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  1. #1
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    Day 1: Udon Thani

    So this is day 1.

    So far I have:
    1 x irrational and impulsive Thai wife
    1 x son with the above wife
    1 x plot of land (in my dream there was always a river but I am now thinking if a plot of land alongside a river is really a good idea)
    1 x some savings (reduced to my wife's shopping habit but decent enough and we are still working)

    So the next bit is the thai teak house. In my mind’s eye this isn’t that difficult. I have seen many wonderful picture threads which all follow the same progression from no house to, via a few more funny than anything incidents, to a completed house. I see no thread where the end scene is total destruction, devastation and ruin. I somehow also imagine my final house to the most elegant, costing virtually nothing and all done in a single Saturday afternoon. And the roof will also never leaks, and mosquitoes stay a considered distance away.

    We are Udon Thani based so would love to hear from anyone who is also doing the same or just done the same. Appreciate thoughts on: Is the river thing really a mistake; where are the last secret piles of wood and how long can a Thai teak house last before we need to build a new one.

    David

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    I don't know anything about teak wood but if it's anything like the timber I have it will be full of termites after the first rains. Do your homework on preventative measures if it actually exists here.

    The river idea is great but check for adequate drainage on roads nearby as water can back up. Try to build on high ground and out of motorbike range of the extended family.

  3. #3
    Thailand Expat OhOh's Avatar
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    Look in the construction thread, lots of stories there.

  4. #4
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    Good luck with it all David and welcome here . You say you're both working still , do you work in Thailand ? or are you going back somewhere else to work and leave your new home when its built ?

    All the best I will be in a similarish situation soon

  5. #5
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    weather and/or termites will not damage Teak wood. Just make sure to oil it about every three years.

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by ralphlsasser View Post
    weather and/or termites will not damage Teak wood. Just make sure to oil it about every three years.

    This is true, evidenced by the 100+ year old teak houses still standing.
    Be prepared for a healthy dose of sticker shock though....

    One option some use is to buy an old house and recycle.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Necron99
    One option some use is to buy an old house and recycle.
    That is the only realistic option unless you like throwing money away on poor quality wood.

    Lots of people wanting to sell their old style timber houses in the Udon-Nong Khai area. The main problem you face is that you're looking at exactly the wrong time of year. No one will want to sell their old house until the end of the rainy season. A 12 post house should be no more than 60k for one in excellent condition - just make sure you have a buyer you can rely upon as you don't want to show your pasty, big-nosed face anywhere near a potential purchase until the deal has been done and the wood delivered.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Necron99 View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by ralphlsasser View Post
    weather and/or termites will not damage Teak wood. Just make sure to oil it about every three years.

    This is true, evidenced by the 100+ year old teak houses still standing.
    Be prepared for a healthy dose of sticker shock though....

    One option some use is to buy an old house and recycle.
    True. It's not cheap. Never thought of recycling an old house. Good idea.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Marmite the Dog View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by Necron99
    One option some use is to buy an old house and recycle.
    That is the only realistic option unless you like throwing money away on poor quality wood.

    Lots of people wanting to sell their old style timber houses in the Udon-Nong Khai area. The main problem you face is that you're looking at exactly the wrong time of year. No one will want to sell their old house until the end of the rainy season. A 12 post house should be no more than 60k for one in excellent condition - just make sure you have a buyer you can rely upon as you don't want to show your pasty, big-nosed face anywhere near a potential purchase until the deal has been done and the wood delivered.
    Poor quality wood? Hell, any kind of wood is a good find in Thailand. I looked for a month trying to find some wood, any kind, to make concrete forms out of. Gave up and finally bought some "smart wood" to do it.

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    Hi Nigel,

    I used to be a very lucky chap working in Bangkok but that went the way of a lot of things over the last few years. Presently hiding out in Shanghai which just isn't the same. Like it gets cold, the food just ain't right, its ok to spit in public and people get angry a lot.

    David

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by ralphlsasser
    I looked for a month trying to find some wood, any kind, to make concrete forms out of.
    Eucalyptus boards - every timber place has them. 128 baht a metre.

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Marmite the Dog View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by ralphlsasser
    I looked for a month trying to find some wood, any kind, to make concrete forms out of.
    Eucalyptus boards - every timber place has them. 128 baht a metre.

    Thanks Marmite. As a matter of fact, I need some now. I'll check on it.

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    So this is a question that I have been wondering.....teak is great but expensive and hard to find especially the nice old barn wood. Not in a hurry so can spend many weekends hunting down the wood. But assuming that still leaves some planks short I am interested to know what are the best substiutes if not teak....I will look into Eucalyptus as I understand that does well out of doors. I have also heard about parawood but I understand thats good only for indoors. What are the best next options assuming that our children (and maybe their children too) might live in the house or at least have enough of it standing to sell for cash?

