NoFakie 45 Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 BM has it conceptually nailed, though I think PET bottles tend to get used in people's workshops, not their living rooms where you don't want a bucket on the floor. Bendy pipes are poor performers by the sounds and even the straight ones are best if they are short and have a prism thing to collect more light. If you're getting leaks in a dry country like Oz, they are probably going to be a nightmare in a wet part of Japan. A few houses on Grand Designs have had solar pipes, but they have still looked very dark. On Kickstarter, there is an automated sun-tracking mirror called Sunnybot which can reflect a strong beam of sunlight into your pad. Provided that it doesn't start a fire (!), it might work a bit better. Link to post Share on other sites
JA2340 16 Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 If you're getting leaks in a dry country like Oz, they are probably going to be a nightmare in a wet part of Japan. A few houses on Grand Designs have had solar pipes, but they have still looked very dark. Problem is in the installer, not the concept. In Japan, you'd need to be certain that he blokes doing the install do a damned good job - of course, you could always go to the LED style like we have! And it DOES actually rain here - we get 600+mm a year on average, and some places get a shirtload more than that. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 9, 2013 Author Share Posted July 9, 2013 snowdude you probably plan to do this anyway but..... I totally advise being there with the electrician to talk things through before he starts doing his thing. I have spent a few half days now going through stuff, and a few potential 's have been avoided (air conditioner socket and other related). I am generally very happy with our building company, but ultimately it's us who want to love our house most to the finest details and so always best to check and check that things are understood. There's the risk of being urusai, but hey it's our house! Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted July 9, 2013 Share Posted July 9, 2013 600mm of rain? Hakuba gets three times that! We've got a small but visible socket above our kitchen hood which the electrician thought would be hidden by the chimney. Our hood doesn't have a chimney and vents straight out of the wall because its the only way we could fit everything in. The electrician didn't know because fitting vents is a different trade. The wall the socket is in is tiled, so it would be a lot of hassle and cost to move the socket and cover the hole. There are bigger mistakes elsewhere in our house, mostly mine, and I'm a firm believer in the "you have to build three houses to get it right" saying, but what Dumbstick says is great advice. The more exacting you are, the more you have to double check all of the details. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 9, 2013 Author Share Posted July 9, 2013 That saying really is right isn't it. I'm trying my bestest best to do as much as possible right, but no doubt there will be some things that I might still miss. Luckily that genkan door one before was caught before it was too late. The electrician has our kitchen and bathroom plans and so I presume he's planning those bits around those..... they don't make much sense to me so there's not much I can say about those areas. He seems really competent though and has made suggestions that have been a big help, he seems very keen to do a good job, so I have confidence in him. He also has a towel wrapped around his head which makes him look the part I reckon. Said it before though, this has been such a huge learning process. And without doubt if I was doing another house, I would be much better prepared with all of the basics and probably do some things a bit differently. Link to post Share on other sites
Thundercat 60 Posted July 9, 2013 Share Posted July 9, 2013 After reading so much about your place I'm really looking forward to the house warming party! Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 9, 2013 Author Share Posted July 9, 2013 Sorry. Did I promise photos too? Bit shy about that really.... Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted July 9, 2013 Share Posted July 9, 2013 snowdude you probably plan to do this anyway but..... I totally advise being there with the electrician to talk things through before he starts doing his thing. I have spent a few half days now going through stuff, and a few potential 's have been avoided (air conditioner socket and other related). I am generally very happy with our building company, but ultimately it's us who want to love our house most to the finest details and so always best to check and check that things are understood. There's the risk of being urusai, but hey it's our house! Thanks. But yes we will go over it with the sparky together as we may have missed something. So much to think about. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 11, 2013 Author Share Posted July 11, 2013 It never seems to end. The next thing with us is air conditioners. We have 3 included in our agreed costings, but it's not clear exactly which ones. Almost inevitably, I'm going to want to upgrade those. Learning, learning. Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Ya...how bout some pics for us builder types..?? Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 11, 2013 Author Share Posted July 11, 2013 While I'm confident they are doing a fine job, I think I'm just worried that you'll see something that is less than perfect and mention it and my fantasy perfect house will be shattered and my mind will fixate on it forever and ever. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 C'mon I showed you our table! Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 come on,....Just a few pics....I promise to bite my lip if I see the usual suspects in shoddy Japanese housing construction... Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 11, 2013 Author Share Posted July 11, 2013 Oh well, in that case.... Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 15, 2013 Author Share Posted July 15, 2013 How's your progress, snowdude? Electicians been in over a week now. The amount of cables all over the place is... scary. I think I'll be glad when the stick the insulation in and close off the walls and the ceilings because right now it's looking pretty ridiculous and a bit of a mess! Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 How's your progress, snowdude? Electicians been in over a week now. The amount of cables all over the place is... scary! I think I'll be glad when the stick the insulation in and close off the walls and the ceilings because right now it's looking pretty ridiculous. Ah! That reminds me of a piece of advice I was given (and followed): Take pictures of where the wiring and other cables are run before they cover it all over. Could be useful later if you need to drill or cut into the wall and don't want to risk hitting anything. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 15, 2013 Author Share Posted July 15, 2013 Very good idea, thanks. In our case, from what it looks like....pretty much everywhere! They seem to be bunching them up as much as possible and attaching to the ceiling. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted July 15, 2013 Share Posted July 15, 2013 How's your progress, snowdude? Electicians been in over a week now. The amount of cables all over the place is... scary. I think I'll be glad when the stick the insulation in and close off the walls and the ceilings because right now it's looking pretty ridiculous and a bit of a mess! About 10 days behind. Having said that they are making a very very good job of putting everything together bit by bit. We still don't have the roof on, today when I went they were working on putting up the 2nd floor walls and the roof should go on this coming week. From what I have seen with all the joints and beams it looks extremely solid and well put together. The support beams for the 2nd floor alone consist of 7 planks of wood all bonded and screwed together to form one beam. It is about 25cm think! What I like about our house maker is that everything is carefully put together by hand bit by bit in a particular order. Only time will tell how the rest goes, but so far it is looking good. The carpenter there today said that among all the houses he has worked on the company that we are with is one of the best designed he has seen for a wood house. It is a bitch to construct as he has to use three plans together for each part otherwise it makes no sense, according to him, most companies only need one plan . So I was happy to hear that. Will keep you all posted on how it progresses. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 16, 2013 Author Share Posted July 16, 2013 Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 17, 2013 Author Share Posted July 17, 2013 Just got my quote for light switches. Sexy light switches and sockets is do-able. Extremely sexy light switches and sockets - over 200,000 yen. Er, I think I can do without them! Link to post Share on other sites
@tokyo 14 Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 Over 200K for switches? What are they made of, gold?! Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 17, 2013 Author Share Posted July 17, 2013 I think so! Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 Maybe they come with a little man who switches then on an off at ur command Link to post Share on other sites
Karnidge 2 Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 Haha. Can we see what the difference is? Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 17, 2013 Author Share Posted July 17, 2013 Our house kitted out in the 3 on the right would be an additional 200k. The one the left (but with a 'hotaru' light) which still looks nice in person is much much less. Link to post Share on other sites
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