House Build

I have spoke to Brian about these a bit and they see to be a very nice system to build with. But on the other hand I have done some research on the cost of the forms they are not cheap for just one or 2 builds considering local labor costs. it seems these would cost more to use with shipping of forms and form costs themselves than to just buy regular concrete wall forms and have them shipped over in a sea container and build solid 5" walls with rebar and steel 4x4 mesh and solid piers at 8-12ft centers but I also like the EVG panels for sound and insulation factor this thread has given me many good ideas in my future build this winter. also I wanted to ask about the costs of the EVG panels and availability to find locally.

 

I also noticed that they were calling for 5000 psi concrete for the roof with those, which I think would be difficult to get in the Philippines, short of a custom mix from a batch plant.

The EVG panels are 1300+ for a 4'X8' panel and are available out of Cebu, shipping can be time consuming.

Shawn

 

Some pics from a Monday

I've figured "tomorrow" is not coming with the EVG panels and have decided it will be easier to think they will be delivered "this week".

Had to go with 6" block for the shower stall back wall to be able to conceal the drain and vent lines, should not be a problem.

Most of the workers spent the day moving sand and gravel to the back of the house by the nipa as we should be getting some backfill material delivered in the morning to bring up the interior of the house.

Shawn

 

but if one was to make the mould it would be very cheap, but have not looked into the concrete strength need in PH

 

what is the strength required here for the type of wall made from the mould? what is the strength / mix used for the piers on your house?

 

Brian...the 5000 psi was from a Google search on that panel system for the roof panels. With a column and beam system that is normal here, the drawings I needed done to get building permits called out 3000 psi; I went with a mix design of 3500 figuring that even with a cement mixer there would be some "variations" with what the workers would produce.

I hope folks can see from the pics I posted that we followed the rebar plan and the forms were made large enough to ensure that we had concrete coverage of the rebar when it was placed. Crushed gravel with the correct aggregate size is key as the round river stone normally used here is not correct. Vibrating the concrete is also very important; and if I can get my computer and camera to "talk" I will post some pics of the stairs, to include a picture of an area of honey combing that really pissed me off.

Shawn

 

Tuesday pics

Received a truck of backfill material, way too many large rocks so the wife was on the phone complaining. Any stone over 4" is not suitable for compaction (or fist size as I explained to the workers). My plate compactor sheared a bolt so it went off to get repaired, hopefully it won't be down for too long as we really need it as we backfill the interior for the floor slab.

We pulled the forms for the exterior stairs and I was really concerned as the first thing I saw was some major honey combing at 2 of the stair risers...the rest of the stairs looked good, especially the bottom. We can patch that area but was not happy at all. I know we lost the second vibrator during the placement and the guys said they were smacking the exterior of the forms with hammers but when you see your rebar it is concerning. We will have to chip things out a little as the void goes in a bit.

Hopefully the other pics show what we are doing around the window (and later door openings) to reinforce the EVG panels. After the initial rendering is done we will wrap the openings with the stucco mesh to get a solid area for the doors and windows. I searched everything I could on these panels and am doing a bit more reinforcement than was recommended, but just don't want any cracks to appear later. I am in the mindset that I would rather spend a dollar today than 10 later to fix something.

Shawn

 

A few more pics

Received 2 more trucks of backfill material, so we have a huge pile of dirt (22 cubic meters per truck). The plate compactor wasn't returned until after the workers left for the day, so we went with the local way of manual compaction to keep things moving.

The front door will have a screened security door so I went with 6" block and concrete for the thickness of having 2 doors. It will have a double cylinder deadbolt (keyed on both sides) so that we can keep the main door open at night to keep air flow without worrying about someone getting in.

The EVG panels are supposed to be in Dumaguete so it is all about getting them to Tanjay now. Things should really start looking different as we get things closed in, interior backfill done and electrical and plumbing rough in.

Shawn

 

What ratio of gravel to sand to cement did you use to end up with the mix you wanted. 3:2:1 or ??

 

4:2:1 for 3500 psi mix

Shawn