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    Quote Originally Posted by davidbyron
    where are the last secret piles of wood and how long can a Thai teak house last before we need to build a new one.
    Myanmar....
    a teak house can last 100s of years if looked after
    Quote Originally Posted by AUSSIE EXPAT
    I don't know anything about teak wood
    fair enough
    Quote Originally Posted by ralphlsasser
    Never thought of recycling an old house
    the construction thread has several examples, I could give you a link to mine

    https://teakdoor.com/building-in-thai...ml#post2036736
    Quote Originally Posted by davidbyron
    teak is great but expensive and hard to find especially the nice old barn wood
    it is expensive and easy to find if you have the cash
    Quote Originally Posted by davidbyron
    But assuming that still leaves some planks short I am interested to know what are the best substiutes if not teak
    there are second-hand wood shops all over - they can supply you with missing bits - they often buy old houses to break them and sell parts

    lots of other types of wood around - the old wide floorboards that have lasted for years are the best, and beautiful
    I have reported your post

  15. #15
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    I would love to make a wood house, but that would need skill and the ability to measure 3 times and cut once. Ever since I got a grade 5 on my CSE Woodwork Exam I knew concrete was the building material for me.

  16. #16
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    So this is now day 12 and our worry today is soil.

    Progress is good. Well not that good but we did get the paper work finalized yesterday. Which was actually a little problematic as there is apparently some new laws that make it difficult for a Thai woman with a foreign husband to buy land over a certain size. All because of the Chinese – or so it we were told – who are snapping up huge swathes. So we ended up putting the land in my wife’s sisters name….which is okay as my wife’s sister is ace and we trust her and will do another transfer in a few months.

    We went for a plot of nine rai (which cost us 630k baht post my wife's negotiations) which is fairly large. It’s about 8 minutes by car from town but still feels out in country side and we only have one building in our 360 view. I was keen on size so we know we won’t get something horrible being built next door and casting an ugly shadow over our dream home. And if we get bored of the house idea we can always go for a supermarket or an international sports stadium. We think we got a good deal especially as the 6 rai plot next door was going for 1.5m but do comment on my wife’s negotiation.

    I will post some pictures when my pictures posting rights are through….

    The up side of the plot is the river which runs along two sides of the land and will make a nice feature though there is always the flooding worry (my wife is a pragmatic non worrier about these things…she also tells me as a child she very much enjoyed having attractive army types rescuing her from her 2nd floor window during the flooding season so is clearly more optimistic about these things than most). The present owner swore blind that the river never floods but the farmers working on the land next door tell us it does get a few days last year when the land was lightly covered. So this means we will need to raise up the land a bit to keep our feet dry. The locals say a meter should be more than enough which I understand isn't too hard but my question for the community is how long do you really need to leave soil before you build on it? Some people are saying one wet season then roll something heavy over it but is that long enough? I was always though two years?

    The land at the moment is rock hard having not been farmed for a while. The previous owner was a melon farmer – apparently – who never found the time to develop this particular plot. So is that good or a bad thing? And does it mean that other than putting soil on top and leaving it for a while we should be doing something else as well?

    All answers gratefully received.

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by davidbyron View Post
    So this is now day 12 and our worry today is soil.

    Progress is good. Well not that good but we did get the paper work finalized yesterday. Which was actually a little problematic as there is apparently some new laws that make it difficult for a Thai woman with a foreign husband to buy land over a certain size. All because of the Chinese – or so it we were told – who are snapping up huge swathes. So we ended up putting the land in my wife’s sisters name….which is okay as my wife’s sister is ace and we trust her and will do another transfer in a few months.
    I think someones ia trying to sell you a puppy, no new laws regarding Wife of farang ownership . The last was when the restrictions on same were removed about 15 yrs ago.

  18. #18
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    Depends on how long you want to keep the house But I do remember 1 bloke telling me they used bamboo for rio bar in his concrete.
    Quick link here but I doubt Thais where you are would understand it as it wouldn't be cost effective but would allow you to build straight away.

    Reactive soil sites can be difficult to build on, but ‘floating’ stiffened concrete raft slabs cope well with these conditions. Some stiffened raft slabs known as waffle raft slabs use void formers at regular intervals, forming closely spaced deep reinforced beams criss-crossing the slab underside.

    These void formers are mostly expanded foam boxes, which interfere with earth coupling, but more thermally connective alternatives are available. These include proprietary systems that use recycled tyres, or re-used detergent bottles filled with water and grouped together as void formers.

    Your Home Technical Manual - 5.12 Concrete Slab Floors

  19. #19
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    Quote Originally Posted by peterpan View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by davidbyron View Post
    So this is now day 12 and our worry today is soil.

