Another thing that pissed me off today...

Post by **KHONDAHM** » May 3, 2011, 2:49 pm

PS - What I surmise actually happened was that he either told the guy who actually did the work wrong or the guy who actually did the work screwed up. So he did not want to admit fault and be embarrassed that he told the worker the wrong thing, or the worker screwed up and neither wanted to be embarrassed for getting it wrong. Therefore, BLAME THE CUSTOMER! Surely the customer wanted white leaves on a green background (wth?) - he just forgot that is what he wanted...
Amazing Thailand. Ok, really, rant over.

Post by **Galee** » May 3, 2011, 3:22 pm

When I finally get round to my build I'll be making detailed coloured drawings as verbal agreements seem to be easily ignored. I'll show both drawings to the contractor, make sure he knows there both the same, give him one and keep the other. If the end product is different to the drawing I have all hell will break loose.

Post by **UdonExpat** » May 3, 2011, 3:50 pm

Galee, be sure to provide directions to the build site. Then whenever someone wants to see all hell break loose they'll know where to go.

Post by **LoongLee** » May 6, 2011, 12:11 am

Khondahm,,,,,,,, don't forget,,,,, these are the same people that want to build, operate, and maintain nuclear power plants,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Post by **KHONDAHM** » May 29, 2011, 5:59 pm

So today they FINALLY got around to putting the two standard door bars on and I must say that the corrections I made them do for the windows and sliding doors have given me what I want, for the most part. So I've two standard sized wood doors on the frontside of the house. One goes inside from the parking pad and the other goes to a home office/guest apartment. Common sense says they need to look alike from the outside. So, what do they do? They start mounting one of the bar doors on the outside of the house and the other on the inside of the house with the opening on the opposite side as the respective wood door (!). So, I get that sorted and we agree they will mount both on the outside. So, I take a nap and wake up to two security doors mounted with the screws exposed to the thieves and hinges which look like they came from a bubblegum machine AND mounted on the outside. What's more, they painted everything as if they were all done. Not. So, I made them redo it all the secure way and with secure hinges. Takes them all day to do what should have taken a couple of hours with a dash of common sense or logic. Boss complains to my wife that I'm too picky. My wife and children's lives may well depend on what they are installing. You're @$!#*%! right I am "picky". The frigging nerve...!

So, the wife thinks they won't want to do more work for us after they finish up - as if I should give a... All the upgrades will be done when they are done, anyway; and we will be able to get about the business of enjoying our home. Cheers!

Post by **rjj04** » May 29, 2011, 9:55 pm

it could be worse....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKaQLYPf ... re=related

Post by **old-timer** » May 30, 2011, 11:02 am

KHONDAHM wrote: So, I take a nap and wake up to two security doors mounted with the screws exposed to the thieves and hinges which look like they came from a bubblegum machine AND mounted on the outside. What's more, they painted everything as if they were all done. Not. So, I made them redo it all the secure way and with secure hinges.quote]

Next time don't fall asleep.

OT had a hardwood external door fitted. I told them in detail to give it a light rub down and apply a coat of clear varnish to bring out the charming woodgrain. I made a bit of a mistake by leaving it to them, when I got back they had painted it white. I was p1ssed off that day.

OT................. $\:D/$

Post by **fatbob** » May 30, 2011, 11:30 am

Here's one that defies all logic, the owner went home for a month, when he left he had his lovely American Standard toilet ready for installation, when he returned the toilet was installed, the seat height was flush with the floor, all tiled up, might have been the first house built for a westerner by that builder I dare say.......

Post by **grozza** » May 30, 2011, 11:44 am

Here's one that defies all logic, the owner went home for a month, when he left he had his lovely American Standard toilet ready for installation, when he returned the toilet was installed, the seat height was flush with the floor, all tiled up, might have been the first house built for a westerner by that builder I dare say

classic,i think there should be a topic called only in thailand =D> =D> =D> =D> =D>

Post by **KHONDAHM** » May 30, 2011, 12:42 pm

grozza wrote:classic,i think there should be a topic called only in thailand =D> =D> =D> =D> =D>

I'd given that some thought,too - where only pics are posted without captions and only those taken by the poster.

Post by **hangsaboot** » May 30, 2011, 2:01 pm

coxo wrote:Here's one that defies all logic, the owner went home for a month, when he left he had his lovely American Standard toilet ready for installation, when he returned the toilet was installed, the seat height was flush with the floor, all tiled up, might have been the first house built for a westerner by that builder I dare say.......

was he
a low down bumm.

Post by **pienmash** » May 30, 2011, 2:24 pm

Just read in the local press that even the udonthani police station is not off limits for thieves , during the night someone broke in and stole all the toilet seats ,,,,,,,,,,, at a press conference this morning the police general annouced investigations are under way but as of now police dont have anything to go on !!!!!!!!!!

SORRY ABOUT THAT , COULD RESIST IT .

MASH .

Post by **pienmash** » May 30, 2011, 2:28 pm

A bomb blast on the Udon to Khon Kaen rd was thought to have been caused by a leeking gas pipe , the blast left a 10 ft deep by 20 m hole in the road ................ udon police are looking into it.

SORRY AGAIN

Post by **Jed** » May 30, 2011, 2:40 pm

a solution to the former problem?

