling ‘hole’ that would be built around the air-cons (came free from developer).

I was advised to do plaster ceiling with these reasons:

  a) Without plaster ceiling, surface mounted lighting would be restricted by the no. and where the light points are. This is because the ceiling wall is very hard to drill and the patching will inevitably leave a scar.

  Is this true?

Depend on lumens or brightness of your surface mount LED.. my kitchen area using FEEL-LITE 36W LED, it is sufficient. with fan, light, light points installation, total cost me about RM500 only for wiring fee including patching, new lighting control unit (some from 2 switches to 3 switches, hager brand).

  b) I was told the ‘drop’ of the plaster ceiling can be minimized to 6-8 inches. And to avoid building boxes around the air-cons, it can be detached from all 4 sides of walls. So there will be like 1 foot distance from the wall.

  Can the plaster ceiling be kept to just 6-8 inches while still having led light (tube) inside/on top to bounce light out from the side?

  c) I was told that from the plaster ceiling design above, I can even further make the centre hollow, so it would be like an empty photo frame with 4 edges. This allows the ceiling fan to be higher. Refer to picture.

  Is there any potential problem with this design?

  Generally for a small 14 foot x 23 foot area (living + dining), will this design look weird? Taking the short edge for example, 1 foot gap each side (gap from walls) means the plaster ceiling is left with 12 foot in length, if the plaster ceiling is 2 foot wide each side it would leave 14 - 2x1 - 2x2 = 8 foot wide hollow at the centre. Would this look nice? The side facing wet kitchen / dry kitchen would have a wider gap (following the width of the walkway from the rooms side + 1 foot).

Thank you all!
*
i'm also got my key last year end and started to have simple renovation.. so far i'm done with electrical wiring & kitchen cabinets. so i can answer few of your queries.

For your number 2a, Not true. Depend on wiring man willing to do or not.. 3000mm = 300cm = 3m which is 10ft high.. which is good and high enough actually.. my unit also 10ft. but i dont install plaster ceiling as well just to save cost. I installed surface mounted LED and loop additional light points for necessary area. Example, each room must have 2 light points to have balance distributed lighting. some area which is darker area can install new lighting points & additional control unit.

This post has been edited by ChuanHong: Jan 16 2018, 09:07 AM
ChuanHong
post Jan 16 2018, 09:16 AM

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Attached Image
Kitchen 1 lighting point with 36w feel lite LED

Attached Image

From 1 light point on the right and relocate and add the point to photo shown location. Looping it and patching. No piping visible.. shallow drill and hide wiring inside the wall
SheepGeeks
post Jan 16 2018, 09:21 AM

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QUOTE(Warn3r @ Jan 15 2018, 01:48 PM)

1) Paint
According to user manual, the unit was painted using 1 coat Dulux Eco Guard + 2 coats Dulux Pentalite.  Is it true that even if the paint appeared to be good quality on paper, most developers would add chalk/dilute to make it easier/cheaper to paint but is bad for health as the paint quickly comes off the wall as ‘dust’ / ‘powder’?
*
Normally they will add water to dilute the paint to reduce to viscosity so that they can paint it faster. But by adding more layer, it won't be obvious. Chalky, dusty, powdery are due to the putty they used to seal the ceiling or wall holes. Just deal with it or reinforce it with thicker layer of paint.

QUOTE(Warn3r @ Jan 15 2018, 01:48 PM)
2) Plaster Ceiling
I was trying to avoid installing plaster ceiling in the living & dining area because the ceiling height is already not high (~ 3000mm) to begin with and also I hate the plaster ceiling ‘hole’ that would be built around the air-cons (came free from developer).
*
You may install ceiling up to 2800mm clearance and it will still look spacy. Main purpose of ceiling is used to install numerous flat lights (easily) and extending your wires without ugly cable trunk.

QUOTE(Warn3r @ Jan 15 2018, 01:48 PM)
  c) I was told that from the plaster ceiling design above, I can even further make the centre hollow, so it would be like an empty photo frame with 4 edges. This allows the ceiling fan to be higher. Refer to picture.

  Is there any potential problem with this design?
*
Yes, you can and it would be stronger as you're mounting the ceiling directly to solid wall instead of ceiling's frame.


enriquelee
post Jan 16 2018, 10:11 AM

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QUOTE(Warn3r @ Jan 15 2018, 01:48 PM)
Hi all

I got my keys to my new condo in Dec 2017. I have a few questions that I wasn’t able to find answers from previous posts. Thanks for your time.
1) Paint
According to user manual, the unit was painted using 1 coat Dulux Eco Guard + 2 coats Dulux Pentalite.  Is it true that even if the paint appeared to be good quality on paper, most developers would add chalk/dilute to make it easier/cheaper to paint but is bad for health as the paint quickly comes off the wall as ‘dust’ / ‘powder’?

