New Index of Marikina Fault Line Map

I noticed that there is a new update to the website of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS). This update brought both good news and bad news not only to me but to everyone who wanted to get plenty of information about the West Valley Fault, or more popularly known as the Marikina Fault Line.

The good news is that they replaced the old index for Marikina Fault Line maps (which you can check on this blog post) with a better looking one:

Index of Marikina Fault Line map (Source: PHIVOLCS website)

The new index map is colorful and gives a clearer overview of the areas affected by the Marikina Fault Line.

The new index map shows that the Marikina Fault Line passes through the Bulacan towns of Doña Remedios Trinidad, Norzagaray, and San Jose Del Monte City; Rizal town of Rodriguez (Montalban);  Metro Manila cities of Quezon, Marikina, Pasig, Makati, Taguig, and Muntinlupa; Laguna towns of San Pedro,  Biñan, Santa Rosa City, Cabuyao, and Calamba City; and the Cavite towns of General Mariano Alvarez, Carmona, and Silang.

The bad news is that the large scale Marikina Fault Line maps are gone. They can not be viewed on the PHIVOLCS website. I am not sure if the link to the maps was just broken or the PHIVOLCS people removed the maps intentionally.

We do not know if PHIVOLCS will return the maps or not.

It is good that PHIVOLCS improved the map index but that improvement is useless if the more important large scale Marikina Fault Line maps are hidden from the public view.

If PHIVOLCS really want people to be informed about earthquakes and the hazards that they brings then should upload the large scale Marikina Fault Line maps back to their website.

Product Review: Our Condura Refrigerator

Do you have questions about Condura refrigerator? Ask me directly by following my Facebook page and leaving a comment or message.

My Beloved Wife Lei and I were just few months married. This means that we are only beginning to build our home. One thing that we did at the start of our marriage is to buy some appliances that will make our lives easy. One such appliance is the refrigerator.

We need to have a refrigerator because it serves as storage space for our food. It prolongs the life of meat, vegetables, and fruits. The refrigerator also keeps vermin, like cockroaches and rats, away from our food.

Of the many refrigerator brands that we checked, it is the Condura refrigerator that got our approval.

A salesman from Emilio S. Lim appliances shop convinced us to buy our Condura refrigerator. Some of the advantages that he mentioned are:

1. The condenser (or the coil located usually at the back of refrigerators) of Condura fridge is not covered but exposed to the air. This means that heat can escape easily, thus making the fridge cool faster.

2. Condura uses Panasonic motors for their refrigerators. This means that our refrigerator has the same output as Panasonic refrigerators but at a lower price.

3. Condura refrigerators are locally assembled, thus our fridge is a local product (Pinoy made).
 

Our Condura refrigerator (Source: eBuy Philippines)

We bought the single-door, model CSD210SA Condura refrigerator. It cost around 14,000 Php (pesos)


Our fridge has the following specs:

Total storage volume: 173 liters
Rated power input: 87 W
Rated voltage: 230 V
Rated current: 0.71 A
Rated frequency: 60 Hz
Energy consumption: 0.64 kilowatt-hours per 24 hours
Energy efficiency factor: 282

My Verdict on Condura Fridge

We like our Condura fridge. Lei's only complaint is the color because she didn't like grey. She preferred that our Condura fridge be white or the more trendy red.

I noticed that our Condura fridge makes ice very quickly even if it set on the lowest cooling level. In fact, ice get thick very quickly that we have to defrost once every two weeks.

Despite this observation, I still give our Condura fridge two thumbs up. I highly recommend this refrigerator.

5 Problems in PRC License Renewal

My experience with PRC license renewal is fine since I didn’t encounter any problem. I renewed my professional license at the central office of the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) in Morayta, Manila. The whole process has lots of pila (queue) and time consuming.

Other Filipino professionals were not as fortunate as I am and encountered problems.

What are these problems? Just continue reading this post to find out.

(Source: PRC website)

Problem 1: Delayed Release of PRC License

Delayed release of PRC license is the major problem in PRC satellite offices in SM malls. Some commenters reported that her PRC license is still not available after a month had passed after her submission of requirements for PRC license renewal.

Read my posts about PRC license renewals at SM malls and SM business centers.

Problem 2: Penalty Fees

Another problem that isusually raised is about the penalty for professionals who didn't renew their PRC license for many years. The PRC is not clear about this and the information is not available at their website.

Problem 3: Authorized Representative

Pinoy professionals are very busy people. That's why many of them don't have the time to go to the PRC office for the PRC license renewal. The usual question is if the PRC allows their representative to renew their PRC license for them. The answer is “yes”. For the details, please read my post about authorization letter for PRC license renewal.

Problem 4: PRC License Renew before the Expiration Date

This problem was raised many times by some commenters. Unfortunately, I don't have answer for it yet.

Problem 5: Lost PRC License

Another common problem is the losing the PRC license. Pinoy professionals are worried about getting a copy of it from the PRC. Good thing that the PRC issues new PRC license to replace the missing ones. All the professional need to do is to submit an affidavit of loss.

For more information, please read my tips for PRC license renewal.

These are five common problems or questions that I received from commenters to this blog. I know that there are more problems that I failed to include. Anyone is free to share their problems or their experiences in PRC license renewal. Tell us about it by leaving a comment below.