Construction House

[aligator727]

Hello,

i plan to build a concrete house in Krabi, 110sqm, 1 floor, how deep must be the foundation please ? What is the best to build the wall of my house, concrete breeze blocks or red bricks of the same size ?

Thanks

[Kwasaki]

If you go to your local government office they have engineers there that will advise, you may also require a permit and the exact location of where you intend to build.

If someone can recommend a decent local builder they would know what is required also.

What ever materials you use it's up to you and your budget.

[bbradsby]

The best materials to use depends on your house design's size and geometry. Do you have drawings, even a simple plan? Or magazine pictures or housing developer's brochure images similar to what you'd like to build? I need more info to answer your questions.

[Crossy]

It may be worth a look at these free government plans http://www.crossy.co.uk/Thai_House_Plans/index.html if you see something you like download and print ready to build.

[haveaniceday]

I am no expert, but when we worked out the true cost of super block, that air rated concrete block, it was actually cheaper than red brick when you factor in all the cost, our builder was very shocked, so at least look into it seriously, you only need a bees dick of mortar and render. Do note, the 3 factories were all flooded apparently and very hard to get, these things tend to recover quickly.

[bbradsby]

depth and type of foundation depends 100% on soil / rock strata of your specific site - the geotechnical conditions. But its a very unscientific process for residential projects in LOS.

If its alluvial soil, no big submerged rocks, the local 'pile driver' shows up and just drives the concrete piers / piles down til he gets satisfactory [in his opinion] resistance. If youre in the mountains of Krabi, they likely cant drive piers as theyll just break when the hit shallow rock. In this case, the foundation will likely be linear foundation walls on 'spread' footings following the lines of the bearing walls of the floor plan above. If you want guarantees against cracking walls, hire an architect, structural engineer and a geotechnical engineer [for subsurface investigation and report], and a proper construction manager to oversee the whole process to ensure its done properly - oh, wait, This is Thailand - nobody does this!!!

search this forum for terms: foundation , piers , piles ... lots of info there as this road has been crossed by many expats.