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Review of plan prepared
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Dear Mr.Thomas,
Please find the floor plan, site plan and electrical markups and vasthu corrections (not much changes, except few sizing and over all area) ..
Hope and believe this will help you to review and give your valuable suggestions and guidance on the attached plans .Based on this we will proceed further to next stage of scheduling a site visit and further steps..
FYI – We like follow cost effective, natural/eco friendly but classic-traditional-elegant- approaches with innovative and modern techniques.
John.
My reply
On Vasthu,you seem to have consulted typical Kerala ashari who go by wrong ideas and Chuttalavu which has no mention in any of the authentic Vasthu books
Even positions of rooms they follow are different and wrong
For example South east is Agnikonam ideal place for Kitchen.North east is Esaana Konam ideal for Pooja room and well and definitely not good for Kitchen or Bed room
You have bed rooms at south west and North west which are good
For an East facing house,gate and car porch should come at North half.Here car porch comes at South.I do not understand why a passage is given from car porch to house
Even though bed room sizes are quite big,two bed rooms sharing one toilet with two separate doors is simply foolish and ridiculous.You could have added Dress and Toilet even by reducing Bed room dimensions thereby giving more utility to bed space
Lot of space is simply wasted and there is not enough space where it really require
I do not know why you require a stair from inside for a single floor house
Rest of the comments I can make after a site visit.
Clay tiles for floor and Hollow Blocks
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Dear Thomas:
Happened to read your excellent informative blog and had questions - Clay Tiles and Clay hollow bricks.
I am yet to start my house construction. I live in Tripunithura.
Clay Tile Flooring
I was thinking about clay tiles for flooring and many folks discouraged me(same story - fungus, slippery etc). But after reading your blog, have some confidence.
http://www.kapindiatiles.com/flooring.htm
In this page, I liked the 2nd picture flooring. Is that clay tiles too?
Hollow bricks:
http://www.kapindiatiles.com/bricksforwalls.htm
Planned to do hollow bricks for my walls. Got discouraged when my contractor said anyone, especially robbers, can easily slit through exposed hollow bricks. Is this true?
Actually I was thinking of using hollow bricks and then plastering both sides. Would I still get the benefit of heat reduction if I use plastering ?
Also can I can cut down time as well as cement usage if I use clay hollow bricks instead of traditional bricks?
Pricing
If you can please give more details on following or provide a contact person and number, that would be helpful.
I would like to get more details on pricing and transportation etc..
I live in Tripunithura and from where can I get these tiles and hollow bricks? From Trichur, I guess?
Tiles:
What is cost per sf? What could be final cost(approximate) per s f including additional works required (acid wash, urethane etc.).
Also are skilled workers available? where are they located?
Hollow bricks:
My engineer says I need 20 inch walls. That said, what type of hollow bricks do I need? I also need roofing bricks.
Please give an idea of cost per block, transportation cost and details, availability, how soon you can ship to Tripunithura etc. After how many days can I get the bricks?
Please provide details or a contact person with number.
Thanks
Thomas
My reply
Clay tiles do not get fungus after proper polishing.Clay tiles laid on my office flat roof eight years back are still without any fungus.Clay tiles are not slippery like ceramic or vitrified tiles
What you have indicated are Kurudy clay tiles used for construction of walls and even as filler for roof concrete.There is no harm in it having hollow inside and no thief can open it easily.You can use these blocks or solid /hollow concrete blocks for construction of wall.Semi wire cut bricks though costly are better for construction of walls from the point of strength
Heat inside house can be reduced by better design by a well qualified experienced Architect who can design a house with better ventilation and easy flow of light and wind
Cost of tiles will have to be checked up with manufacturer/supplier
No body uses 20 inches wall for house construction.For load bearing walls 20 cm thickness is sufficient.For partition walls,10 cm walls can be used
Building Permit
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Hello Mr. Thomas.
Thanks for allowing me to post a question. I am constructing a home in Kothamangalam that comes under Panchayat area. My home is just less than 3000 sq.ft. I am building only one floor and has some plans to build upstairs for rental in the future. So my questions are -
1) Do I get a separate building number for my upstairs unit? The stair case has direct access from outside as well as from the ground floor unit.
2) My Architect says that I need to leave 4 ft width for my stair case as per new regulations in cochin area (he is from cochin) when I make that as a passage to the rental unit. so he think it might get extended to panchayat sooner. But I am not happy giving almost 8 ft for stair case room. Do you think this will be an issue for me in the future?
