stament

I am interested in finding a good granite firm who can fit or a very good tradesman. I will probably source the granite elsewhere myself unless the shop is also reasonable.

Any recommendations from TV members in CM?

Thanks in advance.

Picking something I know nothing about is never easy. It seems each large store you go into, each salesman says a different brand is best. I know some are inventivisied to sell brand X more than Y which can make it difficult to believe what they all say!

We are looking for a range hood, gas hob and oven. Don't necessarily need to be the same brand.

Shop X said the Franke hood and hob was the best in our price range, strong and good quality.

Shop Y said Fotile as the hood is much more powerful and quieter and cokes with a 10 year motor guarantee. He also said the gas hobs were better.

Shop Z  recommended Mex. He said the hood is better than the Franke and Fotile ones since they don't have a filter so their motors get very dirty with all the grease.  The Mex filters can be removed and cleaner.  He said that parts of the hob on the Mex hob are removable, and hence good as easier to clean.

I assume all glass hobs should be equally easy to clean, the glass that is.

In terms of reliability and ease of cleaning the glass on the hobs are the same.

Does anyone have any experience with these brands. Could do with a "Which" report on these or some independent expert reviews like they have for laptops, TV's, etc? ????

16 minutes ago, Crossy said:

I really don't like the UPVC ones, they look tacky IMHO. Madam wouldn't have them in the house!

 

We have the teak door units from HomePro in our concrete and granite base units.

 

Matching all-wood for the wall units from the same place.

 

Apart from a couple of hinges failing (standard size, easy fix) they've been great since 2012.

That was exactly what I thought of the ones I have seen! Very flimsy too.

We need to install a new kitchen and I have read quite a few articles on TV and have decided that concrete ground built floor units with doors and a granite work surface would be the  best option, due to termites, durability, etc.

For the kitchen cabinet doors (and those at head height) it's been recommended to me that UPVC is the best option. I was considering wood but the termites issue has swayed me.

We plan to have a range hood, built-in hob and oven.

I have looked at some PVC doors in Chiang Mai at various large DIY stores but they seem too flimsy. Does anyone have any recommendations perhaps? We aren't keen on the high gloss units and we were told these can't be used with concrete anyway.

Our kitchen is L-shaped and we also could do with some ideas on designs. If anyone has any photos they can share of their kitchens that would also be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

1 hour ago, seajae said:

we bought a franke oven for our other house, very happy with it, always worked well,  in our new house we have a teka oven and cook top, cook top is great and while the oven does a good job the touch buttons have never worked properly since new, trying to get teka to sort it out is impossible. One thing we did learn is that you have to have earth wiring for the ovens & extraction fans  to work properly or they dont last very long.

Many thanks

1 hour ago, OneMoreFarang said:

I think with many devices there is no such thing as "the best".

What is the best? The best looking, the one which uses minimum electricity, a small one, a big one, one with lots of features or one with just the basics which is very easy to use?

Yes agree, sorry I wasn't very clear was I. I meant in terms of reliability.

10 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

Frankly what I find if ya lucky cheap stuff can last longer than expensive stuff.

What I do is look what brand is available locally or on-line and check it out on internet.

I can look for prices no problem but want to know what is good and what isn't so good.

2 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

I recently looked at kitchen appliances.

It's impossible to look at the electronic from outside and other technical details.

What I did in shops is that I pressed some buttons and move some dials and things like that. On many devices it just feels cheap, and it feels like it will be damaged after some use.

At the end I bought all from Electrolux. They seem to be relatively good quality for reasonable prices.

For the hood I also made sure I switch it on and listen to it. Some of them are very loud.

I still have to install what I bought and have no user experience up to now.

 

I also looked at this AU website and subscribed. They tested some devices which are available in AU and TH and some general articles about different devices.

https://www.choice.com.au/

 

Yes, I opened a couple of oven doors and one seemed flimsy so that was an instant no.

3 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

If you are in CM you must be able to find out what's best by asking about that's what my friend who lives there does. 

Many places selling stuff. 

I am looking for personal experiences people have of uses appliances. Salesmen don't always tell the truth....

Chiang Mai. Guessing better to go with a brand that has a local service presence in case of any future issues too. Been to look at Baan and Beyond and Boonthavoon so far.

Looking to put in a new kitchen and most of the brands here I am unfamiliar with. Not going fir top spec, something reliable but not too expensive.

Went to a couple of large stores, one suggested a franke range and the other a fotile one. I am aware of Franke's reputation for sinks but didn't know the made kitchen appliances. Fotile, I have never heard of but the salesguy told me they are the number 1 bestseller in China and are good quality.

Bosch could be an option albeit quite a bit more expensive, but I didn't like the looks of the ones available. 

Does anyone have any previous good or bad experiences they can share please?

Any updates on KSK itself?

On 10/26/2022 at 6:02 PM, NotEinstein said:

Extended my family visa today. A busy office, but very efficient - handed in paperwork and paid at the front desk. I had an appointment booked, so just had to wait (we got there early). 40 minutes later called to sign some papers, had photo taken, they had done a 90 report for me, and they handed over my passport. All done in one interaction, so we left 20 minutes before our appointment time. There was no walk-in queue after 13:30 from what I could see.

I didn't realise you could book an appointment. How do you do that @NotEinsteinplease?

