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  1. #76
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    DrAndy's Avatar
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    from your thread, I thought you had bought a house plan, as in



    and then modified it to suit your needs

    I think that is a good way to go if you want a standard modern house. Most of the problems are already sorted and the building goes smoother. It looks a nice house and your garden will soon be wonderful.


    back to TV receivers etc, we are lucky in CM as there is cable available. You can have as many TVs as you like all on the one cable, and one cost per month. Each TV can show a different channel independently.
    I have reported your post

  2. #77
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Issan house complete -- shed scheduled

    Just beyond the six month point living in this house and a few things have become apparent.

    1. I don't have an enclosed garage and storage for outdoor equipment (lawn mower, weedeater, bicycles, shovels, wheelbarrow, rakes, fertilizer bags etc.) has become a challenge.

    2. Another issue is water. There is lime in the water here and neighbors have complained that their faucets and heaters have gummed up with deposits very quickly. Also, our water pressure upstairs leaves a lot to be desired.

    I've decided a shed adjacent to the house, near the back, would answer both problems.



    I'm thinking a 4m x 3m job will house a water tank, pump, water filter and that assortment of shed items.



    I don't want to spend too much on this thing and have a few hundred ceramic roofing tiles remaining from the house construction. It would be a nice touch if they matched anyway. I want it to be secure so will build walls on all sides, but the eves can remain open with a slight overhang. A lockable door is required and I've even considered a heavy-gauge chain link door for ventilation. I want it to look like a shed and thought bare bricks with a neatly done work might be attractive.



    It will have to be close to the rear corner of the house where the water main come in so I don't have to dig water pipes everywhere.

    I haven't given much thought to how much I'm willing to spend on a shed but maybe around 30,000 should do it. Pretty basic concrete pad, reinforced concrete columns, steel for the roof and bricking. Of course rudimentary electric for pump, filter and a light as well as the water works.

    I can buy and haul all the materials myself, but will require technical assistance to get the lines straight and pouring of columns etc. as I know nothing about that.

    How much do you think I should I set aside for this project?
    Last edited by Texpat; 06-12-2007 at 04:02 PM.

  3. #78
    Thailand Expat lom's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat
    It will have to be close to the rear corner of the house where the water main come in so I don't have to dig water pipes everywhere.
    Put the shed where you like to have it.
    Digging for 2 pcs of water pipe is a piece of cake.

  4. #79
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    In late December, my wife and I contracted with a local construction guy to build our shed. But he couldn't start the work until Jan 15 (likely recovering from his New Year's hangover).

    The shed will be dimensions discussed earlier 4m x 3m and he claims it will be finished in 10 days. I'm in no hurry to get it done sloppily, but the sooner is better, I suppose. We decided NOT to go with the guy who built our house because he quoted us 125K for the job -- a bloody shed. We went with his competition.

    The materials are slightly over 48K and the labor is 20K -- we'll see. We put 20K down and the balance is due upon completion.



    Jan 15, the bricks, gravel, sand, steel and concrete arrive late in the afternoon. They had to maneuver three trucks through my lam yai trees and I was like a mother hen afraid one would get run over. The fucksticks who landscaped my front yard killed two nice ones with their giant tractor/grader. This picture is taken from my computer room. It's a sweet vantage point where I can watch the workers from the comfort of my house.



    Yesterday they started digging. They dug these four holes for the footings, about 1.5 m deep. They used long steel poles and very sharp hoes. The holes revealed three layers of soil -- clay on top, red dirt about 8 inches down and the remainder was greyish rock. At the top of the photo you can see my failed tomato garden from last year. I've trimmed the surrounding trees and will try again this year. All the surrounding fields are lush green with tobacco, so maybe now is a good time to try again.



    As I said, the primary purpose of the shed is to house a water tank, a pump and water filters. The water main enters the house near the corner you can see here, about 4 meters from the side of the shed.

    My wife and I looked at water pumps the other day at Udon Thani's Global House. They have a nice selection of varying brands and sizes. We're both dum and foolishly asked the clerk which kind suits our needs. My ears immediately closed and I started fidgeting with shower heads and water valves -- knowing full well he was spewing horse shit, pointing my wife to the most expensive brand that he'll get a commission on.

    We also looked at water tanks. They're pretty damn big and will take up a lot of space in a 4m x 3m shed. I'm thinking 1,000 liters ought to do it. They had one which was rectangular shaped, 2 meters long and about workbench high. Hmmmm. Only 12,000 baht -- about twice the price of other 1K liter tanks.



    These grunts don't buy anything ready-made. Labor is pretty cheap and they can make it locally with the same shoddy workmanship as the Chinese junk. So they do. If there was a way for them to make the iron rebar and cross members, they'd do that locally too.



