Home Builders/house Builders Isaan - A Success Story

[sunsamourai]

If you're looking for professional help about the landscaping, send me a PM. I am in KK.

[InSiSongkram]

Sunsamourai

Sure I will let you know as I`m looking to buy some land next to the house as I used most of this plot to make the house as big as possible. Have you got any photos of work done in the past?

Thanks.

[BigSnake]

Super Design, looks great, hope the quality and service are up to standard.

[Nirvana]

Hi All

Slightly off topic , I am looking for a builder to do a renovation job in Udon Thani on a terrace house.

Strip out ceilings,new gypsum ceilings,painting ,install new bathrooms,tiling, repair work etc. Nothing too fancy.

Can any members recommend anyone for decent workmanship at reasonable rates ?

Thanks for help/ suggestions

Nirvana

[InSiSongkram]

Cheers BigSnake yes both were above standard.

Super Design, looks great, hope the quality and service are up to standard.

Nirvana I will let you know if they can do work in Udon I had to travel last week.

Hi All

Slightly off topic , I am looking for a builder to do a renovation job in Udon Thani on a terrace house.

Strip out ceilings,new gypsum ceilings,painting ,install new bathrooms,tiling, repair work etc. Nothing too fancy.

Can any members recommend anyone for decent workmanship at reasonable rates ?

Thanks for help/ suggestions

Nirvana

[kamalabob2]

My wife had her family build a concrete block perimeter wall for our Buriram Province land parcel PRIOR to a few hundred loads of dirt being trucked into the plot to raise the ground level. After the home was built we had a local Buriram stainless steel fence fabricator install a rolling gate for vehicles and hinged gate for people. That local firm also installed stainless steel atop the front cement block fence. I did not want to have a fence similar to the embassy compounds in Bangkok. Money considerations at this point in the construction "process" were a major consideration, but #1 was a fence topping that would hinder potential intruders or give them pause to consider a different "softer" target. The cost of window bars was prohibitive in our situation, and metal security doors of decent quality on exterior doors really would add up to a significant sum of money.

So I looked at the web site of Wasp Security and a different electric fence company in Thailand. I got written price quotes from both firms. I met in person with Mike Rust the owner of Wasp Security in Bangkok at his small office workshop near a BTS station to see the actual products he sells. He had sent me a firm price quote in advance of this meeting and no effort was attempted to "up sell" and change the bid price. I had previously e-mailed to him photos of our existing cement block fence along with accurate linear measurements so he and the other firm could make an accurate price bid.

Prior to installation Mike and his Thai installation manager came to our Buriram Province home to look at the fencing and gates we had installed. They also double checked how the fence would be powered, where the siren and alarm connections would interface and how to properly deal with "difficult" corners. He also double checked the paint colors for the metal posts to coordinate with our existing painted fence.

On the scheduled day his three man crew of polite, clean, courteous installers arrived and for the next three days did a 100% professional installation. My wife was happy to feed his crew lunch as she said they were more considerate and cleaner than any other sub contractor we had on site in the past twelve months of home construction. After a complete testing of the system the staff took the time to explain to my wife and our maid how to properly use the system. The written instructions for the made in Brazil controller was in English. Mike easily and completely answered my few remaining questions over the phone.

9 months later there have been no malfunctions, only one false alarm due to a large tree branch falling onto the wires (they did not break) from a neighbor's tree. It was easy for us to figure out the cause of the alarm as we could see the tree branch. We also viewed how many neighbors came out to see the reason for the alarm sounding. This was not like the response to a car alarm siren in Los Angeles.

In our little town the electric supply from the Provincial Electricity Authority can be out for over five hours at a stretch, but the back up battery in our Electric fence has NEVER run out.

So for those with a cement block fence considering an Iron, stainless steel or barbed/razer wire topping I really think it is well worth your time to get a price quote from Wasp Security or another Electric Fence company in Thailand. The cost per linear foot is FAR LOWER than ordinary iron, and a small fraction of the cost of stainless steel topping. Our electric bill did NOT jump, but having an electric fence topping (legal) with proper signs in Thai gives us the freedom travel and leave the home empty with zero worries of attempted intruders.

