Bruce404

To be super cautious, never give more than a minute or two of custody (e.g., upon checking into a hotel) of your passport to an "agent", hotel employee, motorbike rental shop, or other person asking for it as collateral without first demanding to photograph close-up both sides of the person's Thai National Identity card, his or her face, and their mobile telephone number (test the number that it rings in your presence).  Maybe even obtain also a handwritten receipt for taking custody of your passport, and a photo of its main page while held up alongside the custodian's face.

This way, the police can more easily find the person if the passport is somehow "lost" and not returned promptly when promised.

Also, it's a good idea always to have a photograph (on paper or in one's phone, or better both) of all relevant pages of one's passport, including one's current entry stamps and the TM.6 form stapled into it by Immigration upon your arrival.

Somewhere at least 50 meters above predicted sea level in 2100 (BE 2643), along a "bullet" high-speed train stop between Bangkok (truly becoming "Venice of the East") and Nakorn Ratchasima (on the route towards Khon Kaen, Nong Khai, Laos, and China).

For example, Google Earth indicates that this spot along Highway 2 towards Korat, 15 km northeast of Saraburi, is at 50 meters elevation: https://goo.gl/maps/NHBSW3fzJUF62SZY7

 (14.605309 North latitude, 101.061241 East longitude).  

Saraburi city itself is in one of the new predicted danger-zone models  (CoastalDEM) for being below sea level in the year 2100.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-12808-z/figures/1 

Most of the non-mountainous areas of Nakhon Nayok will be under water.

The image Ubonjoe measures on his current passport is not on the photographic paper he surely submitted 6 years ago that I am sure was close to the 2" x 2" size specified. The size he measures now (1-1/4 inch wide by 1-3/4 inch tall) would surely have been rejected if that was the size of the paper photographs he submitted back then, as this size differs drastically from the specified 2" x 2" width and length of square aspect ratio. What is on current U.S. passports derives from a scan by the State Department of the paper photograph he submitted, then cropped and perhaps resized for insertion onto page 2 of the passport. I await reading what was the exact size of the photographs BillyBuri already mailed in with his application, and the outcome: A new passport mailed to him, or a request to send in new photos of correct size. Regardless of BillyBuri's experience, it will be just one anecdote of no statistical robustness. The passport applications mailed in by others may be processed by different officials who apply their own degrees of strictness in accepting or rejecting submitted photos on account of their size. Or even if others' applications are handled by the same processor as BillyBuri's application, the processor might have gotten out of bed on the wrong side that morning, be in an ornery mood, and apply stricter criteria than his or her usual to reject submitted photographs that on better days might have been accepted. Such discretion is a fact of life. We read complaints about it all the time on Thaivisa regarding varying application of what ought to be standard rules by different Immigration officers in the same Immigration offices, or by different Immigration offices around Thailand.

Agree that the State Department specifies "The correct size of a passport photo is: 2 x 2 inches (51 x 51 mm). Head must be between 1 -1 3/8 inches (25 - 35 mm) from the bottom of the chin to the top of the head". But in BillyBuri's case, the relevant question is: How many sixteenths of an inch or millimeters wider or narrower, taller or shorter than this specification will be accepted or rejected by the person processing his or her mailed-in application? Hopefully, he has some additional photos of identical size as he submitted, and will measure them to inform us all to the precision of 1/16 inch or millimeter what size they were. Then add to this thread later to inform us all if they were accepted as is and a new passport sent to him, or his application was delayed by request to send in a new pair of photos.

I very much doubt that BillyBuri needs travel to Bangkok just to get a paper photograph that is exactly the 2 inches by 2 inches size requested by application forms for U.S. passports. U.S. passports no longer actually contain images printed on photographic paper glued onto the passport's page 2. The submitted photos are scanned and the image merged electronicallly with all the other data on page 2 of the passport. Indeed, the image shown on the passport is not the perfect square of equal width and height requested for submitted photos on paper. It is much taller than wide. I doubt submitting a picture a few millimeters wider or narrower, taller or shorter than the requested exact 50.8 millimeters on edge specified in the passport application will cause any problem or rejection. The image, once scanned, is obviously cropped and resized for inclusion in the passport.