3) If I don't get a separate number, then I don't need to worry about the staircase width rite? I don't need to give any approvals to rent out my upstairs unit if its part of same building number. Does it has any difficulty in getting a separate electricity connection and all?
4) If I get 2 building number for the same building, will I be avoiding the luxury tax (3000 sq.ft+)? <3000 for first unit and ~1000 sq.ft. for upstairs unit.
Please provide your valuable suggestions.
Thanks
Eldho
My reply
1.You can get a separate building no for upstairs if that is an independent dwelling unit.You will have to show ground and upper floors as separate dwelling units in completion plan or simply inform Panchayath accordingly if your house s under construction are in panchayath area
2.Outside stair can be kept in clearance space as per building rules and hence you do not have to leave extra space for it.
3.If you get a separate building no for both floors,you can get separate Electric connections
4.When you have two building no's panchayath tax will be less for both house units
House construction work after plastering(Interior works)
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Dear Sir,
My house construction is going on in Changanacherry,Kottayam( dist.)now the plastering of walls is going on,this is a 2 storey building,I would like you to do interior design including kitchen and bed room cabinets,wardrobes etc.,please clarify the details you need from my side
hope to see an early reply
Regards
Krishna Kumar
My reply
We can take complete Interior work for the house which include following
1.Plumbing work with expert workers from Cochin with latest technology inputs
2.Electrical wiring again with our expert workers
3.Putty work before painting
4.Enamel painting/polishing/wall painting
5.Interior wood work like modular Kitchen,cupboards etc.
6.Furniture work with hand carving if required
7.Flooring and toilet wall/floor tile laying with latest trend designs/patterns
8.Landscaping work and any other related work
It will be beneficial to you if I can visit site,take measurements,assess work already done and suggest improvements and check vasthu compliance
Please send me plan of your house in pdf clearly marking directions and positions of roads
Right now we are doing similar work for another house at Changanassery for which work up to plastering was done by somebody else.Plumbing work is in progress there
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Dear Sir, We have a G+1 floor house at Chennai, we wish to construct one more floor using wooden structure of Kerala Heritage house. Is it possible to relocate? we can discuss all details, in case you see a possibility. regards,
Chidamber PL
My reply
There are people in Kerala who buy old houses with lot of traditional wood work,knock it down and recreate it anywhere.Even though they buy at lower cost,they charge very high.
So It will be better to do the work using new material keeping all good features of traditional Kerala work.If interested we can work out details.
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Dear Thomas,
Surfing through the NET in search of someone to provide technical advise on Kitchen designing , came across your web site and felt you can help me to get my Kitchen designed and arranged in a proper manner. Based in Vypin, my house is now under construction and wish to get your professional advise for my upcoming house's kitchen. My kitchen's plan would be as per the attached photo (it is from your own site) as its entrance from West and the window side is East and the out door is towards South as it is opening out to a work area room .
Hope to hear from you soon to discuss more details.
Thank you for your time.
Sebastian
I can visit your house under construction and give my suggestions on pending works and comments on work already done.I can also do a Vasthu evaluation of the house
After the visit,I can give you offer for design and construction of modular Kitchen and other interior work.I can get the work done with professional care and quality with my workers and professional team.
QUOTE
I have 7 cents in an housing plot.Again the reliability, management style of your company, man and material active reference from your list, all are important factors for my decision making process. Also the budgeting part for a medium house 2500 sq. feet is very essential. I will be visiting Kochi, during the month of March. I can make a deal, Why don't give me a figure, which you have already constructed from your list.
.Again I am well aware no body can pin point the right figure with respect to material handling of house constructions.. But as a marketing point of view, there is a figure. 1+ is always two ?
Regards,
Mathew,
My reply
Unlike non professional contractors who try to get contract by telling lies ,I do not have to tell lies to get business.As a qualified and experienced professional in the field,after directly constructing more than 200 houses in Kerala,I can tell that if some one talk of a square feet cost of construction without studying site conditions and without a design of the house,it can only be a lie
If you are going to give work related to your house only if I tell a lie,I do not want that work.
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Sir,
i have got information about you from the website. Ma Name is Raoof, working in Abu Dhabi. My house is Under Construction and Structure Finnish. But i want reduce the expense in the Finishing works. So i wish to get advice from your side. Please provide if u can
Abdul Raoof
Abu Dhabi
My reply
After completing structure work of the house, much more complicated work which may require even more amount of money are pending.
