KhunLA

Mostly in home cooking. We simply do a better job of it. Taste wise and not guessing about the ingredients. Will eat some Thai out, things that aren't the easiest to do at home. With exception of almost weekly Khao Soi run, we eat out about once a week, due to laziness or boredom.

AND ... strange looks ? Staff still masked up ? Stares of disgust or envy ?

Our 8kW (unofficial) on/off grid system is going 'OFF GRID'. OK, we'll still be connected, I think, as ฿500 a year insurance/back up, JIC a solar oops. Will only use if a solar oops. Curious how many times they be replacing the meter thinking it's broke, since still on -0- PEA had installed a 3 phase meter (temporarily) as out of 1 phase TOU meters. They popped over yesterday and replaced that with a digital meter ... ???? Spinning back no longer an option. We ordered another 10kW ESS. Using 5kW of ESS now, being very conservative after sunset. Using laptop & 65" TV & 1 AC (13k BTU) for 5 ish hours, and 2 frigs, till sunrise. When sun actually shows up, brutally, come Feb/Mar/Apr and bit of May, till rains start, we'll surely be wanting to use the main 24k BTU AC, for about 1 hr after sunset, and 2 hrs after sunrise. Since so overcast lately, since solar installed, 19 days ago, we really haven't needed to use the 24k BTU AC. That unit does most of the living area, with the 13k BTU unit in the bedroom. Both seem to be a bit of overkill, as the wifey is freezing when I'm quite comfy, and on occasion, chilly myself. That's embarrassing ????

To add, both houses out of the 'main', 16 ish kms from town center, so not attractive to anyone not retired. Daily commute to work in town would be expensive, even on a motorbike for minimum wage earner, or car driven for someone with better earnings. Appreciation of property was strictly land driven, and not for structures. 1st house ... cost 800k, sold 1.4m (7 yr old), on 1 rai 2nd house ... cost 2m, sold 3.5, I think (6 yrs old), 3 rai After 2nd house sold, then listed (FB) 2 adjourning lots, which sold within 3 months of listing. Cost 240k, sold 1.3m (6 yr old) No appreciation of structures, since not in main downtown areas.

Good info ... thanks Sort of mirrors our first sale, without mortgage drama. Listed with realtor, and I placed on local forum. Sold before realtor even posted on his site, via the forum. All of 2 days, since signed to realtor, till sold. A yank, so funds transferred from / to our USA accounts, as easier. Land office & done. 2 nd house was a bit different, unique design, out of town, across from Wat made it a hard sell in a buyers market. Took 3 years, again, all cash deal, from a foreigner who never saw the house in person, due to 'situation lockdown', airports closed w/ exceptions that he didn't fit. GF & family saw and did the transfer at land office. Listed with realtors (useless), FB, Thai sites, and referral was from our grounds keeper, who got his commission at closing. Realtor from 1st sale stopped doing business, others in the area (Udon Thani) were useless.

Aside from the cannabis laws, a bit vague, but, the 'no smoking' laws would be the main issue. IF enforced, would restrict smoking at the dispensaries, coffee shops, or any vendor serving the public, especially if closed in & AC'd. That pretty specifically spelled out and would apply, IF enforced.

pulling out stiches doesn't get any easier ... ... just pull from the 'knotted' end after cutting. Little alcohol or peroxide, extra protect against infection. Same thing you'll pay some clinic nurse to do.

Our system installed 4Aug, by Hua Hin based installer, house location - A. Muang, Prachuap Khiri Khan Components of: DEYE SUN-8K-SG01LP1-EU 8kw Single Phase Hybrid Solar inverter Priced (big range): Alibaba ฿55k (non manufacturer), not inc. shipping/duty ฿100k+ on AliExpress (not inc shipping/duty) ฿77k on LAZ, though photo close but not same No buyers SunTech Solar Panels: 18 @ 540w Price ? ... seen for ฿6500, installer charged ฿15k (฿7500 ea. 2X installed) over original contract, from 16 panels to 18 panels. 10kWh ESS / Battery back up, asked how much for a 2nd, if wanting to parallel in. Quoted: ฿95k DIY: Inverter: ฿77 +/+ ? Panels: 18 @ ฿6500 = ฿117k ESS: ฿95k TTL: ฿289k +/- for components Installed price: ฿345k - 4 man crew + mounts, tracks, cables, tools, knowledge AND ... warranty w/installer having 20 yrs installation experience (per website)

