Build Diary 19
This month we finally closed off the space underneath the house, using an amazing product called Kalsi plank. We had previously started to close off underneath the house using timber, however the untreated timber quickly attracted termites, so we needed a better solution.
Before we could install the Kalsi planks however, we needed to rectify some small issues that had arisen from the concrete pylons not being in the exact spots they should have been when they were poured. With quite a few of the pylons sticking out from underneath the house, we needed to ‘slice’ some of the concrete off the front so that they would align with the floor panels. It was not an easy decision to basically cut the ‘foundations’ of our house, but since we made the pylons bigger than necessary and poured the concrete very strong, we decided to go for it in the end. We’re so glad we did because any other ‘workarounds’ would not have looked as good.
After all the pylons were cut down to size, Sean made up some timber frames for the Kalsi planks to be screwed to. The planks are 4 metres in length which meant that we could use the full length most of the time, with only a few end planks having to be cut.
Closing off underneath the house was always going to be one of the last things to do on our list, and it feels good to finally tick it off that long list of small jobs that still remain almost two years after we started the build.
A couple of smaller jobs were to finalise the living room wall as well as the entrance hall, which both needed to be painted and finished off. To hide the “lines” where the Kalsi sheets butt up to each other, we installed some flat pieces of timber which emulate a vintage panelling look. To keep the colour scheme uniform, we chose the same green and dark grey that are already in other areas in our house. Our Balinese "‘marriage ducks” now have the perfect spot for their bickering.
The new green wall in the hallway, with ‘Rice Harvest’ on display.
We still have to finalise the gardens, build the fish pond and the pool, but more about that later… For now we start planning our next project ‘Salt Shack’ in Tejakula, North Bali which will commence mid January 2023. If you have been enjoying this build diary, feel free to follow along with our next build. It’s going to be an epic journey!
You can also subscribe to our YouTube channel @slowlifeinbali where we will document the journey of our build in Tejakula plus life in Bali in general!
Wishing everyone a Happy New Year 2023!
Anna + Sean