Free Consultation,19/7/12,second

WHETHER FLAT CONSTRUCTION POSSIBLE

Quote

  Manjesh has left a new comment on your post "Building Permit":

dear Sir ,

1. I have 15 cents in kazhakuttom rod width of 3.25m , i would like to know the floor approval for constructing flat .

2 . i have same place with the road width 44 cents available , i would like to know the floor approval and whether it is possible to do flat in this area .
Please provide your valuable suggestions.
 
My reply

It is better to consult town planning section of concerned local authority as apart from Building rules,there can be other restrictions and schemes of local authority applicable in that area.

NALUKETTU HOUSE WITHIN Rs.1.5 Lakhs

Query

Sir,
I recently visited your blog. I am interested to build a NALUKETTU type house . I have seen a FACEBOOK updating about NALUKETTU. It said that an architect build a NALUKETTU in 4 cents of plot  and it only costs RS.150000.

Sir, i want to know that , is it possible ?

My reply

Nalukettu type house was built in olden days to suit requirements of those days.Life style and family structure has changed a lot from those days and a Nalukettu house which keeps an open court yard in the middle,surrounding verandahs and front side large sit out called poomukham are no more needs in present day house.

Still some people prefer to have chuttu verandah and poomukham  especially in village areas these days.Nalukettu type construction will cause cost increase and hence I do not think such type construction  will suit present day especially if you have a limited budget of Rs.1.5 lakhs

If you do not have budget limitations,we can design and build Nalukettu type construction which we have done in several locations in Kerala

RIVER SIDE PLOT

Query

TJ has left a new comment on your post "Building Permit":

I have inherited a 55 cent plot near Triprayar Temple ( Trichur Dist.) . This comes under a Panchayat. The plot is river facing . What distance do I need to maintain from the river for a house that I plan to construct here ?

My reply

As per CRZ Act,you have to leave 50M from river side for construction.But there are certain relaxations applicable under certain conditions

Please check up with your concerned local authority office for better clarification

Free Consultation,19/7/12

CHECKING PLAN DRAWN BY SOME ONE ELSE

Quote

Dear Sir,

I have visited your website in which I have seen lot advise is being given to many. As I am starting to build a new house I have drawn a plan thru Habitat and given a contract to construct. After I have seen your website and read thru the Vasthu aspects I would like to have your advice on the plan I have which is attached for your review. I have made a change to this plan and asked to extend sit out surrounding the living room up to the C/Y. Awaiting your valuable advise and reply.

Satheesh

My reply

On quick checking of GF Plan,I have following suggestions:

1.Shift Kitchen to South East ,Agni Konam as per Vasthu

2.Avoid bends

3.Living room size insufficient

4.Stair fitting in to that space and providing height for entry to common toilet do not seem to be correct.It has to be checked

ELEVATION OF HOUSE ALREADY FIXED,NOW GIVE PLAN

Quote

Dear sir,

I have gone through your website and the ideas provided seems to very interesting.I would like to know about the possibility of getting a plan according to my ineterest.I am hereby attaching an elevation of a house which i would like to proceed with ,can you please guide me to prepare a floor plan  based on the attachment.

It is highly appreciated that if you can forward me the requested plan and an estimate for executing the work immediately.

Nazeem

Abu Dhabi

My Reply

It is a common misunderstanding among people.They tend to like Elevation or external appearance of house seen in websites of builders or somewhere else.Then they want a plan of the house which will give an external appearance of house exactly same as what they have seen somewhere.

Most important part of designing and constructing a house is the plan of the building and not Elevation of the building.Plan of the building is prepared by a professional considering your requirements for the house,your budget , plot specifications,directions,surroundings like position of roads etc.

Elevation of the house depends on plan of the house and not the other way.For obtaining a good Elevation plan has to be prepared with that objective in mind by the designer.For the same plan,there can be different Elevation possibilities.Drawing an impressive looking Elevation is not .that difficult.But getting it done will  be a problem.Not all concrete workers will be able to do the Elevation work just by seeing the picture.Some of them may not be able to do difficult slope concreting.So the Elevation possible also depends upon capability of workers involved in that particular work.

