Household stuff for the KOPEC apartment

This is not really for a wider audience, I'm just storing some pictures and instructions pertaining to my apartment. However, most apartments are similar and we all have similar appliances so this will probably be useful for everyone.

=======================================================
UTILITIES
=======================================================

The thermostat with the heat on (blue button) but the temperature all the way down 5 Celsius.This is how I leave it 99.9% of the time so that I'm not burning oil.



The thermostat in hot water mode (red button) - no change to the temperature setting. Note that the yellow light directly below the red button is on which indicates that you are burning oil.



The heating unit in the outside back closet.



These are the valves to the three heating zones. They are all closed to save money. Basically I just use the water heater for showers, laundry, and washing dishes - not to heat the apartment.



The same view but with all three heating zones open. This burns a lot of oil very quickly.



Three times I had my building manager call and have the oil company deliver a half or full tank of heating oil. Towards the end of my contract I needed a small amount of oil but didn't want to pay for half a tank (the minimum for delivery). It turns out that my building manager sells 20-liter containers of heating fuel for 20,000 Won each. I bought two and that should get me to Nov. 30th.


Once a month (on or around the 15th) I open the back door and look at the gas meter. I write the first three numbers (130 as seen here) on the front door of the apartment.


The gas company puts this sticker on the door. Note that I wrote 130 for both August and September. I don't actually know when they check it but I think they come by on or around the 17th of each month. If you miss a month they won't shut the gas off.


CHANGE: On October 19th and November 8th a Korean woman came to my door. The first time she looked at the gas meter and the second time she took my word for it. Both times she gave me this receipt and collected 7,000 Won. I have no earthly idea what she was doing but I am guessing that they no longer add gas usage to the building maintenance fee. I'm also guessing that the minimum monthly charge is 7,000 Won because I barely use any natural gas.


This is the electric panel near the front door. You shouldn't need to touch this but on the off chance that you want to turn off the power the main switch is on the left. Look at the opening on the left that is above the two blue stickers. The main shut-off switch for the entire apartment is two inches to the left of the red button (you can't really see it in this picture. I only know this because I helped the building manager change a light fixture.


=======================================================
AIRCON
=======================================================

NOTE: My building manager is buying my aircon unit so there will not be one when you get here. She offered me 275,000 Won (half of what I paid) so I took the deal.

I strongly recommend purchasing an aircon unit. The Korean summer from mid-June to mid-September is rather hot and humid. I purchased this Whisen unit from the LG store downtown. I had a Korean friend come along to help but the transation was so simple you could do it by yourself with a pen and paper. I got a unit that was rated for 26.2 square meters. That's a little small for my apartment but it worked well enough. The unit cost 550,000 Won and that included taxes and installation.

The aircon unit when it is not operating. Note that the flap along the bottom is closed.



The aircon remote when the unit is not operating. Note the three oval buttons just below the display screen. The light colored oval on the right is the on/off button. The two arrows just below this adjust the target temperature up and down.



The remote with the power turned on.



The aircon unit when it is operating. Note that the bottom flap is now open.