JA2340 16 Posted September 1, 2013 Share Posted September 1, 2013 If you need an "outsider" view, I'll be only too happy to oblige - just need to pay for the flights and - Oh, a couple beers or so! Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted September 6, 2013 Share Posted September 6, 2013 My and the old boy just did some more concreting yesterday. The ready mixed we bought came it at 25000 for 1.5 cubic meters. That's enough for 15 square meters at a fairly standard 10cm thickness. We bought it as five loads in a kei truck. Concrete mixer trucks deliver 4 cubic meters at a time, but there was no access for the main bit we did. By the sound of things, 6000 a square meter upwards to have somebody do it for you. If you need gravel underneath and full reinforcement for parking on, it'll cost more. The unit cost for small jobs will also go up. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted September 6, 2013 Share Posted September 6, 2013 Went to see our house today to see how it is coming along, and it is coming along well, except for the outside geikan (outside wall covering)! I had requested and made sure that the lap siding would be solid strips, ie no joins running up and down the walls. I was assured that except for the side walls were minimal joints would be seen due to the sheer length I would not see any joints as they would use long panels. And where ever there are joints they would be lined up for example with the middle of the window not offset to one side of the window. Well I went there today they have 3/4 of the house done and I see lots of join lines plus they are off set and do not run in the centre of the windows, etc. I am going to see the house maker and foreman tomorrow afternoon to basically get them to re-do all the outside walls. I can see that lot will all have to be ripped off and re-done properly like I expected. Until now it had all been going very well and I am happy with everything else. Japanese people don't give a toss about window positions or join lines all over the place on walls. Wiring and plumbing in Japan is also crap. I had to get them to put the windows of equal sizes and height etc, on their plan at the start otherwise they would have been all over the place. I also had to make sure that all wires, pipes and aircon sockets,etc are exactly where I want them otherwise I can imagine wires hanging off the aircon down to a socket in the middle of the wall somewhere. All these things they have done and are doing perfectly as expected, but they have f>?ked up the outside wall panels as they look like a DIY job gone wrong! I will see how it all goes tomorrow. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted September 6, 2013 Author Share Posted September 6, 2013 Oh dear, good luck with that!! I'm rather pleased with ours, they did it pretty much exactly how I asked them, though I was very clear giving them quite detailed drawings and the lot. There are join lines but they are unavoidable (with the kind of siding we have anyway), though they have done them well and its all as nicely balanced as is possible given the size of the materials. How specific were you with your requests, snowdude? Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted September 6, 2013 Share Posted September 6, 2013 3/4 of the house siding done? I doubt they will be keen to rip that lot out and do it again! Good luck indeed! Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted September 6, 2013 Share Posted September 6, 2013 3/4 of the house siding done? I doubt they will be keen to rip that lot out and do it again! Good luck indeed! I am sure they wont, but they haven't done it right, so they will have to put it right, and if that means ripping it all off and doing it again then that is what they will have to do. And I am not keen to put up with a cowboy job either! Not being funny but I could have made a better job of lining up the joins in the middle of windows or spaces between windows that much I do know! Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted September 6, 2013 Share Posted September 6, 2013 3/4 of the house siding done? I doubt they will be keen to rip that lot out and do it again! Good luck indeed! I'm sure they won't be, but the amount of money Snowdude is spending means that he deserves it exactly how he wants it Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted September 6, 2013 Share Posted September 6, 2013 Well yes I agree. Let's hope the builders are as... understanding. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted September 6, 2013 Author Share Posted September 6, 2013 One thing I learnt from talking about that lot is that it's not quite as simple as we perhaps imagine..... due to the fixed size of the panels which are about 300m long x 45cm deep. It was really interesting actually planning that all out. If you want it to look perfectly 100% balanced and beautiful, depending on the size of your house/walls, you might end up spending a ton more cash due to there being lots of waste as they cut the pieces up. I suspect the reason for such unbalanced looking panels is just that -- cost. They use the full panels and then only cut one to fill in the last bit, and so minimising waste. snowdude may well of course be using a completely different kind of outer siding. Sorry to hear they have done a cowboy-esque job on it. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 That is exactly what they have done just used short panels and simply joined them where the next one ends to save money without any thought about lining up the joints to make it look balanced. If I were building it I would be equally concerned with looks as well as the cost. Maybe others dont mind but that is something that really bugs me. I guess it is because I am a perfectionist and when I make something I make sure it is perfect in every way even if it means doing it again until I get it perfect. So I guess when something is not perfectly even / balanced whatever I am not happy especially when I am forking out tons of hard earned for professionals to do a professional job which turns out to not be the case. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted September 7, 2013 Author Share Posted September 7, 2013 I'm very fussy too. I'm afraid though that with these panels being a fixed length which is smaller than the length of the side of a house, there's no absolutely perfect. Anyway I hope it goes well with the builders. