Blog
It has been many months since I last posted to the NKD blog, but that is not because there has been nothing to blog about, but rather that we have been too busy with new design and construction projects to blog about them!
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We completed the excavation of the lake over a month ago and since then, nature has been doing its part in filling it up! The lake has been filling up a lot more quickly than one might imagine as the surrounding land has also been draining into the lake through the top metre of porous soil. The lake will fill up by another two metres before it reaches the limit of the clay soil that retains the water…. certainly, by the end of the rainy season it will be full to its natural level.
Once this level has been established we will carry out some more re-sculpting of the edge of the lake to add a path way just above the water line. In terms of the rest of the land, the excavation of the lake was enough to raise the level of the rest of the land by about one metre. We will allow this land to settle for some time and then we will add another layer of top soil that is more suited for planting. There is another area of the land where the house is to be situated that will be raised up by another meter or more, in places. However, this will be raised closer to the time the home is built, once the design is finalised.
In the mean time, we will be planting about 40 saplings to add to the 35 mature trees already growing on the plot. We will also be transplanting a number of additional mature trees on to the land.
This is another of our stock designs. This house features two large bedroom suites each with walk-in closets and spacious bathrooms. The bedroom suites are linked by a walkway overlooking the large open plan living/dining room. There is also a separate lounge area.
One of our stock designs for a 2 bedroom two bathroom, single story house...
We are close to completion with this modern two bedroom home. We are adding finishing details to the house and building the front and rear boundary walls. Once the walls are complete and the site cleared a little more we will pour the concrete driveway and also build a modern style sala in the back garden, though we have not been contracted to carry out the actual landscaping of the gardens.
We have completed the roof tiling for this interesting project in Sangkhom. We are now adding the typically Thai decorative detail and facias to the roof sections.
We have also completed the roofing of the 'cottage' which actually houses caretaker's accommodation as well as parking. The next stage is to add the timber cladding and rendering that will give it the appearance of an Elizabethan timber framed wattle and daub cottage. The timber framed windows will also be added shortly.
The two buildings on this project sit on a plot of about 4 acres and we are undertaking a number of other works on the land. One such project is the construction of a spill way for a large drain that runs underneath the land taking water run off from the hills behind the property to the Mekong river.
We also installed another drain and spill way that will handle surface water drainage on parts of the land as well as the roof run-off from the house itself.
We constructed a terrace that is located on the river bank, just out of sight of the main house. Being on the river bank it was necessary to build the terrace on piles, as with the spill way.
There arer a number of other sub-projects on the plot of land, but I shall save those for a later post.
We have been a little hampered by heavy rain recently, but the future lake on this project is slowly growing in size. We have now created what is soon to be an island within the lake, once filled with water. We shall be transplanting some additional mature trees on to the island before the water rises, and there is also a lot more excavation to be done.
We have recently begun work on a new large scale project. We will be building a home on a plot of land of just over 11.5 Rai (4.6 acres) in area. We have not yet finalised the design, though have established the 'footprint' of the home and have a high-level plan for the land and landscaping. The plot of land was previously used for rice farming and requires significant re-sculpting in order fit in with the design we are working on. It is desirable to raise the height of the land to various levels. We are digging a large ornamental lake of about 1.5 rai in order to provide the soil to fill the rest of the land. The lake itself will be 10 metres deep and feature a large island. The land is being filled up in layers of about half metre depth, stepping up to two metres in places.
Currently, we have completed about 30% of the lake excavation. We intend to have it completed by mid June. Finalising the design of the home and landscaping, however, will take several more months. This will be a long project with many interesting challenges and intend to blog about progress as we move forward.
Since last posting about this project, we have completed all of the main concrete structural framework, poured the floor slabs and completed all of the major blockwork. Rendering is nearly complete as is the roof framework. We are mow moving onto the roof tiling. We have also been working on a number of other sub-projects located throughout the plot of land around the house, but I shall detail these later in a separate post.
We have recently completed the design and engineering of a home which is to be built later this year in Vientiane, Laos. The design features five bedrooms, six bathrooms, open plan living and dining room, and home theatre. There is a strong emphasis on outdoor living with this home and there is an extensive terrace featuring a covered lounge and dining area and also a large sala. There are a number of large folding doors to completely open up the interior areas to flow onto the terrace.
NKD was formed in 2009 and employs Thai and English speaking professionals in order to deliver first class design and construction services. We have the experience and capacity to see your project through from the initial concept to final design, structural engineering and then on to construction, interior design and garden landscaping.
Whatever your budget or preferred style, contact us to find out how we can help you realise your dream home.
We also offer complete design and construction services for commercial properties such as restaurants, bars, coffee shops, hotels, resorts, guest houses or offices.
So, if you need an architect, structural engineer, house builder, swimming pool design and construction, interior designer, or garden landscaping, we offer a one-stop-shop solution for all your design and construction needs.
We are based in Nong Khai, Thailand, though we can undertake projects throughout Isaan, including Khon Kaen, Udon Thani and beyond. We also offer our design and construction services in Vientiane and throughout Laos.
Nong Khai Design Co., Ltd. | Prajak Sillapakhom Alley, Nai Mueang, Nong Khai, 43000, Thailand
