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thaisail

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Posts posted by thaisail

    Enforcement of Thailand’s new safety belt law pending edict from police

    in Thailand News

    Posted

    16 hours ago, Crossy said:

    Step son has an extra-cab pickup.

     

    He was stopped yesterday on the way home from the family seat and "reminded" that passengers in the back of the cab need belts (none are fitted of course).

     

    The cop apparently looked "disappointed" that only he and Madam were actually in the truck at the time.

     

    This has been tried before and the social-media uproar led to a rapid u-turn. I doubt this time will be much different.

    I have a 2010 Ford Ranger open cab and when I bought it, there were no seatbelts in the back but I noticed the platic cut outs where they needed to be mounted. I tried to get the dealer to fit seat belts in the back and they refused but I did get them to order the seat belts and I fitted them myself about a month after I bought the new truck. It was a difficult job but had to be done since I had a baby car seat that had to go in the back seat. The middle seat belt in the back had to come from an after market brand and has no shoulder straps like the ones on the sides. This middle seat belt was perfect for the baby seat so my Ford could manage 4 passengers and the baby who is now 15 years old!

    • Like 1

    Dentist recommendation in Bangkok

    in Bangkok

    Posted

    3 hours ago, BangkokAlan said:

    BIDC Bangkok International Dental Centre on Ratchadaphisek Road. Good service and value for money. Been going there last 12 years with no complaints. I am sure there are quite a few options

    I called them and they are fully booked today.

    Dentist recommendation in Bangkok

    in Bangkok

    Posted

    3 hours ago, BangkokAlan said:

    BIDC Bangkok International Dental Centre on Ratchadaphisek Road. Good service and value for money. Been going there last 12 years with no complaints. I am sure there are quite a few options

    We are passing through Bangkok from Phuket to Loei so we do not have a base in Bangkok to give location.

    30 day extension of 30 day visa exempt entry

    in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits

    Posted

    I arrived in Thailand on June 27. My 30 day visa exempt stamp will expire on July 26. I am in Phuket and rented a bungalow in Rawaii for one week ending on July 21. I want to go to immigration in Phuket on Monday July 18. I do not have a plane ticket out of the country. I do have my TM6 in my passport. The manager of this bungalow never asked me for my US passport and seems to be unfamiliar with the TM30 process. What can I do to get this TM30?

     

    I have to drive my pick up truck to Bangkok on July 21 to meet my Thai wife who is flying from Loei to meet me in Bangkok on July 23. We will be staying at her sisters vacant house in Bangkok while she is living in Sweden. We will put our 15 year old daughter on a plane to Paris where she is attending school on July 26. This is going to be on the day my visa exempt stamp will expire. I plan to drive to Mukdahan and cross over to Laos to apply for a new multi entry marriage visa Non immigrant O but the timing is not good because of my daughter's flight to Paris. As soon as she boards her flight on the morning of July 26, I could drive all day to Mukdahan and that is a 9 hour drive from the Bangkok Airport. If I cannot get a 30 day extension from Phuket, I will drive with my wife to Mukdahan but I think I will not be able to cross the border until the morning on July 27. This will get me a one day overstay. Please advise if this can be an option for me to have a one day overstay in my passport. Our daughter is 15 and therefor flying to Paris alone as a minor. This means the parents are obliged to stay at the airport until the plane takes off at 11am if the plane is not late. 

    Visa run options

    in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits

    Posted

    On 6/18/2022 at 8:00 AM, ubonjoe said:

    You would need 30 days of covid 19 insurance with coverage of $10,000 baht to a Thailand pass since you will be entering prior to July 1st. Look here for the insurance that can purchased for as little as 650 baht.

    https://tqm-app.com/static/thailandpass/index.html

    I am back home now in Chiang Khan since yesterday with a 30 day visa exempt stamp in my US passport. No one requested an outbound plane ticket from Thailand. However I was ready to buy a ticket with the website link you sent me just in case. The only issue was that the immigration officer at the airport in Bangkok wanted to see my boarding pass from Air France. My wife and daughter passed through the Thailand Pass traffic jam since they are Thai and went straight to the baggage claim with my boarding pass. But since I put my flight number on the TM6 landing card, he let me in with a warning. 

     

    My question is "Do I have to go to Loei immigration today and report my presence within 24 hours?"

    Visa run options

    in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits

    Posted

    Can you tell me which country to have the onward ticket out of Thailand for $14?

     

    It looks like Savananhkept is the best option from the latest visa run report. Looks like things haven't changed in the last 5 years!

     

    If I have a multi entry non O marriage visa can I now cross over to Laos at the Tha Li crossing in Loei Province every 90 days and come right back to get another 90 days?

