[somspaple]

Originally Posted by Aroy

Ideally the pipe should be at least 50 feet or more below the water table you expect to be after a number of years.

In urban areas the water table is constantly lowering due to excessive consumption. So there is no way you can predict the water table depth easily. Just as a precaution a pipe of 100 or more feet will safeguard you for at least a decade. 200 will be even better unless you hit hard rock, at which point you stop.

Thanks for your inputs. We've contacted a different contractor to come and take a look. Looks like the current guy is charging just too much.

[FURY_44]

I would need advice on how to get the rebate on BWSSB bill for implementing a RWH system in our newly constructed house.

Roof top area is around 800 sq ft and we use minimal Kaveri water since we have an open well which is well recharged and has abundant water through out the year. However I can see a "LEVY OF CHARGE TOWARDS RWH" in the bill, maybe they are adding a nominal amount to my bill every month and I want to get rid of it.

Any pointers appreciated.

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by noopster

Asian Paints does a fabulous job: reliable, no-nonsense, high quality painting. You can even use their value-added services (textures, exteriors, wall paper, decals) depending on your requirements. We got our new place painted by AP last year and have absolutely no issues. The wallpaper we used selectively was the pick of the bunch. Highly recommended!

Does Asian Paints use a local contractor to get the painting job done? Also did you get any form of warranty on the work done?

I got a quote from Asian Paints after reaching their toll free number and was provided one by a local contractor. I was under the impression that Asian Paints will have their own "employees" come in for the job. Am I mistaken?

I was also told by the AP guy who came gave me the quote that they don't do wall papers. Something is amiss. I will call AP again today and will also visit their AP Homes gallery in Bangalore.

Such a pain to get anything done in India, for every hoop you jump, you have to jump another 50 hoops. No wonder our country has the highest number of sanyasis in the world!

[Sheel]

My architect provided me link to https://www.btiles.com/wall-tiles/wall-tiles.html for brick cladding on the outer walls. Tried contacting them, but they haven't reverted. Any others whom I can contact and they can ship? I need it in natural color.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Does Asian Paints use a local contractor to get the painting job done? Also did you get any form of warranty on the work done?

No formal warranty as such but we had interior work ongoing and they were very accommodating when it came to waiting to apply the final coat, even redoing one wall that had to be partially broken because of our designer's mistake. No complaints.

I got a quote from Asian Paints after reaching their toll free number and was provided one by a local contractor. I was under the impression that Asian Paints will have their own "employees" come in for the job. Am I mistaken?

They connected me with a contractor (not an employee, as far as I know) who was quite senior, handled the contract and commercials and also is the point contact for after-sales service. The actual painting was done by a local painter under this contractor.

I was also told by the AP guy who came gave me the quote that they don't do wall papers. Something is amiss. I will call AP again today and will also visit their AP Homes gallery in Bangalore.

That's strange. My guy was very keen to cross-sell textures, wallpaper and decals. Once I informed him about my specific requirement, he pulled in his wallpaper guy and they provided a separate quote and executed it once I approved. It was quite seamless: they coordinated between themselves for the rubbing/cleaning/putty layer, for example.

Such a pain to get anything done in India, for every hoop you jump, you have to jump another 50 hoops. No wonder our country has the highest number of sanyasis in the world!

I feel your pain. We had major issues with Livspace, whom we contracted to do part of our interiors, which I have outlined earlier in this thread. Even now we get calls when they stumble upon one of the review we have written online but when push comes to shove they claim that things are "not covered by warranty", "already been signed off" etc. Anyway lesson learnt- will manage everything myself going forward.

On The APaints topic, one update I can give you is that I contacted the painter (not the contractor) directly for a repaint of my other apartment before giving it out on rent. Quality of work was almost as good and it was obviously slightly cheaper but the work schedule was not as well managed as when AP was involved. I would still recommend the AP route for a big job like a new home.

[Seagull76]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Does Asian Paints use a local contractor to get the painting job done? Also did you get any form of warranty on the work done?

I got a quote from Asian Paints after reaching their toll free number and was provided one by a local contractor. I was under the impression that Asian Paints will have their own "employees" come in for the job. Am I mistaken?

