Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303 (part 2 of 2)

This is a continuation of Part 1.

Insert Square headed bolt through bolt and slide catch into seat base assembly.

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303- Bolt + catch on seat base (viewed inverted)

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303- Bolt + catch on seat base slide in (viewed inverted)

 Repeat for other side.

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303- Bolt + catch on seat base 2 sides (viewed inverted)

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303- Bowl without seat and cover

 Insert 2 x transparent rubber spacers.

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303- Insert 2 transparent spacers into 2 anchor holes on toilet bowl.

 Align bolts and insert into bowl anchor holes

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303- align seat assembly's bolt to bowl's anchor holes

 The bolt needs to be secured with nuts from underneath. See below pics for a thousand words.

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303- bowl without seat and cover elevation

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303- nut and washer to secure inserted bolt from under the bowl.

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303- nut and washer to secure inserted bolt from under the bowl.

Repeat for other bolt.


Also see:
Feedback of water cabinet baron w303

Other Maintenance Postings:
Changing chair fabric
DIY home repair cabinet knob
Does a refrigator need plinth
Wet floor toilet design

Changing Toilet Bowl Seat Cover- Baron W303 (part 1 of 2)

After 4 years of use, we decided to replace the toilet seat in the master bedroom with a standard oval shaped cover-seat (aka non-original) which was commonly available costing SGD26.

It proved to be an unwise choice as

1. The seat and bowl shapes did not match. I guess it still works well, but we started questioning why the decision to get a designer toilet bowl in the first place.

2. Due to the incompatible dimensions between the bowl and our purchased seat, the sitting position became awkward, which required the user to lean forward. In short it did not work.

Without much options, we searched for original seats and had 3 quotes, ranging from SGD40 to SGD55 all before GST. Naturally the cheapest one was picked from Klisss.

HDB renovation DIY- change toilet seat cover Baron W303 invoice

It came in a rather plan box for a designer product.

HDB renovation DIY- change toilet seat cover Baron W303- simple box

 However, the box was clearly labelled as "SLOWLYFALL". See the video here to know what it means.

HDB renovation DIY- change toilet seat cover Baron W303- Labelling

Supplied components included (clockwise in picture below) assembled cover-seat, 2 rectangular catch, 2 sets of plastic bolt + nut + washer and 2 transparent spacers.

HDB renovation DIY- change toilet seat cover Baron W303- Supply components

 Plastic rectangular catch.

HDB renovation DIY- change toilet seat cover Baron W303- Catch

 Complete assembly of the Catch + washer + nut + Bolt  assembly

HDB renovation DIY- change toilet seat cover Baron W303- Catch+ washer+nut+bolt assembly

See Part 2 here

Improved Toilet Layout- Feedback Dec 2012

Generally, visitors complimented on the spacious feel of our MBR toilet. However, their perception, like any photo viewer would have limited depth in the functionality of the layout.

After using the "new concept" toilet layout, this article is targeted to provide a genuine user feedback for renovators to make an informed decision. The following are some of the highlights.

1. Shared Shower-sink concept
PLUS: This concept created a spacious feel be removing the conventional glass shower wall.
MINUS: The only concern on this the constantly wet floor. Earlier blogs covered the solution for this by buying an anti-slip mat. See the link here

2. Vanity Top with Sink

PLUS: There has been no complains about the generous table space from the vanity top. We still try to keep it uncluttered by storing as much as possible in the wall mounted storage shelf. Maintenance is extremely easy  using a small water wiper.
MINUS: Cannot think of any at this moment.

3. Full Wall mounted Storage Cabinet

Wall mounted Storage Cabinet in Toilet

PLUS: Fantastic Storage Space! We use it to store spare toiletries, make-up, toilet paper etc. In addition, replenishment is immediate in the toilet.

MINUS: We observed that lipsticks grows moldy faster when stored in the cabinet as compared to those outside the bedroom, probably due to higher humidity in our naturally ventilated toilet.








4. White Colour
PLUS: Adds perceived space to the toilet when coupled with white light.
MINUS: little observed yet, However, we expect the white wall and floor tiles to become yellow in time to come.

5. Cove Light under the storage cabinet.
PLUS: The cove light is a good lighting option when we wake up to use the toilet late in the night. The cove light provided sufficient indirect brightness to move around without demanding the pupils to make drastic adjustments to the main lighting.
MINUS: If any, it would be the cost of an additional lighting point and bulb.

If you like to read about the concept of the Toilet Layout, please click here.

Also see
Improved Toilet Layout- Cost of Renovation
Wet Floor Toilet Design
Feedback of Water Cabinet Baron W303- 4 years

Changing the chair fabric

Dining set  consisting of 1 table and 4 chair set was purchased back in 2009.