     This may not be relevant to the original poster (OP) whose permission to remain legally in Thailand might be expiring soon. 

     But at this morning's (6 September 2019) "Town Hall" hosted by the U.S. Consulate in Chiang Mai for American residents in northern Thailand, one topic discussed was that expatriate adult Americans in Thailand need not physically travel to the Embassy or Consulate to apply for a replacement passport.  

     Our diplomats said that using the Thai Post express-mail service (EMS) was highly reliable for mailing in the application and one's current expiring passport, and receiving back the new one at one's mailing address in Thailand by the same EMS delivery.  One attendee verified that his was submitted and the new passport returned within a week or so, even shorter than the two-to-three weeks estimated by the US Mission's webpage on the topic:

https://th.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/passports/adult-passport-renew/ 

There was no discussion on what xerox copies to keep on hand while the old passport is not in possession. (I would suggest color copies of one's picture page, and at least any pages with one's current visa, permission-to-stay stamp, and current TM.6 slip and number.  Plus a copy of one's application if one needs to convince an official why one's passport is unavailable.)

Also, with the new banking regulations (mentioned elsewhere on ThaiVisa today) requiring in-person transactions by foreigners to require showing one's passport to the teller or clerk, one had better plan not to need such while the old and new passport are unavailable.  

    PS. As the State Department will no longer glue in additional passport pages as they once did, it's a good idea to conserve pages.  For example, when at Immigration offices or ports of entry, I will mention that I do not have very many empty pages left, and point out places on half-used pages and request the officer kindly to stamp there. 

    Indeed, I did that the other day at Chiang Mai Immigration for both a 1-year extension of permission to stay and re-entry permit.   Both officers were kind enough carefully to stamp in the vacant spots I requested.  Indeed, the tall re-entry permit was stamped horizontally (his idea) to allow more clearance from the prior stamps on the page.

52 minutes ago, crazyfalang said:

So If i live somewhere in Thailand and have my Retirement Visa and say i want to go to Pattaya for 2 weeks will i need to fill out a TM28 ???

     As stated earlier by UbonJoe, for short intra-country trips away from your "registered" residence, there is no enforcement for TM.28 reporting -- it only applies for those planning some formal action at an immigration office in the new location.

     The more common question is whether a new TM.30 must be filed by the owner/householder of your usual, "registered" residence after you have stayed one or more nights at another location.  

     The practical answer is that if you stay in lodgings like a hotel or guest house that asks to copy or to see your passport and its TM.6 form (and its unique 7-digit number in format AA#####) stapled in its pages, they  are very likely to report your presence that night or next morning, probably online, to Immigration.  Of course, I do not think they report your date of departure from the lodging.  In any case, you had better immediately get your registered-residence owner/householder to file a report within 24 hours of your return home.

     However, if your stay of a day, a week, or longer elsewhere in Thailand from your registered residence, such as at a friend's house, or camping or rafting, or otherwise, during which no one asks or knows your passport and TM.6 numbers, and you are sure never to be reported officially at any such location(s), then -- ignoring the legalities -- you need not get your residence owner/householder to make a TM.30 report upon your return home.

     In theory, if Immigration were to check with a hotel at which you stayed to learn your departure date, and you stayed elsewhere for a number of nights after that date, and before a TM.30 is filed upon your return home, the time gap could theoretically incur a fine.  But I doubt this has ever happened.

     UbonJoe, what say you? 

PEX is great because of its great strength and flexibility in being routed around obstructions, its hot-water tolerance, and its easier and removable compression fittings, compared to common solvent-welded PVC tubing for water supply.  Some interesting details are at: http://www.pexheat.com/Home/5-Lies-About-PEX-Tubing.  