    Lunch is served. Khao niao, a small grilled fish, a little squeezy bottle of prik namplah and a twig off the tree for a toothpick. My lovely and talented wife pitched in with a bottle of M-150 ea, and a plate of eggrolls.

    We ate together on a straw mat in the shade of a tree. I had a ham and cheese sandwich with lettuce, tomato and a hint of wasabi -- and two large Leos.

  5. #80
    I'm in Jail
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    how much was the original cost of the house ? inside looks a bit small though, small rooms, I was expecting something bigger ? very nice land btw, looks great.

  6. #81
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Price -- post #16.
    Size -- 207 sq m. Just right for us two. (except water tank, pump, tools, lawn mower et al)

  7. #82
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    A few inches of sand are followed by a few wheelbarrows full of concrete/gravel. They have the dimensions of the shed penciled out on the wooden frame they've set up around the site. They pound nails in the frame and string lines to denote specific points of the shed. I don't imagine it's much more sophisticated anywhere, but I could be wrong. Definitely no GPS on this work site.



    This was taken about three hours ago. They were cleaning up. During lunch my wife nicely asked the foreman to keep the garden as clean as possible so we might enjoy some grass near the shed within the next 10 years. He assured her they would.

    As the last load of cement was poured into the mold holding the vertical rebar, the genius on cement-mixer cleanup crew dumped a mighty splooge of effluence onto the ground directly under the mixer. Ever see a pit bull take off after a meek minature poodle? It wasn't pretty.

  8. #83
    The Cat
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    Nice house indeed Texpat.
    And nice location.

  9. #84
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    Nice house and a lovely looking plot.

    I'm glad we've got to the construction bit again.

    Just a couple of comments.

    Why are you putting your water tank in the shed? I'd have thought leaving it outside in the sun would be a good idea to let it get the benefit of sunlight - hence keeping the water warm.

    When you run the electrics you might want to put in enough outlets to enable future 'add in' electrical items.

    Also I assume you are burying the cable in the ground, make sure the builders use suitable cable - The outer sheath needs to be suited for direct burial (the usual material to look for is XLPE - High Density Polyurethane). Standard house cable will in a very short time absorb water and become useless.

    When they bury the cable get them to dig the trench, spread sand in the bottom, then lay the cable and put some more sand over the cable, and then a covering for tiles of bricks to prevent later cable damaged when digging the garden.

  10. #85
    I'm in Jail
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat
    House and land was slightly less than 4m.
    not bad at all for that price,

    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat
    Include alcohol required to survive the experience, significaltly more.
    Tell me about it, I think this is true for everyone here, could explain why so many alkies in Thailand

  11. #86
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Thanks for the input itchy, I appreciate your response.

    Why are you putting your water tank in the shed
    In my year-and-a-half in Thailand, I've witnessed the sun wipe out more than a few plastic items: lawn sprinklers, garden hose caddys, dog dishes, automotive parts, bicycle parts -- all in rapid succession. One of two things is happening. Either the quality of plastics in Thailand is horrible, or the angle/intensity of the sun is brutal. My feeling is the later is more in effect than the former. I shipped over some nice plastic products from the US and they've all deterioriated bady in the sun here.

    keeping the water warm
    I have a large water heater (Siemens, I think) mounted on the service balcony and a smaller point-of-use hearer in the guest bathroom. Heating water is not an issue.

    Good point about future electric add-ins. My wife actually boxed my ears today about that one. There will be four plugs inside the shed. I'm not entertaining any more. If my lovely and talented wife wants to make somtam out in the park with her mates, run an extension cord. This is a single family dwelling.

    As for digging electric trenches, we're well versed in that act of ignorance. Thais dig 'em about three inches deep in poxy grey conduit that holds water out long enough for the electrician to switch cities.

    I don't know what grade conduit my wife ordered, but she claims it was the top available. In any case, it's about five meters to the house's external switchbox. New photos later tonight when the kids quit the gamecenters, the mobile phone lovelies go to work and the TEFlrs go to sleep.

    Cheers

  12. #87
    The Cat
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat View Post
    In my year-and-a-half in Thailand, I've witnessed the sun wipe out more than a few plastic items: lawn sprinklers, garden hose caddys, dog dishes, automotive parts, bicycle parts -- all in rapid succession. One of two things is happening. Either the quality of plastics in Thailand is horrible, or the angle/intensity of the sun is brutal. My feeling is the later is more in effect than the former.
    Indeed, plastic does not resist sun and the heat for a very long time, wherever it is manufactured.
    But water tanks I have seen (in Bkk anyway, including where I live) are not in plastic but in shiny metal.
    If you want a plastic tank, you'd better bury it or put it in the shed.
    And it will last far longer than the metal one.
    And with probably less contamination of the water...
    Discussion is an exchange of knowledge, argument is an exchange of ignorance

  13. #88
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    Interesting point on plastics, I have some patio chairs in our place in Queensland, about 10 yrs old and still look good, similar chairs purchased here, 3 yrs old and look like shit. The sun doesn't get more brutal than Queensland.