The "math" worked simple for us: Which costs less: Cost of ordinary metal topping on the three sides of the property? Cost of the Electric fence topping for four sides? This did not even take into account the cost of any home windows or any doors to have security bars.

Here are photos of the electric fence on top of our side fence and on top of the front fence which already had stainless steel. We initially were concerned that our domestic pets might be accidentally shocked by the fence, but the cats do not go on top of the cement fence and our next door neighbor keeps his pet baby elephant away from the fence.

[InSiSongkram]

Very good information, so how much did it cost for the fence around your house or what is the price per meter?

[kamalabob2]

Total cost including installation on 360 degrees of our just under one rai parcel, Wasp-Security installed 42 60cm powder coated posts with insulators, ten corner stays, fifteen 60 cm stainless steel posts, fourteen other posts or stays, copper coated grounding rod, fourteen warning signs, gate switch, 115 db siren, energizer/monitor/controller, remote control, all of the wire, cables, conduit, etc.. It took three men, three days to properly install the electric fence. The cost was below 90,000 baht. I paid a 40 % deposit and 60% when the installation was complete via bank transfer. It was easy to get a written price quote from both Electric fence companies once I e-mailed them our plot specifications and some photos of the existing cement block fence. Travel costs to Buriram from Bangkok was not a issue since the Wasp Security truck was a sensible Suzuki NGV or LPG powered vehicle.

For the Stainless steel fence I paid 82,500 baht (11 meters @ 7,500 baht per meter). I could have installed a cheaper grade of stainless and cheaper thinner posts, but this better quality Korean stainless worked out best for us. The maid is not fearful to clean the stainless steel fence if the electric fence is turned off. The 4.5 meter stainless steel gate was 50,625 baht of that grade/size/thickness Korean stainless steel.

[Dave the Dude]

Total cost including installation on 360 degrees of our just under one rai parcel, Wasp-Security installed 42 60cm powder coated posts with insulators, ten corner stays, fifteen 60 cm stainless steel posts, fourteen other posts or stays, copper coated grounding rod, fourteen warning signs, gate switch, 115 db siren, energizer/monitor/controller, remote control, all of the wire, cables, conduit, etc.. It took three men, three days to properly install the electric fence. The cost was below 90,000 baht. I paid a 40 % deposit and 60% when the installation was complete via bank transfer. It was easy to get a written price quote from both Electric fence companies once I e-mailed them our plot specifications and some photos of the existing cement block fence. Travel costs to Buriram from Bangkok was not a issue since the Wasp Security truck was a sensible Suzuki NGV or LPG powered vehicle.

For the Stainless steel fence I paid 82,500 baht (11 meters @ 7,500 baht per meter). I could have installed a cheaper grade of stainless and cheaper thinner posts, but this better quality Korean stainless worked out best for us. The maid is not fearful to clean the stainless steel fence if the electric fence is turned off. The 4.5 meter stainless steel gate was 50,625 baht of that grade/size/thickness Korean stainless steel.

Hi Bob the Builder

Nice job, mate.

Looks a very professionally fitted system.

I was wondering, have you thought if there was a way of an undesirable cutting your power supply and rendering the fence useless? Has it got battery back-up ?

Just one of my many obscure thoughts

Must come over to see you sometime.

Regards

Dave

[kamalabob2]

Funny guy Dave,

It sure is NOT "Bob the Builder", but Bob who PAID the builder and one or two sub contractors. "Upgrades, usually by my initiative, had a way of raising the cost of the home. Like ALL expats who have built a home in Thailand, it was not without it's moments of "doubt" and "surprises", but it all worked out. If all the subcontractors were as honorable, intelligent and truthful as the electric fence company I would have more hair and more baht. The largest frustration was sometimes not getting a prompt exactly correct translation of why a procedure was being done. Building a home is a real tough task for the Thai wife to translate and I can only imagine how difficult it must be for the Thai wives or girl friends being part of the "on the ground process" and the Expat paying the bills is back in his native country. But I think being a "fussy Farang" has real merit when you end up with a properly built home for a fraction of the cost a "already built in a housing estate by a developer" home of similar size and similar fittings would cost.

