Building our house and garage in the Philippines
Discussion
All the windows are in, aluminium sliding jobbies, with bronze tinted reflective glass. Not my first choice but UPVC added a whole bunch extra to the cost. Most of the exterior and interior is finished filled and in primer as well now.
We went out and spent a bunch on tiles and toilets stuff yesterday, and they should start tiling the roof garden after the holiday, next Wednesday. Which unfortunately is the day I fly out to work again for a month...
We have demanded/been promised that we will move in in December, before the Xmas bit starts. That puts us 8 months into the build.
Piccies soon.
We went out and spent a bunch on tiles and toilets stuff yesterday, and they should start tiling the roof garden after the holiday, next Wednesday. Which unfortunately is the day I fly out to work again for a month...
We have demanded/been promised that we will move in in December, before the Xmas bit starts. That puts us 8 months into the build.
Piccies soon.
RichyBoy said:
Why don't they make houses like this in this country?
I'm not sure how to take that. You mean no insulation, dodgy wiring, no 'elf and safety? 
Kitchen cabinet taking shape, in solid concrete. The metal door is for the 20 circuit fuse box, it's huge.
and it goes in that hole in the wall just to the right of the arch with the orange wire ducting running into it.
The landing roof on the top floor, insulated and wiring in place. There will be a ceiling over this some day, when I am satisfied that the roof doesn't leak...
Looking from master bedroom, through walk in closet to master bathroom. My biggest regret is not making the whole house a metre longer and wider. it would have made a lot of difference.
Garage door frames, built in angle iron, welded to the re-bar in the wall, then concreted in. This is a solid door frame if ever there was one!
Outside again, with windows in, if you can see them. The goal was for sort of Spanish style with deep-set dark windows, seems to have worked.
Eventual colour will be a sort of pale buttermilk, when we (she) decides the final colour.
There is still a tiny balcony to be built, just above the front door.
Lots of progress, the wife has started cracking the whip, getting things moving as she IS going to move in before Xmas. 
Roof garden tiles all finished, windows are in, smaller holes are for air-cons:
Tiles laid inside the two roof rooms, but the 'drywall' will have to wait for now due to time restraints (and cash flow) so they'll be storage rooms for now.
Tiles are going down on the lower to floors too. You may notice are rather unusual method of simultaneously levelling the floor and laying the tiles:
Septic tank is in progress. The young lady is the site accountant/overseer/secretary:
Ceilings are all done now:
The only thing I can't get my head around is why the door frames are left until last. It is something to do with the floor tiles, they concrete the wooden frames in place over the tiles, after everything else in the room is finished.
Roof garden tiles all finished, windows are in, smaller holes are for air-cons:
Tiles laid inside the two roof rooms, but the 'drywall' will have to wait for now due to time restraints (and cash flow) so they'll be storage rooms for now.
Tiles are going down on the lower to floors too. You may notice are rather unusual method of simultaneously levelling the floor and laying the tiles:
Septic tank is in progress. The young lady is the site accountant/overseer/secretary:
Ceilings are all done now:
The only thing I can't get my head around is why the door frames are left until last. It is something to do with the floor tiles, they concrete the wooden frames in place over the tiles, after everything else in the room is finished.
King Herald said:
The only thing I can't get my head around is why the door frames are left until last. It is something to do with the floor tiles, they concrete the wooden frames in place over the tiles, after everything else in the room is finished.
Hope your miss us does not change her mind about the colour of the tiles in 6 months then Still mating for the house warming party
XJSJohn said:
King Herald said:
The only thing I can't get my head around is why the door frames are left until last. It is something to do with the floor tiles, they concrete the wooden frames in place over the tiles, after everything else in the room is finished.
Hope your miss us does not change her mind about the colour of the tiles in 6 months then Still mating for the house warming party
Won't be any 'mating' going on at the party though, unless it is me doing it.
King Herald said:
XJSJohn said:
King Herald said:
The only thing I can't get my head around is why the door frames are left until last. It is something to do with the floor tiles, they concrete the wooden frames in place over the tiles, after everything else in the room is finished.
Hope your miss us does not change her mind about the colour of the tiles in 6 months then Still mating for the house warming party
Won't be any 'mating' going on at the party though, unless it is me doing it.
Any issues with wood and termites ?
we plan on using no wood at all . Really excited about a funky poured concrete kitchen . Going to play with adding marble dust etc to give a nice effect .
Did you have any issues with quality of Sand been delivered ?
Wife is going home for jan 2012 , and will investigate the price of lots in batangas , but i still think most sellers have a very silly idea of what they think land is worth . Once the Euro collapses i think the effect around the world will drop house/land prices everywhere .
We plan to build a more open plan modern looking building. I cannot stand "arches" and no way in hell are we having a bloody "religious corner" in the hallway or living room ! If i can get the right effect , we will have a few rooms with poured polished concrete floors .
Plan to buy in 2015
we plan on using no wood at all . Really excited about a funky poured concrete kitchen . Going to play with adding marble dust etc to give a nice effect .
Did you have any issues with quality of Sand been delivered ?
Wife is going home for jan 2012 , and will investigate the price of lots in batangas , but i still think most sellers have a very silly idea of what they think land is worth . Once the Euro collapses i think the effect around the world will drop house/land prices everywhere .
We plan to build a more open plan modern looking building. I cannot stand "arches" and no way in hell are we having a bloody "religious corner" in the hallway or living room ! If i can get the right effect , we will have a few rooms with poured polished concrete floors .
Plan to buy in 2015
So far there is not one stick of wood in our whole house, though the doors and door frames will be wood. I assume they will be made some sort of termite proof timber. Kitchen and bathroom units are also concrete.
The 'sand' used in this area is usually lahar from the volcano, and even what the local builders merchants call 'river sand' is still lahar, just what has washed into the rivers.
My wife was dead set on the arches in ours, though I actually added the more pointy bit to them just to try and get the Spanish look she is after. I think it looks okay.
I'm not a great fan of open plan houses. We currently live in one and have lived in several others over the years. I know it is tempting after the small rabbit hutch houses of England, but even if it does give a sense of space it is a bit of a ball ache when someone is watching tv and the whole house has to listen to it.
There is nowhere to go to get any privacy, unless you go into a bedroom. And whatever is cooking in the kitchen can be smelt across the whole house. If you're on the phone everybody can hear. Our new house is semi-open plan, and there will be sliding screen doors 'twixt lounge and dining room to change it at will
And no, there will be no religious corner, or grotto, or saints wall or any of that 'imaginary friend' bulls
t in our house. We still have our house in England, just in case we change our plans.......
square earth said:
what do you think of the local Ex Pats ?
If you had to do it all again , what changes would you make and also would you want to do it in Angeles again ?
I don't really know many ex-pats here, as I don't drink or bar hop, or very rarely, and usually with the wife. The few ex-pats I do know aren't into the usual stunts you get in this town either.If you had to do it all again , what changes would you make and also would you want to do it in Angeles again ?
If we built again, I'd make it a metre or two longer and wider, same design though, and use a different roofer. The guy who did this roof is a total c**t.
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