     

     

    Visa run options

    in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits

    Posted

    Now that covid entry restrictions are going away, what is the best and cheapest way to get a Non O marriage visa in SE Asia from a Thai consulate as close, cheaply  and easily as possible from  Phuket or Bangkok? Looking at plane ticket prices, the cheapest price now seems to be from Phuket to Singapore at the moment but I am not sure the Thai consulate will be so easy to deal with in Singapore. I think it will take 3 days minimum to get this visa and Singapore will be very expensive for accommodation.

     

    I did a visa run to Phnom Penh from Bangkok in February this year with my Thai wife flying round trip from  Bangkok and had no problem with the Thai consulate but I don't want to go back there again if there is another nice place to see like Vietnam.  

     

    I would really prefer to go to Vientiane, Laos with my truck since I live in Chiang Khan but I am flying from Paris to Bangkok in 10 days and I am afraid I will need a ticket out of Thailand in order to get the Thailand Pass since my Non O Marriage Visa has expired. 

     

    If anyone knows a simple and easy solution to be able to fly from Paris to Bangkok without having to have plane ticket out of the country, I would really prefer the land crossing at Nong Khai and a taxi to the consulate in Vientaine to get the 90 day Non O visa hopefully multi entry because the Thai consulate in Cambodia would only give me a single entry Non O marriage visa back in February. 

     

    I used to drive to Mukdahan and take a taxi to Savanakeht and get a multi-entry Non O marriage visa easy without having to show any financials. But the last time I did this was 2016 and I am not sure if things have changed. 

     

    Here in Paris, it seems to be impossible to get a non O marriage visa in my US passport and my local immigration office in Loei Province told me they will not give me an extension on a Non O marriage visa issued in my French passport. Besides the Thai consulate in Paris require permanent residence in France and 6000 euros in a French bank before they will give me a single entry marriage Non O marriage visa  in my French passport.

     

    I am trying to avoid having to fly back to the states to get my marriage visa but it may be that I no longer have a choice.

    Thinking of getting a new A/C? Here's an interesting paper - Inverter vs Non-Inverter

    in The Electrical Forum

    Posted

    12 hours ago, Pooreye said:

    A very good read. That explains the stopping of our big inverter fridge, we sometimes found it quiet and not working. Must to unplug it, wait a few minutes, press the reset button inside, replug it and then it will start again.


    It took a few months until I realized it was because I sometimes use my small stick welder…

     

    Now the interresting thing: We are quite new to the house, and first months I just used an existing socket outlet at back of house. No fridge problems despite welding a fewtimes per week.

     

    Later I found out the feeding cable was only 1 sq.mm, and about 15 m long snaking around from various sockets inside house. So I changed the outside socket to get fed from another circuit of 1,5 sq.mm cable instead, unfortunately the fridge circuit. Now the fridge stopping probems arised.

     

    Well after a few weeks I realised why, and bought 20 m 2,5 sqmm cable, and rerouted it directly all the way to the fusebox upstairs. Put it on a the separate ac fuse. 
     

    But to my surprise, the fridge still stops although not as easy. But it still cut out sometimes. At this step is where I am of today. Next step, I think check more carefully inside fusebox for wire thicknesses and routing.

    Or go back to weld via long 1 sqmm wire.

    Or try to remember to unplug/replug the fridge every time.

    House voltage about 210-220 volts every time I check.

    Maybe get an analog meter and let wife check when I weld.

    Maybe someone have suggestions?

     

     

     

    I have a 10 year old inverter fridge and sometimes the compressor stops when the thermostat gives the command. The fridge compresser can only run so slow. So if the fridge is stopped and does not restart there is a problem with the thermostat maybe. But if the compressor stops and then restarts that is normal in our case. I think that the newer designed inverters will be able to turn much slower and will keep the temperature constant without having to stop. 

    • Popular Post
    • Popular Post

    Thinking of getting a new A/C? Here's an interesting paper - Inverter vs Non-Inverter

    in The Electrical Forum

    Posted

    I have had my three Samsung double inverter copper coil 12,000 BTU split unit aircons for more than one year now. Because we live in a more temporate location in Thailand, Chiang Khan, we do not run any AC from December to March. For the rest of the year, we start out running the AC in the living room in the afternoon and by sunset, the AC is no longer needed. However in the bedroom, we start using the AC as soon as the night time temperatures are staying above 22. 

