Building a new house in Isaan

[Rampant Rabbit]

On 4/2/2022 at 5:01 PM, Encid said:

@MJCM

Thanks for the compliment!

I am using AutoCAD to produce the drawings (to scale) in 2D.

But I am by no means an expert using the software... self-taught!

 

I too am using Sweet Home 3D to produce 3D images of the main house, but I find that although the results are very good conceptually, they are not accurate and the libraries available don't have everything I want.

For example, steps and stairs are just not intuitive... neither are ramps and slopes.

 

I will post some of my preliminary designs for the main house later.

i used  "floorplanner"it was  ok as I didnt need  any permission where I was, it  was  soley for my use  only , tried  sketch up  just couldnt get on with it at  all

[unheard]

19 hours ago, MJCM said:

That Insulation foil sprayed on with glue, how it looks

And it really looks bad!!!!!!!

After how many years?

[Rampant Rabbit]

On 4/2/2022 at 3:13 PM, sometimewoodworker said:

It does require management & is not very shade tolerant, but this is some that hasn’t been managed much for 10+ years 

 

then this was 8 years ago

 

 

it is also very good at treating dirty or contaminated water so plant it over your leach field.

 

https://www.vetiver.org/AUS_stabilization.htm

I  just  dumped  hundreds  of tons of gravel 6  inch thick  on the ground as  live  within 3 km of the quarry and its  dirt  cheap and maintenance  free, also dug correct drainage  channels, the main aim is  not to stop the water but to slow  down its  progress, also totally  stops any weeds at 6inch thick

Edited April 4, 2022 by Rampant Rabbit

[Will B Good]

3 minutes ago, Rampant Rabbit said:

I  just  dumped  hundreds  of tons of gravel 6  inch thick  on the ground as  live  within 3 km of the quarry and its  dirt  cheap and maintenance  free, also dug correct drainage  channels, the main aim is  not to stop the water but to slow  down its  progress, also totally  stops any weeds at 6inch thick

That is some slope.......any problems?

[sometimewoodworker]

1 hour ago, Will B Good said:

That is some slope.......any problems?

None, we started at 3 metres, in 2007

we added Vetiver grass to reenforce the banks

 

then went down to 6 metres  in 2011

 

we added 

https://www.coolthaihouse.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3851

 

in 2016 there was some serious rain but as you can see the grass did the business 

[Muhendis]

4 hours ago, Rampant Rabbit said:

I  just  dumped  hundreds  of tons of gravel 6  inch thick  on the ground as  live  within 3 km of the quarry and its  dirt  cheap and maintenance  free, also dug correct drainage  channels, the main aim is  not to stop the water but to slow  down its  progress, also totally  stops any weeds at 6inch thick

I'm sure a lot of work went into that and it is much enjoyed by many.

For me though it is a bit too sterile.

[GarryP]

7 minutes ago, Muhendis said:

I'm sure a lot of work went into that and it is much enjoyed by many.

For me though it is a bit too sterile.

Wouldn't it be really hot too? I hate cutting grass but I would go with grass rather than gravel. Hopefully, I can find a variety of grass that does not require cutting or only minimal attention.

[Muhendis]

3 minutes ago, GarryP said:

Wouldn't it be really hot too? I hate cutting grass but I would go with grass rather than gravel. Hopefully, I can find a variety of grass that does not require cutting or only minimal attention.

If you're rural enough you could let it grow and invite the local bovines in for a feast and free manure.....????

[GarryP]

16 minutes ago, Muhendis said:

If you're rural enough you could let it grow and invite the local bovines in for a feast and free manure.....????

???? No, it's going to be a house with a relatively small garden. The area is only 20 meters wide and 30 meters deep. If I let cattle in, my wife would be sorely upset. I think I need something along the lines of what they call Yah Taipei (หญ้าไทเป) here.

[Muhendis]

50 minutes ago, GarryP said:

???? No, it's going to be a house with a relatively small garden. The area is only 20 meters wide and 30 meters deep. If I let cattle in, my wife would be sorely upset. I think I need something along the lines of what they call Yah Taipei (หญ้าไทเป) here.

I got curious about that and googled it. After a thing about frogs (would you believe) I stumbled on this site and thought I'd pass it on.  

https://www.thaigardendesign.com/tropical-grass-types/

[GarryP]

23 minutes ago, Muhendis said:

I got curious about that and googled it. After a thing about frogs (would you believe) I stumbled on this site and thought I'd pass it on.  

https://www.thaigardendesign.com/tropical-grass-types/

Yes, when I first googled it there were a load of references to Taipei Grass Frogs. Hence, the Thai language version in my previous post. It actually doesn't appear to be a grass but is a good alternative.  https://www.naibann.com/taipei-grass-review/

 

FYI, I currently have Malaysian grass at my present home (tiny lawn) and usually cut it about once a month in the dry seasons, and once a week in the rainy season.  

[MJCM]

7 hours ago, unheard said:

After how many years?

2 ish. 3 years max!

[Rampant Rabbit]

2 hours ago, Muhendis said:

I'm sure a lot of work went into that and it is much enjoyed by many.

For me though it is a bit too sterile.