  14. #89
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    My experience is that metal rusts, plastics brittle, wood rots at an amazingly faster rate than I've ever been exposed to in N/S/W US and all over Japan. I believe its a combination of shit plastic here and harsh sun angles. It also explains why most Thai houses are made from primarily concrete --which ages with the gracefulness of a dragon-faced 90-year-old bitch.

  15. #90
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Today they erected the lower concrete perimeter. Wooden forms were created to contain the concrete base. I'm still dubious as to how accurate their measurements are, but thought it unsavory to barge in as they were pouring concrete -- to check.

  16. #91
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    They ran the electric conduit throught the rebar ... something I wasn't around to witness for my house. Wondering if that's normal or if it required divine intervention (me sitting, on the hill, watching their every move.) Kindof a nice respite from running yellow juice cables along the walls/floors.

    It might be useful here to add that I demanded NO visible wires or cables. Maybe that's what they were aiming for.

    Does running two (in-out) elec conduit cables through two concrete uprights diminish the strenth of said vertical or horizontal columns?

  17. #92
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    I don't think you have anything to worry about with the conduits weakening the structure. But I would keep an eye on how they seal the conduit after the cables are installed. The conduit is good for water and bugs as well as cables.

  18. #93
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    Quote Originally Posted by peterpan View Post
    Interesting point on plastics, I have some patio chairs in our place in Queensland, about 10 yrs old and still look good, similar chairs purchased here, 3 yrs old and look like shit. The sun doesn't get more brutal than Queensland.

    Also Texpat


    There is an additive/process, maybe UV stuff of some kind, that is added to plastic to reduce greatly the effects of the sun. (Think the white plastic TOA paint buckets. Look at the number of them in use all over the country from trash bins to food processors to tool carriers.) It is expensive apparently and so not added to Asian products. Most western plastic products are made with the intention of lasting.

    Don't recall what it is but know from a farming thread on another channel that it exists.

    E. G.
    "If you can't stand the answer --
    Don't ask the question!"

  19. #94
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Here they're pouring concrete into the molds for the floor perimeter. They mix the concrete in a big electric-powered drum tumbler.



    Beer Chang is the preferred beverage of choice after a hard day's work.

  20. #95
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat View Post
    During lunch my wife nicely asked the foreman to keep the garden as clean as possible so we might enjoy some grass near the shed within the next 10 years. He assured her they would.
    Good luck on this one! My experience has shown that whatever landscaping is around a construction project will be destroyed. Invariably, I have had to start over from scratch.

  21. #96
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    How tall are these guy's? From the pics of them, they seem no more then 4 foot tall.

  22. #97
    The Cat
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    Quote Originally Posted by El Gibbon View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by peterpan View Post
    Interesting point on plastics, I have some patio chairs in our place in Queensland, about 10 yrs old and still look good, similar chairs purchased here, 3 yrs old and look like shit. The sun doesn't get more brutal than Queensland.

    Also Texpat


    There is an additive/process, maybe UV stuff of some kind, that is added to plastic to reduce greatly the effects of the sun. (Think the white plastic TOA paint buckets. Look at the number of them in use all over the country from trash bins to food processors to tool carriers.) It is expensive apparently and so not added to Asian products. Most western plastic products are made with the intention of lasting.

    Don't recall what it is but know from a farming thread on another channel that it exists.

    E. G.
    I have to say that Thailand is the only place in the world where I was able to break a plastic bucket filled with water just dropping it on the floor.
    And this one never saw the sun before breaking...

  23. #98
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    Thaihouse Construcion Plans

    I like to build a Thaihouse and looking for construcion Plans.

  24. #99
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Today they put frames around the vertical rebar and filled them with concrete. The electrician ran a buried line to the house and finished wiring two of the four columns. They also ran two water pipes into the shed, under the floor perimeter.



    Making sure the columns are straight with a plum bob.

  25. #100
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    Quote Originally Posted by onuk View Post
    I like to build a Thaihouse and looking for construcion Plans.
    Here they are, but often the web site refuses to open: สมเด็จพระเจ้าพี่นางเธอ เจ้าฟ้ากัลยาณิวัฒนา กรมหลวงนราธิวาสราชนครินทร์

    Your local tessabahn village or city office will have them in large booklets- free! And as they are TH Govt approved no need for an archeetect...just your moobahn building-fee which in my case was all of 500B.

    Alternatively try Free Thai Government House Plans courtesy of our farang friend, K. Crossy, either here at Teakdoor or at coolthai house - can't recall exactly. Crossy is also reknowned for expert advice on electrics. His plans below are compiled from the Thai site whereas the Thai Govt site dwloads in segments. Ohchay..? Living in Asia

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