Thread: Farm House near Nong Bua Lamphu

Originally Posted by nigelandjan

They look like mortice + tenon joints to me , presumably drilled and bolted through the joints as well

I see what you mean .

They make a sandwich at the end there don't they ?




Wasp

yup…...

Originally Posted by nigelandjan

yup…...

It just looks odd to simple me that those posts are not aligned with the concrete supports .




Wasp

Occasionally, I would time my inspection visits to the farm to coincide with the end of the construction work day. Of course, I’d bring along some Leo’s, the favorite beer of Isaan guys. Women do not generally drink alcohol.

Samlott and Samnaht (Lott and Naht) really looked forward to this, as all work crews do.



There is a bit of protocol to beer drinking in Thailand and Lao and they’re pretty much the same. Glasses are filled with ice, by the host or person buying, using a metal spoon or ice tongs (using fingers is considered loso – OK to do for your own, but not for others, unless there’s absolutely nothing else you can use). Beer is slowly poured into the glasses tilted at an angle to minimize the head of the foam. Once the glasses are filled, they are given to their respective drinker. Usually a toast of “Son Kiao” (Thai) or “Som Jak” (Lao) is made and glasses clicked. It is the Thai/Lao equivalent of “Cheers!”



After the initial set-up, anyone can fill another’s glass with either beer or ice or both. This is most always done, as it is a sign of respect and appreciation. To have someone’s glass go empty or even half empty (especially when making a toast) would be considered a poor reflection on how you “take care.” Once a 640 ML bottle is finished, anyone is free to open the next one and fill glasses – always others first.



(Notable in the picture above: top of the bed is split bamboo. Lott’s hand is resting on his “Mechanical Buffalo” and you can see the attached cart stretching out to the upper left. Sandwich-type grill hanging on the left; underneath is my bag that I carry with camera, phones, notebooks, money, lighter, glasses, keys, mosquito lotion and more).

[Originally posted at THE ISAAN]

Are you in Nong Bua in Feburary Legend ?

If so I will call round and see your build if thats ok ?

I shall be calling round that area anyway

Originally Posted by nigelandjan

Are you in Nong Bua in Feburary Legend ?

If so I will call round and see your build if thats ok ?

I shall be calling round that area anyway

Yes, I'll be here next month and you're more than welcome to come by. When you're ready, just post in this thread, I'll send you my cell # and we can arrange a mutual day/time.

Ok mate will PM you later on , when I get my Thai sim number

With the structural posts installed on the second main floor beams, along with some wood cross supports and temporary eucalyptus scaffolding, the rafters went in so that the roof (lan kah) could be screwed on.

One note about the second story posts: these are attached to the main floor beams in much the same way as the concrete posts are. Both concrete and wood posts are notched and fit inside the main floor beams that are grouped in pairs, so that the notch fits inside the floor beams. In the case of the concrete posts, the floor beams rest on them and are bolted to them. In the case of the wood posts, they rest on the floor beams and are also bolted to them.



Within the past 70 years, roofs for homes in the Thai countryside have gone from thatch to corrugated tin and now to “aluminium” (aka “aluminum”) and concrete tile (“C Pac”).

We decided to go with corrugated metal, like we did with our first story roof at our village home, not only for the lighter weight, but also for the price and durability – choosing a thicker grade rather than the thinner.

Also, we opted not to go with color. It is my opinion that the enamel process in Thailand is not standard and that the painting process for concrete tile is not uniform, either. Looking at both color-enameled aluminum roofs and colored concrete tile roofs of more than ten years, I see various shades of tiles and roof sections. The Thai sun is, no doubt, merciless. I want a roof to continue to look good beyond ten years, even if it develops its own weather-beaten shade of duller silver.

Do like that location .



Wasp

Thai and Lao people love multiple roofs and there’s no denying that they look sway (beautiful). Sometimes they are structurally integrated – meaning, they are necessary the way they are designed. But, most often, it’s just for show. It’s rare, for instance, to see a Thai Buddhist temple without a double, triple or quadruple roof.

Seeing our main “aluminium” roof go up, Lungpaw mentioned to Thip that it would look better with a little roof added on top to create a double roof effect.