     

    Before going to bed, I put the remote mode on "fast". This will set the temperature at 16 and the fan and compressor will slowly ramp up to maximum rpms. I leave this setting for maybe 10 minutes until the room is cooled off. I have found that with the new technology Samsung Inverter AC's, that if I set the remotes on "quiet" which will slow down the fan until the minimum RPM and direct the cold air direct to the bed, I can set the night time temperature to 25 and with a thick sheet or light blanket, the AC will keep us at the maximum comfort. The fan is so quiet and the compressor is running at minimum rpms until the night time temperatures reach around minumum of 30 and the compressor will start to speed up slowly but the fan will run at minimum speed all night and the room is going to stay at 25 all night. I set the timer on the remote to stop the AC at 7 am and the room slowly warms up to the ambiant temerature in the rest of the house. 

     

    The main reason that the inverter technology is more efficiant has to do with the laws of thermodynanics. If your AC compressor is always running at a very slow speed, the thermostat is keeping the temperature at a steady temperature which will be controlled by the speed that the compressor is turning. With the old style AC units, the compressor will run at maximum until the temperature reaches say 24. Then the compressor will stop until the temperature reaches the cut in temperature of say 26. This will give an average temperature of say 25. The major loss of efficiancy is the energy required to lower the room temperature by 2 degrees about 10 to 20 times per 24 hours. With inverter technology, this does not happen and therefor this energy loss does not occur. 

     

    The other big energy is the compressor starting current with is around 6 times the current required to run the compressor. So if the compressor starts 10-20 times per 24 hours, this starting surge will start adding Kws to your meter and your total power consumption will be higher as a result. With double inverter technology the compressor and the fan will both have what is called a soft start. This surge will be far lower because the speed of both will gradually increase and this will avoid that massive surge that comes with a traditional AC compressor. You will also save money when you build a house because the cross sectional area of your conductors can be less since your amp draw will be lower because of the lack of surges when thing start direct on line.

     

    But for me the best reason to go with inverter is the noise. I really like the Samsung system because when I run the AC's in "quiet" mode, there is almost no noise either inside or out. Unfortunately I found out that Daikin was the first company to have the patent on the inverter technology so they have had a 10 year period where they were either the only one selling these units or other companies had to pay a license fee to use this technology. I think this 10 year pattent has now run out and all the companies can now sell inverter technology. So Daikin has has a 10 year head start on this technology and by luck the double inverter 9000 BTU until in our bungalow, where we lived during construction of our new house was really the gold standard. I wish I had known this information about Diakin patent before I ordered the Samsung AC's. Perhaps by now the other companies have developed better technology than Daikin but one thing I like better about the Diakin is that I can adjust the temperature settings by 0.5 degrees increments instead of 1 degree like my Samsung units. This is only a matter of comfort so that if 25 is too hot we can set the room at 24.5 degrees and end the argument with the wife. 

     

    The only disadvatage I can see with inverter technology is the extra cost to buy the AC units. But it seems that this cost difference has decreased over the last several years because they are now selling more inverter units than the classic type and the companies have gotten back their research and develpment cost. The other reason is of course repair and maintenance. Because the technology is new, many AC repair technicians are not familiar with them so finding a qualified repair man can be a chalenge in remote areas of Thailand. This problem will eventially go away as inverter technology takes over the market the same as happened already with diesel engines that went to electronic common rail from the classic mechanic deisel engines from the old days. The Thai mechanics had to learn common rail quickly. 

     

    But there is one thing that is absolutely critical for using this new inverter technology. You must have a clean power supply. I have installed a high and low voltage safety switch that will trip the entire house power if the voltage goes below 190 volts or higher than 250 volts or If my amps go higher than 40 amps, the entire house will black out and with all of these functions, the power will automatically be restored when the electricity supply returns to normal with a built in timer. I fitted MOVs on my power inlet to deal with lightning surges. The cost the adjustable voltage protector with digital display and timer for the entire house is only 400 baht and the MOV's was less than 135 baht, both with Lazada. Without these feature you may be having to replace your inverter AC units or at least having very costly repairs. 

     

    The second very important thing to do when changing from classic to inverter technology is make sure that the earth connection is using the same size condutor as the phase and the neutral. This is really critical the safe and efficient function of inverter technology. Make sure that your earthing rod is 2.5 meters in the ground and goes into wet earth so that there is a very good earth connection and of course, earth fault protection with no more than 30 mA trip setting. I have had a nightmare getting my electrical contractor to conform to these specification and I had to watch him like a hawk to get this done. In fact, he tried to cheat me by not even having an earthwire from the three new Samsung AC units. I had in the end have to have him put conduite around the outside of the house with separate earth wires of the correct cross sectional area going to the earth rod direct which cost me a lot of extra money but it had to be done. 

     

    Anyway I just wasted the entire morning writing this essay when I should have be out intalling the new faucets that need to be installed but writing this was better then going outside to work in the hot sun! My wife does not agree!

