Bicko

By the way double glazing of windows is expensive and uneccessary. Works well for cold climates but not for heat.

Single glaze your windows and pay a bit more for heavy curtains with a silver reflective material backing on the glass side and keep the curtains drawn during the heat of the day.

Ok Thanks for the help.

new question? What about fibreglass or foam insulation in the walls after the brick or steel post.

hence Brick insulation gripsum paint.

I will be use'n aircon most of the time. House is small 100m2

I see alot of people foil the roof to reflect heat, but when useing aircon, what about walls, windows?

As I said above if the room is to be air conditioned then there will be considerable benefit and aircon running cost savings if you insulate.

There are many ways of doing this.

The silver foil under the roof tiles or roof sheeting helps although i often see them lay the foil directly under the sheets and on top of the roof beams. It works a lot better if the foil is fixed to the underside of the roof beams and leave an air space between the foil and the roof. Some light timber battens at about 75cm centres can be used to support the foil

Ceilings can be insulated either by spraying in an insulating material directly on to the top of the ceiling. This can be messy if you do not have fixed panel ceilings. The alternative is to cut and lay insulating "bats" which are normally 100mm thick fibreglass wool directly on to the top of the ceiling and cut neatly to fit between the ceiling joists.

Walls can be insulated in many ways but the most effective is to build a cavity brick wall (2 walls with a gap between of 20 to 30mm ) or to use hollow concrete blocks. There are also some aerated concrete blocks around which i am told are OK but I have not used them.

The exhaust fans that i referred to above are a very efficient and cheap way to extract hot air from the ceiling space and set up a circulation to draw in new cooler fresh air.

Hope this helps

If you have the money in your budget, maximum insulation is a must. Halves your AC bills......

Soundman.

Yes Soundman this is correct. Any rooms that are air conditioned will benefit from being insulated but for the rest of the house it does not matter.

There are many configurations avalaible:

Single timber external cladding

Single leaf brick walls, plastered

Cavity (double) brick walls

Single leaf brick and internal gyprock or timber on steel or timber frame

etc etc

The ambient temperature inside and outside will be consistent, whatever the wall and ceiling finish.

The trick is to have circulation. This can be done by having vents in the ceiling and have self operating rotating fans on the roof. Leave a couple of doors or windows open and these fans will withdraw the hot air in the ceiling space and of course this will result in new air being drawn into the ceiling space through the doors and windows and the ceiling vents. This sets up a circulation and reduces inside temperatures.

it is also a good idea to build your eaves overhang on your roof as wide as possible (Minimum 1 metre). This means that you will only have direct sun on your external walls in the early morning and evening. Trees around the house to shade the walls is also a good idea.

I am also an Aussie building consultant/engineer living in Isaan

When you buy a new car, how often are you required to take it in to comply with the warranty. Can you take it in to any dealership around Thailand without a problem?

Yes you sure can. When you buy a new car you get a Toyota manual plus a plastic card with an electronic reader on it. Your servicing history is updated onto the card each time you have a service or get some work done. Any Toyota agent is obliged to service your car and update the card.

A good point to keep in mind is that many models of Toyota are manufactured in Thailand and the manual is in Thai. They apparently do not have an English version. I picked one up in Australia at the Toyota headquarters for a HiLux, which is very similar to the Vigo last time I was home. So when you decide which Toyota you will buy go to toyota in your country and get a manual for that model.

There is also a blue registration book issued by the vehicle registration office wherever it is first registered. You need this book to renew rego each year or if the car is sold or change of ownership (or if you have an accident).

Third party insurance is compulsory and can be purchased from independent agents at the registration office where you do your car rego. Alternatively it can be included with your vehicle comprehensive insurance.

Third party insurance covers injury or death for the other party if you have an accident and costs about Bt800 per year. Comprehensive vehicle insurance on a car valued at under Bt1,000,000 is about Bt16,000 for first year with substantial no claim bonuses each year thereafter. I use Kurnia insurance for my 3rd party and comprehensive car insurance and thoroughly recommend them. My wife has had a couple of minor accidents when she was learning to drive and Kurnia have fixed up the small dings and scratches and still give me my no claim bonus.

