Bartley Residences: Post-Renovation Review

It’s been nine months since we moved into Bartley Residences. How time flies! One common question I get from my friends is: “How’s life in new home?” I can’t deny that I enjoy staying at BR, especially when I can get more sleep in the morning. Edison’s school and my office are just a stone’s throw away. To me, location is the key advantage of BR. =)

Apart from being a brand new condo, the convenience of MRT at my door step is totally awesome too! Although I still drive to work, we take MRT more often during the weekends now. Travelling to town is generally faster by MRT than car. Moreover, there is no frustration of searching for carpark.

Lately, V and I are discussing about what we like and dislike about our new home. So, I took this opportunity to write a post-renovation review today.

Things We Like and Have Worked Well

1. Acorn Ceiling Fan with LED lights

In our previous home, we installed those old-fashioned ceiling fans that are ugly and difficult to clean. This time, I’m glad we made the right choice in using Acorn ceiling fans with LED lights.

The model that I like best is Futuriste 309 56” LED twin-blade fan in our living hall. It’s remarkably QUIET with excellent wind delivery. Sometimes, I doze off to sleep on the sofa! Ha! I’ve also recommended it to my friends.

One of the most common questions from my readers is whether the ceiling fan with LED light causes any annoying flickering shadow at night – especially in the study room. So, I took a video of it and shared it on my Instagram recently.

Model used in our study room is Ventilateur 238 42”.

One of the most common questions I get from my readers is “Will ceiling fan with LED light creates annoying flickering shadow?” So, I decided to share this video and the answer is obvious. There are shadows from the fan blades when the light is on. However, the shadows appear near the ceiling and they are not noticable within our eye level. So far, I don’t feel any discomfort from this. The fan LED light is the only lighting in my study room and it’s bright enough for me. #ceilingfan #ceilingfanwithled #acorn #acornceilingfan

A video posted by Emily (@ourlittlesmarties) on Oct 8, 2016 at 8:59pm PDT

The answer is YES! The shadow, however, appeared near the ceiling. So, it’s not noticeable within eye level. So far, we’ve been working and studying in our study room at night, and none of us are bothered or felt any discomfort with it.

2. 3M Prestige Sun Control Window Films

These window films aren’t cheap, but they’re totally worth the price. It’s truly amazing how effective they are in rejecting the sun’s heat. Initially, I was a bit sceptical about it. Therefore, we didn’t install the films during our renovation.

After moving-in for half a year, we found that the heat was so unbearable. When the sun hits our windows during the day, heat becomes trapped inside our house, and thus increasing its temperature.

After the window film installation, we felt a significant difference in heat reduction. =)

3. Steigen Automated Laundry System

Recently, there’s a discussion among the residents on whether we’re allowed to dry our clothes at the balcony. The management has issued a letter against it due to aesthetic reasons, but many residents are still doing it. Yup, I don’t deny being one of them too.

Rightfully, we should be drying our clothes using the dryer or hanging them in the yard area. However, our yard area is so small and has no direct sunlight. Some smaller units here don’t even have yard area.

I really like the Steigen automated laundry system as it certainly makes my laundry hanging job much easier. It’s small and sleek with generous capacity. To make my laundry looks less noticeable, I usually lower my outdoor blind in the afternoon.

Things We Dislike or Have Missed

1. Our outdoor blind

While most of the things and design decisions have worked wonderfully well, there’s been a few others that don’t. One of them is our outdoor blind. #wrongchoice

We installed outdoor blinds at our main balcony and master room balcony. They merely help to block the glare, but not the heat. Even though the blinds have stainless steel guide cables, they still flap badly during heavy thunderstorm. Sometimes, I wonder when they will just fall apart.

Worst thing is the mounting bracket (not sure if this is the right word to use). Our contractor has certainly used a low-grade type. They are rusty and totally unsecure. I guess they quoted us a low price with trade-off in the quality of the materials used.

That miserable hook or bracket, whatever you call it

Rusty already!

Well, if they do fall apart one day, I will consider installing the sliding louvred panels instead.

2. Combi Blinds

We love the WinUs Korean Combi Blinds that we installed in all our bedrooms. Our colour selection also matches with our paint colours (thankfully!). However, there’s a small problem associated with it that we’re uncomfortable with.

The rod at the bottom of the blind tends to hit the aluminium window grill when the fan is blowing. Thus, it creates a soft “ting ting” sound when they hit against each other, and it’s quite disturbing when we’re sleeping at night.

Thus, V came out with his “genius” idea to put a large cloth peg on the rod – at the area where it hits the aluminium window grill. Although it looks unsightly, it reduces the noise significantly.

Genius solution. No?

3. Induction Cooker

Current kitchen cooktop with gas stove

During our renovation, it has never crossed my mind to give away our trusty gas stove. Recently, I visited my friend’s house in BR and saw that she has converted to induction cooking. Induction cooktop is safer and easier to clean. The moment I saw it, I like it so much.

Now, I’m planning to upgrade my kitchen to induction cooktop too. This will be my mini project when SA2 is over – to search for a good and affordable induction cooker!

Any recommendations? 🙂