I absolutely love watching your videos-they're always so engaging and full of great content! However, I sometimes find it a bit challenging to enjoy them fully because the camera pans a little too quickly. The fast movement makes it hard to follow, and unfortunately, it even causes me to feel a bit motion sick. Would it be possible to slow down the panning just a bit? It would make the viewing experience so much more comfortable and enjoyable. Thank you!
It's a lot of work to build here, and paperwork, but yeah. The scenery, nature, and views in Bukidnon are amazing. Such a beautiful area of the Philippines!
Yeah, that wasn't even an option for us. I think more and more foreigners, as the age goes down (digital nomads and what not), will move into provinces and spread out. Dumaguete/Cebu/Davao/Manila will still be big for those that want to live in enclaves though/have access to Western stuff/be near other foreigners.
Thank you. For different reasons I will answer this way: The price here (in the Philippines, but especially in the province) depends A LOT on how urgent the seller needs money. Location, access to electricity, access to water, access to road has an effect, but mostly it's how desperately the seller needs funds. In addition, we're in Ancestral Domain, so an additional 30% will go to Fematrics/bgy/tribe (10% each). A hectare here will typically go for around 0.5-1.5 million PHP. However, it can go lower (MUCH lower if you don't need any paperwork, but obviously I wouldn't suggest that), and it can also go higher if the seller doesn't really need funds (a bit rare). The cheapest I heard was 30 k for 2.5 hectares, but don't expect anything like that (and that was with absolutely no paperwork). That was also between relatives. It is much cheaper in the province, but it comes with other issues. And the risk is higher for sure. Good luck!
They were given specific instructions for that, what angle I wanted etc. But no, they didn't. It'll be a little while video-wise, but we have it fixed now.
Filipino DNA is 50% mountain goat. I don't think I've ever seen her or any other Filipino fall or lose their footing. It's actually really impressive to behold! 😆
Yes, and we might have something on the patio as well, at least in future. Probably just a smaller barrel there, for watering plants or similar. But yeah, we'll collect the water from the roof in our large water tank.
As usual for us, bit of a backlog of videos, but in real-time we just got Plexibond on it and it looks a lot better now (should even be waterproof!). Thank you for watching! I love my model too!
Man I really pray for u and ur wife and hope this experience will be less painful than than I feel it is going to be. Keep making vids as this is going to be a case study of how NOT to build a longterm permanent home or great case study of how to build a temporary tent made of concrete. A mans home is his castle and its ur money (short term and long term, I see mucho funds in longterm maintainence, cracks, leaks)..........but as a man u should be guiding and protecting ur wife. Watching u so far I know I will do the following before I start building and if I dont I will not start......... 1) ensure i have the funds + 20% more 2) hire competent architect and engineer 3) Hire contractor 4) Live on proterty in Kubo/tent until complete. BTW......220v dont allow u to get shocked more than once........tht hit one time it kills you. (I see some errors but typing on phone is a pain)....I will be watching....Good Luck.
I'm assuming American? I think you're quite wrong about 220V vs 110V. It's not a pure voltage or amp thing, but high amp is typically way more dangerous than high voltage. There's a reason very few countries use 110V (not to mention the silly Imperial system that should be outlawed of course!). We expect some maintenance for sure, but even well built/more expensive houses have cracks and problems. Not saying your plan is bad, but hiring a contractor here only comes with one guarantee: it will be more expensive! Hiring the right contractor is very important, if you go that route. Oh, and 20% extra will probably not be enough, budget at least 50% in my opinion. Thank you for your concerns and for watching! I'm sure we'll be fine, but we'll update if things go bad of course! 😁
I completely agree that you should be an proactive member of the crew. I ran into a foreman there that pushed back on some of my instructions. We had to let him (and his crew) go and park the project until we found another crew. No such thing as over-engineering your house. I am really enjoying the videos. Thank you for all your time.
As Jamie mentioned: we'll have a water catching system (tank) at the back of the house. That's why the weep holes are there. Our crew aren't stubborn at all, we just put too much trust in their experience/knowledge. They've done it for years, we haven't built anything before. Live and learn, we're more involved now at least! Thank you for watching!
Can I ask the width & length of your house? We agree on a lot of things I'm American from Utah, Texas, & now a village S.W. of Pagadian. I to am making it hard on myself, so I can thrive here not just survive. UK & most of the W. in my opinion must stand up or were gonna loose our country & freedoms GO TRUMP..😂
If you ever get up to Cagayan De Oro, off the coast there is a small island, Camiguin, that was a real nice. We stayed a week on the beach. Rented a motorcycle and did the whole island in a day. Loved it. Bring bug spray.
My first reply got stuck in the filter, I guess, lol. RU-vid... Anyway, the first phase (cr+bathroom) is 5.4 x 7 m. As for politics (to avoid censorship): agree, and Sweden is really bad and only getting worse.
Way less, for sure, but we're not entirely saved from the noise. There are still dogs and roosters around, but nothing like other areas. But at least no videoke!