Hope this helps someone.

By the way fuel running costs for a Vigo at current fuel cost is about Bt1.5 per kilometre

Love my Vigo

When you buy a new car, how often are you required to take it in to comply with the warranty. Can you take it in to any dealership around Thailand without a problem?

Yes you sure can. When you buy a new car you get a Toyota manual plus a plastic card with an electronic reader on it. Your servicing history is updated onto the card each time you have a service or get some work done. Any Toyota agent is obliged to service your car and update the card.

A good point to keep in mind is that many models of Toyota are manufactured in Thailand and the manual is in Thai. They apparently do not have an English version. I picked one up in Australia at the Toyota headquarters for a HiLux, which is very similar to the Vigo last time I was home. So when you decide which Toyota you will buy go to toyota in your country and get a manual for that model.

There is also a blue registration book issued by the vehicle registration office wherever it is first registered. You need this book to renew rego each year or if the car is sold or change of ownership (or if you have an accident).

Third party insurance is compulsory and can be purchased from independent agents at the registration office where you do your car rego. Alternatively it can be included with your vehicle comprehensive insurance.

Third party insurance covers injury or death for the other party if you have an accident and costs about Bt800 per year. Comprehensive vehicle insurance on a car valued at under Bt1,000,000 is about Bt16,000 for first year with substantial no claim bonuses each year thereafter. I use Kurnia insurance for my 3rd party and comprehensive car insurance and thoroughly recommend them. My wife has had a couple of minor accidents when she was learning to drive and Kurnia have fixed up the small dings and scratches and still give me my no claim bonus.

Hope this helps someone.

By the way fuel running costs for a Vigo at current fuel cost is about Bt1.5 per kilometre

Love my Vigo

BURIRAM NEWS-26/08/07

Well a few days ago I was asked to provide some pics of the Big'C' and Makro developments, well on Friday I took some pics of the progress:

The first three pics are of Big "C' and the fourth is of 'Makro

Good on you Macb. Looks like they will both be open well before Christmas. How do i get there from the existing big shopping centre?

I bought my Vigo from Andy Wing at Expat motors in Bangkok - the guy who sponsors the cars and automobiles topic on the main Thaivisa site.

The car came with every conceivable extra, carryboy canopy, fully insured and registered. All i had to do was pay him the money and give him my address for rego etc and he called me a couple of days before it was ready to pick up. Not a single hassle. I ordered it by email as i was working in Afghanistan at the time.

Andy also guarantees buy back or trade in and he sells an excellent range of second hand cars. Andy also exports cars to UK, Australia, NZ and other countries that drive on the correct side of the road!!!

Great guy, great deal and thoroughly recommmended.

I get my car serviced in Buri Ram. Full Toyota service at the agency and recorded on the electronic card for less than Bt1,000

Hope this helps someone.

Hi Bicko

I want one of the new Toyota Fortuner "Smart" models but info on them is non existent on the web so I don't even know what comes as standard on the model.

I did in fact ask Expat autos a month or so ago if they had any and at the time they had, but I am in the UK at the moment and will not be back in Thailand until end October so I let it slide. The one thing that put me off was buying in BKK when I live in Buriram Province and after enquiring on the forum consensus of opinion was that buying in BKK and registering in a different province was a pain in the a**e, did you have any problems or are you still on a red plate?

My intention was then to buy in Buriram and I wanted Surin dealers tel no's to get a comparison price to make sure I was not being faranged!! But both dealers now tell me that the model has sold out and none available until Oct or Nov which would suit me.

So can you tell me whether it is a big deal to register in Buriram if not purchased in the province? Also being a pretentious git I would like a special reg no, I managed this on my motorcycle which was reg'd in Buriram.

If anyone has any info on the Smart model I would appreciate it.

Thanks

TBWG

Not a single hassle mate. I bought my car in January 2005. I renewed rego in BKK in 2006 because I was down there at the time and I did it in Chiang Rai this year because we were up there at renewal time. I service my car at the Toyota agency in Lam Plai Mat and they are fantastic. Because my wife and i are away working a fair bit we have only done 40,000 kms in 2 1/2 years but the 4 or 5 services have never cost more than Bt1,000 and they do it while you wait and provide free coffee, TV magazines etc

By the way you can make the rego process easy for your self if you want to - talk to one of the better quality car cleaners/service stations in your town and they will do it for you for 2 or 300 baht.