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted September 7, 2013 Author Share Posted September 7, 2013 One more thing I just remembered..... I asked them to put the necessary drainage pipes on the outside of the house over a join line, rather than 40cm to the right, which I thought would be a good idea. And it was, as it hides the join. Been very specific as to where the aircon boxes will go on the outside too. They're not up yet, but they know exactly how I want them lined up. Otherwise it might end up all over the place, in typical japanese style. Got to wonder why most people apparently aren't fussed about the look of things. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted September 7, 2013 Author Share Posted September 7, 2013 Had to laugh the other day. We have approx. 100 sockets in our house. All over the place they are, silly beggars. Just realised, one place that I'd have really liked to have one in the hallway..... and there's none there, not right by anyway. They say once you move in, it'll never be 'just right'. They are wise! Still though, nothing major to regret has come to light so far. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 Ok I went to my house and spoke to them about it. Basically the lines are not in the middle of the window etc because the lap siding has lap joints that interlock with each other so there is no way water can get in as a result they dont want to cut them in the middlr but rather use the panels as a whole and cut them at the edge/corner of the house where it will anyway be covered. The panels they have used are short 3m panels. I have told them to source out 5m panels as I know they exist I have seen them on other houses. They are then going to change the two front walls top to bottom and the back as well as they havent started the back. Sides I said to leave as they are because not possible to find 9m long panels. The lines on the side walls are not visible from the road only when you look straight on. So I am waiting for a reply as to whether or not they can find those longer panels. Then that whole lot will be ripped off and done again. If they cant find longer panels although I am sure they can then I will have to think about what I do with the front ie different paneling altogether have the join lines filled, etc. Not sure but the best thing would be to rip that lot all off and start again with lining the panels up differently Anyway I should get word back on if they can get the longer panels next week. Then it will be an easy fix, just rip the short panels and put on the new panels after cutting to length. I will update with the latest once I know. Other than the join lines the panels look really nice just as I expected and everything else is going to plan. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted September 7, 2013 Author Share Posted September 7, 2013 Sounds like a win! Wonder what they were thinking when you demanded that lot! You are obviously using a different kind of thing to what we are. But well done. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 Well I am very persuasive and I do not take no or can't be helped or not sure if that is possible for an answer. I just said I want it changed and I expect it changed one way or another. I told them there are 5m panels and too look into it and get back to me very soon. Especially as we have been told that our house will in fact be completed by no later than the 25th of this month! In situations like this I don't give them a chance to debate or think about it I tell them what I want and that is it. I don't suppose they will be happy at all to re-do it, but at the end of the day what they have done although they have made a good job of putting the panels on as far as that goes they haven't done what I expected in the first place of not showing joins. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 Good luck getting it the way the want, especially if you told them in advance. We don't have panel siding on our place but we did move in before the wood outside was stained and the final render was put on. That was all finished about six weeks later. I think we went to the onsen the first night because the hot water wasn't on either. There are lots of little things that could have been done better with our house, but the biggest mistake has been the messy way in which we all use it. Link to post Share on other sites
griller 9 Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 I'm imagining you as this when typing in that last post, snow duded Good that they'll get it sorted! Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted September 8, 2013 Share Posted September 8, 2013 Sounds good. What kind of panels you using snowdude. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted September 9, 2013 Share Posted September 9, 2013 A highbrid concrete plastic mix. Forget what they name for them is but the are panels about 4-5 inches in hight and about half inch thick . They overlap each other. They are hard but should not crack or bend and can be painted over. Ill post a pic after of one of the walls so that you can see. Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted September 9, 2013 Share Posted September 9, 2013 Interesting, so rather different to what dumbstick is using.... Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted September 9, 2013 Share Posted September 9, 2013 These are the panels that we are using on our house. Obviously not sealed yet on the corners or around the windows, but this will give you an idea what they look like! Link to post Share on other sites
pie-eater 207 Posted September 10, 2013 Share Posted September 10, 2013 Do they put them on one-by-one? Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted September 10, 2013 Author Share Posted September 10, 2013 Interesting that. Very different to what we have. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted September 10, 2013 Share Posted September 10, 2013 Do they put them on one-by-one? Yes and starting from the bottom working their way up. Link to post Share on other sites
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