Carpentry

If you are building a house in India typically we use bricks and mortar for construction, and the most important work which adds to the aesthetics of the house is Doors and Windows. I am now seeing this trend of UPVC windows for houses. I am personally not a fan of UPVC windows, as I feel it does not go with the climate of our country. In my workplace they have used UPVC windows extensively and I can smell plastic in the midday sun. Its upto you to decide what works.

After you have finished the electrical conduits, and before plastering we would start carpentry work.

So what are the things to look out for doors and windows and how to proceed, let me share what I missed and what are the options.

In India right now the most expensive raw material after steel is wood (Hardwood), if you get hold of a carpenter who is good and charges reasonably, and you can source wood at lower cost, you can look at the two frame windows like the picture below. There are two sets of window frame one that opens from inside and the other that opens outside. The inner frame contains steel mesh and the outer frame Glass. This is a permanent mosquito screen which is more durable.

One of the important aspect you should look is the thickness of the window frame. we opted for 6ft by 6ft windows and it required thick frames. Also the picture below is one of the door type French window on the upstairs balcony. The steel frame is includes in the frame itself. 

This is one of the big windows we kept in the front façade of our building, we believe it gives a lot of light and makes the rooms look bright.

  What other things you should look out for.

• Door Hinges and Knobs - If your budget permits go for brass hinges for all the doors it is more durable
• Latches- Go for good quality latches, as sometimes the builders might get cheaper varieties
• Window mechanism - The window can use sliding hinges or normal hinges, which ever pleases it you can opt, I would suggest sliding hinges as it gives a firm feel when you open windows
• Main Door lock.- At this stage you should decide on which lock you are going to use on the main door as the carpenter has to make marking on the door to install the locks. I would suggest the godrej vertibolt locking system as it is very useful and comparatively  safe.

  

  You can also ask the carpenters to make small shelves for keeping phones or books with the remaining wood.

Hope I was able to give some ideas, if you have any queries please do ask questions.

Electric,Plumbing and Fancy lights

So now roofing is done and the next important stage is laying electrical and plumbing pipelines. Before roofing your electrician would have asked what all is the requirements and made suitable junction box provisions. Now the task in front of you is deciding where to keep the various switch boxes and how to draw wires in case of electric work.

Did you see the wall with certain marking, this is our idea for a recessed light cum display case. This should be done when the electricians break the walls for laying pipes, otherwise it would take too much rework.

This was the end result for that wall. So if you want to add some lights and other things the time to talk with your. Builder is after concrete and before plastering work.

Plumbing

Decide where you need pipes, if you are going for wall mixers and shower panels be specific on where you want. 

The wall grooves are different for wall mixer and shower panel. 

If you are planning for geyser inform where you want to fix it, it requires both pipeline and also electric outlets.

If you want to go for solar water heater then the pipeline and plug points will change accordingly.

Plan for the wash basins and toilet closet, depending on the type of basin or closet the pipeline mechanisms will change.

The kitchen sink is another area you should focus before plastering. As the tabletop for holding the sink will be built now. Insist on concrete slab, many builders now opt for steel frame and granite top which is not durable. 

Ask for a 2ft wide tabletop made of concrete covered by granite slab.

These are some of the things you should look out before plastering.

The above picture is the kitchen after tiles has been laid. We created a small island for baking and serving .This was a huge hit among all our friends and relatives. It has a very good utility value too. Add electric sockets on the inside it would be very useful for baking.

Roofing and Concealed beams

When the brick work has reached a height of 7 feet from the floor of the house, you will be putting lintel beams for installing windows and doors. at  this  stage you should look out for uniform beam thickness as most masons tends to do this work sloppily. Also insist on more interlocking iron rods and the thickness of the concrete should be at least 3-4 inches.
Typically the sunshade is kept for a length of 1.5 feet from the wall, if your builder agrees extend it for another half feet.

The important part before you pour the concrete for lintel is call the electrician and plan for the various light fixtures and points and if you decide on keeping fancy lights now is the time to add the junction boxes.

One tip, don't keep the loft on the side where window comes as fitting screen rods might get difficult. we learnt the hard way. The pic below shows how we made a mistake

This is another area we made a mistake, we wanted a fancy spiral stair, but got cold feet because of the cost of the iron fabrication work for the steps spine. if we could have gone with our initial idea may be we could have added a 30sqft to our dining room.

The C-Day first pouring of concrete

what should one talk to the builder when it comes to roofing

•  Tell the builder what type of water tank you require, it will help them on deciding if there is any hidden beams required
• If you plan to put any structures in future also ask the opinion of the engineer and see to the necessary beams are added to the steel structure.
• ask for the thickness of concrete and also make sure enough concrete spacer blocks are placed below the steel rod for keeping it in the middle of wet concrete

Many builders will say we can remove the inner scaffolding after 10 days or 14 days , don't agree leave it for a 21 days and then remove the scaffolding. Also make sure the concrete is watered for 14 days and the last seven days let the water to be absorbed and then remove the inner scaffolding.

One thing we missed is adding Stainless Steel Fan hooks and Swing hooks. You can plan where you want to hang a swing in your home and add the swing hooks.