RamdomChances

I probably could'nt streach to the "evening dining on lobster at a country club" nothing to do with "opening my mind" rather to do with "opening my wallet"

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RC, maybe you should become a Bangkok English teacher, dining on lobster in the local country club is just another everyday event for these guys.

( Whilst waiting for the Ministers and Movie stars to come and buy you a few beers ).

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and going to the men's room and standing in front of the mirror repeating several times to yourself:

(quote:Pudji) I'm not a boy. I'm not naive, and I'm not "blind to the way Thailand 'really' is",

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Typical. My post was completely a non-offensive, food-for-thought bit about using the opportunities present in Thailand to improve your circumstances and yourself. The response? A bunch of trite one-liners sniping at me while completely avoiding addressing the issues I raised or adding something productive to the discussion.

Well, I'm sorry if you guys are so bitter and disillusioned that you feel threatened by any suggestion that you "better yourselves". That sounds like a deep-seated emotional problem and I doubt even moving to Thailand has helped you escape your personal demons.

Be that as it may, while you guys are busy sucking on your sour grapes, I'll be enjoying the fruits of a positive and productive lifestyle.

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My one liner was'nt "trite" I thougt it was rather good actually nothing in it even directed at you.....Although I do have "deep-seated emotional problems" my grapes are sweet, although I'm not flexible enough to actuall suck on them.

RC

Personally, I prefer a more rich and varied experience of Thai culture. I can remember one day a few years ago when I spent the morning swinging in a hammock and playing checkers with a group of homeless hill-tribe migrants living in Bang Kapi, the afternoon watching a movie with some university students, and the evening dining on lobster at a country club. Such experiences are open to all farang, but only if you open your mind a bit.

Man, you've got it made.

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I probably could'nt streach to the "evening dining on lobster at a country club" nothing to do with "opening my mind" rather to do with "opening my wallet"

Growing Teak..... Prices

Found these prices on a Costa Rica Plantation.

How do the prices compare with Thailand?

These are 6 yrs old, 8" in diameter & 50' tall.

100 - 400 trees

Price per 100 trees  $6,358

500 - 900 trees   

Price per 100 trees  $5,246

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I would say that these prices are high. We bought a tree for a corner post for our traditional northern style house and its about 14" in diameter at the base and I've been told that it would probably cost 2,000 to 3,000 baht to buy it (we paid 500 baht because of a relationship with the owner)....so if the estimate on the value is correct then a much larger tree here is about the same price as the smaller trees there....a 14" tree will have about 3 times as much wood as an 8" tree...ballpark estimate. Also, around here teak seems to grow about 1 inch per year...this is not fertilized or irrigated but growing in lowland areas in reasonably fertile soil. Also teak grows faster when it has more water but also produces a lower grade of teak both structurally and aesthetically....or so I've read.

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Have you got your maths wrong there? 100-400 trees $ 6,358 so thats $63 dollars a tree not sure what the exchange rate is but say 40 bhat/$ works out to about 2500 bhat for an 8 inch tree, where as your 14 inch had a worth of 2-3,000 so the trees here are cheaper.

I still recon there is something wrong with an 8 inch dia 50 foot tree in 6 years, thats some growth rate......yes I know it's in Costa Rica

EDIT chownah....just re-read your post, mis read it the first time

4 wd is not just for off road...in fact the average 4wd pick up is not a very good off roader at all. I use 4wd a lot in Thailand. The high ratio is really for poor driving conditions and the low for inclines and rough tracks.

I'd agree with the fact that 4wd High is good for poor conditions but driving sensible there should be no real need for it, 4wd H will also get you most places thet you want to go. I very rarely use 4WD L only in extreme conditions and never on the road, I'm not sure but I think it may act like a diff lock on mine as unless its really muddy you can feel the whells scrubbing when turning. Its also good on very rough ground where you want to keep the speed down but the revs up as it negates the need for riding the clutch.

Cant think of many times I've had to use 4wd L, pulling my tractor out when it was stuck was one, tow starting a 10 wheeler(full), up a slight incline was an other, but for most people I bet they hardly ever use it.

The thing with the 4wd pick up (I've got a 4 door one) is that its so versitile, you can seat 5 in comfort, curise down the main roads, with out having to worry about pot holes, and still do all the pick-up/off road stuff if you've got to. I recon that if I lived in town though I'd have a car, it's just you can't pull a tractor out or go racing across fields afer escaped cows in a honda civiv

RC

Does anyone know the cost of a rice thresher?

http://www.kpn.co.th/

RC

Yesterday

Got up went up the farm to make sure everything is Ok, picked a can of coffe up from the shop on my way back and logged in here for my morning "news" session by about 6:30.

Had some breakfast (ham and cheese toasties) then went out to put up about 200 meters of electric fence.