I bought my Vigo from Andy Wing at Expat motors in Bangkok - the guy who sponsors the cars and automobiles topic on the main Thaivisa site.

The car came with every conceivable extra, carryboy canopy, fully insured and registered. All i had to do was pay him the money and give him my address for rego etc and he called me a couple of days before it was ready to pick up. Not a single hassle. I ordered it by email as i was working in Afghanistan at the time.

Andy also guarantees buy back or trade in and he sells an excellent range of second hand cars. Andy also exports cars to UK, Australia, NZ and other countries that drive on the correct side of the road!!!

Great guy, great deal and thoroughly recommmended.

I get my car serviced in Buri Ram. Full Toyota service at the agency and recorded on the electronic card for less than Bt1,000

Hope this helps someone.

I guess I could be a "NEWBIE" to this discussion, but I would like to thank everyone for giving me the best read I have had in years.

I married a young lady from Lam Plai Mat and it was probably the best move of my life. She took me home and I immediatly fell in love with her family and the "villiage" Actually we have a place just outside of LPM. When we built there was no water, electricity or roads.

She blessed me with 2 beautiful daughters. I hope to live in LPM full time in about 3-5 years. (sounds like a sentence doesn't it?)

Of course, I forgot to mention that more than 30 years has passed since I married that young lady. My girls are now 27 and 25 and I have a year old grandson...

By the way, we also have running water, electricity and a major road by our house now...

Cheers mate and you are hardly a newbie after 30 years khun jmcet. I also live near Lam Plai Mat - 15 kms out - just off the Nong Ki road. There are 3 other farangs who have built a house in our village but i very seldom see them. They just seem to come for a week at a time now and again. it's a great life. maybe we can catch up next time you are in LPM

Hey Jimmy what is this referendum all about. Is there a good website where i can get the details. The family go and vote and they haven't got a clue what they are voting for.

Sorry to be so dumb but i am out of the country for a few weeks and missed the lead up to this.

I am sure that many of you will relate to this little tale. I posted it in KF yesterday but thought it worthwhile to share here as well.

I took my Thai wife (then GF) to the Gold Coast of Queensland for the first time about 4 years ago. It was her first trip out of Thailand.

We flew into Brisbane and I rented a car to drive the 100 odd kms to my house. My house had been locked up for about 4 years since my late wife passed away with just the odd visit from my daughter to keep it clean etc.

Anyway we got to my street and i drove along very slowly just checking things out. We got to my house and i had just opened the front door and realised that "Darling" had disappeared. 10 minutes later she turns up with a big grin all over face and very proudly showed me a big handful of chillies. She had spotted them as we cruised along my street. Oh s**t. I had forgotten to tell her that you just don't go into peoples garden and take what you want as they do in the village.

Next thing this poor old doddering bloke on a walking frame comes along the street and calls to me "Is this where that B***dy Asian woman lives. She just pinched my prize chillies.

It took a couple of weeks, several Thai meals and a few boxes of beer to get my neighbours back on side. Fair dinkum mate!!!

Macb

Keep it up mate. Is good to hear news/weather from home when there are some of us away working in pretty horrible places. Am only away for 6 weeks at a time but coms with the missus is hard as the phones are so bad where I work.

It doesnt take much to realise why so many of us live here. Wife from the area and husband works away. Wife has family around when husband away = happy wife. Plus its a nice quiet area to relax in.

Yes you are absolutely right Disting. I also work in some pretty wierd places-Afghanistan, Pakistan, East Timor and currently in northern Sumatra which is the best posting i've had for some time. I really appreciate macb's weather news, My current location is an accompanied posting so my wife is with me. We own a lot of farming land in Buri Ram so of course she is desperate to be up to date on the weather. She is a very happy lady this week with all the rain. We plan to be home for harvest just to make sure it all goes into OUR baan khao!!!.

