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Archive for April, 2012

Weekend was all work for the whole gang. Er, actually, the whole April seems to be busy with house work, minor repairs, repainting, decluttering, and all sorts. To save up on expenses, we employ the help of the kids. Starting with backyard cleaning two weeks ago, and,  last week, they helped in painting the front wrought-iron gate. And, last Saturday, we’re busy painting the wrought-iron installed on this anodized aluminum patio door.

Actually, it isn’t my idea installing any sort of parallel steel bars in this door. I thought, the steel enclosure would “totally close” this door forever. It will not be the “patio door” as I had envisioned it to be. It will ceased to be a gateway towards the proposed garden for barbecuing, al fresco dining, or simply star gazing.

As debates between me and the good hubby ensued, I finally gave in after letting me envisioned that the wrought iron to be installed will slide off just as the anodized door had been. Patterned after top-hung sliding doors, it has rollers at the top part for easy glide, and at the same time it has also additional glides at the bottom to prevent the steel frame from swinging.

Thanks hubby, you made possible all the kinky ideas that I have. And, even if we are both on the extremes, we can make things happen (even in the midst of all the heated debates, hurrah!)  So, this sliding wrought-iron bars came to be…

Prepping up the steels bars for red oxide application and black paint is the lad. Saves me labor costs? Nah. There happens to be few kinks before I can make him “accept” the painting job. And, you thought bureaucracy happens only some place else. It does, too, in our “family system” ^_^. I do hope, I can carry on with what he asked in lieu of painting. Or else, I’ll regret that I should have been better off at employing other people on a daily basis

Oh, well, after the guys applied black paint, I suggested a gold paint for the accents. Er, it needed to be polished, a touched-up, perhaps…

But, overall, I am impressed with the end result…perhaps, next weekend, we can begin on another project…painting the moulding…what color would you suggest?

There’s the patio door…plus the installed wrought-iron bars for safety. We never have to worry about unexpected visitors coming off which was petrifying. Now, since two locks have been installed, I am sure burglars trying out will have a hard time breaking in.

When the chance came for funds to flow “mercilessly” on my hands this week alone, me and the husband decided to use the extra dough to replaced our debilitating front gate. The tubular frames which holds most of its entire weight had slowly been eaten by rust. It’s been asking for a retirement for quite sometime.

Hence, when the chance came, we decided to prioritize its funding. With today’s cost of steel bars and other materials, we knew we had to shell out minimum of 20 thousand pesos  or more (including labor cost) for the construction of the new wrought-iron gate.

Few months ago, when me and the husband were brainstorming the idea of the gate’s renovation, I went around town asking for price quotation on three different welding shops. Average prices were at 18 thousand on the minimum. The price was estimated upon my request, “a simple yet sturdy steel gate without elaborate designs that will be needing more steel bars.”

Being the frugal wife that I am, I told the husband let’s ask out few people in the neighborhood if they can refer more welders who can offer lower prices without sacrificing the quality of the finished product we planned.

And, it really pays to wait and be patient. The right timing came. The funds we’re waiting came. And, so the person who accepts the job came as a surprise, too. A neophyte welder whom I knew from way back. We asked him how long had he been doing his job. He said he had been working alongside his father on various projects. Not his first time to do wrought-iron gates, as well.

So after calculating the costs of the materials needed, and his asking price for his labor cost, all had been set for the new front gate. Two days of welding and bending steel bars, it was done.

P 6,000  -Total cost of materials (tubular pipes for framing, angle bars, flat bar, and GI. sheets)

P 2,500  -Cost of labor

P     600  -Cost of electricity consumed for two days of welding, 600 pesos

P 9,100  -TOTAL COST OF THE WROUGHT-IRON GATE

Woot! I love savings. I don’t know what difference the 18 thousand as compared with the 9,100 gate we had. The husband was the one who personally bought the steel bars, so, he knew the quality of the materials that had been used.

Sometimes, newbies doesn’t mean their work is of mediocre quality. Yes, I agree, professionals had had the skills and the experience needed to make their work of highest quality, yet, they command the highest prices in the market, too.

Newbies, given the skills and the right tools and equipment, they can work in the same pace and quality  in less than the amount quoted by skilled professionals. That’s minus the goodwill which can come when a particular brand or person has earned a good reputation in his chosen industry.

For now, it spells SAVINGS.

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It’s a Sunday. Palm Sunday for many Christians who trooped to catholic churches bringing along with them palm leaves. This is a Christian tradition celebrating the entry of Jesus Christ in Jerusalem.

As a Christian by faith, we do attend regular masses either on Saturday or Sunday evening. But, today, because we wanted the kids to experience religious activities, we woke up early to attend 6 am mass in the town’s parish church. As expected, the church was packed with christian devotees, we couldn’t find a seat. The youngest kid was constantly whining and eager to go home. The reason why I wouldn’t want to attend mass with kids in tow. You really couldn’t concentrate.

Waiting nearly two hours -palm leaves had be blessed by the priest- this would took another 15 minutes, then, off we went to the town’s commercial area where we asked 3 different stores for current LPG prices.

We run out of LPG two weeks ago and passed on with the refill because I couldn’t seem to EAT OFF its price. It was 720 pesos for the regular LPG tank. For those with Shellane or Petron tanks, it goes even higher. For two weeks, we monitor prices on the news, patiently waiting if there would be a rollback especially if international fuel prices goes down. And, oh, yes, it does gets lower…by only few pesos per kilogram.

It seems, LPG prices, the same way with pump prices wouldn’t decreased in price the way we, consumers expected it to be. As of today, blaring on the news was that an LPG should be priced at 659.50 pesosper tank.

That’s not likely the price here in our place. It remains at 690 pesos. Only 30 pesos shy off from two week’s 720 pesos price.

We still didn’t buy one. Anyways, we still have another spare tank. Which in December cost only 500 pesos per 9 kilogram cylinder.

But, I am afraid, we will need to have that spare empty tank refilled sooner before the other one runs out.

I am still waiting for miracle. A huge rollback