The Electric Fence does have a 12 volt rechargeable battery in the wall mounted control unit and even in recent lengthy power outages the fence is still active. We also posted a couple of signs in Thai with the universal picture of "do not cut electric or phone lines" that came with the alarm system. When the power goes out at our home the Panasonic "Stand-by Lights" go on automaticly.

When kids are swimming we turn off the electric fence.

[Dave the Dude]

Hi

Thank for explaining that Bob.

It certainly seem to be a very good system and the house and garden are looking very nice BTW.

On a slightly related note, have you any idea where one can get a wifi alarm system, not too elaborate or complicated.

Its was asked of me from a mate who wants to 'wire-up' a few barns and I have no idea of a source??

Dave

Edited March 30, 2009 by Dave the Dude

[kamalabob2]

The 90 baht Thai Language home MAGAZINES such as "Room" or "Life and Home" have several advertisements in each issue for wireless alarm companies. I think there will be a wide selection of alarm companies with booths at the free Architect Expo that starts in late April at Impact in Bangkok. For me in selecting which security system firm, was the written "after sales service agreement" and length of warranty for a system they install in our rural area. Prices did vary widely for very similar equipment. We went for a wired system, but the wires were installed in PVC PRIOR to wall rendering.

[InSiSongkram]

There was an article in the Bangkok Post the other day with the owner from Wasp-Security thanks for the info Bob very interesting.

[zenidea1]

Off the top of my head I can`t remember the size exactly will let you know when I can find the drawings. The contract cost was 1.76 Baht then we did an upgrade of 200K with best materials for bathrooms and kitchen to have the finish we wanted.

do you have the contact details of the builder please I intend looking for builders at the end of this year in sakhonakhon area

[InSiSongkram]

I have sent PM`s to all people asking for the building contractors details.

Thanks.

[sydneypete]

In Korat, there is a huge modern trade called Neo House Products.

You can visit their website www.neohouseproducts.com or call 044-465-888

they sell everything for construction and decorate your house and what i like is they have some nice furniture that this company produces it for their own brand and it is chaep and nice espeacially espeacially wood furniture (their wood is so nice)

they also have a team of construction and design for consulting and design, such as, bathroom,kitchen or house renovation.

I recommend you to go there!

[kamalabob2]

I am not sure who SydneyPete is, but I have shopped at several large building materials stores in Korat. When I first parked in the empty parking lot and walked in the building I was not sure about Neo House since they did not seem to have many customers, they did not have everything I wanted on display. On first glance they appear to be aiming at the higher end of the market, but they actually have a WIDE selection of goods and were less expensive than Home Pro.

For the items I purchased, especially the wood furniture, even custom designed, (all via e-mail back and forth) it has been a GREAT experience. At least one of the owners of this establishment speaks and understands English, at least one saleswoman was fluent in English. Written price quotes in person or via e-mail went well. Neo House kept to delivery schedule on furniture and building materials purchases. We did not follow their recommendation on one furniture item, it developed a defect, and one upholstered sofa had a minor manufacturing flaw.

No run around, we e-mailed a photo (We live two hours away from Neo House) and they sent a brand new replacements at no charge!! This in the Nation where many modern trade stores, local or chain often work very hard to NOT exchange a defective item. Neo House in our experience is top notch in customer service. They will quote prices on special order items and in stock items.

The interior furnishings design department in fact quite impressive. This store offered us the lowest price, but with premium service to buy good quality paving blocks and have a reputable sub contractor install the blocks. The written price quote from Neo House for this project labor was 1/3 the price we were quoted by another well known paving block company. It was 1/2 the price of a Buriram building contractor's "garden design man".