Came back messed about on the computer a bit, got my accounts up to date, then when they were doing the afternoon milking got the tractor out and started to clean out the accumalated sh!t from the rainy season in the cow pens, its on a bit of a slope and during the rainy season the sh!t was running down the slope and then drying off just outside, so ended up forming a bit of a dam, so ended up with a "sh!t lake" behind it. Finally broke the dam after about 2 hrs, cleaned the tractor off, and had a shower and something to eat.

I did fancy a drink or two at this time but none of my drinking buddies are around, so messed around on the computer a bit maor then went to bed.

Oh thrilling life

Ahhh tick's. We are fighting a constant war on tick's, without much sucsess.

Bambina I know it's not your field, but do you know what I can use to spray my land, for large scale tick control. It would have to be harmless to animals, been trying to find something for a while now.

Tick's are a real problem with my cows, we inject with ivermection but you can't sell the milk for 45 days after injecting so we usually inject when we dry the cow off prior to it clafing. I have some spray for the cows as well, but it only kills the tick that are on them, I could do with something that will remove the source of the tick's I know I will never win but am just trying to keep the population down.

RC

My wife makes bread occasionaly, and we gan get all the stuff localy although we have to go into town (Nakorn Sawan or Chainat) to get it. I'm out in the sticks but can still find bread, usually eat the wholeweat one, if you have a 7-11 nearbye just go and talk to them about stocking it, our local one (about 10 km away) carries a range of bread and even stockes ham, bacon and butter , mainly cos I buy it off them....had no luck with then stocking cheese yet though.

RC

To sell teak, you need to register them with the Royal Forest Department first, so really it only applies to tree's that you have cultivate yourself, unless you have happened to buy a plot with them growing on and they have already been registered. As has been inplied here there is a strong black market for them though especially older mature trees.

Basicaly the price rises exponentialy to the diamiter of the tree, the bigger they are the more you will get for them. They usually plant at about 3 meter spacing and then take the first cut at around 10 years, taking out every other tree, to leave room for the rest to grow. These 'smaller" trees usually go to the furniture making industry for making teak veneere. There is a real lack of large tree for furinture making.

Sorry dont know what the current prices are. I've no idea how they can get a 6 year old tree to 8 inch diameter and 50 foot tall are you sure thats for teak as here a 6 year old tree you would be lucky to get 4 inches and about 3 meters useable wood.

RC

I say good luck to the people that get the big buck's for working. I know that if I went back looking for work that I'd be looking to earn as much as possible.

I do think that here we have , two groups of people that are poles apart, the ex-pay working probably in BKk for some big company on a six fig (Bhat/month) income.

The retirie's who have worked for years for their pensions and probably have a comfertable living here due to the cost of living being cheaper than their home country and the "chancers" for want of a better term, people that are way off retirment age but have made a choice to come and live here and try and make a home for themselfs. Ok its a bit generalistic I know.

The thing with having money is that you get used to having it and spending it, so I can easily see that and ex-pat working for some BKK company being shocked that someone would contamplate living here on 30,000 or so bhat/month, you just get used to the "nicer" things and mabey loose touch a bit on what people can actually life off.

The "chancers" well they usually come out here as a "lifestyle" choice (rather than the ex-pat worker to whom I'd imagine that the financial package would be very important), They have probably either come out with a chunk of money looking to start a buissines or came out and gone into a relitively low paid job (for ex-pats) like teaching.

I'm a "chancer" I came out when I was about 35, with a chunk of money, looking to turn the chunk into a buissines that I can generate an income, I had a well paid job, but for me it was a lifestyle dessision although I do like money as much as the next man. I CAN live on next to nothing if I have too(less than 10,000 bhat/month) and while building the buissiness up sometimes I've had too. I'm not saying that I would want to live long term on that and I dont pay rent ect so my outgoing are small.

I'd say that since starting the buissines here I've probably ploughed about 70% of the profits back in expanding, it does leave you short on cash sometimes, but I recon its worth it in the long term. The good thing for me is that cows dont really depreciate(in the short term), so If I am desperate for some cash I'd just sell a couple.

I've got an other 15 years before I can touch my pensions, which I could live off comfertably here and I recon I'll probably keep ploughing the money back in for the next few years, yes sometimes time are hard but I dont think it would be much different than starting a buissines back home, the first few years are tough wherever you are just look at the failoure rates for new companies back home (wherever that is).

You can live comfertably on 30-50,000 bhat here, but one mans comfort could be an other mans hel_l, I'm not sure I'd like to live off 30,000 living and renting an apartment in BKK though, not for the long term anyway.

