Renovation complete.

Last published chapter was still mid-install — kitchen carcasses, TV wall open, study scaffold still out. That write-up is Days 3 and 4. This one is the end of the diary. I am living in the space now.

The dates

17 Aug 2026 — Jishang shipped out to my 3PF. He stayed late to receive the goods.

18 Aug — 3PF loaded it for sea shipping.

29 Aug — reached Singapore.

31 Aug — last-mile contacted me to arrange delivery on 2 Sep. The $600 van reload sat on that call.

2 Sep — delivery into the unit.

3 Sep — installation starts.

10 Sep — installation completes.

China to Singapore, door to door: 16 days, including the weekend. Installation: 8 days, including Saturday. No work on Sunday.

"Installation completes" does not mean everything is in 100% working condition. Small items are still outstanding — the kitchen sliding door is missing an accessory, and the foldable door is still in progress. Fine to live in. Very, very minor inconvenience.

TV feature wall

Day One this wall was waiting on a light point for the LED driver. Days 3 and 4 it was still carcasses and a ladder. It is up now — TV in, LED on, drawers below, open shelves beside the screen. This is the wall from the feature-wall carpentry cost post, in the room, with the sofa in front of it.

Kitchen — from the new entrance

Day 4 was carcasses and tools on the base units. The kitchen is fitted now. Shot from the new entrance we built — sliding-door track at the head of the opening, fridge on the left, washer and dryer stacked on the right. That sliding door was the line item that jumped from $2,400 to $1,200 to $600 in the remodel story. It is in the Jishang package. The track is up; the door itself is still waiting on a missing accessory, so it is not fully working yet.

Finished kitchen seen through the new entrance, sliding-door track overhead, fridge on the left, stacked washer and dryer on the right — Kitchen from the new entrance — sliding door track up, appliances in.

Same finished kitchen from the new entrance, slightly tighter crop on the stacked laundry and counter — Same kitchen, another frame.

Study

Day One the study was still in that holey protective wrap — not pegboard. Days 3 and 4 the Taobao scaffold was in front of the high cubbies. Wrap is off. High cabinets are on. LED strip under the run. Desk and chair are in. I still need the scaffold if I want the very top — that is why I bought it.

Study carpentry from another angle, high white cabinets and LED strip above a sit-stand desk — Same study, other angle.

Entrance and shoe cabinet

Day 4 the shoe cabinet had doors on and an empty interior. The Higold rack from the delivery day is in now, and it is actually holding shoes. Closed, it reads as a run of white doors next to the wood niche and drawers — smart lock still in the frame, same doorway as the pallet shot from Day 3.

Finished entrance storage: floor-to-ceiling white cabinet doors, wood niche with drawers, smart lock on the unit door — Entrance — doors on, floor protection gone.

Shoe cabinet open with pull-out racks full of shoes and bags on the top shelf — Shoe cabinet in use — rack in, shoes in.

The Higold rack turning with shoes on it.
If you can't play the video, open it directly.

Inside the carpentry

Closed, it is just white doors. Open, this is the interior — where the bulky stuff actually lives. Vacuum, ladder, the things I kept telling the designer we had to plan for because this unit has no bomb shelter.

Open light-wood carpentry interior with a pull-out, vacuum, ladder and boxes stored inside — Interior — vacuum, ladder, the bulky items in the run.

Same carpentry interior from the other side, shelves packed with household items, dog on the floor — Other side of the same interior.

Switch the China plugs

Tip, because I already paid to learn it. China appliances often arrive with a China two-pin, or with an adapter. Buy a proper Singapore Type G plug and switch it out.

These are $1.50 each, Safety Mark on the back, 13A fused. Most hardware shops carry them. Not exotic.

Back of a white Singapore Type G plug with red Safety Mark label, sticker price $1.50, held in a hardware shop aisle — Type G — Safety Mark, $1.50. Most hardware shops have these.

Front of a 13A fused Singapore Type G three-pin plug with wiring instructions for live, neutral and earth — 13A fused Type G — the one that actually belongs in a Singapore socket.

I had an electrical trip that shut the washing machine down. I called a washing-machine repair. It was not the machine. It was a faulty adapter. That trip cost $150.

Lesson: switch to these Singapore plugs. Peace of mind is cheaper than the call-out.

My installer, Meng, switched them out for free. I left the installer off the list earlier so Jishang could keep that relationship. After this job I am listing him — WhatsApp 8458 3507.

One screw-up — and they actually replied

Not everything landed clean. This kitchen cabinet door did not work the way it should — the clip below. I sent it to Jishang Furniture. They will provide a foldable door to fix it. Still in progress — same bucket as the sliding-door accessory. Liveable in the meantime.

The door issue — Jishang is sending a foldable door.
If you can't play the video, open it directly.

After-sales was prompt. That is the part I want to mark. Compared with other vendors I have used — especially after-sales — most just ignore you. They don't. I still like the China kind of service standard.

Will I use them again? Definitely. 100%. I am thinking of re-doing one of my rooms.

A couple of bucks under the sink

Meng also pointed me at this — a kitchen drain five-way (厨卫五通) so the sink pipes are not a mess of separate tails. Search 厨房下水管三通洗菜盆洗碗池水槽五通 on Taobao. A couple of bucks. The item is still on the way. I will update when it is installed.

Taobao listing screenshot for a kitchen sink five-way drain connector, overlay text about solving multi-pipe drainage — The listing Meng pointed me at — 厨卫五通, still in transit.

Post-renovation cleaning

We used Scrub Home for the post-renovation clean. I would not really recommend them. A few spots were missed — obvious ones, at least to me.

The sandy feel was still there after they left. I guess maybe that is just how a reno floor is. It only went away after four or five more rounds of vacuum and mopping.

Contacts from this job

Jishang Furniture — factory, design, carpentry. After-sales on the foldable door was prompt. I would use them again.
Meng — installer on this job. Switched the Singapore plugs for free. WhatsApp 8458 3507.
Yongjin Electrical — electrical, including the TV-wall light point from Day One.
Aurora Floorworkz — vinyl, already down before carpentry arrived.
PainterLi Services — painter via Aurora. Mixed on the finish; the contractor page already says that.

Feel free to send over any questions.