Its  grown a lot since then  and even since this photo, the trees  cover the gravel with their  canopies

[Rampant Rabbit]

7 hours ago, Will B Good said:

That is some slope.......any problems?

erm that aint my  house in the  3rd  photo.........so to answer.....no  problems  hahha..

[unheard]

15 hours ago, MJCM said:

2 ish. 3 years max!

????

[Encid]

Well it's been a busy week for me!

Some updates by photos to follow.

There has been some very heavy rain for an extended period so I was expecting to see some serious erosion, however it wasn't as bad as I thought.

 

 

 

 

 

I have ordered 1000 vetiver seedlings from Lazada (cost just over 600 baht including delivery) and we will be planting them 50mm apart in rows 1 metre apart.

Hopefully they will take root and grow quickly before the big rains come in September/October.

We will have water available so the plants can be regularly watered.

 

[Encid]

Our new power poles and cables are all ready to be connected to the PEA grid.

Not too bad... some are leaning slightly but the result is better than I expected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'd be interested to get some feedback/opinions from those of you who are electrically minded.

I do not see any grounding or earth... is this normal?

Is this just a temporary measure to be used by the builder until the main house is built?

 

I assume that when we connect to our house we will have a breaker box that will be earthed via the footings, and I am also planning for lightning rods to be installed on the roof which will also have it's own separate earth.

[Encid]

We hired a local contractor to drill a well for us.

We found plenty of good clear water at only 27 metres depth, but we went down a few metres more just for good measure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Encid]

This was the most exciting part...

 

 

 

[Encid]

Then the PEA called to let us know that they were going to connect the meter.

We are now live!

 

 

 

 

 

[Encid]

And today the 750 watt submersible pump was installed, along with the PV solar panels, and the 180 metre long pipeline to the pond.

The piping is 1 1/2" PVC at the pump, then 65mm HDPE overland in a trench.

Control cables have been attached to the pipeline and a switch in a weatherproof housing installed on the power pole at the corner of the pond.

This will enable us to turn on the solar powered pump at the pole instead of walking across to the panels/pump.

Total installed cost was just over 60,000 baht.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 10, 2022 by Encid

[Encid]

Then my nephew just had to commission it... 555

 

 

 

 

[MJCM]

25 minutes ago, Encid said:

Then the PEA called to let us know that they were going to connect the meter.

We are now live!

 

 

 

The perfect meter if you wanna go solar

 

Why????

 

It can go backwards, but just don't let the meter reader catch you doing it

[MJCM]

20 minutes ago, Encid said:

And today the 750 watt submersible pump was installed, along with the PV solar panels, and the 180 metre long pipeline to the pond.

The piping is 1 1/2" PVC at the pump, then 65mm HDPE overland in a trench.

Control cables have been attached to the pipeline and a switch in a weatherproof housing installed on the power pole at the corner of the pond.

This will enable us to turn on the solar powered pump at the pole instead of walking across to the panels/pump.

Total installed cost was just over 60,000 baht.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Am I seeing this right. HDPE with the the RED Stripe used for Water??????

 

RED Stripe = Electric

Blue Stripe = Water

Edited April 10, 2022 by MJCM

[unheard]

20 hours ago, Encid said:

We found plenty of good clear water at only 27 metres depth

What will be the usage case for the well water?

[Encid]

On 4/10/2022 at 4:23 PM, MJCM said:

Am I seeing this right. HDPE with the the RED Stripe used for Water??????

 

RED Stripe = Electric

Blue Stripe = Water

Yes it does have a thin red stripe on it.

I looked for the blue striped HDPE but it wasn't available at Global House Khon Kaen.

This was the only available pipe.

[Encid]

4 hours ago, unheard said:

What will be the usage case for the well water?

We plan to have the water lab tested, as we plan on using it in the bathroom and kitchen for our guest house.

It is definitely not salty but I suspect it has a high calcium content.

The domestic water supply for our main house is planned to be rain water supplemented by the well water.

Depending on the test results, filtration may be required.

 

In any case, my FIL will use the well water for farming purposes.

[MJCM]

47 minutes ago, Encid said:

Yes it does have a thin red stripe on it.

I looked for the blue striped HDPE but it wasn't available at Global House Khon Kaen.

This was the only available pipe.

Oke, not sure what the difference is maybe @Crossy can tell us about the difference between Blue and Red stripe HDPE.

 

Still have lots and lots of Blue Stripe available as my wife's garden still isn't finished

 

Edit: just thinking about it, it could be that RED stripe is thinner because it would only need to protect the electric cable during burial with Blue Stripe being thicker because of it to be able to handle the Water Pressure??? (But again just guessing here)

Edited April 11, 2022 by MJCM

[Muhendis]

HDPE pipe colours

https://www.acu-tech.com.au/about-us/pipe-colours/

[MJCM]

@Muhendis

 

Thx for the link.

 

According to your link  HDPE pipe full orange jacket – electrical conduit (Acu-Power HDPE pipe).

 

Never seen a full orange HDPE jacket here in TiT

 

So it seems they just use the black with red (orange) stripe here

 

 

 

Edited April 11, 2022 by MJCM