Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by vernee26

Careful with AIM optical (Spectacle shop)

vernee26 — Thu, 04 Sep 2025 15:17:48 +0800

TLDR : patronize AIM optical, bangsar south at your own risk

It’s gonna be a long post about what happened and I feel its necessary to provide the details for readers to have a better picture

Some back ground :

Mum has used bifocal lens for > 20 years

Jun 2024 : bought specs from AIM (jaya one) RM1,600. Upon collection, no testing done (mum also forgot and didnt check)

Jun-Sep 24 : alternating use between old and new specs as didn’t feel comfortable reading with the new specs but assumed she had to wear it a bit more often first

Sep-Dec24 : old spec was damaged in a fire. No choice but to wear the new specs. Used it daily for 3 months, but still couldn’t see well (near sight)

Dec 24 : went to AIM, Jaya One to try to check the eyes/spec. realized it has closed down

Dec24 - Mar 25 : visited 3 other optical shops. All 3 shops questioned/had doubts whether the lenses were in the correct position (ie Left lens wrongly put in right side and vice versa).

Mar 25 : Mum went through all messages with AIM and whatsapped the last known contact. Was told to go check it at AIM, Bangsar South

This is where it gets interesting - FULL on BS from branch manager

17 March 2025 : brought mum to AIM optical in Bangsar south. Attended by Ms Fi**a (she claims to be the branch manager there for 4 years with 20 yrs experience in optical industry)

We asked Ms F to inspect the spectacle to see if there was anything wrong with it. For about 5 she’s holding the spectacle to the ceiling light, turning it here and there,using her mobile phone (dunno if she’s taking pictures of the spectacle or using some optical app). She repeated this multiple times.

Then, for the next 10 min, Ms F brought mum for eye test with the auto refractometer, commenting that her astig is not stable (keeps fluctuating - not sure what that means), questioning mum about medical history (any hypertension, diabetes, etc), repeatedly saying that the specs has to be used more often to get use to (we have already told Ms F from the start, that the specs has been worn >6 months already!)

At this point, I interjected as Ms F was repeating herself and had not answered the 1st question of whether the spectacle had any issue.

I asked her again if there’s anything wrong with the lens and she replied there was nothing wrong with it.

This was when we told her that 3 different optical shops mentioned that the lenses seem to be in the wrong position.

Ms F then went back to her administrative station to refer to some “engraving book” and inspected the spectacles.
Less than 1-2 minutes later, she came back to us and admitted that the lenses were in the WRONG position. I clearly asked her to repeat her affirmation that it is in the wrong position.

She then tells us she needs to contact her supervisor regarding this issue. Ms F was seen speaking to someone on the phone and also seemed to be waiting for a call at her administrative table.
10 minutes later, Ms F then came back to us at the counter and informed us that the lens is in the correct position.

Despite that, Ms F informed me that the spectacles need to be sent to the lab for further testing, which we didn’t agree to. Ms F already showed how “unreliable/deceitful” she is and mum had no other specs to wear

Few days later, AIM texted my mum to say they can offer to make her a new spec at 50% discount.

Branch manager of 4 years with 20 years of optical industry experience who inspected the spec in many “fancy ways”, changing her “expert opinion” from nothing wrong with lens to wrong positions and back again to correct position all within minutes.

Sounds like utter BS.

Need to remove old unsused wires and pipes?

vernee26 — Mon, 27 Sep 2021 21:47:32 +0800

Hi Sifus,

I'm planning to do some major reno for double storey subsale house which includes redoing all the wiring, plumbing and tile.

Most of the current wiring and plumbing are concealed.

My contractor mentioned they do not remove the concealed wiring and plumbing (which includes those above plaster ceiling), only remove those exposed ones.
But, my query is, do the contractors normally remove the old wiring and plumbing located above plaster ceiling?
There are so many old wiring and plumbing especially between the 1st floor and roof. Wouldn't that be a mess in the future when there's any repairs/trouble shooting required?

This is how my current between 1st floor plaster ceiling and roof looks like with the old wires and plumbing (reno to redo have not started yet).
I can only imagine the kinda mess it would look like with new wires and pipes without removing the old ones.

