Estrada

There isn't even 1 in Thailand?

Then who's gonna install one for you?

By the way, about 15 years ago some Makro service centers had them, but not anymore , so there might be a reason for it.

Took the words right out of my mouth 2000 there were several car washes in Bangkok, wonder what happened to them........I assume the chemicals used in them may have been banned for import, killing the businesses??.

The automatic roll over car washes only use anionic, non-ionic and cationic detergents which are basically the same as you find in washing up liquid, shampoos and hair conditioners. They would not be banned. However brushless chemical washes sometimes use high strength chemical detergents which may eventually ruin the paint surface of you vehicle. One detergent that was popular in brushless washes was based on Hydrofluoric acid, which if spilt on your skin will attack your bones. The business has never taken off, not because of chemicals and detergents, but because labour is cheap.

So with a low IQ in the United States of only 98, this explains the 16,000 plus murders per year in the US, compared with countries with an average IQ above 100 such as the UK (573/year), Netherlands (137).

That is one weird explanation.

Can't help but wonder what your IQ is.

I was replying to an obviously racist post tying low Thai IQ to murders. The murderer in question may well have had a high IQ.

My IQ average is: 127 - 132

I was manufacturing and installing car washes and car wash water recycling plants in the UK for 20 years before moving here in 1994. At that time I exhibited at Queen Sirikit Exhibition Centre where a local company was trying to sell automatic car washes and automatic vertical car stackers. This is the company that installed the automatic car washes at their offices on Srinakarin road Bangkok and a number of petrol stations. They also had the demonstration unit of the automatic vertical car stacker stored on the opposite of the road which they could not sell.

In the UK and Europe I installed over 1,000 car washes and/or car wash water recycling plants, mainly with all the UK Oil Companies, so I looked at setting up an Automatic Car Wash business here in 1994. The standard configuration of a petrol station which I helped develop in the UK with Heron and others, consisted of self service pumps, convenience shop, oil change, pressure wash, and Automatic Car Wash. Due to water costs and the drought situations that occur, many stations in the have full water recycle so that only 4 Litres are used by wash. So when the Oil Companies started to invest in the modern petrol station concept here they started with an automatic car wash bay. Most of the Automatic washes have been taken out and the bay used for hand washing as labour is so cheap. It has taken 20 years for PTT to open their first Self Service Petrol Station but to illustrate my point the average Thai wants does not want automatic car washes or self service pumps.

From my experience I would advise against investing in an Automatic car wash. If you still want to invest in a car wash enterprise, consider a hand wash first using local labour. At B60 for a basic wash I do not think that Automatic Car Washers are viable. What is popular here is a full valeting system inside and out by hand.

Automatic car wash use enormous amounts of water , so whether you even get off the ground in the present dry climate is another factor , I'd check this out before moving any further, and that may very well the reason why you see the auto wash and humans doing most of the work................................

Automatic car washes do not use enormous amounts of water and usually half that used by hand washes using hoses. Typical usage 150Litres per wash. A cubic metre of water here is too cheap to even consider a water recycling system.

So these two morons went on a killing act thinking that they will get away Scott free and none

will be the wiser, oh how wrong they were and now will spend many years in jail......

Thais analytical skills are non existent. They can not think past right here right now

IN the USA, people tend to consider Asians as smarter than Whites...the truth is that Thais have an estimated IQ of 90, about 10 points below what is considered average intellect among Whites in North America...so basically, Thais "think" at the level of a typical 12 year old...so just imagine a 12 year old planning a murder...it would be pretty similar to this tragic mess...

The average IQ in the United States is a mere 98. The problem is Thailand follows the US system, whereby if you want good education you have to pay for it. They can also get hold of weapons easily as per the United States. In the European countries where free education is provided by the state, the average IQ is 100 to 102, in Singapore 103, Japan 105, South Korea 106 and Hong Kong 107. So with a low IQ in the United States of only 98, this explains the 16,000 plus murders per year in the US, compared with countries with an average IQ above 100 such as the UK (573/year), Netherlands (137).

"This new place charged me 300 baht to do my 90-day reporting."

lol, there is a sucker born every day! i did my reporting on last Thursday. went downstairs and handed the envelope to our post-lady. cost me 32 Baht and i never left my house.

and you got a discount,Should have been 37 baht,

sorry that was meant to be 36 Bath (2 X 18 Bath registered each way).