Again there are two types of Elevation that can be done for a particular plan of the house.Most common type is the Desk Elevation prepared by some one who can do Auto CAD drawings with photo shop.Whatever common elevation ideas coming to the mind of the person drawing during those few hours will be used in that Elevation.

I prefer to develop Elevation during the progress of work dreaming and thinking at site.Almost all of my good Elevations are obtained like that.I discourage clients from going for an Elevation simply to satisfy his curiosity and give such an Elevation only when the client cannot understand my view point on Elevation of the house.I should admit that few clients were gracious enough to give me the freedom of developing a good Elevation as the work progresses and all of them were happy with the final result developed by me taking time to dream during the work in progress.This arrangement also help me to develop an Elevation which workers involved can do well

FIVE BED ROOM HOUSE WITH 15 LAKHS

Quote

Sir

I have a 6c plot in size 20Mx12m front. Can a make 5BHK house in a low
budget of 15L.
Please give some guidelines

Gopi

My reply

Five bed room house is required and cannot spend more than Rs.15 lakhs! Architect or builder do not have any magic wand.Cost of all inputs for house construction are going up and no one will loose money from his pocket to build you a house with all facilities you need at cost prefixed by you.If you have limited budget,your requirements will have to be cut down to meet the budget.No contractor is going to build your house suffering losses.He need profit at any cost.He will ask for extra charges or will compromise on quality of construction to keep his profit in tact.If that is not possible he will walk away from the work.

Free Consultation,18/7/12

WOOD FOR HOUSE CONSTRUCTION

Quote

Hello Sir,

I came to know your contact through www.keralaarchitecture.com website.

I planning to build a house in Ernakulum. And I am trying for different options of wood for windows and doors.

Since teak wood is very expensive, I have to go with some other options like cheru teak(pincoda), irul, Burma teak.

Can you please provide me some suggestion?

Regards,
Rony

My reply

There is no point in trying to get bits of information on house construction.Keralites in general think that they know quite a lot on house construction and all that they need is some one to draw plan as suggested by the house owner and then a contractor to build .Architects and Engineers are supposed to be for large projects only and they can only increase cost of constructing a house.This is a great mistaken notion

A professional can give you better design for the house which will increase utility of every bit of house to be built and also you will get better facilities at lesser cost.Amount you may pay as fees to the professional will be negligible when compared to cost saving and better facilities in the house.

When house construction is turning out to be a costly affair due to increase in cost of all inputs,you can no longer afford to have plan of house by any one and construction using your bits of information and that of practically illiterate contractor who will talk nicely and try to increase his profit even at cost of structural stability of your house.

It is for your professional consultant to guide you on type of wood to be used and also how to save wood requirement for the house without affecting your needs for light and ventilation inside house.

IS CONCRETE PILLARS REQUIRED FOR HOUSE CONSTRUCTION

Quote

Dear Thomas sir,

I am planning to build a double story house in Kottayam in 18 cents land.My concern is whether it required pillar for each corners of the house since am using burned bricks.Land soil is also solid. Please advice me.

SHAJO

My Reply

Reply given above is applicable in this case also.It is for the structural consultant to decide on what type of structural work will be required to suit plan of your house and soil conditions.

In normal stable soil conditions for a two story house,ordinary rubble foundation will be sufficient.Here again,without studying data related to your site and plan of the house,I cannot give a proper answer and please do not try to be Architect/Engineer for your house.Allow professionals to guide you properly on house construction

FIRE ESCAPE

Quote

Sajit has left a new comment on your post "Building Permit":

Why does not the building rule disallow the main stairway as a fire escape stairway. I have seen a parallel staircase built along the main stairway as a fire escape stairway. The intent of this is questionable.

My reply

A  stair case going up inside the building can never be a fire escape as during fire you need to get fast to outer periphery of the building for escape to outside building.