Thanks Mac and i got your PM.

i must have to much time on my hands as i have just been looking at old postings pages 85 up on the issan forum and interesting in how prices have changed.

if your sat in front of your desk with FA to do have a look

Ain't it the truth. The prices for everything are increasing at a rate far beyond the governments posted inflation rates. Still relatively inexpensive compared to other places but I can sure see the devastating effect it is having on the locals. Saw a piece in the Post today about tax being raised on fertilizer. Another nail in the coffin for the farmers.

I wonder if there is a site where comparisons can be made on price increases over the past year or two. My wife keeps telling me that prices are increasing on building materials, farm products and the likes. it seems that locally grown vegetables, meat, chicken etc is fairly stable. Does anyone have any figures, particularly on building materials.

Cheers

There appear to be umpteen Farangs living in Buriram town or the surrounding are. What makes Buriram so special?? Why are there so many (???) Farangs living there????

Many of us live quite a way from Buri Ram town. I think you will find that Buri Ram province is the biggest province in Thailand. I live near Lam Plai mat and about 60 kms from BR town and about 100 kms to Korat. We visit and shop in both cities.

BR is not the most beautiful or scenic part of Thailand by any stretch of the imagination but it's just a great place to live. It's pretty flat and mostly rice growing farms. It's cheap. nice people, many traditional Thai customs are still observed and people live a simple lifestyle, There is a very strong Lao influence and many people speak Thai and Lao.

The ancient Khmer temples in southern BR and the history of the region is an attraction for me. AND ISAAN FOOD IS AWESOME!!!!

Isaan is poles apart from the Thailand of Pattaya and Bangkok. BR and similar areas represent the real Thailand.

Well as I can see it was worth reviving this Topic : Thanks guys keep it coming in great stuff:

Thaiccoon Yep I did do the Jade Factory shop but managed not to but something was a narrow escape lol I got a mote from UK arriving tomorrow for a longf stay so you will get meet him as well if its okay I will bring Lee and my missus and daughter once your ensconced and free in the village: You need to get over to mine as well.

BICKO:

I have sent you a pm with my mobile number :

Cheers mate. will be home again in 5 weeks and will look you up. Will be home for at least 4 or 5 weeks this time as we are planning to buy land, probably in or near either Buri Ram or Korat to build another house.

We travel regularly between Buri Ram and Chiang Rai. My wife has a sister married a Farang (Dutch bloke) up there. Last time we visited we went to a very beautiful temple at the foot of a steep mountain with a clear water river running through the middle, just north of Mae Chan on the road to Mae Sai.

The place hosted lots of monkeys. My wifes sister Tan made the mistake of taking bananas in a bag in to the temple grounds. A large male monkey decided that he wanted the kwae and tried to take her bag. She resisted and the boy bit her on the leg. So we spent the day at the Payabaan getting her some rabies shots. We won't be going there again.

We did discover that we have one thing in common we both like doing the laundry

I don't remember either of us actually admitting to enjoying it ....... but we do both like the clothes to remain the same colour as the day of purchase

Can confirm what Mac says, The Big C work is coming along nicely (we were in the same car.... thanks for the lift Andy) Makro is a smaller development and may be finished first.

Welcome to the twentieth century Buriram

P.S. the last line was tongue in cheek.

Mac my compliments to you. You really do start some very good and interesting posts. I have the intention to contribute more to them but still working full time and don't have a lot of spare time. Spend a lot of time travelling throughout SE Asia. At age 68, by the time i get home I am pooped and just want to put my feet up.

We get into BR pretty often and normally shop at the "big shop" as my wife calls it on the way into town from highway 226.

We haven't had a chance to check out the new shops yet. My wife has membership of Makro from Chiang Rai so no doubt that will be on the list in future.

Hope we can catch up some time. Maybe an ice cream at Svensons!!!

Cheers,

Bicko

Any objections to another imbiber, I would love to have a beer with you guys and espescially the legendary Bronco

Legendary the old Broncs may be but one would have to question his taste in beer - Bronco VB indeed!!!!!

From an old West End drinker from Port Lincoln/Whyalla

If health reasons are involved, the last thing I would do is move to Issan, I would move the a cleaner area but still within range of decent hospitals. Some of my extended family have had some very dodgy experiences with hospitals in Issan.

