1: Blanco Sink - 3 stars
2: Rinnai Gas Heater - Not Rated
3: Fujioh hood FX-900 - 5 stars
4: Rinnai Tumble Dryer RDT-600CG - 5 stars
5: Rinnai Oven RBO-7MSO - 3 stars
6: Bellari Liquid Dispenser - 1 star
7: Rinnai 2-Burner Hob RB-2CG - 5 stars
8: TOTO Omni Toilet Bowl- 5 stars
9: Asuka Acrylic Worktop - 2 stars
10: Premier laminated floor tiles
Related Posts
1 How to Choose: Kitchen Worktop
2 My Acrylic Worktop
3 Verdict: My Asuka Acrylic Worktop
4 DIY: Worktop Protector
5 Further Reference
6 Silestone FAQ
7 Maintenance: Granite Worktop
A word about the Review
Our Review is different from other reviews that you read on the Net: we're not armchair reviewers. We bought and installed the product for our own use. No one sponsored us to endorse the product. And we only gave our verdict after at least one year's usage. Obviously, we'd tell you sooner if a product didn't work or performed poorly soon after purchase.
We invite you - if you have bought, installed and used the product to tell us your user experience, particularly after using the product for at least a year. Whether positive or negative, please give us your feedback. Oh, don't forget to provide your local forum (Renotalk.com, myHomeTown.com.sg, Sengkang.com, or Punggol.org) user ID and photos of your kitchen so we could verify you're a bonafide user of the product.
Verdict: 2 out of 5 stars - Not Recommended
This post is in response to a reader "Jaz" who sent an email that I somehow overlooked as I was extremely busy and preoccupied recently.
Thanks Jaz for your support of my blog !! My apologies for this belated post!
FYI, it has been some 2 yrs of worktop usage (or abusage) so I now know my Asuka worktop better.
In a word: don't install anything that your ID or contractor recommends! My Asuka acrylic worktop stains easily -- too easily for a so-called acrylic
I began to suspect something was not right with my worktop when I went to Ikea Alexandra recently and handled and inspected the acrylic worktops displayed there. The tactile sensation was different - the Ikea acrylic worktop somewhat felt different from my acrylic worktop - in a way I was not sure.
Call me pig-headed, nit-picking, or simply prejudiced now with my Asuka worktop, but my acrylic worktop stains too easily to be acrylic. Maybe it was made of a different plastic / resin combination (read: cheaper materials) and the ID chose to install that instead of the real stuff in my kitchen? My previous worktop was also acrylic, but it was quite stain resistant.
But this one - forget to wipe any dripping from a soiled plate placed on the worktop, come back one hour later and you find the drip has stained the worktop! Or place a Fairprice plastic bag full of grocery on the worktop, and when you have taken out the grocery you find the worktop stained with the blue ink from the grocery bag print !! And the ink stain was a real pain to remove.
I scratched my head... what went wrong?
Then I realized factories can combine resin with any plastic compound under heat and pressure to produce solid surfaces that can be used to fabricate
So how do consumers know that the solid surface top supplied for his worktop is really acrylic? The specifications, the brand or the factory, is not printed anywhere on the material supplied. Is my Asuka worktop really made of acrylic? Now, make no mistake - I am not suggesting my ID / Contractor or Asuka was dishonest.. or that my Asuka worktop is not made of acrylic. All this is simply conjecture on my part.
Verdict: 2 out of 5 stars - Not Recommended
What I know however is that my Asuka acrylic worktop stains too easily. Maintenance is a pain. But I can live with it, it still functions as a worktop. So that is enough to merit 2 out of 5 stars! But I would not recommend the Asuka brand at all.
I will not simply trust the ID / Contractor too readily in future for products that are not subject to any official checks or standards in the same way that for instance, electric sockets, appliances are subject to (safety and health standard - plastic that will not melt easily or give off poisonous fumes when burning, etc).
I know industry self-regulation is essential, and although factories may be truthful about their products' specs, that will not stop unscrupulous IDs and contractors from "passing-off." What should the consumer do in such a situation?
Lesson Learnt
If I renovate my kitchen in future, I will buy from a reputable outlet like Ikea or ask my ID to use Corian or Formica or products from well-established companies that have been in business for many years and have built up a reputation in the market for their products.
Or use natural stone - which no one can fake. Granite - polished and sealed - would be considered. Or solid wood worktops from Ikea.
If you must use acrylic for cost reasons then go for established brands like Corian, etc. Or use Acryliss Solid from Formica Singapore. Although I have no experience using Acryliss, I know Formica Singapore is a well-established company since my childhood years! Buying from Formica directly allows you to talk with its staff on questions such as the product's stain & heat-resistance quality and standard, as well as maintenance and durabilty issues. Buy only if you are satisfied and convinced with the answer. Ask if they provide a written guarantee for the material supplied and warranties too.
Related Posts
1 How to Choose: Kitchen Worktop
2 My Acrylic Worktop
3 Verdict: My Asuka Acrylic Worktop
4 DIY: Worktop Protector
5 Further Reference
6 Silestone FAQ
7 Maintenance: Granite Worktop
Review Series
1: Blanco Sink - 3 stars
2: Rinnai Gas Heater - Not Rated
3: Fujioh hood FX-900 - 5 stars
4: Rinnai Tumble Dryer RDT-600CG - 5 stars
5: Rinnai Oven RBO-7MSO - 3 stars
6: Bellari Liquid Dispenser - 1 star
7: Rinnai 2-Burner Hob RB-2CG - 5 stars
8: TOTO Omni Toilet Bowl- 5 stars
9: Asuka Acrylic Worktop - 2 stars
10: Premier laminated floor tiles
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