Thanks in advance for any advise sifus!

piping, water filter - renovation

vernee26 — Tue, 11 May 2021 02:33:34 +0800

Dear sifus,

Sorry for the long post, may I get advise on piping, water tank, water pump and water filter for my home reno.
It’s a sub-sale house which is currently non-tenanted, double semi-D about 4000sf built up with 6 bathrooms, 1 powder room, separate wet kitchen and dry kitchen
Major reno done by previous owner in 2002. I was thinking of re-piping (concealed) my whole house and hot water piping to all showers. Reno would also include rewiring (KIV), retile, built-in, plaster ceiling, repainting whole house, change roof tiles, windows/doors.
This home is for own family long term stay >=20 yrs (likely till the end of my life). 3 adults, 3 primary school going children.

The questions marks that has been bugging me :
1. How do I determine if I need to change all piping, both inlet (cold and hot) and outlet?
Current inlet piping (at least the 2-3 pipes I saw on the roof) is uPVC class 6, and copper piping for hot water.
for the existing uPVC : it's labelled KKK UPVC PIPE BS3505 20mm Class 6
- is uPVC and PVC the same thing? I read it’s different, but in Malaysia context seems to be similar)pic below

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2. If I do go ahead and change the piping, what types of pipe should I go with for inlet piping?
Option 1: cold : PVC class 6 or 7 + hot water = PPR or copper or others?
Option 2: full PPR for both cold and hot (it’s about 2-3x the price compared to option 1: PVC + PPR?)
Option 3: HDPE polypipe for whole house? (sounds extremely expensive)
Option 4: Buteline for whole house? (sounds extremely expensive)
Option 5: any suggestions? I cant afford to budget the most “expensive” or” best” piping available, but I’m ok with something better than average and not having to worry about frequent leaking problems and end up hacking the tiles/walls every 1-2 years to fix it.

3. Outlet piping – not much local info I could find, should I be particular about what kind of outlet piping I should go with? Same concept as inlet piping?

4. Which type of fitting/joint should I go with? I read from many sifus here that the joints and fittings are really crucial as it’s the highest chance of leak if poor quality/poor workmanship (even more crucial than the pipes itself if at least PVC class 6 pipes is used).
Should I go with SS? Copper? or others?

5. What is the big white pipe?

6. I read on LY forum about auto back-up piping (cant seem to find this post anymore, what is this is for?) and non-return valve at water inlet (to prevent dry burn if I install storage heater or solar heater) : I should have my plumber installs this as well in my water system right?

7. Water tank – I saw 7 water tanks in at the roof top

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- is this overkill?
- how do I determine if it’s still usable?
- if I want to replace it, should I go with poly or SS? I think I’ll need at least 1500-2000L

8. Keep or replace this 7 year old Grundfos? Seem to be working, based on the sound I hear while in the roof and also 1-2 sinks I turned on had high pressure
(please refer next post - restriction of pics I can post due to my newbie LY status)

9. water filter : I’m planning to get :
Outdoor “sand” filter x 1 (something like this tinyurl.com/wpjva9f8 or should I invest in expensive branded ones like GE?)
+ undersink 3M waterfilter for wet kitchen (3M)
+ dry kitchen (3M)
+ LG puricare (LG puricare)
With the dry kitchen 3M model above + LG puricare, should be safe to drink directly even for children right?
Is this adequate?
Any other brands/model recommended?

TQ very very much for any input!

rewiring, new DB, add DB

vernee26 — Tue, 11 May 2021 00:47:57 +0800

Dear [@ceo684], [@ozak], [@weikee] and sifus,

Sorry for the super long post, I need some advise. Apologies again, I have to post some pics separately due to my restriction as newbie on LY. The more I speak to “contractors”, the more I’m picking up mixed messaged on how to proceed. Was hoping I may I get some advice on electrical related matters for my home renovation.

It’s a sub-sale house which is currently non-tenanted, double semi-D about 4000sf built up, 6 bedrooms.
Major reno done 2002. I was thinking of re-wiring my whole house, new DB and adding DB at 1st floor. Reno would also include piping (will post separately on this to get advise if needed to redo), retile whole GF, new built-in carpentry works, redo entire GF plaster ceiling, repainting whole house, roof tiles, windows/doors. No major structural works.
This home is for own family long term stay (>=20 yrs). 3 adults, 3 primary school going children

Some info on the reno/current status:
- It’s currently 3 phase
-Estimated reno to have about :
100 x downlights (mostly 4” indoor and 6” outdoor) – likely to get casing + LED bulb (9-11W)
65 x 13AMP sockets
6 x 15AMP or 20AMP for instant/storage heater for 6 bathrooms (15 or 20AMP?)