AGAIN,OWNER TRYING TO DESIGN HOUSE

Quote

Hi Thomas,
I read your post in the web and impressed with that.i am designing a home,and if you can give some inputs on my below query,would be very valuable.
I am on a contemporary design,and the dining , living area is open in structural.how can i have privacy between these two spaces.what are the design aspects can be considered to make a separation between these spaces?

Regards
Nishad

My reply

I have commented on this  general trend of owner of the house himself trying to be designer and builder of house while replying earlier queries.

A professional well versed in design and construction of building has acquired knowledge through years of study and experience in doing the work.You cannot hope to have these without training and experience.Why do you want to risk trying to do design yourself when the stake is lakhs of rupees possibly earned by your work in the whole or major portion of life? Have professional guidance.

In any case I cannot teach you design aspects by a reply to this query

HAVE ALL FACILITIES BUT PLINTH AREA SHOULD BE LIMITED

Query

Dear Thomas sir

I would like to build  a single story 3 bed room budget  house within 1000 s ft.

Let me know the ideal size for a bed room,living room,kitchen,one common bathroom,small work area,compact sit out,and a mini porch which i can afford within  1000 sq. feet

Mahesh

My reply

Due to general belief that plinth area alone matters in cost,people tend to fix plinth area of house first and ask for all facilities they need in the house within that square feet plinth area.

If you have budget limitations your requirements will have to be reduced.In any case without preparing a plan of the house to meet your needs for the house,we cannot think of cutting down area and such cutting area has restrictions if you need certain rooms and facilities at any cost.My earlier comments on leaving such design aspects to a professional is valid here also

Free Consultation

Clearance from front side facing road

Query

Dear Thomas

i have 4.5 cents beside Alappuzha-Thanneermukkam road i build a basement for house with three shop.before 21 years now i just build only one shop then went to Panchayath authority for numbering they want a certificate from village officer for location and the distance from the main road.but the village officer say to me the certificate only get after the survey done by  the thaluk  office because there is some purampoke lands in front of my land please guide me about how much space want to leave in front of land to main road?and how to save my money from waste expenses.also there is many buildings both side my lands.

My reply

Normally 3M clearance is required from the road facing the building.But your local authority(Panchayath in this case) will only be able to specify clearly how much space you have to leave in the front side.As there is said to be Purampoke land,that issue also has to be cleared by proper measurement by appropriate authority.

In the case of building construction you should not drag the numbering for long time like this after completion of construction

NALUKETTU HOUSE

Query

Hi I am mr.jovins ,I am from  Thodupuzha.i am planning to move to Mulanthuruthy which is my ancestral home.so my plan is to build a Nalukettu house,it is my dream ,so can you kindly help me .my plan is to construct a 2000 s ft. house,so is it enough for a Nalukettu type house? Please give me advice

My reply

There seems to be lot of confusion among people about Nalukettu house.

Basically this form of construction in Kerala Architecture was adopted in olden times due to requirement and living style of those days and it has almost nothing to do with present day life style of Malayalees

In earlier days people used to live in a house as Joint family with old parents,grown up children and their families living together.In such a situation each family unit may stay together in a large house with a common open space in the middle called Nadumuttom and surrounding common area for children to play inside house.

For A Nalukettu house,apart from Nadumuttom a prominent poomukham in front where the Karanavar(Chief of Family) of the joint family used to relax in a reclining chair was quite common.For the others to relax around the house,there will be open verandah around house with wooden charupady.

there is no point in replicating all these features in present day houses as joint family system has gone away giving way to nuclear families.Nadumuttom which is an open to sky feature in the center of the house is no more feasible with security and weather protection given importance.

For those who would like to have Nalukettu features due to sentimental reasons,I will advise to go for Poomukham with Charupady and Chuttu verandah to a lesser extent as a bigger sit out.

In any case adding such features will increase cost of constructing the house.For those who can afford to spend more on the house,adding Nalukettu features can be considered.For budget conscious houses,it is better to leave the design to your Architect to suit your plot,needs for house and budget.