RC

it is hoof and mouth disease and i wonder why there isnt a govt agric. vaccination program.... my goats/sheep get vaccinated at age 4 mo's for plague, hoof and mouth, brucellosis and some others that i cant remember in english.... but all of asia and middle east is considered a 'touched' area this year with many break outs here also among wild ruminants and unvac. (beduin) ruminants....

random chance... dont let anyone in to lyour cow yard w/o dipping their boots/feet....

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Foot and mouth is not exactly rare here,there are small outbreaks all the time, although they dont go in for the mass kullings that happen back in Briton . There are Gov vaccination programs, we get free vacine every 6 months. I would imagine that a lot of the smaller "mom and pop" beef farms dont bother though.

RC

Siri Sawan in the center of town has the best reputation, very nice rooms as well, air con overlooking the park. There are also a few good ones in Chinat.

Sorry dont know about wether they have a website, but get someone to ring up the Thai talking phone book and ask for Siri Sawan Hospital, Nakorn Sawan.

There is one in Nakorn and one in Chinat sepcilising in mothers and babies, the Chinat one is supposed to be good, I can find the names out if you want.

RC

even showing your 'class' perhaps, Mr. Browstone? 

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From where, in any of my Posts, do you extrapolate that little gem?

I prefer to speak polite Thai and advocate that others do so too, rather than encourage them in their belief that using casual language will make them “one of the Boys” and not the Farang they are and always will be?

From that you clumsily imply that I am an elitist?

I suggest that as a Moderator of this site you try to lead by example and refrain from making snide and unfounded comments about other Members.

That I choose not to respond in kind you may take as rather more compelling evidence to support your theory as to my “class” if you so wish

To get back on topic.

I think the best word to use is 'faen' if you want to find the middle ground. Panraya does sound stuck-up and high brow, and 'mia' sounds a bit too 'baan nawk' to me.

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“Faen” is certainly not middle ground between "Paraya” and “Mia”, the word is actually a Thai import derived from the English word “Fan” and implies only a close connection such as “best girl” or at most “lover” . There is no assumption of a formal or legal marriage.

Patrick

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Fean, Mia, Paraya, I use them all at sometime or an other just depends on the situattion and who you are talking to. Lifing in a farming community in "Ban Nawk"and spending time sitting around drinking with my farming mates I find that Paraya is a bit formal...each to their own realy. I dont think theres a definate right or wrong answer.

Oh mabye Meadish was trying to say that you had a bit of "class" why so defensive

I moved house today to Nakhon Sawan from Bangkok and I'm freezing my ass off. I'm only a third of the way to ChiangMai but I'd say it is about 18C outside at the moment.

Remember: I got aircon but I don't have central heating!!

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Back on topic, that need blankets!!! Cold season comes around every year, it's not like some sort of random natrual disaster, after cold season it will get hot and then after that it will rain a lot, and we'll have flooding, then it will get cold again....same every year.

RC

Try doing a search on "Dowrie" or "sin sot" as this is one of the most talked about subjects here and comes up about once a week or so.

Anyway there are 2 shcools of thought.

1. Dowrie(sin sot) is the thai custom and your marring a thai so you should pay it.

2. Dowrie(sin sot) is akin to buying a wife and and "there's no way I ever buy a wife"

Most Thais pay or at least show Sin Sot at the wedding its calculated on social status, age, married before, children ect On BTY a million Bhat is a ludicrous ammount of money unless you GF happens to be a University graduate virgin child of a well off BKK family.

There is a legal minimum wage for Burmiese workers somwhere between 3-4000 bhat a month (cant remember exactly).

Thats if they are legal of course, you can go to the local gov offices (labour dep I assume) and request some Burmiese workers, they are then registered to you and you are responsible for them , we looked into it for the farm a while back.

RC

I've re-opened this thread since we'vre had a recent spate of requests for "vet" type forum.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?sh...51entry570351

"farming, gardening, pets and animals" or somthing like that

Since we've had a recent spate of requests for a "Vets" forum how about

"farming, gardening, pets and animals" since everyone agreed it would be a good idea.

RC

johna.

It's not critical, just wanted a "ballpark" fig for the cost's as eventuallt it will all come out of any prifit I make. I did think about drip feed irrigation, but could'nt really find anyone who knows much about it, or anywhere that sld the stuff. I've seen sort of "micro" sprinklers that look good but not sure that it would work with the ammount of land I want irrigated.

Probably the main reason I went for the system I've got is the ease of moving it around, I've only got 2 big sprinkler heads, but they will do about 1 rai at a time, hence the need for a big pump. Actually most of the cost involved come from actually pumping the water up, so I probably would'nt of saved much anyway.

RC

If your looking for the quickest way, then its probably by bus, if you catch the train to Nakorn, you then have to get into town (the train station is about 7 km outside) then catch a bus up to Kampaeng Phet, probably an other couple of hours. A lot would depend on where in Kampaeng Phet you are actually trying to get.