Post by **parrot** » May 30, 2011, 8:21 pm

Back in the late 90's you were lucky to find a western style toilet in any public facility (excepting the Charoensri Grand).....and if you were lucky enough to find one, in all likelihood, it had no seat. If you were double lucky to find a western style toilet with a toilet seat, you'd probably get pinched from the cracks in the seat.....a result of all the Thais who didn't understand how to properly use a seated-western-style toilet.
As recently as a few months ago, one of the toilets (maybe Homepro/Index) had Thai signs on the stall doors asking patron to 'please don't stand on the seat'.
The Thai Army renovated all their toilets at the turn of the millenium....replacing the traditional Thai style with western toilet....according to a Bangkok Post article. A few months later, the Post followed up with something along the lines of "Thai Army conducts training for new recruits on how to use western style toilets"
A few hours ago, I had the displeasure of using the bathroom in the old Ngeesoon supermarket downtown. As I was scrunched up, I couldn't help but think what sort of bacteria count exists in a place like that. The good news is that I'm reasonably certain that all Thai restaurant workers wash their hands with soap and hot water after using the restroom and preparing your meal.

Post by **ALAN KNIGHT** » June 7, 2011, 1:10 pm

Do you mean thats the only thing wow i wish i was in your shoes

Post by **KHONDAHM** » August 24, 2011, 11:04 am

Boy, oh boy am I overdue for an update to THIS thread. lol! A lot of stuff has ticked me off, but I've endured. Time for a little therapy, though.

Ok, so the Mrs. finally admits that the bushes around the perimeter are NOT going to grow in the clay soil we have. We bought and planted them a year or so ago and the dwarfish height has not changed one bit. Same for the mango trees. Being a city guy, I asked all the right questions and got all the wrong answers from people who have been farming all their lives and "know more than do about this". Nope, I don't know much about growing anything, but I can read a book and do a Google search. Both which said planting those bushes and trees in clay soil like we have would be a bad idea. Water under the bridge.

SO, before the last big rainstorm, we bought 175 bags of premium soil and 175 mature bushes to supplement the dwarfish flowering bushes. I was extra excited because these new bushes are supposed to give off a very nice aroma when they flower. My intent and instructions were to plant the bushes on top of the new soil so the roots could grow long and strong. The old soil was to go on top. I bought a bag of dirt per plant to ensure there would be enough under the roots. So, what did they do?

Well, again, they "know more than [me]". They dug a trench, put about 5 cm of new dirt down, put the new bushes on top of that, then put the rest of the dirt ON TOP of the roots (!!!). Last I checked, roots don't normally grow UP. One would think this would be common sense which is why I TOLD them to put all the new dirt UNDER the roots. So, while still fuming quietly, it rained hard that evening and guess what happened? Yup! The rain washed darn near ALL the topsoil away...gone. *poofie*

So, what does the wife do? Well, she gets me to buy a truckload of inferior but plant-able dirt so the helper we have can plant flowers across the front perimeter. Will they put the dirt under or on top of the roots this time? Place your bets, but I'm not covering anything.

Cheers!

Post by **wayne747** » August 24, 2011, 2:08 pm

Perhaps next time specify what you want done and ignore local custom and advice (if it is possible

).

Quite educational to read these frustrations about everyday expat life. One must be quite patient it seems.

Luck !

Post by **KHONDAHM** » August 24, 2011, 2:29 pm

wayne747 wrote:Perhaps next time specify what you want done and ignore local custom and advice (if it is possible ).

Alas...that is the point of the post. You can tell, show, explain what you want and how you want it done until the cows come home (literally), but what you GET is often something other than what you expect. ESPECIALLY if it involves making common sense decisions.

Post by **Philrjones** » August 24, 2011, 3:27 pm

Hi there,

Re clay soil. I'm from a farming background having lived on/worked on 4 of them, one of which had very clay soil.

The absolutely best thing for clay soil is Gypsum. Go around the clay bit your want to grow and put a fork in a far as you can multiple times. Add your gypsum to water and sprinkle the mix on the soil and leave for a day or so. Do the same again. You'll find that the soils is breaking up - in fact if you get a handful of clay soil, add the water/gypsum mix and see it break down before your eyes. It is a bit salty though, so you may need to rectify the soils afterwards.

Do this by buying a pH tester soil kit and test the soil. It'll tell you whether the soil is acid or alkaline. See the following for the types of additives depending on your soil type:

http://www.sesl.com.au/pub/articles/Glo ... itives.pdf

Then you want good quality top soil and a damn sight more than a few cms.

You can make your own but it takes some time. Knock up a square wooden frame in the garden or rectangle a couple of meters by 1m - add the crap topsoil to that. Collect all the dead leaves you can and dig them in. Buffalo crap if you can find it - not dog! In fact this is the best way to grow things - build a frame and condition the soil in that, then grow in that. You'll only need 4 boards and wooden pegs on the internals and externals to hold it in place. Angle brackets at the ends hold the corners together. A garden looks pretty nice with say 4 of these frames growing different things in. Don't make them too big or close together so you have enough space to get inbetween them for weeding/picking etc. Don't forget crop rotation on a yearly basis too if you have multiple beds.

Buy some plant seeds - anything will do that grows fast and green. Plant that in your box - don't be fussy, just chuck it in. After not too long the green things will be growing. Wait until they're 6 inches high or so, then dig the patch over and thoroughly dig them in so there's no green showing and then you have this green manure to help. Chuck in as many worms as you can find, scraps from the kitchen (carrot peelings, potato etc). Dig everything in. Keep doing that and after a few months or so you'll have great soil. Keep testing the soil with a pH tester and get the right additive every now and again (some plants like acidic and some alkaline soils - so it depends what you're going to use it for).

However, if you get the pH around neutral, you can use it as a base for anything - take some out and add the right additive to get acidic or alkaline as use that.

Hope that helps. I've no idea what's available at a garden nursery here. I know you can get huge bags of coconut husk very cheap and while not adding much in the way of minerals, it does bulk up the soil with fiber that will break down.

Cheers
Phil