Nah, your mom obviously still has me beat. So sorry that she dropped you. I mean, once is bad, once a day is just not right. Best of luck with your therapy, David!
Grammar aside (wow) - you really are an angry little critter, aren't you? Welcome though! We used to have a personal hater, Eddie, but he left. Kind of miss him, glad there's a new village idiot lurking around!
Looking better already ..I can't wait till u finish build this house.with landscape garden around the house..wth tropical plants ,fruit trees ,palm trees ,vegetables more vegetables root crops..etc..😅
It's on the list of projects absolutely, but as long as it behaves, it's lower priority. The current idea is to dig terraces, 1 m vertical, 1 m horizontal, and plant fruit trees to hold the soil in place.
After the construction, it will be better if you could invest on solar panels.just asking are the men working is a legit architect or engineer.crew to be sure and safe.
My thought is that we'll go for solar a bit depending on how unreliable the grid is. If we get constant brownouts, it becomes a priority, otherwise we can postpone it. I'd rather have the house expanded first, so we have more space for batteries etc.
Hello, Looks like the building construction is going forward. My concern is are the load bearing walls and support columns inside the house are strong enough to support the weight of the roof. Looking at the video, the roof is about 4 inches thick. Just wondering what is the approximate weight of the whole roof when it is completed. Is the concrete mix being used is lightweight mix? I'm a structural engineer but common sense tell me that building cement roof is like building bridges. All the best wishes. Looking forward for the next episode.
The roof was originally 5", but then probably closer to 6" with cement+plexibond. I honestly don't know if the walls will be strong enough to hold it, but so far there have been no issues. Holding thumbs while knocking on wood!
@@ABetterLifePH Maybe get yourself a life insurance that worth more than a $1M just in case something happens during an earthquake. The problem though is you can't spend it🙂.
I'm not sure I can afford that, and Lourlin would be pissed if I brought it up... would have to do it behind her back. We'll see. Good idea though, at least for when I get older
yeah i over did my support beams and columns and rebar and footers and everything since i was not a structural engineer and wanted to cover my butt. i was scared of that responsibility. my family would be sleeping under that slab- AND I HAD AN UPSTAIRS going on it. so i really over did it on everything and glad i did. we have had many 5 and 5.2 earthquakes and 3 good typhoons, yolanda's center was just 75 miles south of us, not a crack or anything since 2015. i was a little concerned about some things i saw here too but i mentioned them as it went along, unfortunately the videos get posted here after its too late to change anything. just wishing him good luck!
Thank you! The roof should be good, but when we expand I will do things differently. No earth quakes close to us etc, another benefit of being where we are.
We haven't gone over the costs in details yet, and we make changes while building. Most likely we'll release a video after construction is over/has slowed down. My estimation would be a couple of hundred thousand pesos, including plastering etc. But I may be off, it's just my estimation for now.
I agree with your assessment of the soil behind your house ( if the soil is a proper mix and compressed enough. If you start getting plant growth on it , I would encourage it , until you make a future decision about it.
I think it's because they had a pile of gravel near the house before and it was more effort to move the mixer back than carry the concrete mix. Similar with Loyloy, we have a wheelbarrow, but he/they are more comfortable with filling buckets and putting them on their shoulders. At least for concrete. I may not do the same, but they are stronger and have more experience, so I'm not saying anything. 😆
woops! no spacers or small stones under the rebar holding it a couple inches off of the decking .. OUCH. they should have worked in teams to keep a wet edge and not stopped until it was all done in one pour. i had mine done at night so there was no hot sun on it, we just flood lighted the whole slab and had 10 guys bucket brigade in front and 10 guy bucket brigade from the back and 4 guys on top placing and vibrating it and screeding. it cost a little to have all them but it was only for 5 hours and it was finished, so 300 peso each helper and they were very happy! well worth 150$ US for the extra laborers ! once its dry enough to walk on they should scrape a steel flat trowel across the top as a 'finish' it closes the pores in the cement making it more water proof. cover it with bananna leaves and palm leaves and twice a day push them aside ,wet it down good and replace the leaves to let it cure for a week. hope you supervised the addition ratio of one bag sahara to each sack cement during mixing. some neighbors didnt and the water seeped thru on one side of the house but the other side was dry as can be.
@@JMgmkh yes , i've been running into that conflict for 12 years now, just had new windows put in downstairs and had it today! it never stops. i'm used to it now. i explain everything 3 times, draw pictures then supervise every minute and correct as we go along and then after everyone leaves i fix whats left and redo what needs redone and take it as normal now. when it starts to bother me i just remind myself i'm not in USA dealing with crazy woke garbage and democrats and lgbtq and antifa and BLM and porch pirates and it makes me feel better 🤣😆
Spoiler alert - we got another guy to fix the roof, lol. There are many things that weren't done properly. They mixed it fine, but they don't vibrate the concrete and plenty of cold joints.
It’s called vetiver grass guys! Very deep rooting. Been used in PH for slope stabilization and erosion control for many many years. That’s your ticket! Rice farmers will have it for sure to stabilize their dykes.