But I doubt you will be able to find any PEX for retail or wholesale purchase in Thailand, unless one of the online outfits (e.g., Lazada) can import some for you from China (if you trust the quality of what comes).

Copper tubing of some types may be available in Thailand, as the soft, flexible ones are needed for air-conditioning and refrigerant systems (see: https://www.copper.org/applications/plumbing/cth/standard-tubes/cth_1stand_type.html).   I'm not sure whether soft Cu tubing is suitable for pressurized water-supply lines, as are the rigid types K, L, and M.  

But copper is now pretty expensive on the world market (as are quality PEX and its fittings), so be prepared to pay a bundle for either, particularly if it has to be specially imported for you. 

Just having statements or notices from one's bank indicating that your inbound transfers of funds are sufficient to buy your condo may not be enough to satisfy the government land office to approve transfer of ownership of a foreign-owner-permitted condo to you.

You may need to have a formal Foreign Exchange Transaction Form (FETF), a Bank of Thailand document, prepared, signed, and rubber-stamped with its seal by your bank. 

It may only state the required "PURPOSE: for condo purchase" if the overseas bank initiating the transfer puts that instruction into the SWIFT message to the Thai Bank.

For example  Siam Commercial Bank's inward transfer office in Bangkok will prepare this form routinely for transfers of US $50,000 or more, and usually call the customer to advise receipt of such funds.

But if one brings in one or more tranches of less than this amount, one will have to go into a branch and request the manager to contact Bangkok for instructions how to prepare and issue the FETF. 

Most bank staff will have no idea what the FETF is, so patient explanation and bringing in an online-downloaded blank FETF may help, as well as asking them to call SCB BKK Inward Transfer for guidance (+66 2.256.1848, +66.2.128.1000).

Be sure to insist on getting a fully-stamped and signed duplicate/original from the bank, and not just a xerox copy, in case the land office is a stickler about having an original.

A few months ago, I searched similarly in Chiang Mai for the thick-walled, high-pressure propane or MAPP tanks (as illustrated with your Bernzomatic image example) and compatible torch nozzles -- without success at all the big-box stores (HomePro, Global House) and specialty hardware vendors (e.g., the big one -- name forgotten -- at the southeast corner of the major intersection of Superhighway 11 and Chang Puak Road [highway 107]).

But I noticed quite a few stocked the thin-walled aerosol-style cans containing butane, commonly used for cooking burners, and about the same size and shape as insecticide and other aerosol sprays.   But nobody seemed to have a torch attachment to go with it to function as a soldering/brazing gun. 

Finally, I got the idea to try the Amazon-style Lazada online store to discover it offers a huge variety of items that are hard to find.  Lo and behold, it had a number of butane torches designed to mate with the fittings on the widely-available butane cans:

https://www.lazada.co.th/real-cook-kitchen-butane-flame-burnertorch-34698119.html?spm=a2o4m.searchlist.list.9.622c1e14uo1CGP

I bought it and it arrived promptly with free shipping, and worked great to solder some welding clamps to their 2-guage (24 mm²) welding/battery-jumper cables. 

So unless you need the higher MAPP temperatures (see chart previously posted), the butane should work fine for most purposes.  Of course, these thin-walled butane cans don't seem as strong and as safe as the thick-walled propane tanks commonly available in the USA and probably elsewhere.

PS.  In the USA, at least, one can easily find torch heads that attach directly to the propane or MAPP tank, as well as those with several feet of gas tubing to allow the tank to sit on a bench or attached to one's belt.

Simon43 has been a ThaiVisa contributor for more than a decade, with excellent ratings, but something here does not make sense.

If even a tiny proportion of ThaiVisa readers respond with even 1 kg each of donated books (presumably only appropriate children's ones with basic English -- no James Joyce), exactly how would he transport what could be hundreds or more kilograms from the Miami Hotel and Sukhumvit watering holes to Naypidaw?  