Hey Jackmuu please tell us more. I'm not sure what you mean by moving to a cleaner area. Isaan is a much cleaner and healthier environment than Bangkok or Pattaya. I live in Isaan (Buri Ram) and have only had good experiences with local doctors, dentists, pharmacies and Paya baan for basic needs. On the one occasion that i needed more i went to Bkk to the Mongkutwattana hospital in Laksi and received excellent service and the cost was minimal. The VIP bus cost us about Bt700 return each or about Bt800 each way if I take the car.

Hey Martin sorry we can't make it - working in Indonesia but will be home end of September so will call in for a steak. Hope it's not raining on the night. By the look of the numbers you will need to spread out into the car park.

Have a good one anyway.

Cheers,

Will and Sawai from Lam Plai Mat.

Raslin in his post he says that he is in Khao Yai which is near Pak Chong

There is a real network of Burmese ladies around the country. They are excellent housemaids and their main concern is getting a visa to stay on in Thailand. if you help them with that you are on a winner and they will stay forever. My friends in Bkk have had their housemaid for a long time. my wife and i stay at their place when in BKK and this lady is great. Good cook, keeps the house immaculate. laundry and ironing good etc. She lives in and looks after the dogs when they are away and waters the garden.

Maybe someone on the forum knows how to tap into this network up country.

Yes well said Thaddeus. I originally grew up in outback Australia where water is our scarcest commodity and greatest asset. Our kids are taught in school from an early age about water conservation, turning off taps, recycling water and so on so i am as water conscious as it is possible to be.

Here in Buri Ram we have had a couple of pretty dry years but the rains do come and then we store every bit that we can. Thais do that as a matter of course and i have yet to see a house in an upcountry Thailand village that does not have at least 2 or 3 aung naam so what is this dude talking about.

He/she has obviously never been out of the city.

We have a lot of farm land and grow one rain fed crop of rice a year and for the remainder we grow fruit and vegetables- spring onions, cabbage, lettuce, tomatoes, a huge variety of herbs, papaya etc etc all on water that we pump from our large water storage dams on the properties.

Water is pumped over the dam wall using the long handled tractor and the long spiral pump and 100mm diameter flexible hoses.

I don't know what country he/she comes from but most countries that are major agricultural producers rely on one rain fed crop per year- Canada, US, Russia and Australia as an example of large scale wheat producers where it is not possible to grow outside of the rainy season and irrigation on the scale of the size of their farms is impossible. The exception being places, for example, like parts of the US (Arizona and California) where large scale centre pivot and travelling irrigators are used for alfalfa, corn , cotton, vegetables etc but the days of large scale irrigation all over the world are close to an end in the majority of cases as the major aquifers are being drawn down more quickly than they can replenish.

I worked as an Agricultural consultant in the Gulf countries for many years. (I am also an Engineering consultant) In UAE and Kuwait the old men used to tell that when they were young men they walked their donkeys down a spiral pathway into the wells to carry water out for their orchards and gardens. Nowadays they pump water from 300 metres (1,000 feet) depth to draw water for the same orchards and they keep doing it. I had one guy who said he would pay me anything to "fix up his water problem." My response was simply "stop pumping water!!" He thought that i was crazy!!! Hmmm who is crazy.

In Saudi Arabia they grew wheat on centre pivot irrigation for a few years until their aquifers were producing salt water- then they stopped. The tragedy of that was that the wheat was of little use for anything other than animal feed. So they have lost their underground water and it will probably never be replenished - water that has probably been there for hundreds of years. Many of the Wadis are dry and the oases have gone. Irrigated wheat is too soft to mill for flour. That is why rain fed wheat from the countries mentioned above is highly suitable for flour - it grows during the rainy season then matures and is harvested after a fairly lengthy dry period still on the stalk. It is very dry and very hard and good for milling. In fact in Australia the wheat is tested for moisture content when it is purchased from the farmers. The drier the wheat the higher the price.

The village or town Pooyai baan is normally the person responsible for this.

Thanks Mate. That is good news.

Cheers,

Bicko