SEEKING SOME DESIGN FOR HOUSE

Query

Hi Thomas,

Hope this mail find you in good health .Let me introduce my self first. Am a Computer programmer by profession having 0 % knowledge about construction and civil engineering.

Happened To visit http://viruvelil.blogspot.in/2008/06/building-your-dream-house-in-kerala.html . Hats for the beautiful effort.People like  you who take effort and  find time to spread the knowledge always make big difference

.Let me come to the point.I have plans to build a house at Ernakulum (varapusha). Have a 10 cent plot in hand which was handed over to mom after partition. wish to construct a 2 storied  4B house.But am not sure is it good to go for a 1 storied or a 2 storied.Also i am not having much clarity about room size 318*320 is a room having well space i believe. I wish a home to be built rather than a House with mere concrete and bricks.Regarding the budget have to solely depend on loans.Hope i can afford some thing between 18-20 lakhs. Look forward to suggestions from you as i feel you are more experienced and knowledgeable in this area. Also  Could u please send me some designs  house i can use. Waiting eagerly for a reply from you.

Thanks

Abhilash

My reply

Thank you for your good words

Any plan which we may have or some website can give may not suit your needs,your plot conditions,your budget and you should take professional guidance from beginning to end of house construction.At least you agree that you do not know much on house construction.Without knowing much people tend to say that they they know everything about house construction.Some people even draw plans on their own and ask Architect to draw like that !

Free Consultation #Kerala House Construction

FLOORING AND MODULAR KITCHEN

Quote

Sir,

My name is Ajeesh. I am from Trivandrum . Your construction blog is really helping me a lot as I am starting to build a house . I have some doubts regarding the materials used for construction. I am planning to use clay tile flooring in my house. Why is it advisable to only use clay tiles in bedroom and Living room?

Is the workers doing the acid wash and coating for clay tiles available readily everywhere? If I start using laying clay tiles and those who does acid wash and all are not available, I will be in deep sea.

Will it be costlier than using vitrified tiles considering the fact , it needs extra acid wash polyurethane coating than the vitrified tiles?

Another thing for which i wanted an answer is

Which material is better for kitchen cabinets and wardrobes considering all factors including the cost? I have heard that UPVC is best although MDF is the most widely used stuff. Is UPVC very costly than MDF?

Hope to get a reply from you.

Ajeesh

My reply

Clay tile is environment friendly and hence will be more healthy for those who stay in the house.It is made of soil and it will be healthy and comfortable for you to walk on or even sleep on the floor.

Unfortunately due to restrictions imposed on soil use for manufacture of clay tiles,most of the clay tile manufacturers are closing operations.Acid wash is a normal cleaning process after laying of any flooring material except wooden.Applying polyurethane coating will.help prevent fungus formation on clay tile surface especially on exposed areas like roof top.There are tile protective paints like “Tile shield” which can also protect exposed surface of clay tiles.

Vitrified tiles,marble and granite are not healthy to move around and live with.They are also highly slippery and can cause injuries especially to old persons by possibility of falling down by slippage.Wooden flooring is very good.But costlier compared to clay tiles.But almost same cost as granite.In areas where water spillage is expected it is better to avoid wooden flooring as frequent wetting will damage wooden surface.

There are several non slippery floor tiles like “Naturoc” tiles  of NITCO which are equal in cost to vitrified tiles but better by appearance and non slippery.

MDF for modular kitchen or for any other type of cupboards are not recommended due to lesser life.Instead you can go for Marine Ply wood which will withstand moisture.Normally we use Marine plywood for cupboards and modular kitchen with front appearance shutters of wood(either teak or Mahogany) with hand carving and polishing.UPVC will last longer.

PLAN AND COST OF BUILDING HOUSE

Query

Dear Sir

We are planning of building a house in Trissur(chirakal - to be precise), within 2500 sq.ft - 3000 sq.ft. We would basically prefer a double story house, with 4 bedrooms.