A major paving block company sent out two salesmen to "measure our driveway" and they wrote down the size. I had given these dimensions to Neo House for their price quote. Once the job started I added more square meters to install the blocks. At the end of the job an English speaking supervisor of the sub contractor did measurements and they to our pleasant surprise were less than the major paving block company had stated. Neo House took back for full credit any scratched blocks and the extra blocks delivered due to the incorrect dimensions of the other company. The total job was then priced under the original price bid and Neo House graciously adjusted the price LOWER. There was no "funny business" on the transaction and one of the owners of Neo House kept in phone and e-mail contact every day, and sent a REAL supervisor to inspect the job. The same sub contractor just finished building an attractive learning/retail? complex near the largest hotel in Buriram.

In my opinion it is a store worth giving you a bid if you are within two hours of Korat. Delivery was free with both of our orders and this was last year with high fuel prices.

[InSiSongkram]

1st post your company by any chance or do you work for them? Actually kamalabob2 one of the biggest problems I have found up in Isaan is good quality home furniture like sofas, wardrobes, kitchen units etc. Korat is a bit far from me but if ever I`m there I`ll give it a look thanks for the good informative post and pics.

In Korat, there is a huge modern trade called Neo House Products.

You can visit their website www.neohouseproducts.com or call 044-465-888

they sell everything for construction and decorate your house and what i like is they have some nice furniture that this company produces it for their own brand and it is chaep and nice espeacially espeacially wood furniture (their wood is so nice)

they also have a team of construction and design for consulting and design, such as, bathroom,kitchen or house renovation.

I recommend you to go there!

Edited May 9, 2009 by InSiSongkram

[blackcountryboing]

I have installed a Yale wireless alarm system I purhcased in UK, You can add up to 20 devices to this the choice covers

PIR sensor

PIR pet friendly

Remote keypad

Smoke detectore

Window/Door contacts

Wireless remote control

And Sirens

This is a great system and easy for anyone to set up, it has a home mode also so you can set which sensors you want left on at night also it will bleep when one of the doors is opened such as the front door.

I have also purhcased a cattle grade electric fence, braded rope, insulated screws, solar panel and battery.

The electric fence runs itself, just let the solar panel charge up the battery and turn it on and off at night. I have added a mains connection if the battery was to fail... the fence is set behind 3 strands of barb wire ontop off the wall. This was a fraction of the cost that was payed above and pretty easy to set up.

I have put some posting on here about this, but as usual with TV you get the whinging old T***s that like to complain about everything, its my house and I want my own security.. and it dont look obscene.

Its all a good deterant... some nice high voltage signs from Global on the wall also add to the effect.

[PaddyThai]

Kamalbob,

Looked at most recent photos - class act.

I think it's a great achievement to have built something of such beauty, comfort and functionality.

[VocalNeal]

I have also purhcased a cattle grade electric fence, braded rope, insulated screws, solar panel and battery.

The electric fence runs itself, just let the solar panel charge up the battery and turn it on and off at night. I have added a mains connection if the battery was to fail... the fence is set behind 3 strands of barb wire ontop off the wall. This was a fraction of the cost that was payed above and pretty easy to set up.

I have put some posting on here about this, but as usual with TV you get the whinging old T***s that like to complain about everything, its my house and I want my own security.. and it dont look obscene.

Its all a good deterant... some nice high voltage signs from Global on the wall also add to the effect.

Blackcountry,

I noticed your post on another forum here is my same response.

May I humbly suggest next time that you not using braided rope. Firstly that is for horses and secondly I wonder if a thief is going to connect (sic) braided rope with the possiblilty of a shock. He may think you just have some signs hung on a piece of string. For animal fence warning the local "code" is small strips of white shopping bag hung at intervals.

Yes the intimidating look of a properly installed security fence and all the warning signs act as a deterrent against petty crime. But for security against human intrusion, rather than corraling of animals, it is the detection capability of a properly installed security fence that is the primary benefit. If the fence is tampered with or attempted to be breached, an alarm is generated alerting the property owner before access is gained.

