Building your Baja dream home Advice, photos and ideas...

Old 02-26-13, 09:40 AM   #21
BajaGringo
 
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Default Re: Need Some Collective Ideas

No worries amigo...
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Old 02-26-13, 11:28 AM   #22
robt65
 
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Default Re: Need Some Collective Ideas

Quote:
Originally Posted by Woooosh
Thanks. It's just cement blocks- some kids are better at building things with legos than others, that's all. Color is hard. We took our time. We spent a few years buying what we needed when we saw the right item, for the right purpose at the right price. I don't think we paid retail for anything. Anyone can spend a lot of money- tell your wife it's more fun to make it look like you spent the money and didn't. My only advice is to be fearless. If you screw something up in Mexico- it's no big deal. It's amazing what you can learn to do from the internet and YouTube videos these days. If near the coast, use plastic outside wherever possible over metal (salt)... Metal looks better than plastic, but plastic looks better than rust. Oh yeah- and there in no such thing as Stainproof steel- only Stainless; it's a lot of work in salt air. Six Labradors is just plain crazy, but it's a once in a lifetime thing. Chessies are beauties. We cut our dog food costs in half by going from Eukanuba to Kirkland (CostCo) and are happy with the results.
Hey Woooosh,

Like you guys, I also have pre bought items; I knew I would need. Interior electrical wiring, talking to the managers of the local Lowes and Home Depots near my place in McAllen Texas and surrounding communities to let me know when they are changing suppliers of certain items and I would buy up their remaining stock of some items.

On some items, I have also found Tractor Supply to be a good big box store to buy from, especially pumps, fittings, filters etc. Don’t know if you have them in CA or not. I am buying a hog water trough for a new bath for my Labs, Great to wash the bigger dogs in and not so pricey either at $225, Then I found a better deal, an old claw foot steel bathtub, . . . .. I painted the bottom white and sprinkled some sand around the bottom for better footing, for the dogs. Makes a great Dog Bath! Cost $25 dollars at a garage sale NOB. I’ll get the wife to paint it with some Mexican flare with lots of colors one of these days.

Here, in Querétaro, we have a pretty good size pressa, no salt water, and no tides, a few whitecaps at times, but no high tides!!! That will be my view from a new roof top terrace on the new addition when all is finished. I will also put our outdoor BBQ / Kitchen up there for cookouts!

You said “Anyone can spend a lot of money. . . . . . . . (not like my wife can!) - tell your wife it's more fun to make it look like you spent the money and didn't.” I am trying to teach my wife to be thrifty. I use the “vacuum cleaner” comparison for her . . . . . . . . . . . She can either be operating the vacuum or she can be the one getting cleaned out!” . . . . . I think she is starting to catch on! I hope!

I agree on the Chessies. Wish I could find another. I only take dogs from the dog shelters. I don’t pay high prices from breeders, but I have been know to fly one out to me from several states away from a shelter. If you ever see one that needs a good home, let me know.

Regards,
Robt665
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Old 02-26-13, 11:42 AM   #23
BajaGringo
 
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Default Re: Need Some Collective Ideas

One of the things that I have loved about our construction project is that it has given me ways to be creative and make the most of the abundance of natural building materials around us. Sometimes you just have to drop any preconceived notions you have and look around you. See what the locals do using the rock, stone and other materials around them and find ways to improve/enhance their ideas and methods.
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Old 02-26-13, 08:31 PM   #24
robt65
 
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Default Re: Need Some Collective Ideas

We are doing a lot of that Ron. As i have said we are fortunate to live in an area that is abundant with Cantera stone od several grades and colors. It is a great building material. Once this whole project is pretty much finished we plan to use a lot of that stone to face the lower 30% to 40% of the buildings and paint or work into the upper half some of the stone as well, such as arches, etc. The same will hold true for kitchen and bath display cabinets where I can save 60% over all if I get lucky.

If I were to have bought (for example) the Black Cantera stone I used for our patio surface cut and all the same thickness it would have cost me about 7,500 Mx Pesos. As it was I bought several pickup trucks full at (if I remember) about $400 pesos a load (as much as the truck would hold). Three truck loads later plus $2,500 for having our trabajando do the work and my cost for all was $3,700. The labor for the precut would have een a bit more, as the patio area is a diagonal area and the wasteage would have been more in the cutting. I believe that we saved about 65% being a little slower in shopping and getting the better deal. Using the pre cut was going to wind up costing about $10,500 Pesos.

Decorative tile can be bought about an hour or so away in Hildago an area known for it's decorative tile manufacturing. Seconds in some tiles and you can hardly tell (for busier paterns) cost about half. You are right, there are a lot of ways to save $ if you're not in a hurry.

Regards,
Robt65