We would be obliged , if you could provide the details, proceedings and fee pattern for the above . If it is not trouble for you, we would like to see few pictures of completed projects , similar to the 1 that we are planning to build.

If you could give us the price per sq.feet , it would be helpful.

Awaiting your reply

Nisha

My reply

This is a typical mail I get almost every day

People want me to send “few plans” for house to be built by them and cost in “square feet”

When an apartment or villa builder quotes a square feet cost,he has all the data available to him about the construction,design,plot and environment around.All specifications,details are chosen by him.Even the plinth area indicated by the builder will not in any way meet the measurement which you may do after purchase.in spite of all these ,he takes huge profit and his square feet cost keep on rising as the project reaches finishing stage

In the case of a house to be built in your land,no one that matters(Architect or building contractor) do not have any data on the plot,surroundings,design and still you want him to predict a “square feet cost” even when you start thinking about construction.House construction involves hundreds of material ,availability and price of which keep changing every day in Kerala conditions.Even good skilled workers are difficult to get in Kerala.

Non professional contractors may quote a “square feet cost” to get the work from you.But he will revise rates or compromise with engineering stability and quality of construction to ensure profit for him.His only interest is in his profit and he may do “sweet talk’ if he is short of work to create confidence in you.

House for your plot,requirements and budget will have to be specifically designed for you preferably by the best qualified and well experienced professional Architect.A better design can get you lower cost of construction and better utility for every bit of your built up space in the house to come up.Only a good professional can visualise it well.

Any one who has studied Auto CAD can draw a plan.But plan prepared for your plot and house by any one will not be the same.I have designed thousands of houses and directly built more than 200 houses in Kerala State.But I still learn a lot on house construction with each new project.So the wealth of knowledge acquired by your Architect by experience can make a lot of difference to your house design and can save you lakhs of money.As a lay man you will be able to understand defects and deficiencies in design only after the house is completed.But at that stage,you will not be able to do anything to correct mistakes or deficiencies in design and work

Several people usually call me to check and suggest improvements and defects after completing structure work of the house and after spending many lakhs of money.But at that late stage no one can do anything to correct mistakes in design

If you believe in Vasthu,your plot require specific design suited to satisfy Vasthu factors related to your plot.Here again you cannot use design for house made for some body else at some other plot and location

PLAN FROM ELEVATION

Quote

Hi Thomas,
hope you ok.

My self , would like to get some advise from you to build a new house in Ranni (Pathanamthitta).

First of all we planning to build a 4 bedroom house (2 down & 2 upstairs) approximately 2500sq ft. (I have total 1.6acrs of land).I contact with one architecture and he visit the site and give us a plan as per Vasthu. but we didn't like that elevation.

If I will forward one Image (That our Dream House) for you can you give me a plan according to that? I know probably you need to see the site. But this is a long journey for you.

If you want the elevation plan (the one my architecture forward me) I can forward to u  , so that you can get a picture about the Vasthu.

Please give me a reply,

Gigi

My reply

I think reply to earlier query more or less meet for this also

It is quite natural that you may like pictures of house in websites or advertisement matter of a builder and you may think of building a house like that

Your plot,your budget,Vasthu factors,your needs of house may not exactly meet with that house even though you may like external appearance of that house

Probably you can show that external appearance to your Architect so that he may try to provide you attractive features in your house design

Elevation for Harippad House under construction

Look at three dimensional Elevation for Harippad house under construction directly by our Construction division for Gulf based NRI family

House designed by our Architecture Division with four bed rooms,traditional Poomukham,Verandah with Charupady,car porch and other usual facilities

#Kerala House Construction-Replies to your queries

VILLAS FOR SALE

Quote

Dear Thomas,

I have read quite few of your comments listed in your blog. I think it is better to share some of my thoughts with you.