Hi Kamalabob.

[Inuit1963]

I`ve seen this topic come up a lot lately and it always seems to generate a lot of interest so I thought I would share a few photos of my new house that has just been completed with a few details as it is always interesting to read others stories and gather knowledge.

In the bigger Cities like Bangkok, Pattaya etc I think it is easier to find a reliable quality contractor who can do the work for you and deliver a good home but when you are looking to build a new house in Isaan it is nerve wracking experience (well it was for me) as there are not as many choices up here as far as builders go and you have to tread carefully.

Myself and my wife bought a small plot of land about a year ago which suited us as the location was good near to her family about 45 mins from Nakhon Phanom. We went about the process of screening some contractors and looking at examples of houses that they had completed recently, most of them for falangs. We short listed a couple and then made our decision putting our designs forward to them to get their views. I did most of the design myself as I knew what I wanted such as open plan kitchen, hot water in all rooms, walk in shower and basically a better finish than some of the properties we have seen over the years here. We decided to make it a 2 Bedroom instead of 3 and make the rooms bigger as we don't have a large family. This turned out to be probably the best move of all as the rooms really are huge with plenty of space and lots of light.

It took them about 5 months to build the home but we are very happy with what they have done and it has gone beyond our expectations in terms of quality and finishing's (which were upgraded from original specs). There were a few minor teething problems along the way but I think that comes with any new build and were always rectified. Here are a few images picked at random of the house just before completion and the carpentry work. Any questions feel free to ask or send me a message.

Thanks.

Congratulations on your new home.

We want to build a house in Sawat, Loeng Nok Tha, Yasothon, Thailand.

Looking for recommendations for a quality homebuilder

Who did you use ??

Brgds

Tim

[TBWG]

My wife had her family build a concrete block perimeter wall for our Buriram Province land parcel PRIOR to a few hundred loads of dirt being trucked into the plot to raise the ground level. After the home was built we had a local Buriram stainless steel fence fabricator install a rolling gate for vehicles and hinged gate for people. That local firm also installed stainless steel atop the front cement block fence. I did not want to have a fence similar to the embassy compounds in Bangkok. Money considerations at this point in the construction "process" were a major consideration, but #1 was a fence topping that would hinder potential intruders or give them pause to consider a different "softer" target. The cost of window bars was prohibitive in our situation, and metal security doors of decent quality on exterior doors really would add up to a significant sum of money.

So I looked at the web site of Wasp Security and a different electric fence company in Thailand. I got written price quotes from both firms. I met in person with Mike Rust the owner of Wasp Security in Bangkok at his small office workshop near a BTS station to see the actual products he sells. He had sent me a firm price quote in advance of this meeting and no effort was attempted to "up sell" and change the bid price. I had previously e-mailed to him photos of our existing cement block fence along with accurate linear measurements so he and the other firm could make an accurate price bid.

Prior to installation Mike and his Thai installation manager came to our Buriram Province home to look at the fencing and gates we had installed. They also double checked how the fence would be powered, where the siren and alarm connections would interface and how to properly deal with "difficult" corners. He also double checked the paint colors for the metal posts to coordinate with our existing painted fence.

On the scheduled day his three man crew of polite, clean, courteous installers arrived and for the next three days did a 100% professional installation. My wife was happy to feed his crew lunch as she said they were more considerate and cleaner than any other sub contractor we had on site in the past twelve months of home construction. After a complete testing of the system the staff took the time to explain to my wife and our maid how to properly use the system. The written instructions for the made in Brazil controller was in English. Mike easily and completely answered my few remaining questions over the phone.

9 months later there have been no malfunctions, only one false alarm due to a large tree branch falling onto the wires (they did not break) from a neighbor's tree. It was easy for us to figure out the cause of the alarm as we could see the tree branch. We also viewed how many neighbors came out to see the reason for the alarm sounding. This was not like the response to a car alarm siren in Los Angeles.