As Bkkmadness said the best bet is probably a VIP bus up from BKK.

RC

I think it has a lot to do with your lifestyle, here as well. If you are living and working in a mainly air con enviroment the chances are that you will never fully acclimatise, I spend most of my time outside and although I still do sweat a lot (I think its just genetic), I dont feel that hot. I do have the aircon on at night but only set at 25C, less than this and I feel cold, and thats with a quilt on the bed.

Chownah, I understand what you are saying....not sure I agree with it though, but I wont argue

Bases on the lates fig's (taking into account the right price for electricity, power factor and voltage drop) for anyone who still has an interest.

Straight pumping water into the tank, works out at 46satang/cubic meter (1 unit)

I cycle of irrigation( about 20,000L) works out to around 13.4 baht

RC

Just re-checked my bill, and I think the 0.5683 is the wrong price/unit, looks like it might be a "surcharge" I'll check it out when I can find someone to read the Thai on it, but it looks like 532 units used for 1399 bhat (2.63 bhat/unit) then a surcharg of 0.5683 (302 baht), then Vat bringing it to 1820 for 532 units or 3.42 bhat/unit. Which actually makes more sence to me.

RC

Thanks guy's at least I'm on the right track, just got my bill, I't the house one not the farm, but we only use a bit more on the farm, unit price 0.5683, used 302.34 units last month, so I'm asuming that are Kwh as that works out to about 10 kwh/day ans I was away most of last month, air was very rarley on ect. I forgot to add the vat, so thats an extra 7%.

Yea we checked the amp used with an ammeter. Naka I thought it was about 75% and was jsut going to ask wether you should of multiplied rather than divided....but you beat me too it.

If you pump 20,000 litre per cycle that's 20 cubic metres per cycle...that will cover 400 square meters to a depth of 5 centimetres which is a reasonable ball park estimate of how much you want to apply at one time....so it will take 4 pumping cycles to irrigate one rai....ball park estimate. How much water you should apply at one time depends on the type of soil you have. Sandy soils will hold less water so you need to add less and do it more frequently...but you porbably know this already.

I was really after a "ball park" figure, but it does seem really cheap, gov water here is 4 bhat a cube (1 unit)

Note the bigger pump is taking less power cos it's obviously doing less actual work.

You could possibly get away with a smaller unit.

Basically actual work is flowrate x Backpressure ( height pumped ), sort of.

First, the lower the water level in your bore hole, the more energy it will take to pump it out so if you measured the amps that the submersible pump draws when the water was high then it will draw more when the water is lower.....during the dry season the water may alway be lower

Yea I gathered that the submesible pump is using maor as it has to work harder, it pumps from 50m down. I would of thought that that would remain constant as the pump stays at the same level all the time regardless of the actuall water level and it pumps to the top of my tank so add an other 5 m.

Your right about the pump, but I deemed it better to get a 3 hp one and have spare capacity than risk buying a 2 hp and it not being enough. I've only actually got 2 sprinkler heads, at the monent, but they are the big ones, 3 will cover 1 rai at a time. I could probably use 4-5 with the pump I've got. I'm feeding it out in a 2 inch main (PVC) and then 1 inch flexible pipe to the sprinkler heads.

Anyway thanks all, if anyone else can pick some holes in it feel free

Cheers RC

Ok I've got my own bore hole and intend to try growing stuff throught the cold/hot season, using sprinklers, so I've been trying to work out how much it actually costs to pump the water.

I've got a 2 hp submersible pump that draws 7 amps while pumping (we put a meter on it) and a 3 hp pump for the sprinklers which although bigger only draws 5 amps.

I'm assuming the 1 Unit of electricity is 1 Kw/h which I think it is back home but I'm not sure and Watts= Volt x Amps so my subersible pump would use 7 x 220 Watts = 1540amps (I've got a feeling that the W = V x A is only for DC though)

1 Unit of electricity cost me just under 0.57 Bhat and it takes 2 hours to fill my tank which holds 15.5 thousand liters (2 meter wide circle x 5 meters tall). So be my reconing thats 2 hrs x 1540 Amps = 3.08 Kw/h (say 3 units) which only works out to about 1.7 bhat for 15.5 thousand liters (or 15.5 units) of water

The sprinkler pump will empty the tank in 1 hour so that only works out at just over 1 unit say 0.6 bhat, so I recon it will only cost about 2.3 bhat to put 1 tank on the land. (we actually run the sumbersible at the same time as the sprinkler pump, but it can"t keep up so its more like 20 thousand plus liters).

I'm a bit unsure on some of those figures, anyone got any ideas?

Oh it's just single phase electricity

RC