Myself is going to be soon a returned NRI (without much success). Only advantage is that I have six house plots bought from my hard earned savings. Sizes of plots are:10 cents, 33 cents, 15 cents, 15 cents, 12 cents, 20 cents etc. all of these plots are more or less square, facing PWD road or tarred Panchayath road.

Only problem is that all these plots are in a village. Exact location is Nalukettu,5.5 km from Koratty info park, Thrissur DT.

My idea is to build "quality economical" houses for sale in these plots.Expected demand for these houses are from normal villagers I am looking for some one who could implement “budget house” projects on turn key projects.

Do you know someone who could implement it?

Nixon Paul

My reply

Just like going for any other business venture, construction of villas for sale also require quite a lot of preparatory study and business analysis

First of all you need a professional with wealth of experience in addition to qualifications to properly guide you for the project as the technology involved cannot be left for the whims and fancies of a contractor who quotes lowest price.It appears that you are more concerned about cost than anything else.House construction is one area which involves hundreds of materials and different type of labour which are turning to be difficult to get and cost going up everyday.A contractor who might have committed a fixed cost to you for construction will try to save both labour and material to  safeguard his profit as he is in the business for profit alone.

There is always buyers for professionally designed,and managed house constructed even if the cost is higher.Naturally your first priority will have to create such an impression to potential buyers on quality of construction and design.

As you are quite new in the business after obtaining quality professional assistance for both design and execution of the construction,it will better to build a sample villa first.Once you sell this first villa,it will be easier for you to move on

Nalukettu even though a village is quite close to Cochin airport and many other important commercial centers and hence you will definitely get customers other than village people.You will also need professional business guidance again from qualified,experienced marketing professionals.

Our company can give you all the professional expertise you will need for the project.Please log on to our websites for more details:

www.viruvelil.com

www.keralaarchitecture.com

WOOD FOR INTERIOR WORK

Quote
Hello Mr. Thomas,

I wanted to know what is the best available wood other than teak..?? is marine ply wood good? what about the new resin synthetically made wood?? I got to make my kitchen..my family insists on teak wood..but some how i feel we do have better n cheaper options in this 21st century..please do reply!!

My reply

Trouble  with house design and construction including interior work for the house is that people tend to think that they know almost everything and all what they require from a professional is only few bits of information and clarifications.I get such mails quite often and lot of people call me on phone asking for bits of information on certain aspects of construction.

House construction and design is actually a complicated process which definitely require continuous guidance from a professional.Instead of simply finding out which wood or wood substitute you can use for your modular kitchen,get a professional design for your modular kitchen from a professional and get guidance from him on all aspects of material and utility aspects for the modular kitchen .

Our company can guide you on this.But we will require more information like site study,study of house drawings,study of your needs for the modular kitchen and your budget constraints if any.

Marine plywood is normally used for portions other than directly visible portions of modular kitchen to reduce cost.It will last longer.

Do not seek such bits of information and act on your own assuming that you know everything about the topic.Even after building more than 200 houses directly and designing many more houses,I am still learning on house design and construction

FERO CEMENT SLABS

Quote

i am planning to build a house in Kerala .i have a plan and drawing for a 2 story 2450 feet house.Can i use
feraslab to build shades for my house?.can any one give me an opinion.
is it possible and safe to so?

Sajan Abraham

My reply

Answer for this query is partly given in my previous reply.Why do people think that all that they need to know on house construction is few bits of information on something they might have heard?

Seek professional involvement and guidance on all aspect of House construction.Your Architect is not some one who will increase cost of construction.He will give you best value for your money,better facilities for your house and will save you lakhs of rupees in spite of his fees or charges.

First get a professional to design your house.He will guide you on most appropriate latest technology you can go for

CLEARANCES

Quote

sir iam pradeep
1, i know that if the residential building built with in 5 cent ,and which have included in EMS bhavana scheam for SC,ST members, only 60 cm setback(open space) from near plot and if have ventilater at height of 220 cm- is it true pls reply

My reply

Please check up with concerned person in your Panchayath/local authority as they will be able to give you clear cut opinion considering local restrictions if any