To cut the long story short, after 3 years of wear and tear, the "leather" started to disintegrate.

We contacted several contractors and found it difficult even to get a quotation. It was only until we found Cheong and Mun on renotalk before they sent someone to take a look and offered a price on the spot.

In the discussion, we found the following facts, posted here for your benefit:
1. The original material was made of PU synthetic leather ( aka polyurethane)
2. Accoding to the saleman, a more durable material would be PVC synthetic leather ( aka polyvinyl chloride) which should last for at least 5 years if it is properly cleaned with water and soft soap. It is also the most water-proof amoungst the 3.
3. The most comfy, but at nearly double the price is cow skin leather. It can last at least 5 years provided it does not get wet and will last even longer if regularly maintained with leather cream and oil.

See the difference here and there

Verdict:
1. With 2 yound children, we expect frequent fluid spillage.
2. Leather cream and maintanence would take a lot of quality time.
3. Probably more worthwhile to choose PVC now and if there is no desire to change the furniture, in 5 years time, to replace with cow leather. This is a time where we optimistically expect lesser "waterfall: incidents after the children are more grown up.

Will post an update when the skin change is done.

Does the Refrigerator need a Plinth?

Do you need to create a plinth for the refrigerator? That was one of the "minor" points my ID was trying to play down and convince me to avoid the plinth. His argument was that without the plinth, it was easier to roll out the fridge to clean up the dust behind.

As the end-user, my concern was to address the case when the kitchen floor gets flooded from the washing machine malfunction, it would damage the fridge's electrical circuits. Read about front load washing machines having this risk here. "But that is a 1:1000 chance of happening", he argued back.  I figured he was trying to find the easy way out, as without the plinth, the tiler will have a much easier time. Click here to read the reasoning. Anyway, to cut the long story short, I won the debate, which I now am glad having doing so. To protect the washing machine from the flood, we have also placed the rubber blocks to raise it above the floor.

Fridge on a plinth, adjacent to stacked drier on Washing machine which is on blocks.

Washing Machine on blocks

After moving for 2 and a half years, the "1:1000" incident happened... the kitchen floor was flooded when the water discharge tube from the washing machine was accidentally pulled out of the house outlet pipe.

The fridge on the plinth and washing machine on blocks were safe from the flooding. The only thing to handle was cleaning up the flood. Snapped some photos while moving the washing machine and drier out to clean up the wet floor. All these effort to prevent permanent damage to the fridge and washing machine.... I'd say it is worth it.

1. Shifted out the drier and washing machine
2.  Create a temporary extension plinth to roll out the fridge (using newspapers and plywood shelf board)

Note the concrete tiled plinth on the left. Fridge has a white wheel and black adjustable leg. 

3. Roll out the fridge to access the kitchen outlet.

 4. Clean up the kitchen outlet

Kitchen water outlet was located under the fridge. All the flood water was discharged through this outlet. Also note the back of the fridge (on the right) has a lot of electrical works, vulnerable to flooding.

In conclusion, while making design decisions for your renovation, do consider some worst case situations, especially if they can cause some form of permanent damage to your assets.

Also see kitchen layout

Wet Floor Toilet Design

Its been 2 years since our renovation has been completed. If you have been following on our choice of "Improved Toilet Layout", we chose to have a common standing area for the sink and bath zones. Thus our toilet does not have a Dry or Wet floor area.

The floor is always wet. Unfortunately, we have also not picked a floor tile that was sufficiently rough. As the result, the floor is slightly slippery when wet. "The solution was simple", I thought. Just get a floor mat!

My first mat choice was a perforated foam mat, supposedly made in Germany. It seemed to have a lot of friction when I tried it at the hardware shop, which obviously did not have a wet floor. But after the first trial, where I simulated a "slip" under wet conditions, it proved to be still slippery. No Go.

My second attempt was a mat made from hard plastic strips. it worked! Paid about S$40 from Homefix for a standard size.

Why it worked: I supposed the reduced contact area from the black strips allowed water to trickle through. In addition, the reduced contact area created a larger friction force against the black strips and the wet toilet floor. To verify this, a control test was done by pushing the mat on the wet floor with my hands, it slipped. I tried the "slip", that is with my body weight on the mat, which passed with flying colours. You may be interested to know that for the foam mat, the results were the exact opposite. There you go Physic fans!

After the toilet wash, we would stand it up in the corner of the toilet to allow the water to dry off completely to prevent floor staining. From the following photos, you can see the black strips that provides good friction against the wet floor.

Also see Improved Toilet Layout- Costing of Renovation
Also see Improved Toilet Layout- Feedback
Also see Improved Toilet Layout