Please post opinions of your pros & cons of owning your new car purchased in Thailand. For 'Truck Review' ... https://aseannow.com/topic/1256020-truck-reviews-personal-thai-experience/ Our present car, MG ZS (ICE), purchased Sept 2020, new, and very happy with it. Promo at the time was mid level (3) for price of entry level, with top level price at ฿100k more, for a few more electronic & sunroof, which we didn't need, want, or would use. We racked up 20k kms within first 6 months, with no issues, except dash cam acting up. Taking it for the 30k kms oil change / maintenance tomorrow, at the dealer. 5 yr free 'labor' for maintenance, I think. 5 yr warranty / 120 kms, though I believe that has changed to 4yr / 100k kms. Pros; ... 1.5 L engine is more than enough power & torque, as been on some very steep inclines, along with, I seem to lead the pack from red lights, without a heavy foot. I actually drive very conservative speed wise, so a bit surprise to see all in the mirror when I leave a red light. Though I will cruise 100-120 when able to on inter-province roads. Which it does nicely & quietly. ... more than roomy enough for us (2+dog). 4 adults would be comfy, and have driven with, and still plenty of power. ... Plenty of cargo space, as when out & about, we fill it up with way too much, utilizing the back seat also, but not blocking view of back window, so not really need to use back seat, if all trunk space to ceiling used. We actually take our coffee machine with us, a cooler full of camera equipment (3 kits), along with a small cooler, besides clothes ... nuff said. Cons: ... no spare tire, though available for purchase 6+K, or full tire/mag wheel for 7+k, which we got, and will pay for itself when needing new tires. Don't need the extra space the 'spare' would provide, using lower tier deck in trunk/boot. No spare seems to be the standard now, so not really a con, but thought I'd mention. ... Dash cam cra pped out, outside warranty (6 months), although we did cry about it acting up, prior to, and asked about it after the 20k kms oil change, when taking car in for software update. Finding out then, out of warranty. MG replaced for free, since crying prior to warranty expiring. ???? ... mini air compressor cra pped out, though not sure if my fault or not, since using on house current more than a few times. Performed flawlessly from car port, but struggled from house current adaptor, so I may have killed that. Non-issue, since we have spare, and air compressor at house. ... not a fan of the app, as it 'reloads' about every 10th time starting the car, which means you can't adjust any electronics until loaded, all of <30 seconds. So must remember to set AC on high before turning off ???? Really don't use the app / 'Smart' features, and just a marketing thing IMO. Just a minor annoyance if hot & you're an impatient person as myself, and forgot to turn up the AC before turning off ... dumb a$$. Overall, loving it, and would purchase again, unless an oops down the road, or something else caught our eye. Actually eyeballing the EV version as our next purchase, if one in the future. Previous new cars bought here were Toyota Vios (2), entry level. and Mazda 2 sedan, entry level, and very happy with them also. For a few baht more, or about same price as their top end version of those models, we got the MG ZS, after peeking at them and a few others, Honda, Nissan, Suzuki & Mitsubishi. I'm a spec shopper first, before even going to the showrooms. This site has decent compare specs; https://www.zigwheels.co.th/en/compare-cars Hope this helps anyone in the market. A car to me, is a machine that gets me from point A to B, so dependable & inexpensive works, along with, as comfy as possible. The ZS out classed the Vios & Mazda2 just on road noise alone, as a pet peeve of those models when out & about. Anyone looking for somehing very inexpensive, then take a peek at the Suzuki Celerio @ ฿330k to start. It is what it is, but it may surprise you, if just needing to knock around town. For me ฿700k ballpark pricing (ZS) for 4 wheel is just silly, but that also, is what it is, for something comfy to cruise on the highway in. Happy shopping, or, let us know what you have & how you like it. Would you buy it again ???

You're welcome ... have at it.