Hello everybody.

This is my grandmother's house in Damansara Jaya. Has an "indoor" garden next to the existing living room that the previous owner converted into a fish pond. Behind the window on the left is the dining area and to the right of the 4 brick pillars is the driveway.

Would like to put a roof over it, remove the sliding glass door that separates this space with the living room, fill up the pond, put new flooring, maybe remove the window/wall to the dining area.

Been reading some other threads, for example House Renovation - Approval Plan, Local Authorities - DBKL/MBSA/MPSJ.. etc . I have 2 contractors coming in next week to take a look. But this being the first time I'm renovating anything, I would like to seek out advice on the forum.

I'm not even sure what to ask, so please be kind to me and allow me to just "park" this first post here. As I get more info from the contractors and read up more on the forums, I'll post specific issues and questions that I have.

Thank you everybody!

This post has been edited by epep: Apr 18 2025, 08:40 AM


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I would do sky roof over the air well, get the area sheltered and yet can enjoy natural lighting. Get good tint to filter uv n heat. That's a unique design that you dun find often.

A sky roof would be nice! But I've seen some cafes with sky roofs and they do get quite dirty over time. Also, there is no easy access to get up there for cleaning and I don't think my grandma would hire people to regularly do that.

The next door neighbour enclosed his indoor garden using a flat slab. Is it cheaper than a pitched roof with tiles? One thing I noticed with the neighbour's flat slab is that a lot of water pools on it when it rains.

Edit: Just had the first contractor come to the house. He suggested either polycarbonate panels, or a combination of tiles and some polycarbonate in the middle of the roof to let sunlight through. I’m a bit worried that he said all too casually said that I don’t need to get a permit from MBPJ. Do I? Don't I? I’ll need to look into the legal requirements more closely!

This post has been edited by epep: Apr 18 2025, 03:49 PM

Polycarbonate roof can get very noisy when it rains.

I've been told that the seals around the panels often leak, and the panels can crack over time. I'm hearing more and more negatives and few positives. But I'm worried a solid roof will make the whole house very dark.

I would suggest you engage couple of aluminium guys to get quotation for laminated glass plus mildsteel/aluminium structure, and get their advice how to do the skyroof. Try not to do flat roof as it restrict rain watwr flow and can accumulate dirt mark. Also assess if their suggested design can allow for access to do regular cleaning/water spraying...

The roof is being put on hold. Right now the focus is on filling up the fish pond, putting in a new floor as well as a drain. If I remember correctly, it'll be a mixture of gravel and sand as the base, then a layer of concrete. A contractor quoted RM3500 for filling up the pond (4m x 2m x 0.5m) The tiles around the pond will be broken up and new tiles installed (the area is about 4.5m x 2.5m) for RM1800. Going to find a 2nd contractor to compare prices.

After filling up the pond, a layer of plastic or PVC is typically placed under a concrete slab to prevent moisture from the ground from seeping into the concrete. This helps to minimize cracking and ensure a stronger, longer-lasting slab. My contractor did not do so. Currently, all my tile grout lines are tainted by the water marks.

Oh goodness! None of the contractors I talked to raise this potential problem. Out of curiosity, could you could share a picture or two showing the problem? But wouldn't the plastic layer just trap the moisture under the stab forever?

Before and after.


Still debating about a roof over this area. Tile roof would look nice with the rest of the house, but translucent UPVC would be a cheaper option and still let some sunlight through.


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