As overweight baggage on an airline? Sea freight via Thai and Myanmar postal services?  A shipping container from Bangkok or Laem Chabang ports to Yangon, and then 10-wheel truck to Naypidaw?  Overland?  The costs would be enormous.

Or maybe giving a few books each to individual do-gooders traveling to his orphanage over the next few years from a warehouse storing them somewhere in Thailand?

As experienced relief experts everywhere advise, donation of physical goods (be they unwanted medicines, food, clothing, etc.) for shipment overseas is extremely inefficient and expensive, and time-wasting for relief workers to sort the useful from the useless. 

 Better money, which can be weightless and instantly reach the target country (avoiding customs tie-ups and corruption), where it can purchase goods much closer to its intended recipients, without distorting local markets, and as selected by those best suited to know what's needed.

Simon43, please explain your logistics for items as heavy as books.

I do not know about Bangkok suppliers, but a year ago I was able to buy HDPE (high-density polyethylene) tubing and its specialized fittings for high-pressure water service (black with blue stripe) in Chiang Mai at this plumbing-supply store:

MAP: https://goo.gl/maps/yTGK5FqeJj82

STREET VIEW: https://goo.gl/maps/prkQ62NPyGm
GPS coordinates: 18.811790, 98.987532
It's on the inner ring road ("Superhighway" #11), heading westbound, on the left, about 300 meters before the Chang Puak (Highway 107 north-south) intersection.
The landmark just before it is a multistory building painted almost entirely in bright red.
A few fittings (connectors) required waiting a half an hour or so for delivery from their wholesaler, presumably.
Be sure to buy the special tool for trimming the ends of pipes before inserting into the fittings.  One tool does two sizes: 20mm and 25mm. A larger tool is needed for larger-diameter pipe.

There is important new information from both Chonburi and Chiang Mai about new "work-arounds" using email to submit TM30 reports for "alien" lodgers in a separate Thai Visa forum thread on the same topic about the now non-functional website (https://extranet.immigration.go.th/fn24online/):

See:

Re: the shutdown since December 2016/2559 of the Thai Immigration website (https://extranet.immigration.go.th/fn24online/) for online reporting of TM30, TM47, and perhaps other forms affecting foreigners.  

(Also see post by UbonJoe about this:) 

 Does anyone have a blank copy it can share via Thai Visa of the Excel .xls/.xlsx spreadsheet file that can be used by online-reporting-registered lodging owners to report multiple foreign guests via Form TM30 more easily than by entering them one-by-one at the now-closed website?   If so, please post it to benefit others.  

This is the spreadsheet that was once downloadable ("Import excel") at one of the steps for online TM.30 reporting (see the orange oval in the attached screen capture from an actual online report -- anonymized for privacy).  

For Chiang Mai Immigration specifically, or nationally, does anyone know if the Immigration Department has set up a Chiang Mai or national email address(es) to submit such completed spreadsheets while the online website is unavailable, in order to upload completed Excel .xls/.xlsx spreadsheets?  

This would solve the problem while the online-reporting website is not functioning for hotels, guest houses, and others already registered to do online reporting to submit what might be daily TM30 notifications for busy establishments.  

What a pain it must be to make physical visits to file paper TM30s at immigration offices every day, or the following day, whenever a new foreigner checks in.

PLEASANT EXPERIENCE FOR RE-ENTRY PERMIT AT CHIANG MAI (Promenada) IMMIGRATION

Arrived recently on a single-entry (SE) Non-Immigrant type B (business) visa, receiving at CNX airport its typical 90-day permission to stay stamp expiring in mid September 2016.

With a work permit not expiring for another 18 months, in the final month before the current permission to stay would expire, I intended to assemble the paperwork for a one-year (or longer?) permission to stay, and a multi-entry re-entry permit, in order to maximize the duration of the latter two passport stamps.

