Build Diary 4

I’m not quite sure where the last week went or what exactly we did, but gee it went quickly.

While the guys finished levelling off the piers for the garage and living room/kitchen, we started to get a bit more serious about our drainage system that we have planned to be a major part of the house design. Because of the heavy rains during rainy season, which can last up to 6 months per year, we really want to make sure that we have an adequate drainage system in place.

For this reason, we decided to work with nature rather than against it, and build a system of drainage channels that will integrate nicely into our garden. All channels will have a fall towards the lower terrace, allowing the rain water to flow off the upper terrace and keeping the foundations of the house dry. The plan is then to fill these channels with pebbles and to plant lush ferns and bamboo all along the edges. This will also attract frogs and other small animals which are natural predators for mosquitoes. Win win!

Drainage channels will form part of our garden and keep the house dry during rainy season.

We also had more floor panels delivered, which meant that we were able to put all panels for the garage into place. This really made everything feel quite ‘real’ as we can finally visualise the total scope of the project. It’s going to be a big house!!!

Our floor panels being loaded, and ready for delivery.

The garage/workshop/office area.

Floor panels for the garage and walkway are in place.

The next step is to level and fix all the floor panels to each other and then secure them to the concrete piers for maximum stability. This will require the use of custom made steel brackets which are hight adjustable and which allow the floor to be 100% level.

We also went back to Denpasar to order the first 10 GRC boards which will form the ‘internal’ floors of the garage/workshop. So if all goes well, we will have the complete garage floor structure in place by the time the next update rolls around.

Until then, we are wishing you all a Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from Ubud!

Thanks for following our build journey so far.

Anna & Sean