    Progress is good. Well not that good but we did get the paper work finalized yesterday. Which was actually a little problematic as there is apparently some new laws that make it difficult for a Thai woman with a foreign husband to buy land over a certain size. All because of the Chinese – or so it we were told – who are snapping up huge swathes. So we ended up putting the land in my wife’s sisters name….which is okay as my wife’s sister is ace and we trust her and will do another transfer in a few months.


    I think someones ia trying to sell you a puppy, no new laws regarding Wife of farang ownership . The last was when the restrictions on same were removed about 15 yrs ago.
    Thanks Peter for the heads up. Actually I could have explained that better. There wasn't anything to stop us buying the land there were just some extra steps that we weren't expecting or knew about and which seemed new.

    Firstly I would have had to have been there apparently to receive a lecture (and to sign a piece of paper saying I had understood the lecture) about land ownership in Thailand and that if we divorced the land was hers and not mine and I would hold no right to the land.....

    Secondly we would have had to show that the money was somehow my wife's and not mine which would have been a little hard given my wife's shopping habit and inability to maintain a balance over 100 baht.

    Thirdly higher land transfer fees as well! Which is just wrong.

    I wasn't there that day as I was off working hard in Shanghai doing stuff that clearly no one else could have done and with no planned trip back for a couple of months it was just easier on the day to put it into my wife's sister name to close the deal. We can then later transfer it easily into my wife's name as a gift within the family without the need for 1-3 or more transfer fees. We just didn't realise I had to be there as well and to show some bank statements in here name with a good balance.

    ....In my wife's own explanation:

    Now there's a lot of foreigners come over to thailand to make the profit from land and properties so they want to make sure that we thais won't lose the land and country to those people. Also foreigners who are married to thais...when they break up there's problems about dividing the marriage properties and has so many problems involve with the court because the foreigners want to have the right on the land but they can't because they are foreigners that's why land department wants husbands and wives showing themselves the day they transfer the land to sign the paper that the money to buy that land does not belong to husband, its the wife's, and that they have no right to this property should there be any troubles in the future

  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by brisie
    bamboo for rio bar in his concrete.
    What exactly is rio bar mate ? Does it kinda salsa into the mix?

    I think I won't go down to Rio ,, but then again I just might la la de da da da

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    Thailand Expat OhOh's Avatar
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    ^Concrete can be reinforced by using steel bars or bamboo poles. Aussies always abbreviate and add either 1 or 2 OO's on the end. Hence reinforcing = rio. The Americans used it during WW2 to build concrete runways in the pacific theatre. There is a discussion about it in one of the house build threads.

    Aren't you on holiday?
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    Thailand Expat OhOh's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by davidbyron
    We went for a plot of nine rai
    What plans do you have for the rest of the land? Any scope for "developing" the river bank area?

  23. #23
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    Yes we are mate ,, although wi fi is readily available most places

  24. #24
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    Having just prepared foundation piers and poured a slab for a wooden house, I noted that generally the "RIO" (steel reinforcing rods, to strengthen your concrete and helping prevent cracking), generally stocked in the North East are like everything else here ...smaller in cross section, than what I am used to using......
    You will find that building here is a bit like "scale modelling" where everything is smaller, lighter and much much cheaper than you are used to! Having said that I have taken a hard objective look at this..... and have come to the conclusion that I come from a country that is totally over regulated, oversized, over specified and overdone in just about every field of endeavor, and the costs are proportional! Usually because some Government employee or academic who controls the standards, is watching his backside...and to totally oversize everything is his safety net! You have to ask yourself .....do you build everything for a "once in a Hundred years event" with all the limitations that causes (as per Western building standards these days) or simply plan for the "wot if" result not causing total devestation, as you are still allowed to do here!... and get on with your life!
    If you are building in Thailand then I think you have to follow the old adage "When in Rome.... do as the Roman's do" to some extent, and be happy like them!

    They have some very effective foundation methods here for the typical North East Paddy Field clay/sand/ironstone mixtures where they dig down to a firm ironstone or solid clay base, then pour a small concrete "pad" on top of some obligtory "good luck" folliage....then use vertically installed reinforced concrete pipes about 12 inch diameter ( quite strong and cheap to buy) cut to length, and filled with rio bars and concrete, then backfilled above the pad and compacted up to the bottom of the slab level. The exposed rio bars are then tied to the slab mesh prior to the slab pour and it seemed to me to be a very effective foundation system. We obtained a sketch with the exact position of each of the 16 vertical beams, from the timber section builder, and installed a cement pipe "pad" directly below each load point, and in a cheap but effective way finished up with the slab effectively floating on a 16 pad foundation below each load point.

  25. #25
    Thailand Expat OhOh's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Roger Ramjet
    then use vertically installed reinforced concrete pipes about 12 inch diameter ( quite strong and cheap to buy) cut to length,
    Do you have any prices for these you could post?

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