So, because we respect Lungpaw and despite the added cost for something totally non-functional and the danger of water leakage as a result of cutting into the main roof, we had Lott and Naht install a lan kah noi (little roof) onto the roof of Bann Nah.



When our workers were nearly done with the roofs, they were needed back at the wat, for Ohpensa, the end of Buddhist lent (Vassa). So, work stopped. Then there was Boon Katin, when work couldn’t be restarted. After that, there was a trip Lott drove to Thung Yai and after that the guys had to work their rice fields in order to bring in this year’s crop. Although they could have come back to work much earlier, they waited until after the end-of-year holidays. Total of down time: 3 months (October-December, 2014).

Welcome to The Isaan.

[Originally posted at: THE ISAAN]

Great thread Legendary.
I came across this steel roofing clad with PU foam mould under side.

Originally Posted by Ratchaburi

Great thread Legendary.
I came across this steel roofing clad with PU foam mould under side.

I checked that stuff out and was tempted, but decided against it for fear the glue would eventually fail.

Originally Posted by nigelandjan

I think I would have them lay felt under there before putting the tin cladding on as you seem to think so do I , that is an invitation to cause leaks in that area now .

Ok rain falling straight down is not going to be a problem but once the wind starts howling ?

Particles of wood and silicone will fill in the gaps, but I'm not confident about it in the long run. A couple of years down the road, in a good rain with lots of wind... I can see some leaks a'comin' !!!

Yup what with the intense heat of the day and the cool of the night shrinkage for sure will occur on the silicone and bingo !

The wife has now had the bright idea of building a kinda add on outside thai style timber kitchen to our house ,, now she has designed the plans and paid for it all herself ,, now I am keeping right out of it , but all I can say is this roof she has planned is fraught with problems .

However it was designed by a Thai and is gonna be built by a Thai ,, so apparently its all gonna be perfect ,,, we will see

Originally Posted by LEGENDARY

Originally Posted by Ratchaburi

Great thread Legendary.
I came across this steel roofing clad with PU foam mould under side.

I checked that stuff out and was tempted, but decided against it for fear the glue would eventually fail.

I will put the sample that I have in the sun for 6 month to see what happens.
The foam is sprayed onto the back of the sheet as it is being formed.
So there is no glue involved, I have use PU foam in A & B liquid, it stick to every thing, that it come into contact with.

So lets find out if there a problem of it let go.

Originally Posted by Ratchaburi

Originally Posted by LEGENDARY

Originally Posted by Ratchaburi

Great thread Legendary.
I came across this steel roofing clad with PU foam mould under side.

I checked that stuff out and was tempted, but decided against it for fear the glue would eventually fail.

I will put the sample that I have in the sun for 6 month to see what happens.
The foam is sprayed onto the back of the sheet as it is being formed.
So there is no glue involved, I have use PU foam in A & B liquid, it stick to every thing, that it come into contact with.

So lets find out if there a problem of it let go.

Great idea and much appreciated. I'd go with the stuff in the future if I could be assured of a solid bond.

Originally Posted by nigelandjan

Yup what with the intense heat of the day and the cool of the night shrinkage for sure will occur on the silicone and bingo !

The wife has now had the bright idea of building a kinda add on outside thai style timber kitchen to our house ,, now she has designed the plans and paid for it all herself ,, now I am keeping right out of it , but all I can say is this roof she has planned is fraught with problems .

However it was designed by a Thai and is gonna be built by a Thai ,, so apparently its all gonna be perfect ,,, we will see

Oh yeah, gotta have an outdoor kitchen Up Country! Things I've considered in the past: plenty of sunlight, drainage away from the structure, one or two wire upper walls for security (make sure those pots don't have legs) and movement of air.

Originally Posted by Ratchaburi

Great thread Legendary.
I came across this steel roofing clad with PU foam mould under side.

Is this on the cheaper side - hopefully ?



Wasp

Originally Posted by Wasp

Originally Posted by Ratchaburi

Great thread Legendary.
I came across this steel roofing clad with PU foam mould under side.

Is this on the cheaper side - hopefully ?



