Building a Home in Davao

[Tommy T.]

9 minutes ago, hk blues said:

I prefer to get one-man bands to do projects whenever possible as it avoids the issues you mention.  

The unit next door to mine is being renovated and I can well understand why they might not get full pay - for me, a full day's pay is for a full day's work.  A full day's work doesn't mean starting at 10am and finishing at 4pm with at least 1 hour for lunch.  And that's on a busy day!  The project manager is under lockdown so it's hard for him to monitor them.  

 

There are great arguments for and against being your own contractor. Generally, hiring a contractor makes the most sense to me.

Trying to keep track of a few workers would - to me - require 24/7 supervision...  And I would need to have a native speaker onsite too...

However, the owner must keep tabs on that contractor to make sure he/she does what is expected. That was our problem... our contractor did not provide details about construction progress or costs... That is all I will say now...

 

[hk blues]

Just now, Tommy T. said:

There are great arguments for and against being your own contractor. Generally, hiring a contractor makes the most sense to me.

Trying to keep track of a few workers would - to me - require 24/7 supervision...  And I would need to have a native speaker onsite too...

However, the owner must keep tabs on that contractor to make sure he/she does what is expected. That was our problem... our contractor did not provide details about construction progress or costs... That is all I will say now...

 

Maybe I wasn't clear - I didn't mean do the work yourself, I meant hire a contractor who will do the job rather than simply hire others to do the work.  I've not built a house here but have done a fair few projects and always use a small contractor who is doing the job.

Not possible on a whole house build I know, Tom.

[Tommy T.]

13 minutes ago, hk blues said:

Not possible on a whole house build I know, Tom.

Yeah... I understand your comment, HK. My comment was also maybe not clear... I can see hiring a contractor for some project. But, even then, there should be supervision... L and I see that the contractor's foreman is friendly to his workers...

No problem, really, but there is some laxity in his supervision that we see even in our short visits. The real problem is with the contractor and her lack of supervision. She is spread too thin - too many projects - and not enough attention to each one - including ours. It is so fortunate that L sort of forced me to visit the home site so often to check on the work. We have corrected or improved many parts of the build... The contractor only visited maybe once in a week or two... That is one of our big issues with her...

And her husband, who was supposed to assist, has proven totally useless... even the contractor tells us that and with him in attendance!

And, again... L wonders why I drink so much Tanduay!!!!???

Edited September 29, 2020 by Tommy T.

[GeoffH]

1 hour ago, Tommy T. said:

And, again... L wonders why I drink so much Tanduay!!!!???

Hang in there Tommy... and if it gets too much for a bit just walk away for a while.

The problem will still be there when you get back but at least you'll get a break from it (and hopefully a Tanduay).

[Tommy T.]

1 hour ago, GeoffH said:

Hang in there Tommy... and if it gets too much for a bit just walk away for a while.

The problem will still be there when you get back but at least you'll get a break from it (and hopefully a Tanduay).

Thanks, Geoff... I know I can always rely on you for sound advice!

But I think I need to run away rather than walk away right now. I know it will all work out, but my frustration level is currently very high...

Hmmm... and your comment should have been "problems", plural, rather than singular... just keeping you honest, my friend...!

 

Edited September 29, 2020 by Tommy T.

[Tommy T.]

What a difference a couple of days makes.

We finally have electricity!

The sparky is still finishing up on the lighting installation and wiring, but yesterday he powered up the breaker panel and switched on some lights. They sure make a difference...

The ceiling fans work fine and are super quiet too. The sparky was beaming when he saw our reactions to finally having lights.

Some of the recessed lights need to be connected up. And to the right is a TV cabinet that L had made for the house. It still needs to be assembled.

The aircon guy will meet us there on Saturday to test the units, install the last one and I can pay him for the final bit of installation.

OTR fixed up the island counter top alignment but were struggling to find replacement, laminated marine ply to match the others in order to get rid of the stupid holes.

Speaking of holes, the bottom step had two holes drilled in it for some reason. It's a shame, because it is hardwood and a replacement will have to come from far away. But they did agree to replace it.

We have started shopping for sofa, chairs, two beds some tables and table lamps to make the place livable once the boys are done with the work. Furniture seems very expensive. But, for once, there seems to be a bit of variety available and prices are not fixed so much as they are with other things we buy. SM Home is a joke - astronomical prices and little selection. Mandaue Foam seems more reasonable all around, so far.

And finally, the window company was back out and completing their installation. They will still need to return again to install the screens since they are waiting for some parts.

So, I guess my yelling (much as I didn't like to do that really) paid off, because people are jumping to the work.

Oh... and we moved some potted plants from around the apartment to the property too. They really make it look more like a home. We are looking forward to vegetable, tree and flower planting soon.

Edited October 1, 2020 by Tommy T.

[hk blues]

Getting there Tom.

A quick suggestion about the island problem - if they cannot get a matching plywood panel you could follow the latest trend of having a contrasting island colour i.e. make it a completely different (complementary) colour. I suspect you're like me and would be driven mad by the holes no matter how well they're repaired.

[Tommy T.]

21 minutes ago, hk blues said:

A quick suggestion about the island problem - if they cannot get a matching plywood panel you could follow the latest trend of having a contrasting island colour i.e. make it a completely different (complementary) colour. I suspect you're like me and would be driven mad by the holes no matter how well they're repaired.

Thanks for the suggestion, HK...

The section with the holes is not on the island, but rather on one of the hanging cabinets next to the sink. They said, at first, that they would have to order a replacement from Korea and it would take one or two months! We said that really wasn't acceptable. We suggested air freight to fix THEIR problem. They replied that they would search their resources more thoroughly to try to find a piece.

Apparently they might have found something because they said they would be there today or tomorrow again to fix. I guess we'll see when we return on Saturday. Whatever it takes, we will at least have a cabinet in place that is functional, if a bit ugly, until it is properly fixed.

But we are pleased with the counter top repair. It looked so bad that we just shook our heads that they let it go at first. So their production staff and installers (separate sub contractors) tend to be a bit sloppy.

[GeoffH]

3 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

We have started shopping for sofa, chairs, two beds some tables and table lamps to make the place livable once the boys are done with the work. Furniture seems very expensive.

 

Your house is really coming together Tommy and it's looking great!

I hear you about the furniture too, SWMBO messaged me about a month ago with some photos of the sofa and chairs in the downstairs sala.  The leather was worn and cracked (it was pretty bad even last time I was there so I knew this was coming).

A search of CDO stores found some cheap sets (like we have in the small upstairs sitting area) or really expensive (and still not great quality) ones.

 

[RBM]

We have found Mandaue foam to have reasonable quality and good to deal with. Its our preferred choice of furnitures.