In our little town the electric supply from the Provincial Electricity Authority can be out for over five hours at a stretch, but the back up battery in our Electric fence has NEVER run out.

So for those with a cement block fence considering an Iron, stainless steel or barbed/razer wire topping I really think it is well worth your time to get a price quote from Wasp Security or another Electric Fence company in Thailand. The cost per linear foot is FAR LOWER than ordinary iron, and a small fraction of the cost of stainless steel topping. Our electric bill did NOT jump, but having an electric fence topping (legal) with proper signs in Thai gives us the freedom travel and leave the home empty with zero worries of attempted intruders.

The "math" worked simple for us: Which costs less: Cost of ordinary metal topping on the three sides of the property? Cost of the Electric fence topping for four sides? This did not even take into account the cost of any home windows or any doors to have security bars.

Here are photos of the electric fence on top of our side fence and on top of the front fence which already had stainless steel. We initially were concerned that our domestic pets might be accidentally shocked by the fence, but the cats do not go on top of the cement fence and our next door neighbor keeps his pet baby elephant away from the fence.

Only just seen this post ~~~ but the Farang in the panama hat with his pet elephant looks very shifty!!

TBWG

PS Want to buy any Elephant dung?

Edited July 29, 2009 by TBWG

[InSiSongkram]

Hi Tim,

I`m not sure where Sawat is without pulling a map out. The construction company only builds around the Nakhon Phanom, Sakhon Nakhon, Mukkdahan areas or within a certain radius if thats close to you let me know and I`ll gladly help.

Thanks.

Congratulations on your new home.

We want to build a house in Sawat, Loeng Nok Tha, Yasothon, Thailand.

Looking for recommendations for a quality homebuilder

Who did you use ??

Brgds

Tim

[Inuit1963]

Hi Tim,

I`m not sure where Sawat is without pulling a map out. The construction company only builds around the Nakhon Phanom, Sakhon Nakhon, Mukkdahan areas or within a certain radius if thats close to you let me know and I`ll gladly help.

Thanks.

Thanks for the fast reply

It is almost 200 km from Mugdahan in Yasothon area

[longstebe]

Thought I would bring this topic back to life.

My house is currently receiving a face lift. I have 4 workers working everyday and another 2 on and off.

No major problems as of yet but it seems like they have slowed down a lot from the first few days.

Is this pretty normal?

They have been getting paid along the way and I have been taking them some cold drinks from time to time.

Any thoughts would be great.

[NanaFoods]

Re: the OP

Sweet crib, yo.

[InSiSongkram]

You need to keep on top of the builders are they from a contracting company or just guys from the village? Do you have a secure contract in place for milestones achieved as per payments made on schedule? Otherwise you may face problems why should they be slowing down they should work at a constant pace if you are paying them on time.

Good luck.

Thought I would bring this topic back to life.

My house is currently receiving a face lift. I have 4 workers working everyday and another 2 on and off.

No major problems as of yet but it seems like they have slowed down a lot from the first few days.

Is this pretty normal?

They have been getting paid along the way and I have been taking them some cold drinks from time to time.

Any thoughts would be great.

Edited September 6, 2009 by InSiSongkram

[InSiSongkram]

Cheers Chef,

We`re very happy with the end result could not have asked for more.

Re: the OP

Sweet crib, yo.

[MJP]

Nice job, now you've got to furnish it.

Cheaper than you realise up here in Issan.

Office desk and chair 5500 baht

Table with 6 stools 7000 Baht

Just had a custom made double bed made for the spare room, teak, 8000 Baht

Coffee tables 1500 Baht each

All legal teak root.

Book shelves, rubber wood, 290 Baht each, then use a mix of Cuprinol/Chaindrite dark/TOA boat varnish/white spirit to finish them. Look great.

Must say the OP did very well with the costs on that build. Very big house for very small money.

Teak_table.pdf

Office_table.pdf

Edited September 6, 2009 by MJP