2) Plaster Ceiling
I was trying to avoid installing plaster ceiling in the living & dining area because the ceiling height is already not high (~ 3000mm) to begin with and also I hate the plaster ceiling ‘hole’ that would be built around the air-cons (came free from developer).

I was advised to do plaster ceiling with these reasons:

  a) Without plaster ceiling, surface mounted lighting would be restricted by the no. and where the light points are. This is because the ceiling wall is very hard to drill and the patching will inevitably leave a scar.

  Is this true?

  b) I was told the ‘drop’ of the plaster ceiling can be minimized to 6-8 inches. And to avoid building boxes around the air-cons, it can be detached from all 4 sides of walls. So there will be like 1 foot distance from the wall.

  Can the plaster ceiling be kept to just 6-8 inches while still having led light (tube) inside/on top to bounce light out from the side?

  c) I was told that from the plaster ceiling design above, I can even further make the centre hollow, so it would be like an empty photo frame with 4 edges. This allows the ceiling fan to be higher. Refer to picture.

  Is there any potential problem with this design?

  Generally for a small 14 foot x 23 foot area (living + dining), will this design look weird? Taking the short edge for example, 1 foot gap each side (gap from walls) means the plaster ceiling is left with 12 foot in length, if the plaster ceiling is 2 foot wide each side it would leave 14 - 2x1 - 2x2 = 8 foot wide hollow at the centre. Would this look nice? The side facing wet kitchen / dry kitchen would have a wider gap (following the width of the walkway from the rooms side + 1 foot).

Thank you all!
*
1) You can try touch the wall, see is there any powder in your hand. If no powder, it means the contractor did not add cc powder into the paint. Which also mean you are safe.
2a) Without false ceiling you can either opt for expose conduit or conceal conduit. Even with conceal conduit, you will not see a scar after you skim coat and paint the entire ceiling.
2b) 6 to 8 inches drop from the false ceiling can accommodate led light (tube or stripe)
2c) I do not see any big problem.
Generally) Look nice or not is very subjective. You may want your so call ID to draw a perspective for you to feel whether it is nice or not.
nanadeadbeat
post Jan 16 2018, 10:22 AM

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i dont trust malaysian contractor, so basically i diy 50% of my house on the parts that i can DIY.

mine one same 10ft and i have 4inch height plaster ceiling installed (i request to have the minimum offset height for the plaster ceiling)

for house paint, i paint my own (alone, and spend two month to finished)
i have work 9-6 and i start my painting job everyday after dinner.

end up spending below 1500 to have all tools and paint for my 850sqft condo.
i use Nippon Paint Odorless + Brilliant White, with hypecote for my tiles skirting, wall sealer as foundation of whole wall. all paint applied without adding any water or other things,

effect end up i do not regret at all. at least i no need to worried any paint contractor took my money and replace something fake or adding something in the paint to save their cost so they could earn more from that.
counterspider
post Jan 16 2018, 04:47 PM

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My house ground floor is without plaster ceiling. There are lot of different lamp design that can suit the ceiling without plaster. Just follow your own taste and comfort.

SUSadvocado
post Jan 16 2018, 09:51 PM

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QUOTE(ChuanHong @ Jan 16 2018, 09:16 AM)
Attached Image
Kitchen 1 lighting point with 36w feel lite LED

Attached Image

From 1 light point on the right and relocate and add the point to photo shown location. Looping it and patching. No piping visible.. shallow drill and hide wiring inside the wall
*
hmm. is that condo or landed?

1st time i hear people hack the ceiling. and it's not just shallow drill since you mention no piping visible means the hacking is at least 3cm deep to fit a 2cm2 pipe. did you get management approval for this? don't say ceiling most management won't allow any hacking/drilling on weight support walls.
SUSadvocado
post Jan 16 2018, 10:03 PM

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QUOTE(SheepGeeks @ Jan 16 2018, 09:21 AM)
Normally they will add water to dilute the paint to reduce to viscosity so that they can paint it faster. But by adding more layer, it won't be obvious. Chalky, dusty, powdery are due to the putty they used to seal the ceiling or wall holes. Just deal with it or reinforce it with thicker layer of paint.
You may install ceiling up to 2800mm clearance and it will still look spacy. Main purpose of ceiling is used to install numerous flat lights (easily) and extending your wires without ugly cable trunk.
Yes, you can and it would be stronger as you're mounting the ceiling directly to solid wall instead of ceiling's frame.
*
all contractors i talked to insists mounting the wood on ceiling brackets & supports instead of mounting a stronger L-Shape support on the ceiling then a wood then the U-hook. nothing i can do nobody agrees to do that.

some even say it's better to mount on plaster ceiling because the fan spin and has a twist force when mount on ceiling the ceiling can "absorb" the force.

they say if i can find the correct length or get a metal shop to do it they can install.

i know most contractors will give clients the lowest cost which uses 9mm board + thinner brackets.

 

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