Felt my house shake in Tha Sala

21 hours ago, Paul Catton said:

Perhaps need to start a new thread. "Xmas day 2022, New Year 2023", What are our options in Chiang Mai? The big name hotels used to advertise special functions for both "25th December' and the 31st of December. There used to be threads on trying to obtain a Turkey for Xmas from the major supermarkets, Which restaurants put on the best traditional Xmas dinner for transients like Opal an Myself. etc.........

I thoroughly recommend the CEC Christmas Meal. The first time we went to the Meridien but 3 years ago pre covid we went to the Le Crystal restaurant.

36 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

Yes, I don't think any go into town.

 

There are taxis (scooter w/side cart), but they really don't hang out there much.  2.2 kms to walk to surfside, than another half kms or so, till hotels, if wanting to stay surfside.  If not rainy or loaded down with packs, it's pleasant enough.  Might have a dog or 5 bark at you, but they're harmless.

 

If you do walk, as stated, you can cross the RR tracks, and no need to use the overpass, as no walkway on, and small shoulder is used by MBs.

 

More than a few people simply walk it.  Also why the train is convenient, if convenient for you at HH.  Actually travel time, driving vs train is about the same I think, 1+ hr.  Depending on traffic, it sometimes takes me 1.5 hr to drive home from BluPort, and I'm only 5 minutes off the van intersection.

 

Also the train station to surfside and 'all' things, is only 1/2 kms, or less.

 

If walking from van stop, there's small park, next to stadium, I frequent with the dog almost daily, that you'll pass on the walk to the surf, with a 7-11 just prior.  Pick up a snack/beverage, and sit lakeside (small).  Do have to exit same gate (stadium entrance) as going in, as they have yet to open the other gates since covid, so an extra 200m of backtracking ????

 

Anything else, feel free to ask.

 

Many thanks, very informative indeed. Think we might hire a car from HH for the convenience as we would need two hire two motorbikes in PKK anyway. The train time from HH is fine but coming back the times are awful.

16 hours ago, KhunLA said:

Have you been to PKK before ?

 

I live just out of town, west side of hwy 4

 

Thanks for the info. Does the minivan only stop in the top left hand corner of your map? How can you get from there to the town centre? Are there songtails or grab or do you have to use motorbike taxis @KhunLA

1 hour ago, KhunLA said:

Have you been to PKK before ?

 

I live just out of town, west side of hwy 4

 

Yes we have been before but drove before.

52 minutes ago, jojothai said:

You are lucky.

I am just getting a minivan from hua hin toward prachuap. Just got on the van.

The guy selling tickets says the minivans are every 30 to 40 minutes.

Start at 6.30 am.

Until about 6pm.

Coming back about the same.

The vans go from petchaburi to prachuap via cha-am and hua hin.

So they go past the airport and you can ask to get out there.

I am getting van from the clock tower. It just stopped at market village.

There are small desks to buy tickets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Many thanks. I am planning to get the train to Prachaup and the mini van back to Hua Hin due to the infrequent train times.

I know you can catch the train but the times aren't that convenient.

Does anyone know how often minivans or buses travel between the two places. Secondly, what time do they start each day?

Lastly, is it possible to get a minivan from Prachaup Kiri Khan to Hua Hin airport?

Thanks in advance.

@Paul CattonGood to hear from you Paul. We are still in CM and will be here most of December apart from a few days -Hua Hin trip planned. Be good to see you and Opal.

Will you be moving here permanently in December?

22 minutes ago, Etaoin Shrdlu said:

I would suggest you contact an insurance broker and discuss your specific needs. A good broker can provide competing quotes and explain coverage differences and also discuss intangibles such as an insurer's ability and willingness to pay claims, something that quote aggregator websites usually don't do.

 

Any medical condition that exists at, or has existed prior to, the formation of an insurance contract can be considered a pre-existing condition and likely needs to be disclosed to the insurer on the application form. If the condition is really not relevant to the insurer, you won't be penalized for disclosing it. If it is relevant, and you don't disclose it, the policy could be voided. Thailand does not have a statute limiting an insurer's ability to consider pre-existing conditions or exclude them from coverage.

 

In addition to Thailand-based insurers, you might want to expand your search to offshore insurers. They may offer broader coverage and operate in jurisdictions with better consumer protection laws. You might need to find an offshore broker to help you with this since Thai insurance brokers technically aren't supposed to offer offshore insurance products to their clients.

Many thanks for the helpful response. I contacted AA Insurers earlier today, as we have our car and house insurance through them.

I am planning to buy an annual worldwide travel insurance policy from Thailand.  However, I don't seem to be able to see a comparison website like we have in the UK. Is there one in Thailand?

Secondly, as regards pre-existing conditions, how far back can they go for it to be excluded? Can something 10+ years ago be counted as a pre-existing condition? Some quotes state about pre-existing conditions but there is no timeline given. 

Lastly, it would be interesting to hear about good and bad insurers from members own personal experiences with insurance companies, who are bad, who are good, etc.

Many thanks in advance 

On 8/6/2022 at 2:04 PM, jack71 said:

No. When applying for travel insurance they dont ask at all for pre existing conditions. I checked several online applications for travel insurance. one does not need to declare them initially. 

I also saw this in a quote I did . As regards pre existing conditions, is there a time period I wonder? How long can the pre-existing condition go back for it to be excluded?