Anyone building anything new?

Landshark

Well Known Member
Yes on those water shut off valves that are the cheap zink alloy. The water dissolves them over a time. Get a solid brass one. Used to accuse the maids of knocking them off when cleaning till we examined some carefully. Nothing like going into a flooded house when no one has been there. Summers the mold takes over fast.
I've had plumbing leaks over the years that would have been a disaster if I wouldn't have been at home. As a precaution I installed a brass 1/4 turn ball valve on the main water supply line to the house. When we leave for vacation I turn off the water to the house. The irrigation supply line is upstream so it still functions as scheduled. Good piece of mind.
 

Roberto

Well Known Member
I've had plumbing leaks over the years that would have been a disaster if I wouldn't have been at home. As a precaution I installed a brass 1/4 turn ball valve on the main water supply line to the house. When we leave for vacation I turn off the water to the house. The irrigation supply line is upstream so it still functions as scheduled. Good piece of mind.
That is absolutely good advice. Unplug your pump as well if you have one cause if there is a leak the pump will empty the tank, overheat and burn itself out. I've seen that enough times too.
 

Landshark

Well Known Member
That is absolutely good advice. Unplug your pump as well if you have one cause if there is a leak the pump will empty the tank, overheat and burn itself out. I've seen that enough times too.
After that happened to our pump we installed a floating safety switch in our tank. When full it floats to the top, as the water level drops to an almost empty level it hangs down enough to interrupt the power to the pump.
Another reason we installed the water main ball valve was a friend in Heber had a mobile home that had a water leak when they were gone for several months. They wondered why they had a water bill when they hadn't been there but didn't think it through. Went there at one point for a vacation and found the inside wet and mold everywhere. They were afraid to even walk inside. Called the insurance company, they checked it out and ruled it was a total loss. Hauled it to the scrap yard.
 

marybna

Well Known Member
I always have my Bella advertised for rent on craigslist. This morning I got another request asking if I wanted to sell. That is the 2nd time this month. Is the market finally starting to turn around?
 

Bwiab

Junior Member
Hello everyone. Newbie here. Spent a lot of time in RP between 2000 & 2004 while at ASU. Might have the opportunity to spend some significant time there in thee near future.

Love this discussion. I'm a GC in the US. Was wondering. What kind of zonning laws, building codes exist in RP? If I buy a piece of land, who's to tell me what I can or cannot build on it? Appreciate the insight!
 

Terry C

Well Known Member
Take everything you do in the US to build a house and apply in RP and then add 3-5 months for completion above US build times. You might be better off to buy a house already built and get the lay of the land first.
Who tells you would be an HOA if one is there.
 

jerry

Well Known Member
Take everything you do in the US to build a house and apply in RP and then add 3-5 months for completion above US build times. You might be better off to buy a house already built and get the lay of the land first.
Who tells you would be an HOA if one is there.
Rent....then repeat....the fli
 

MIRAMAR

Well Known Member
I would recommend building out of rastra. We love the R-value and how it's held up during tremors- no cracks
 

jerry

Well Known Member
I would recommend building out of rastra. We love the R-value and how it's held up during tremors- no cracks
I agree...Perform wall has held up great.A few years later the guys at Santo Tomas tried to go cheap and went with block with stucco with a inch of foam insulation in between.A bad idea in earth quake area and flat roofs...Cracks on parapet have caused mold problems that are not easily fixed.
 

Bwiab

Junior Member
Thanks for your insight guys!

Do swamp coolers work in Rocky Point or is the humidity from the Ocean too much for them? Is AC a must if you are looking to spend the summers? How reliable is the electrical grid?
 

MIRAMAR

Well Known Member
Humidity is too high. Get mini splits. I don't know about the grid because we're just here on weekends but it worked always then. We also have solar for when we're not running ac.
 

Bwiab

Junior Member
^ cool! Thanks.

Are interior walls typically block? Finished with plaster?
Is there any wood framing that occurs? Rafters maybe?
What material is typically used for flat roofs?

Thanks for all your insight!
 

brokenwave

Well Known Member
Block is usually used for all walls, interior and exterior. I have seen some interior walls done with steel 2x4.
Some houses are using 2" of foam with stucco on the outside of the block to give it some insulation.
Wood isn't used as much as in the past for rafters, most times it is a foam truss set-up with concrete and spray foam applied on top.
There are termites in Penasco. Mini Splits are the way to go for A/C and Heat.
 

brokenwave

Well Known Member
Here is an interesting video on doing a brick dome Coupla on you tube, it's 26 minutes but just fast forward through it to see the progress.
I have seen 2 of these done in person and they go up pretty quickly. Amazing what a trowel, brick, mortar and skill can do.

 

Landshark

Well Known Member
Boveda ceilings are so cool. They are Mexican artwork that makes a basic room into a thing of beauty. The dome of the heavens...

Long before most visitors to central Mexico know the name or the benefits of the area's familiar brick roof systems, they fall instantly, firmly in love with bóveda, the beautiful arched natural brick ceilings of the system. The first question from newcomers is always the same, "How do they do that?"
Bóveda is the Spanish word for an arch. It is also the word in Mexican and ancient Spanish architecture and construction, for a long, narrow section of arched brickwork. Sometimes the Spanish language seems amazingly limited in vocabulary.
The dome of the heavens is called a bóveda—it's like the inside of a bowl. The arched ceiling cupped over the altar in old churches, the vault that is built to enclose a casket at the cemetery, and even the barrel-shaped ceiling over a hallway are also all called bóveda.
Bóveda is also the correct term for the 36" rows of brick arches that form the ceilings of many area homes. Each of these styles serves a unique purpose and is constructed a bit differently, but all are based on the ancient theory of the arch. The Romans proved the strength of arches to the rest of the world when they built the aqueducts. Once an arch is put under pressure or is bearing weight, it becomes even stronger. The success of bóveda depends on this same basic rule of physics.
 

marybna

Well Known Member
Is this true? Last time we were down, we heard that even if there is the money to finish a unfinished project or house, that it can't be completed. Because it has been exposed to the elements too long, it would have to be torn down and started all over. We have a house at the Villages that was never started.
 

marybna

Well Known Member
Many years ago when all of us were buying condo down there and things started to go south, I went to a couple of meetings in PHX and Penasco. Some buyers had retained attorneys to see if they could recover anything. I could not believe how many condo some people had purchased. There are probably people on the site that were at some of those meetings. We had lawyers from Mexico and PHX and basically we had no recourse. The money was not held to build my house but went into the pot and was used to finish someone else house. And basically we had no ability to go after that money when they sold or to put a lien on the house. I know there were people there that had purchased in Phase III at Las Palomas and The Harbor and the other one across from it. It was my understanding, that many of builders of those project saw the writing on the wall and realized they would not sell enough to complete the projects so they took the money and ran. You would have thought we would have all learned this lesson from San Carlos. Make you wonder about the new resort going in down South. I found out much later that my last check was cashed in Mexico City and not deposited in a bank.
 

Cortez2

Active Member
^ cool! Thanks.

Are interior walls typically block? Finished with plaster?
Is there any wood framing that occurs? Rafters maybe?
What material is typically used for flat roofs?

Thanks for all your insight!
The only material to build out of in Rocky Point is ICF (insulated concrete forms) No Wood, CMU ( concrete masonry units) are what is mostly used but inferior to ICF. CMU lets moisture thru the wall and corrodes the rebar.
Check it out at http://www.foxblocks.com/
 
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