    • Like 5
    • Haha 2

    Using US credit card with Lazada-Kasikorn issue

    in General Topics

    Posted

    On 2/28/2022 at 4:48 PM, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

     

    I dropped my last remaining relationship with Cap 1 (credit cards) during the past year, after 20+ years of multiple relationships with them.

     

    I'd explain why, except it would take an hour, and would have me and you pulling out our remaining hair before it was done.

     

    Suffice to say, in recent years, their customer service has gone to ##%%$## (foreign-based mentally retarded morons)!

    I will not renew my venture Cap One card when it expires in August. I paid the $59 annual fee last year but never again. The only reason I keep using it is because I still get 2% cash back which is more than my Navy Federal Credit Union who give me 1.75% cash back with no annual fee. Plus the NFCU works with Lazada while the Cap One does not.

    Visa run to Cambodia

    in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits

    Posted

    On 2/26/2022 at 10:12 PM, ericthai said:

    You might want to check into FBAR more. My understanding from my accountant is that transferring money out of your account wont help with FBAR.

     

    I was told that the rules state that if your foreign bank account (and any bank accounts you have access to, I have to list our corporate accountants as I'm listed as an officer with account access) exceeds $10,000 in a year you have to file. However, I have been told that it's also an annual aggregate total.  I use an the account at my lawyers office for my taxes.

    I know that the balance for all accounts outside of the US combined must be under $10,000 or a FBAR must be filed before the October deadline. So I will now have to file a FBAR for 2022 tax year (Jan. 1 to Dec. 31) and because my local IO in Chiang Khan is demananding more than 45,000 instead of the legally required 40,000 baht per month to qualify for the monthly income method, I will have to complete 12 monthly foreign bank transfers over the next year of more than 45,000 baht. So today I have transferred 46,500 baht using Wise for the first time and the transfer was recorded with Bangkok Bank as an international bank transfer even though it was sent by "Wise" former (Transfer Wise). Unfortunately the funds arrived on February 28 instead of March 1st as planned. WISE is really easy to use, takes half the time of a bank to bank transfer and the speed of the transfer is twice as fast as before. Plus, I will know the exact amount in Thai Baht going into my account.  

     

    I will re-apply for my marriage visa extension in April before my Non O visa expires and by then I will have 400,000 baht in my Kasikorn account for 2 months prior to my application. But unlike this year, I will leave the 400,000 baht in Kasikorn for an entire year and when I renew my marriage visa extension in April 2023, I will keep transferring 45K+ baht for the entire year to Bangkok Bank and I will try again to show only the Bangkok Bank statements in April 2023. If they refuse to give me the extension next year, I will get a letter from Kasikorn showing the 400K baht balance for the entire year and I will ask my IO if I must keep that 400k in my name. If he says no need, I will transfer again 200k baht to my wife's Kasikorn and 2023 will hopefully be the last year of having to file the FBAR. 

     

    I have a bank account also in France so I must add those funds to my Thai bank account and if the combines balance does not exceed $10,000 US, I should no longer have to file an FBAR. 

    • Like 1

    Using US credit card with Lazada-Kasikorn issue

    in General Topics

    Posted

    1 hour ago, D M G said:

    I tried my Chase card 3 days ago after Lazada told me the problem is fixed.  It did not accept.  Same problem.  I contacted their Customer Service.  Same set of questions I got least November.  Then I got an eMail asking for all the documents I provided last November.  I'm in the VORTEX.

    Change to Navy Federal Credit Union and have them use your Thai address and Thai phone number for your account. You will get 1.75% cash back if you order the cash rewards Visa card.

    App. won't install on Android Smart TV

    in Audio Visual AV

    Posted

    4 hours ago, vinny41 said:

    Some Tv's run something similar to Android such as Samsung running an

    Tizen Operating System or Orsay Operating System or LG web os

     

    LG, VIZIO, SAMSUNG and PANASONIC TVs are not android based, and you cannot run APKs off of them… You should just buy a fire stick and call it a day. The only TVs that are android-based, and you can install APKs are: SONY, PHILIPS and SHARP, PHILCO and TOSHIBA.
    Source: https://frameboxxindore.com/apple/do-all-android-apps-work-on-android-tv.html

     

    What is a fire stick?

    Visa run to Cambodia

    in Thai Visas, Residency, and Work Permits

    Posted

    1 minute ago, ubonjoe said:

    I see no mention of how you would return from Vientiane. The bridge from Vientiane is closed for entries from Laos and if you did manage to enter you would have to do a 14 day quarantine in a AQ hotel.

    I would have flown to Bangkok from Vientaine but the flight was a charter flight only so I don't thing the Test and Go would have worked. So that is why we chose Cambodia.

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