Then a short, land-departure side-trip into Laos got planned by the Missus for July (so no option to use an Immigration Office in the secure international departure areas at CNX or BKK for a re-entry permit).

So I bit the bullet on having to go to the Chiang Mai Immigration Office (at Promenada for such things), I downloaded and filled out the completed form TM.8, and brought it, a photograph, B1,000, a few magazines, and NYT crosswords. I expected long lines and waits, based on the general experience of others at Chiang Mai Immigration posted at ThaiVisa.com.

Was I surprised upon my arrival about 2:00 p.m. on a Monday afternoon. Upon entering I asked at the first desk what to do, and was directed to a table on the sidewalk outside the air-conditioned waiting room. With no line whatsoever, a friendly clerk there asked to see my completed TM.8 form, my photo, the xerox copies of my passport's ID page and opposing pages with my just-used-up SE visa and the Immigration stamp to stay until mid-September, and my Baht 1,000 banknote. She reminded me to sign then and there the xerox copies.

Then she clipped a pink queue card to all the items, handed them back to me, and directed me inside to the desk marked "Re-Entry Permit". There, again, there was no line, and the Immigration Officer immediately invited me to sit down, looked over my documents and passport, put the B1,000 note into his drawer, and proceeded to imprint various rubber stamps into my passport for the Re-entry, its dates, etc. The re-entry permit was marked to expire the same day as my current permission to stay in mid-September. The friendly Officer and I engaged in chit-chat during it all.

My passport was then returned immediately, and I was asked to move one or two seats over at the same desk, where a clerk proceeded to enter the data into a computer and print me out a receipt.

After a sincere "khop khun, krop", it was over. No more than five minutes total. No opportunity to read a news magazine or start a crossword. What a surprise. Of course, other purposes for going to the Immigration Office probably do require long waits, as evidenced by the number of expatriates sitting and waiting for their names to be called.

Spent the next hour checking out Promenada, to my disappointment. It has attractive light and airy architecture, and the largest, well-stocked Rimping supermarket I have seen. But no department store (à la a Central, a Lotus Tesco, or a Big C), no office supply store, no HomePro-type outlet. And very few customers. Nothing like the variety of shops and crowds at Central Airport Plaza or Central Festival. I guess Immigration is getting a good rental rate there.

I think this question needs an empirical approach, rather than a theoretical one to answer it.

In the last 20 years or so, has there been any documented proof or evidence (with specific names, dates, URL-hotlinks to the data, not just rumors) of any foreigner being prosecuted for cooking his own eggs for breakfast in his own kitchen (rented or owned), mowing his own grass within his property (rented or as guest of its Thai owner), or erecting a ladder in his own condominium building (within an apartment or a commonly-owned hallway) and changing a light bulb?

All such actions require an "exertion of effort" and application of "knowledge" how to do them. All might very well be performed by formal employees of a business entity.

So, if there is no history of such prosecution, successful or not, of a foreigner for such actions, then much of this discussion is an academic exercise about how Thai law might be applied, in theory, equivalent to arguing how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.

If there has never been prosecution for violating labor laws with such scenarios, then I think the advice suggested by others makes sense: Just do it (discreetly), and don't worry too much about it.

FYI, all.

Someone responded privately to my plea. Here is the exact URL for online reporting of Alien Stay information (form TM.30).

http://extranet.immigration.go.th/fn24online/ (http://extranet.immigration.go.th/fn24online/)

One caveat is that my Chrome browser initially blocked the page as lacking proper internet-security certificate(s), but there was an "Advanced" option to proceed to load it, anyway. (It does advise its compatibility with Internet Explorer browser versions 8 to 10, but it was visible with Chrome upon waiving the security risk.)

Some browsers may insist on using the secure address of https://extranet.immigration.go.th/fn24online/

Thanks to UbonJoe for his additional info about this subject.