I’ve done quite a bit of reading and getting tips from you guys and other sifu’s posts, but a bit info overload especially when the topics becomes overly technical. May I humbly get advise on:
1. How do I determine if my current wiring and DB is fine and don’t need to spend a bomb to rewire + change DB + add DB? Or based on 20 years ago reno, I should just get it done?
Turning on lights and fans so far no issues, fast and immediate. Not sure if pics would help, this is the DB.

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2. I spoke to a contractor 2 days back, he mentioned that to do change new DB and install new DB upstairs, I’ll have to call TNB to do it. Another electrician didn’t mention anything about TNB and quoted RM6500 (to replace current GF DB and to add new DB at 1st floor).
Is the TNB part true?
Is the quoted price “Reasonable”?
To be prepared with some knowledge of whether the electrician contractor are doing/recommending the safe/right way, is the below list what is required for 2 units DB (ground floor + 1st floor)?
* I hope I’m not creating a Frankenstein DB below, but no worries guys, I’m not gonna DIY at all, just wanting to make sure I have the right “internal organs” in the DB when I clarify with the electrician. Will be going for branded ones like Hager, ABB, Schneider (not that budget is not of concern, but when it comes to electrical, I believe must be willing to spend for safety)

Main switch x 2 DBs : is this main switch necessary (I see it in the existing DB, above pic)? I don’t see one in my current condo DB or those “full set DB sold on Lazada/shopee”.

RCCB : 63A, 4P, 300mA = RM145 x 2 DB = RM290 (is this known as the main RCCB to protect from fire/equipment protection?)
MCB : 3P, 40Amp, 6kA = RM65 x 2 DB = RM130 (what is the purpose of this thing?)
RCCB 25A /10mA x 6 heaters ; RM170 x 6 = RM1020 (this is for “life saving” shock protection right? Does each heater require additional MCB again on top of this RCCB? Sorry if it’s a silly question)

8 MCB for 8Airconds : Is this right? 1 MCB per AC?
2.5 HP x 2, 1.5HP x 6 What MCB rating should be used 16, 20 or 32A?

20 MCBs (6 or 10A?) for 65 (13amp sockets) = 20 x RM10 = RM200 (am I over/under estimating MCB’s required)
100 downlights = ?20 MCBs x RM10=RM200 (5 downlights to 1 direct DB, is it over or underestimation? Using 9-11W LED bulbs)

DB box x 2 = 30 ways + 45 ways? (Should I go for plastic or metal DB box?)

Should I invest in a T2 SPD?
tinyurl.com/m9kmxyms : Maxguard ok? Half the price of ABB
tinyurl.com/k78kbns7 : ABB

3. For cable thickness, is this recommended? :
Water heater : 2.5mm or 4mm?
AC / kitchen sockets (loose electrical appliance, built-in oven) : 2.5mm
Other sockets/lighting/fan : 1.5mm
4. Kitchen appliance, aside from built-in oven, fridge and electric hob, any other kitchen appliance would require a dedicated cable from DB? Eg. electric kettle, toaster, rice cooker, air fryer, coffee machine, non-built in microwave, LG puricare (hot/cold water purifier/dispenser)
(Assuming that 2-3 appliance likely used at same time, eg. electric kettle + rice cooker + air fryer)

4. For cable quality, I read a recent post by CE0684, to either go for:
caramay, Mega kabel (solid cables) ; Fajar cables ( flexicord). Any other brands I should "accept" if my contractor shows me other brands?
And from other sifu’s I read that, it must have at least SIRIM endorsed labelling and the specs on the cable

5. Last but not least, would you still use this existing storage heater + water pump?

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All 6 bathrooms have existing joven 25L storage heater, which is at least 10-15 years old.
Would it be best to change all to new ones considering the wear and tear, heating element life span OR invest in solar heater (based on my calculation, cheaper than 6x25L joven storage heaters. Just concerned if my existing roof wood truss can handle 500kg)

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Grundfos pump 7 years old – need to replace? Seem to be working, based on the sound I hear while in the roof and also 1-2 sinks I turned on had high pressure

Many many many thanks in advance for any advise/suggestions provided