As for the hill behind the house. I think just some deep rooting plants planted on the hill should suffice.. Finn snow did a similar thing but I don’t remember what the plant type was. They really took off quickly. I think it’s a good speedy and cheap solution for you. I’ll have a look later and let you know. J
Cool! Right now the ferns have the hill, on top at least. We're thinking of creating terraces (1 m vertical, 1 m horizontal) and plant fruit trees and similar.
@ABetterLifePH You are just like my husband he loves butter on his corn, but for me, I love the natural flavour of the corn,and the bbq corn is beautiful as well,often my husband laugh at me because I take the kernel one at the time from the cob 😅😅😅 but I told him everyone is different so don't laugh at me ok 😆😅😆 anyway my husband and I watched your show together the other day, and he was saying to me that you're place is gonna big when its done, also he mentioned that you have a fantastic views as well, he cannot wait to live there he says, anyway enough about us, always enjoy watching your vlog even though I don't leave any comment from time to time 🙂, take care guys and God bless 🙏
pro tip- if in the philippines go for "perfect" and you will end up with "good enough" if you go for "good enough" you end up with " not good enough" LOL. 😆 its looking better every day, keep the faith.
Check today's video! Not really showing in details how it is poured, but half results and how they got up there with the concrete! Thank you for watching!
Brownouts suck! Just moved to a new location yesterday and asked, "How often is there no electricity per month?" Got told, "Month? No, no, weekly." Glad I brought my generator. Welcome to the Philippines, I guess! 😅 By the way, at 8:22 in the video, we can see you again with the truck saying, "More sand!" 😂 Regarding the road, I think it will crack more, but once the heavy trucks are gone, it should be an "easy fix" as long as you only use it for normal cars and bikes. "Hot and Humid" yep... the humidity is really hard for me lately, I guess it's because we are born in Scandinavia. 😅
I agree, yes. I'll need a solar option in the future. The road will definitely need work every now and then, I'll make a video later on about all the small issues we have with the entire build (might be a long video). I can't do humidity, especially with heat, my body just shuts off. But Baguio had good climate (except 6 months of fog and the constant mold) as does the higher part of Bukidnon. I strongly suggest for all descendants of Vikings to look for such areas (leave the beach and jungle for others, lol).
Thank you for watching! The cables here aren't copper, so not worth the same, but that's not the only reason why people leave stuff like that alone. Not saying I would leave a shovel outside etc (it would definitely grow feet) but especially in the province - everyone knows everyone and the favorite past time is gossiping (chica chica, chismis, marites...they probably have more words for it, lol). I paid for everything, yes. If you live near main line/in a city, it probably (?) works different, but where we are I had four options: 1) live in the dark 2) wait for two years and see if the road gets electric poles 3) pay to hook up to grid or 4) go solar. Had the house been complete (including planned expansion) I probably would have gone full solar, if I could afford it.
@@ABetterLifePH That’s great you were able to string power so far. I have a 6 acre plot in Goldendale,WA and it cost me $12,000 US just to bring the power in 300’. I love your can do attitude. That’s an amazing view you have. I look for your updates every morning when I get. Thanks for sharing your and your wife’s adventure.
@@ronsorenson7196 The quality of your cables should be a lot better though. Here it's typically aluminum, with a thin copper coating at best. Labor costs are just...different. Minimum wage in the US is...what...15-20 bucks an hour these days? Maybe that's just California? Anyway, here you can find people willing to do hard labor for less than 5 USD a day. We try not to abuse our workers of course, make sure they get rest/pay them extra and so forth, but it's so different from the West (especially the lack of entitlement). I'm trying to get rid of as many negative traits as possible, especially my negative thinking (which is deeply ingrained in me through personal history and Swedish culture). Filipinos are not only usually happy/friendly, they are also hard working and the most practically pragmatic people I've encountered. If I can't figure out a solution - I just let my wife/other Filipinos handle it. The solution may not always be what we in the West would call "safe", but they get the job done! Thank you for the kind words and for watching!
Enjoying your updates. Love your model. Lol I once had a cement contractor tell me if you get 1/8” settlement in the soil you’ll get an 1/8” crack in the slab. It’s exspected to crack. That’s why they cut groves in the floors or roads to control where it cracks. Great job!
Yeah, we'll definitely have cracks here and there, especially in our road and retaining wall. But, we'll just fix it every now and then, prevent it from becoming a real problem at least. As long as we don't experience any catastrophic failure - it's all good! Thank you for watching!
Lol, sorry. The editor (wife) sends her apologies, the app she was using only allowed for up to 30 minute videos. She found a better one, but for this one she ran out of time! 😂
Dude there's a LOT of different kinds of SNAKES around there, Philippine Cobras Kings, Vipers. Keep your doors closed, watch your step..❤ Especially with that Corn..😮
@@peteswanson-j4i Ancestral domain brings with it some issues for sure, but in some ways it's good that they need permits here (logging companies took advantage previously, which led to fighting etc)