Wasp

Not sure if it cheap or not but I was quoted 450 baht 2m for Zinc coated not painted & no transport.
As the sheets are very stiff then you can get away with less steel or timber under your roof.
I don't like the cement tile, I like tin roofs & will put this sample I have in the sun when this cold weather has finished.

During the three months work stoppage between October and December 2014, I would occasionally go out to the building site of our “country home” (aka “Bann Nah,” Thai for farm house), to verify that no thefts had occurred, to clean-up a bit, and water some plants and trees Thip and I have already begun to grow there. I even did a bit of wood staining – the lightest stain possible, so to easily see the grain.



On one trip to Bann Nah, it struck me that since we were constructing our living space in the middle of the larger of our two rice farms, it was very likely that no one had ever lived in this spot before – at least since the introduction os rice cultivation into this part of Southeast Asia.

Rice agriculture is believed to have spread from southern China, in the area below the Yangzi, over the course of the Third Millenium BCE. Before that time, most of the rice fields of Southeast Asia must have been low-lying semi-swamp areas that thrived during the Monsoon Season and dried-up during the dry season. Or, just part of the once-vast Southeast Asian forest that hunter-gatherers moved about in search of food. Certainly, what is now cultivated land must have been low-lying since before the conversion to rice paddies and, as such, not really habitable comfortably.



What also occurred to me was that since we were at a spot that had “fresh karma,” so to speak, it was even more important to keep it a place where, along with the rice, only good, fresh karma will grow.



[Originally posted at: THE ISAAN

Most any man that plans to build a structure with his wife’s active participation will attest: those plans usually escalate and can take radical turns in the process.

Our “farm house” (aka “Bann Nah”) is a perfect example.



I started out with a simple plan of slightly upgrading the former “Love Shack II” (built in 2012), which had been the successor to the original “Love Shack” (built in 2001). But, as I’ve explained elsewhere, what would have been “Love Shack III” got upgraded to a full-on farm house with quality wood and craftsmanship part of the plan.





(Love Shack I, summer 2001)


My wife played a big part in this basic change from shack-to-home and I’m not complaining. Although it has been frustrating at times, many of her ideas and reasons have been very good and solid. Other influences have been our head monk, Lungpaw, as well as various members of Thip’s family.



The most radical change of plans occurred when we decided to build a house for Thip and I, as opposed to just a shack to be used by family when working on the farm.



The second most radical change of plans was when Thip decided she had to have a kitchenette and bathroom up on the second floor. Gee, I wish you had told me that earlier! Thankfully, we were able to make that change before the second floor work had begun.



… and, now as I write this, it occurs to me that we’re only about 50% done and, certainly, more changes are a’comin’!

[Originally posted at THE ISAAN]

Slowly, after the calendar New Year had begun, our workers Lott and Naht returned to the Bann Nah worksite after a three month work stoppage.

They had their reasons, most of which were legit. These included: 1) being called back to the wat (temple) in preparations for the end of “Buddhist Lent” (Khaopensa) and Boon Katin; 2) the rice harvest season (Giao Khao); 3) miscellaneous family projects and; 4) end of year/beginning of new year celebrations.

Even so, they could have come back for short bursts of time – especially in December. But, I feel Thip and I were partly to blame. By the time of the work stoppage – and, at that time we had no idea it would go on for three months – we had already paid our workers in the range of 75% of the labor cost agreed upon (to that point) and the project was only 40% completed – at best. So the incentive really wasn’t there. It was probably Lunpaw’s instruction and encouragement – more than anything – that actually got them back working for us again.

While Lott and Naht were away, I had taken note of how simple but effective the structural strength of the building is.

As you may recall, we started out with the construction and sinking into the building pad nine column footers of cement, gravel and rebar to a depth of about five feet.

This was followed up by fusing the column footers to the nine above-ground cement posts that the structure sits upon.

After that, the bolting in of the main floor beams not only laid the base for the floor, but also provided a way to bolt the building support posts to the base.



Lastly, bolting the roof supports onto the building support beams, screwing the aluminium roof onto the support beams, and X-bracing in the attic made for one solid Bann Nah.



We call it “Bann Nah” (farm house), but is will really end up being more like a cabin on stilts.


[Originally posted at: THE ISAAN - Life in a Thai-Lao Village

Blimey , thats gonna be one hot house under that tin roof