The previous post minutes before was accidentally and erroneously submitted without proofreading and adding convenient hotlinks and screen-capture image.

Apparently, the clerk at Promenada was in error in telling us one could sign up for online reporting at the website. Unfortunately, this may require another visit in-person to talk to the right official for registering for online reporting.

Once that is done, I will report back here whether Chiang Mai Immigration, at least, does or does not allow non-business individuals to use the internet for filing TM.30 information on foreign guests.

As many may know, to enhance national security the authorities are now enforcing more strictly the requirement that hotels, guest houses, apartment owners/managers, and even private homeowners report within 24 hours the arrival of any foreign guest -- paying customers or friends housed for free -- to the Immigration authorities using "Alien Stay" form TM.30. The responsibility to do so (with possible fines of Baht 800 - 2000, if not) is on the host, commercial or informal, and not on the foreigner. Even foreigners owning their own deeded condominium apartments must report -- as the owner -- any newly-arrived foreigner (even reporting yourself as your own guest). [This is an entirely separate matter than foreigners reporting their location for continuous stays in the country every 90 days (form TM.47).]

So to stay on the up-and-up and be "riep roy", after a recent arrival in Chiang Mai, my hosts and I went to the Promenada mall location of the new Immigration Office southeast of town to submit the TM.30 form (including its second page with a line-list grid for reporting details on new arrivals) and additional documentation required (signed xeroxes of Tabien Baan, owner's Thai ID card) and maybe optional but a good idea to bring (signed copy of foreigner's passport page). FYI, the current TM.30 form is downloadable here: http://www.immigration.go.th/nov2004/download/tm30.doc.

To our pleasant surprise, we learned we could have performed this in-person reporting at the old Immigration Office near the CNX airport, where some functions are still retained. Also, it was nice that there was a designated desk at the Promenada office for this purpose, with no line, no need to "take a number" and wait, and with a helpful, courteous clerk on hand. It was all quite easy; once.

When we asked how future reports can be done online, as hotels and guest houses routinely do almost every day, to avoid the extreme hassle of frequent trips in person to an Immigration Office, she assured us the URL-hotlink to register for such online reporting was on the website, and that such a service was available to all hosts -- commercial accommodations and private individuals (even if this differed from the current wording of the Immigration Department's webpage on the subject: http://www.immigration.go.th/nov2004/en/base.php?page=alienstay).

Alas, the URL-hotlinks at the above webpage (some of the orange ovals in attached screen-capture image) do not work, or take one only to the main Immigration Department's homepage. And the website's search engine does not find the needed URL-hotlinks to sign up and report via the internet.

So here is a desperate plea on behalf of hosts who occasionally or routinely provide accommodation to foreigners, and who now wish to properly report them conveniently online via the TM.30 "Alien Stay" form.

If you or your business already do such online reporting, please share with the ThaiVisa community the specific URL-hotlinks (http://et-cetera) you used to first register (get a userID and create password) and, if different, now use to make routine reports when guests arrive. You may find the specific URL-hotlink(s) buried within a bookmark manager or bookmark editor in your Internet Explorer, Chrome, Opera, Safari, Firefox or other browser.

Thanks!

Sending this code from your DTAC-pre-paid-service phone while in Thailand will result in a message from DTAC providing both the Baht balance in your account, as well as the date these baht (and their associated minutes) expire: *101*9# [sEND]

Buying more calling time, from ~B50 to about ~B500 will extend your validity before expiration, but not by much more than a month or so, at most.

For maximum extension of validity at a minimal price, without unnecessarily increasing the account balance for calls, you can purchase extensions. Wait until shortly before your current validity expires, then dial 1013 [sEND] and follow the prompts for the available options: 30 days (2 baht deducted from your balance), 60 days (4 baht) , 90 days (6 baht).