I was also told by the AP guy who came gave me the quote that they don't do wall papers. Something is amiss. I will call AP again today and will also visit their AP Homes gallery in Bangalore.

Such a pain to get anything done in India, for every hoop you jump, you have to jump another 50 hoops. No wonder our country has the highest number of sanyasis in the world!

Asian paints (or) Beautiful Home Services (part of Asian paints division) gives the job to Sub-contractor for painting (Applicator). Wallpapers are included in the scope.

I am doing my flat renovation with BHS and satisfied with their process

[keroo1099]

Originally Posted by Sheel

My architect provided me link to https://www.btiles.com/wall-tiles/wall-tiles.html for brick cladding on the outer walls. Tried contacting them, but they haven't reverted. Any others whom I can contact and they can ship? I need it in natural color.

Just placed an order for a client with them for cladding tiles

Kiran : +91 90660 94912

The other option is Terra Tiles on Murphy Road

Damn, Just saw you were in Bihar, sorry.

[Sheel]

If someone is reliable enough & BHPians can vouch for it / can to be trusted in Bangalore / Chennai / Hyderabad for exterior terracotta tiles, I can send them the cost of my tiles, plus transportation cost and they can ship me.

I believe these are available in South mostly. In natural shade [the middle one].



Thanks.

[One]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Does Asian Paints use a local contractor to get the painting job done? Also did you get any form of warranty on the work done?

I got a quote from Asian Paints after reaching their toll free number and was provided one by a local contractor. I was under the impression that Asian Paints will have their own "employees" come in for the job. Am I mistaken?

Yes, Asian paints use local contractors. There is an official warranty from Asian paints that you will receive - that essentially outlines on a per year basis how much % money they will pay incase something/ some patch goes bad. If I have it lying around (which I doubt), will send it across.

The employee is normally a person who comes intermittently for oversight to ensure that the service schedule received is adhered to.

[nirmaljusdoit]

Asian paints will have a markup of upto 30-40% over and above the painter rate for their overheads and margins.

If you have reference of a good painter, one can get a better deal and service too. Asian Paints was quoting me approx Rs. 1 Lakh + for my 3 BHK painting which included scrape down of all old paint from walls and grilles, with cleaning charges extra. They were not ready to commit to a final amount either.

I asked around and got the reference of a good painter team who came and did one wall as sample also. They scraped down with two coats of putty and one coat touch up putty with whole house cleaning complimentary. Work done was exemplary and not much supervision required. Certain times I had to intervene and tell them to mask properly, avoid overspray,cover tiles, cupboard etc. Finally settled on Rs. 75,000 for the whole job, good quality putty, paint and primer was used. Painter also left behind some quantity of paint with a roller and sand paper for me to do any touch up if required later. He also visited me a week later to check if any issue was there with the painting !

Extremely happy with the way the work turned out ! I was in two minds of going with Asian paints but had heard a couple of horror stories about them too.

[whencut86]

Originally Posted by nirmaljusdoit

Yes you will get granite slabs in grey and khaki (close colours) You can go to any dealers on Bannerghatta Road, Jigani, Sarjapur road etc. I have bought previously from HMG Lalbagh Road as their service and quality of stone i found superior in terms of lesser defects in the slab. Please do inspect slab thoroughly in proper light.

There are some good dealers in Banaswadi and surrounding areas as well. I visited many and could find a plethora of color options ranging from different shades of red, brown, maroon, pink, mocha, coffee, grey, charcoal, black and white with various patterns and designs. This was an eye opener for me as I was under the impression that granite slabs had only few color options. I plan to visit HMG tomorrow to get an idea of the color options there as well.

Originally Posted by nirmaljusdoit

Somany and Kajaria are two of the best in design and overall quality. There are some even local tiles which are as good or even better. However do check the rates once.

Most premium paints are washable nowadays and does help in cleaning. If you do have any stains that are stubborn, keep a small quantity with a roller and sandpaper home. If stain doesn’t go with cleaning, use a sandpaper, lightly sand it down and reapply a coat with a roller ! It is really quite easy and simple to do it

After visiting multiple Kajaria, Johnson and Somany dealers here and checking at different catalogues, finally going with Kajaria and got a quote for my selection from couple of dealers.

Will have to visit the Asian Paints House in JP Nagar this weekend to explore all options available and designer ones as well.

