Siam_Sam

I had a feeling I'd been lied to. Corruption and lies as standard in Thailand. Where can I find the official criteria for the marriage visa?

You're right. My last one cost me 2,500 but the extra 600 baht went in the immigration officer's pocket. The one before that cost me 18k because I didn't have the 400k in a bank account from the province I was living in, it was in a bank account I opened in Bangkok. I'm not sure if that is one of the conditions? Maybe that's not true and I was lied to? When I go back I won't have the money in my account for six months prior to the application (another condition) so I'll get charged 18k again I expect.

Yes the criteria is similar to a marriage visa but they cost a lot less which is why it makes more sense to get one of these. So with the Non O now you only get one entry of sixty days, with the option to extend it a further sixty days? I currently have a marriage visa. I had a Non O when I first entered Thailand back in 2022. It's cheaper for me to get a Non O before I go back but by the sound of it this will only last me a maximum of ninety days, with the option to extend it another sixty days. That would give me five months stay. We're planning to go to Hong Kong for a short trip so I'd get another sixty days when I return and that way I could stay for six months in total. Like you say though, if I renew my marriage visa that'll guarantee me six months stay each year without having to lave the country or extend my Non O. It's more expensive to renew my marriage visa but it's now looking like the most sensible way of doing it.

Yes but the marriage visa costs me 18k baht, whereas the Non O is only £150 (approximately 6,500 baht) as I remember, plus I don't have to show proof of 400k in my bank etc. Yes it was a multi-entry Non O that I had when I first moved to Thailand. So there's no such thing as a multi-entry Non O visa anymore?

So the amount of time you get on a Non O has been changed to 60 days? The last Non O visa I had gave me three entries of 90 days each. It's looking like it'll be six months in Thailand and then six months in the UK, alternately.

I was living in Thailand through an annual marriage visa but I'm back in the UK for a while. I have a re-entry permit and my visa runs out in November, which is when I am planning to return and renew my visa. However, I'm only planning to stay in Thailand for 6 months maximum before returning to the UK again. It makes more sense for me to apply for a Non O visa and do a a visa run 3 months after I go back to Thailand because a) I don't have to pay the fee for the more expensive marriage visa, and b) I won't have to provide all the documents they'll need for that. My query is - if I apply for a Non O visa before I go back to Thailand, will the embassy reject this request because they'll see I already have a visa when I send them my passport?

Ok cool, if I'm going to use their nutrients then I best be buying myself some containers to store it in. Have you used their powdered nutrients for the soil too?

Thanks very much for your advice. The nutrients on the Exotic Chilli Plants website are good value but I was looking last night and the powder that you buy from them has to be used to make up 5 gallons of liquid, which doesn't seem like a practical or professional way of doing things and puts me off buying any? No it doesn't and to think it does and that you can calibrate a PH pen in it is laughable. Especially when you claim that "PH is more important than nutrients."

My last two feeds were at 6.4 and things are going well with my current grow. I've bought a lot of expensive equipment, including a Bluelab PH pen and PH buffers for calibration. Do you measure PPM/EC levels when you feed or do you not bother?

Yes, I am a newbie but I have had some experience of growing in the past. I take it you don't use compost teas? Those nutrients you use have very unorthodox NPK ratios for growing cannabis but I'm sure you wouldn't recommend them if they didn't work? How many plants do you grow and what sort of yields are you getting with those nutrients? Many thanks for the links, much appreciated!

For those that grow cannabis here in Thailand I was just wondering what medium and nutrients you use? You can get some of the best nutrient brands, such as Gaia Green and Fox Farm on Lazada and Shopee but they have to be imported so they're expensive and increase my overheads too much. I'm always looking for local alternatives and just wondered what other people use? I've been using the Van Egmond soil and peat moss in the photos with success and I've managed to source perlite and worm castings locally, but nutrients seem to be thin on the ground in shops in Thailand? In the last photo is some biocharged compost from Home Pro that I haven't used yet, I'm thinking of making some compost teas with it and wondered if anybody on here has used this product?

I just thought I'd add that we've been out today driving around the local area, literally asking people at random (who we could see have this equipment) about prices and the set up etc which has made us realise we're probably paying a little too much and not doing this the most effective way because the guy that says he can do it is not able to give us a straight answer (big shock) about the equipment that we'll be buying. Of course, every Thai we spoke to claims that they paid a lot less but I think that's because they've bought second hand equipment. We've decided that we're going to buy the equipment ourselves and then get someone to both drill for the water and assemble everything. Solar panels and pumps are all available in the likes of Do Home and Global House so we're going to buy from one of these places unless anyone knows a cheaper place? We've also learned that we're going to have to put the panels and water tank up high because people steal the panels when you're not around so we need to factor in the cost of building a tall structure to put them on. Apparently 2 large monocrystalline solar panels and a 750w pump will be suffice for our needs but I'd like some advice on this please. I went to a cafe today that had solar powered water wheels that prevent the pond / canal water from stagnating which is probably a good idea so can anyone advise me on these as well? I've spoken with a different guy about drilling for water and he says he'll do it for 15,000 which seems fair enough. If we buy the equipment ourselves the 750w pump is 9,260, the 1000 litre water tank is 2,380, and the solar panels are 10,780 which means a total cost of 37,420 but that doesn't include building the structure to put the panels and tank on, and the labour. I'm hoping that I'll get everything for around 50,000? Does all of this sound about right or am I forgetting something? If anyone has any advice I'd be very grateful.

We have 6 rai of land and we're just in the process of getting our pond and canals dug out. We're planning to use a large patch of the land for growing fruit and vegetables so we're going to need an irrigation system. We won't be living on the land, the power and water required is just for watering and topping up the pond, although I may set up a simple shelter at some point and it would be convenient if it had access to electricity. I'm trying to find someone who will drill for water and set up a solar powered pump and I want to get an idea of what I'd expect to pay. I've just read through the boreholes thread in this section of the forum which was informative but doesn't give me much indication of current prices. I also need some advice on how many solar panels I require and the power rating of the pump. I've just been given a quote of 62k baht for a 6" bore hole, three solar panels and a 750w pump and I was wondering if that sounds about right? Any advice on this would be very welcome and if there's anyone in the Buriram area who would like to meet up to discuss this a bit more then please message me and I'll give you my phone number.

You never gave me the names of the 12 other places that sell the products I'm after?

Those companies may well own Colman's mustard, Branston pickle and Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce now but they didn't originally. It doesn't change the fact that they are all British brands that originated from Britain. So yes, they are truly great British brands.