You should have quit whilst you were ahead. You only need to register the letter you send to immigration at B18. The stamp on the return envelope should be B10 and not registered. So the cost is B28.

"The raid apparently followed three months of preparations and evidence gathering with officers posing as customers."

100 girls! Let me see, 1 per day is 90 girls, what was wrong with the other 10, or were there some twosomes?

smelt?

It's a British word. They don't know how to speak English there.

"Smelt a rat" is an English phrase or saying meaning to discover that someone is trying to deceive you or do you harm.

I used to fly to Singapore and wait in the transit lounge for the next flight back. Strictly speaking you only have to leave Thailand and re-enter, but Thai Immigration want to see you enter the other country, even though you can stay in the Airport Hotel in the transit area for weeks if you wanted. Air Asia never ask to see my return ticket, I buy one way and book the return when I feel like coming back. I also could well be booking a different flight time and therefore airline for the return, I have been flying this way for the last 40 years without problem.

Since you already have gotten the stamps I cannot forsee any repercussions from not taking them an original letter.

I suggest you send an email to the consular section and inform them about the problem. Email address can be found here in this document titled "Transferring Your Thai Visa" from the embassy website. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/491945/Visa_Transfer_Information.pdf

Thank you for your advice, I came to the same conclusion. The point is that the Embassy is the one issuing mass produced photocopies of their original blank form signed by the vice consul to be filled in by every passport holder, so no one gets an original letter. I can see the why Thai Immigration objects to the mass produced photocopied form issued by the British Embassy as the British Embassy obviously do not want to spend anytime issuing individually signed original letters. After all, they do not issue passports anymore. I already sent an e-mail to the Embassy about the problem (They request that you e-mail them if you have any problem, on the notice which accompanies the transfer stamp request form). They promise to respond within 21 days.

One would like to think that the Embassy would have discussed their plans to issue mass-produced letters with the Immigration Bureau in advance. But it would appear from your experience that no such discussions have, in all probability, taken place.

I strongly suspect, however, that, were the Embassy to start issuing individually-signed letters, they would almost certainly also start charging for them, just as they do already for (e.g.) income confirmation letters.

Please do let us know what sort of response you eventually receive from the Embassy.

I received the following response from the British Vice Consul: "Our agreement with Thai immigration is that the visa transfer document should be provided when you collect your new passport. On the 1^st June we started using a updated document which is on headed paper and has an official seal. It would appear that you have received the older version of the document.

We apologise for any confusion which this may have caused.

From your email it appears that you have had your visa transferred into your new passport already. Therefore there is no requirement for an updated document from us.

Regards

Since you already have gotten the stamps I cannot forsee any repercussions from not taking them an original letter.

I suggest you send an email to the consular section and inform them about the problem. Email address can be found here in this document titled "Transferring Your Thai Visa" from the embassy website. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/491945/Visa_Transfer_Information.pdf

Thank you for your advice, I came to the same conclusion. The point is that the Embassy is the one issuing mass produced photocopies of their original blank form signed by the vice consul to be filled in by every passport holder, so no one gets an original letter. I can see the why Thai Immigration objects to the mass produced photocopied form issued by the British Embassy as the British Embassy obviously do not want to spend anytime issuing individually signed original letters. After all, they do not issue passports anymore. I already sent an e-mail to the Embassy about the problem (They request that you e-mail them if you have any problem, on the notice which accompanies the transfer stamp request form). They promise to respond within 21 days.

As said an O/A visa can only be applied for/issued in your home country.

if you are over 50 or married to a Thai etc, it is possible to obtain an "O" visa. The requirements depend on the basis of the application

Visa extension can only be obtained from immigration offices in Thailand.

If you are over 50, and can show 800K in a Thai bank for the last two months, you can obtain a Type "O" Visa at Thai Immigration. If you do not have the requisite two months, leave the country and return on a tourist visa exempt entry. Go to immigration, show your 800K in the bank together with a confirmation letter from your Thai Bank and Immigration will extend you permission to stay whilst your 800K ages to two months. You then go back to immigration and they give you 12months on the basis or retirement. Type "O" is normally the only Visa issued by Thai immigration and usually only for retirement. Your 800K must not dip 1 satang below 800K at any time, so best to put it in a Time Deposit account.