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

Finally went with Murdeshwara Ceramics (sold under the brand name Naveen Ceramics & Vitrified tiles).

I had gone through their catalogues and called them up. They don't seem to have the preferred designs/finish I require in tiles in 30x60CM, 80x80CM or 60x120CM sizes. They have limited size options as well.

Originally Posted by One

Matt tiles are better than glossy but will not prevent slipping, especially if there are older folks in the house. I have irregular top surface tiles in the bathroom which are better than plain Matt but even they can get slippery if there is semi-moist soap water with a lot of soap in it. So yes, worth it but not 100% slip free.

There are a lot of these tiles called Moroccan/ Spanish etc. Their quality and finish is genuinely better. I have used a mix of these in bathrooms and kitchen. These are priced significantly higher but there is a secret with all these tile guy shops- go with an interior decorator/ architect (even if you are not taking their services) and the rates you get are as low as 30-50% of the originally quoted price.

Instead of glossy, there is another finish called Satin finish, have a look and you might like it over glossy. The advantage is they reflect less tubelight and look classy. I have reached a stage where I prefer satin and Matt finishes over glossy in the house, they change the entire feel as they alongwith walls are the largest surface areas.

Do let us know what you eventually decide and your experiences

Have mostly selected Kajaria Eternity for the complete house with some ceramic designer tiles from the normal Kajaria range in Moroccan/Spanish designs for kitchen walls and wash basin counter top walls. There is a very coarse anti skid collection among matt tiles in Kajaria Eternity range and these have a rough surface to be used as bathroom tiles. Will mostly go with this for now.

Have opted for a mix of Glossy/Polished, Satin finish Matt, MarbleTech tiles, Wooden Finish tiles for the house. Glossy for a couple of rooms which have little natural light, MarbleTech for dining space, kitchen and passageway which will be the same tile as Glossy but with different finish for better merging across the house, Satin finish for one of the bedrooms and wooden finish tiles for another bedroom which I plan to convert as my study and wardrobe space. Trying a mix of Moroccan and Spanish designer tiles for bathroom walls.

The good thing with branded tiles is we get different finishes for the same tile so that we can opt for a particular finish for the entry lobby/foyer and different finishes for different parts of the house. I ended up choosing different finishes for the same tile across different parts of the house so that it won't look odd in each room with change of tiles. Mostly going with 60x120CM tile size so that lesser joints in the flooring. Kajaria also has good options for rough/matt finish balcony tiles as well.

[JMaruru]

Originally Posted by nirmaljusdoit

I asked around and got the reference of a good painter team who came and did one wall as sample also. He also visited me a week later to check if any issue was there with the painting !

We would like to do a exterior paint for our house in B'lore.

Could you please share me the contacts of the painter?

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by Seagull76

Asian paints (or) Beautiful Home Services (part of Asian paints division) gives the job to Sub-contractor for painting (Applicator). Wallpapers are included in the scope.

I am doing my flat renovation with BHS and satisfied with their process

I have just contacted the BHS service yesterday.

The regular AP guy or employee who came earlier didn't really help us with the paint selection or whatever. He just gave us the swatch and went on his way. I really need help with the 3D visualisation and whatever to get this done right. If BHS does this, then thats what I need.

Is that what they're doing for you as well?

[whencut86]

Any pointers to where in Bangalore I can look out for wall lamps, ceiling lamps, chandeliers and compare deals. Looking for some modern chandelier options and the online ones seem pricey.

Also need to change the complete electricals in the house and so which would be the best among these? Havells or Anchor switches? Any specific brand to avoid or any specific aspects to focus on for wiring?

For rooms without false ceiling, what is the best way to conceal wires for ceiling lamps. I see ideas with contrast wiring on the ceiling in an organized format or wires concealed in contrast tubes in the ceiling in a neatly done way or in some sort of design.









Has anyone done something like this in their houses? Or any other suggestion for concealing wires without false ceiling with minimal costs and done aesthetically?

[One]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

I really need help with the 3D visualisation and whatever to get this done right.

Try using the Asian Paints app (I think it is called Colours with AP) to get some semblance of idea in your phone atleast for a visible set of walls. The actual colours do come out different due to light etc but you could see if this helps as a starting point.