Sinks

We are in the process of figuring out how to put up our kitchen and bathroom sinks and we would welcome any advice. I have always wanted a ceramic kitchen sink and thought I would only be able to find overpriced antiques. Fortunately, we found one on the sanitary goods street near Chinatown. It was made in Thailand and measures approximately 30 by 50 cm and about 30 cm deep.

We're thinking of putting the kitchen sink on a simple metal frame, so we can show the ceramic body, and then put the tap into a small extended counter-like area that would jut out behind the sink and would serve only to hold the tap.

Because our house has only one layer of wall, we do not have a place to hide pipes or to hold taps. This is also why we chose the metal piping for the electricity.

We're looking now for a solar water heater. We plan to have hot water for the shower and the kitchen sink.

This is our bathroom sink -- small and simple. It's light enough to hang from the vertical beams of our walls, we've been told, but we're still thinking of adding some sort of pedestal.

We're trying to do this on our own, but it often feels like we're trying to reinvent the wheel. Any tips or advice? Add your comments.

Piped water coming

Our neighbors have always bathed with the local groundwater and drunk rainwater, but all that is about to change. The municipal water main is coming. Just yesterday, the superstrong worker dudes used long poles with cylinders on them to dig deep holes into the clay (Bangkok earth is clay) next to the "road" next to our house (actually a sidewalk-sized road that permits only pedestrians, motorbikes and bicycles). They then hoisted up these 6-meter long cement polls and dropped them into -- ploop! -- into the holes.

With the cement pole balanced perfectly on this cart like a seesaw, it is rolled into the forested inner reaches of our neighborhood from the main road (a real road for cars, about 150 meters from our house).

These were not here Friday and were all dug and put in place Saturday morning, before noon, which is when we arrived. The workers will then pour a cement block with a half-moon cradle for the water main pipe to rest in.

Painting finished

All the wood surfaces had to be painted -- for aesthetics and to protect it from termites and the monsoon season mold. For the months when it rains a lot, our laundry does not want to dry on the line, and everything gets moldy, even framed artworks.

A view of the back of our house.