This is how I got my Type "O" visa and 12 months permission to remain based on retirement at Immigration Chaengwattana.

Having collected my passport yesterday just thought I'd add a few more details.

When you collect the passport you also receive a Pro Forma letter from the consular section of the British Embassy in Bangkok asking immigration to "kindly stamp Mr/Mrs/Ms XXX's replacement passport with a replacement visa" (sic).

I've attached the images of the letters for anyone who wants to see these.

Letter 1.jpgLetter 2.jpg

I just had this letter rejected by a Senior Thai Immigration Officer on the basis that it is a mass produced photocopy and not on original Embassy Letter Head and has a photocopied standard signature and not an original signature. Fortunately the junior officer had already transferred my stamps to my new passport, but the Senior Officer insists that I obtain an original letter on embassy paper with original signature and return to immigration in person.

Last Thursday I went to Thai Immigration at Chaengwattana to transfer my stamps into a new passport. They rejected the standard photocopied request letter issued by the British Embassy on the basis that the letter was a mass produced photocopy with the signature of the Vice Consul, for applicants to complete themselves. They said they want an original letter, with an original, individually signed letter. However, they did transfer all my stamps and re-entry permit. She told me that I must come back with an original letter for their files.

My question is, should I ignore her request, as it seems to be more of a spat between our Embassy not wanting to spend time and money and Thai Immigration throwing their weight around?

Why put fluoride or fluorite in milk. Doesn't actually make much sense!

Exactly............They have idiots running the schools.....flouride in milk!

unfortunately it seems it's not just here but in the UK as well..they think it will improve the children's teeth!!

Adding fluoride to tap water (or milk) DOES improve dental hygiene. See http://www.bunburymail.com.au/story/160847/bunbury-dentists-push-for-decay-solution/

Many Asians are lactose intolerant, I'm wondering if this incident can be can be attributed to that.

From experience of manufacturing school milk here and in Malaysia, the problem is not lactose intolerance. The problem is due to lack of sterility in the processing by the farmers Cooperative. Generally this milk is only pasteurised and not UHT, and has to be consumed within a short period of delivery at the school. I believe that nowadays they also pack UHT milk in cartons when the schools are closed and the surplus UHT milk was sold in Cambodia. Milk may taste watery to some who are used to full cream milk from Jersey cows, but here the milk has to be standardized to 3% fat which is an international norm.

Why put fluoride or fluorite in milk. Doesn't actually make much sense!

It is recommended by the WHO and Dental Health Organisations. They add it in the UK to school milk too. The problem is that Thai kids are exposed to too much sugar in their diets and there is too much incidence of tooth decay at an early age. As a child I took part in the first clinical trials of fluoride toothpastes by Colgate in the UK and 60 years later still have most of my own teeth and no side affects.

Since the school milk program was started around 60 years ago, the stature of Thais has increased substantially. So much so that you can often tell who are Thais and who are Burmese, Cambodian and Lao in the streets as they do not get much milk.

You can use Citibank Thailand and access your account at Westpac branches in Australia. ATM card can be used at any Westpac Bank ATM free. Global instant transfers are available to and from Australia, UK and a host of other countries, look at there Website. I get some of my pension payments from the UK via Citibank UK and my State Pension via my account at Bangkok Bank London.

Main problem is AMLO requirements. Some banks do not want to know American customers due to the excessive reporting paperwork which now includes the IRS. There is a limit as to what you can transfer without having to submit a form. I had GBP14,000 sent to my BBL account in Thailand whilst I was in Libya and the bank wanted to send the transfer back if I could not visit the head office within 5 days. Fortunately I pulled a few string and they kept the money on ice until my next return home.

1900 Bht for the 60 day extension and no proof of income is required

UK passports are reported to be taking 3-4 weeks to process and when available have to be collect from the office in Bangkok.

It is extremely unlikely you will be allowed entry to Laos with less than 6 months validity remaining on the passport.

More like 2 to 3 weeks in recent reports.

I handed my application for a new UK passport in on 12th May and got it back on 26th May, total time 14 days, although they still quote 6 to 8 weeks at time of application to cover themselves.