Of course, you will need to do this before the phone number goes dormant (which once happened to me, but a DTAC office was able in a few days to resurrect the number because it had not yet been "recycled" into a new SIM card put on the market). Also, you may need to do so before you leave the country if you have not yet signed up for international roaming (free to sign up, although not free when used overseas).

Once the phone works overseas, it is convenient for doing online banking and other web transactions with Thai institutions that require entry of a one-time password (OTP), sent by SMS text message to your Thai mobile phone number. So when outside Thailand, I turn on the Thai phone (or put the Thai SIM card into a spare GSM phone) just a minute or so before initiating the web transaction, and the passcode number arrives just as it would were I in Thailand. Then the phone goes off, or SIM card out, to reduce any usage of the baht balance.

The above does not apply to post-paid accounts, about which I have no information. But I assume if you keep paying for the monthly service that is billed to you, your phone number will never expire (but your calling balance might). (Mobile-phone billing practices are a real rip-off world wide -- imagine if the fuel you just bought for your vehicle would automatically evaporate and disappear from your tank if you don't drive the vehicle and use it all within a few weeks.)

As I was advised by a Thai consulate in the USA, there is no need to transfer a visa (in my case, multiple-entry) to a new U.S. passport when the old one was replaced and cancelled as it was nearing expiration.

They advised just to bring both old and new passports with you to show the Thai visa stickers and stamps in the old one, even though the old passport had holes punched in it by the State Department to cancel it.

I did as advised, and there was no problem at all upon next entries into Thailand.

I cannot comment upon a re-entry permit, but assume that if the new passport was issued and dated after the insertion of that permit into the old passport, it would still work. Of course, once back in Thailand, it would probably be necessary that before leaving again, the next re-entry permit be in the currently-valid passport.

Need to rent in Chiang Mai (mueng) this weekend, and maybe next as well, three 10-wheel dump trucks, with their drivers, to move a large amount of soil just 2 km between its source and destination. Estimated 50-to-75 trips in all between source and dump destination.

Also, a large front-end loader (or "bull dozer" or "backhoe loader"), with its operator, is needed to store the dumps in high piles to save space at destination. Another machine is already available at the source to fill the dump trucks.

Does anyone know any outfits or companies that can supply such services using heavy equipment in the Chiang Mai area?

Thanks!

Need to rent in Chiang Mai (mueng) this weekend, and maybe next as well, three 10-wheel dump trucks, with their drivers, to move a large amount of soil just 2 km between its source and destination. Estimated 50-to-75 trips in all between source and dump destination.

Also, a large front-end loader (or "bull dozer" or "backhoe loader"), with its operator, is needed to store the dumps in high piles to save space at destination. Another machine is already available at the source to fill the dump trucks.

Does anyone know any outfits or companies that can supply such services using heavy equipment in the Chiang Mai area?

Thanks!

For those perplexed by the jargon and abbreviations, this page nicely explains the terminology and compares the pros and cons of differing electrical codes, including those of Europe, Australia/New Zealand, and North America (USA/Canada):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthing_system

In the system illustrated, there are no metallic conduits nor designated earth/grounding wires connecting the distribution point at left (Service Disconnect [sD]) to the circuit-breaker panel board in the center.

However all components are sharing a common earthing/grounding rod. If that rod ever fails to make a good connection to earth, or there is some damage to a neutral line in the system, I suppose it is possible for that "objectionable parallel path of neutral current" to occur along the earth/ground wiring, as illustrated in the second cartoon.

If indeed the Provincial Electricity Authority in semi-rural Mueng Chiang Mai is following the Australian/New Zealand standard of Multiple-Earth-to-Neutral (MEN) connections in a TN-C-S system, then perhaps such a shared, single earthing/grounding rod would be a problem.

So I wonder if the neutral wire in the SD should have its own, exclusive earthing/grounding rod, even if just a meter or two away from another one for the metal frames of the SD, circuit-breaker panel board, and utility box, as well as the earth/ground wiring to all "downstream" utility outlets?