Building a Home in Davao

[Snowy79]

24 minutes ago, Tommy T. said:

@gas

We are about to use the refrigerator for the first time Since you have the same model, can you tell me if there is anything to remove by the compressor. The sales guys told me something about Styrofoam but I forgot. It is in its alcove now so it would need to be moved to access the back.

I appreciate any other thoughts or advice too.

Thanks!

Definitely research the model on online as some styrofaom is there for a reason and must be left.

[OnMyWay]

3 hours ago, GeoffH said:

I got frowned at by SWMBO and her mama look gobsmacked when I started pulling the blue plastic off the new stove for the kitchen a couple of years ago.  It wasn't until I explained 'on a stove that gets hot the blue plastic is a fire risk' that they relaxed :)

EXACTLY the same experience with our stove!  

[stevewool]

7 hours ago, RBM said:

I concur Tommy, Jack has given outstanding advice here, its up to yourself if you take it.

When we moved into our difficult build I thought as my neighbour (bank manager) would listen when we tried to explain her large dogs tied on a 1 meter chain would not allow us to sleep......Well talk about a can of worms....

Had we of know this earlier would not of built, she purchased this house during our build.....

If only I listened to that little voice in my head saying don’t do it , but hey we live and learn .

[Tommy T.]

i guess I was not clear in some previous posts I made....

I have absolutely no intention to try to change or even influence any neighbours, and neither does L. She advises me constantly on how to deal with various social situations here. That's a tough job for her sometimes because I am, by nature, a bit anti-social.

She taught me long ago that if a neighbour has a loud dog, plays loud music, is disruptive in almost any way, she and I just let it go. That is the way of things here. I don't like it, but that is part of what living here is about, so I accept it.

Regarding rubbish removal. The only problem here - at this time - is with the workers and vendors coming here. The workers are pretty good about picking up now. The vendors not so much. So, after the vendors leave, we or our workers clean up.

She has regular garbage removal service using tricycle drivers in her neighbourhood and it works well. Nobody around this area seems to leave much trash about and the barangay seems good about it too because we see very little trash along the roads there or here.

So, don't worry, mates, I will not be the Ugly American/foreigner and will never try to change the Philippine culture.  But I will try to keep our personal site clean... At least for a while. If people want to live with trash and filth outside, then I guess that's okay with me.

'Nuff said.

Meanwhile, we are staying our first night here. Some of the finish work is abysmal. I know I am a bit of a perfectionist with varnish, but there is a lot of overspray on door locks and other things. I guess they didn't know about masking tape?

However the home is looking way cool to us and generally is very nice. I will be able to fix and deal with the varnish - something to keep me busy and it will be much easier than working on a yacht out in open sun and worrying constantly about the next rain shower!

Looking down the lit stairs seems really cool to me and is exactly the effect I wanted.

First time to park the car in the carport and he seems right at home. I also could stay dry in the pouring rain today! You can even see the green trash bin I bought a few days ago.

Lastly, I want to thank all the members who have given suggestions and advice and support. I really cannot tell you how much that has helped us out. Soon... the beer's on me!!!

Edited October 28, 2020 by Tommy T.

[Jack Peterson]

1 minute ago, Tommy T. said:

'Nuff said

[Tommy T.]

6 hours ago, Snowy79 said:

Definitely research the model on online as some styrofaom is there for a reason and must be left.

Hey Snowy... I did something a bit unusual for me and actually read the owner's manual this afternoon before firing up the refer... Hmmm... amazing what one can learn from the factory manuals! Anyway, I learned that the part I was concerned about is the evaporator drip pan. It is placed after the installation and fits above the compressor and below the evaporator. I found it in the freezer compartment and ready for placement. I popped into place and then we started cooling our beer and Tanduay and even some real food!

So no need to check out Kuya G this time. But thanks for your good advice!

[stevewool]

4 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

 

Lastly, I want to thank all the members who have given suggestions and advice and support. I really cannot tell you how much that has helped us out. Soon... the beer's on me!!!

That’s going to be a expensive round 

[Tommy T.]

Well, the saga continues...

Our first night home was nice. L cooked some food and we also paid to have some delivered to the five remaining workers, along with rum and Cokes. They knocked off early...hahaha!

It's very dark at night here - as in few people run outside lights. It was also very quiet. We slept soundly.

Then this morning, L noticed a box with a lamp in it was wet on the bottom. I investigated and it was sitting in a small puddle of water. WTF??? Water was dripping slowly down the wall - just a bit. So the foreman investigated and measured and finally chipped about five feet of the cement wall behind our master's bedroom shower. He kept looking for the end of the wet pipe and found it right at a joint behind the mixer.

Apparently, when we both took nice, hot showers, the hot water in the joint caused it to fail. By the way, he did pressure test the system early on so was a bit surprised. He said he could fix it... But what a dirty job with cement chips and dust everywhere...and the house was just cleaned thoroughly the day before!

So he's off to get some repair parts... and they've already cleaned up the mess.

The red is the back of the mixer. He did not want to mess up the shower tiles so went in the back way. The culprit is one of the joints in the white PVC next to the mixer on the right. The green is the water pipe.

Edited October 29, 2020 by Tommy T.

[stevewool]

Every job is a messy job once the house in clean and completed , but it’s better finding these little problems sooner then later .

[hk blues]

1 hour ago, Tommy T. said:

Well, the saga continues...

Our first night home was nice. L cooked some food and we also paid to have some delivered to the five remaining workers, along with rum and Cokes. They knocked off early...hahaha!

It's very dark at night here - as in few people run outside lights. It was also very quiet. We slept soundly.

Then this morning, L noticed a box with a lamp in it was wet on the bottom. I investigated and it was sitting in a small puddle of water. WTF??? Water was dripping slowly down the wall - just a bit. So the foreman investigated and measured and finally chipped about five feet of the cement wall behind our master's bedroom shower. He kept looking for the end of the wet pipe and found it right at a joint behind the mixer.

Apparently, when we both took nice, hot showers, the hot water in the joint caused it to fail. By the way, he did pressure test the system early on so was a bit surprised. He said he could fix it... But what a dirty job with cement chips and dust everywhere...and the house was just cleaned thoroughly the day before!

So he's off to get some repair parts... and they've already cleaned up the mess.

The red is the back of the mixer. He did not want to mess up the shower tiles so went in the back way. The culprit is one of the joints in the white PVC next to the mixer on the right. The green is the water pipe.

Sorry to hear about that Tom,  but bearing in mind how much work is needed to build a house it's never going to be perfect out the gate.  No doubt you'll come across a few bits and pieces in time - just make sure you stay on good terms with the foreman and other workers as you'll need them again soon for repairs etc.