I'll make it a simple question.

Has anyone arrived in Thailand on a tourist visa, converted it to a non-immigrant visa and then a retirement visa without leaving Thailand?

That is all the info i require right now. Due to my rather complicated situation obtaining a non Immi visa before I arrive will be difficult.

Yes. I arrived on as a tourist on a 30 day Visa exempt permission to stay. I had B800K in a Thai Bank, went to immigration Bangkok and they issued me with a Non-O Visa stamped "Non O - for the Retirement (written in Thai). I then went to another desk and it was stamped "USED" and they gave me a 90 days permission to stay on the basis of Retirement whist the B800K was further aging in the bank and told me to come back in 30 days when the money had aged 60 days. I then returned and the gave me 12months permission to stay back dated from my original application. Whatever some clowns say in this forum, a Non-O Visa on the basis of retirement is issued in country by Thai Immigration. I have posted photos of this Visa several times before, it clearly says VISA and Type "O" is entered on the line which says type of visa.

Half the street traders selling food here are from Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam and Laos, so goodbye to cheap food for the masses.

It`s a young stork. Doesn`t look very happy, hope it recovered OK.

It is a White-Breasted Water Hen for sure.

From my own experience: Applied for visa type 'O' on basis of retirement showing B800K in bank (BBL Seacon Square), did not have full 60 days of money sitting in Bank. Immigration officer gave me 90 days extension and told me to come back in one month. I came back after 30 days and they issued a Type O on a basis of retirement (the only Visa issued in Country), after getting the confirmation letter from Bangkok Bank downstairs at BKK Immigration. This was immediately stamped "USED" at another desk and my previous permission to stay was extended to 1 year.

The extension of your permit to stay has to be at the immigration office of the district where you live and you mention Seacon Square Bangkok as well as Pattaya.

The bank account should be in your name only and is preferably a Time Deposit or certainly left untouched, to make it easier for the immigration officer. You cannot go Baht 1 below B800K to B799.00K otherwise they will just follow the rule book and reject your application. So you need to send enough from your overseas bank to ensure that B800K net is in your account after deduction of any charges.

This won't due anything to alleviate crowding will it? The additional trains, according to the article, are being ordered because of the extension. Since the line is longer, they need more trains on it just to maintain the current level of service.

Seven of the extra trains are to allow a greater frequency between trains at peak hours. Additionally, there will be another two(2) depots at Bang Pu, Samutprakarn and Khu Khot. This will allow more trains to operate on the Morchit to Samrong section of the Sukhumvit Line. The Chinese trains are envisaged to run beyond Morchit to Lam Kuk Ka, whereas the Siemens trains will run to Bang Pu depot.

Overcrowding is generally caused by miscalculation by the computer system that controls the speed and frequency of trains. Having said that, it is only able to guess demand based on historical passenger arrivals at stations. It cannot immediately cope with uncalculated demand caused by events that the human operators fail to alert the computer system to. For instance, the Leicester City FC parade. It will however, send more trains and increase frequency as soon as the load becomes apparent.

If one could find the original contract from Siemens I would bet that the actual cost before the middle man mark up from a company (Controlled and owned by the LOS government)they would find the cost will be about 70% less. So the big wigs should be pocketing about 7+ Billions..Thaksin did this kind of deal with C-130 airplanes.

You lost the bet. Nothing to do with Thaksin. The BMA was then and is now, controlled by the Democrat Party. The Government at the time was run by the Democrat Party under Chuan Leekpai and a friend who is a Democrat, was appointed to handle the "incentives" and it was he that went to the various manufacturer's plants to negotiate. The going rate for "incentives" has been the subject of a Chulalongkorn University Study on behalf of the Democrat Party. This report states that the going rate for large projects has been 30% under all governments since 1974, not just Thaksin. In fact, from personal experience, an intermediary during the time of Mr. T, was offering one deal for seven large waste water plants at 28%.

So will the trains now fill the whole station instead of only half of the station?

You are confused with the MRT Blue Line which has 3 car trains for their stations which can handle 6 car trains. The BTS already upgraded to 4 car trains some time ago and their stations are also designed for 6 car trains, so that is 2/3rds of the station.