You need advice and guidance of a qualified and experienced person to know various options available to you, latest trends and ways and means to decrease cost while improving utility and appearance of the building.
Look at some of the pending works:
1. Putty finish for walls and painting
2. Flooring
3. Plumbing and sanitary works
4. Electrical wiring and fittings
5. Interior woodwork and Interior lay out design
6. Vasthu compliance of building constructed
7. Structural /Architectural correctness of construction done
8. Land scape design, arrangements and much more
So you require a visit by a qualified experienced professional to the site. After the visit you will get a detailed report on assessing work already done and suggesting how to go about in the case of future works
I can visit your site and give you these details, information and guidance
Please let me know whether you are interested. After the visit, we can also provide our expert workers for the balance finishing works in the house under construction
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I have read your article on clay flooring . Due to my budget problem I intend to go for clay flooring for my 2 bedroom and living room which will not be more that 700sq feet . Total area of the the house would be 1300sqft .My house is in Tellicherry . Do you do only flooring job or can u suggest any contract who specialise in this flooring in Tellicherry .This house is for my aged parents .
Your advise in this matter is highly appreciated.
regards
Naren
My reply
After completing structure work of the house, much more complicated work which may require even more amount of money are pending
You need advice and guidance of a qualified and experienced person to know various options available to you, latest trends and ways and means to decrease cost while improving utility and appearance of the building.
Look at some of the pending works
1. Putty finish for walls and painting
2. Flooring
3. Plumbing and sanitary works
4. Electrical wiring and fittings
5. Interior woodwork and Interior lay out design
6. Vasthu compliance of building constructed
7. Structural /Architectural correctness of construction done
8. Land scape design, arrangements and much more
So you require a visit by a qualified experienced professional to the site. After the visit you will get a detailed report on assessing work already done and suggesting how to go about in the case of future works
I can visit your site at Tellicherry and give you these details, information and guidance.Please let me know whether you are interested. After the visit, we can also provide our expert workers for the balance finishing works in the house under construction
QUOTE
I had read your blog and found it be very informative.
Like others i am also very confused on flooring.
I would like the entire house (3400 sq.ft) to have a uniform color and look and feel. I was planning for granite slabs from Bangalore, but have heard comments that it does not add to the look and feel.
I am currently abroad. If you need to discuss, my father can call you. Our house is in Chengannur.
Kindly advice.
Thanks and Regards,
Reji
My reply
You really require a qualified and experienced Architect to advise and guide you not only on flooring but also other finishing works for the house like the following:
1.Plumbing and sanitary fittings
2.Electrical wiring and fittings
3.Painting
4.Selection of toilet wall and floor tiles
5.Interior design and Interior wood work
On all these aspects of building construction there are technology changes and change of trends .Your local contractor ,friends and relatives may know a bit about these but definitely not on every aspect.
By obtaining consultancy and guidance from a professional you not only get advice on best options for your house meeting your budget,dreams and expectations ,but also get proper guidance to save quite a lot of your money.
For your house under construction at Chengannur I can visit your site and guide you on all these aspects and also assess work so far done and check Vasthu compliance.
Are you interested?
QUOTE
Happy New year to you. What is your opinion about wooden log houses in Kerala. Can it withstand our torrential rainfall . I have some land in Vagamon where i want to build a custom made wooden log house but my friends are discouraging me saying its not an ideal construction material for Kerala climatic conditions but my argument is log houses are more prevalent in extreme snowy countries where snow accumulates on the roof top. What is your opinion about this.
DR.Thomas Thomas
My Reply
Traditionally our old houses in Kerala were mostly made of wood.
Just click on link below where I have written on a Pathinaru Kettu house of erstwhile Maharaja of Travancore in Kayamkulam where he used to say during his vacation
http://kerala-architects.blogspot.com/2010/08/krishnapuram-palace-at-kayamkulam.html
If you look at the pictures you will notice that majority of building parts are made of wood
So there is nothing wrong in using or building a house with tree logs.Good seasoned wood will easily withstand our rains
But wood has become extremely costly in our place now.That is why use of wood has gone down.
Basically I would suggest you to plan a trip with your chosen Architect to the site and discuss in detail with him about your dreams for the house.
A qualified and experienced Architect can convert your dreams into reality and advise you properly
Of course,we can also act as your Architect if you are interested
