Builders in Spain: How to decide who to hire for your villa
Making the right choice when hiring builders in Spain can really make or break the final result of your home in the sun. There are many people involved in the team you need to build a house in Spain, but the builders (or contractors) are the ones who’ll actually be bringing it to life –Continue reading
Can You Have Separate Suppliers Independent of the Main Contractor?
We recently had a client suggest that an element of the build was provided by a separate supplier independent of the main contractor. He was quite reasonably trying to save money. He had a price from the separate supplier to do one thing. He knew that if the supplier became a subcontractor, then the mainContinue reading
Choosing the Right Windows is Critical to the Success of Your Villa
Here are the things to consider Window Size and Placement The honest truth is that is most of the houses we (Eco Vida Homes) design the window size and placement is determined by lifestyle choices such as capturing the best views, creating a seamless inside / outside space, allowing lots of natural light, and outsideContinue reading
Why do Builder’s (contractor) Quotes Vary so Much in Spain?
Builder’s quotes and contractor’s offers can vary by 40% or more. How can this be when they are all working from the same information? The answer lies in two camps. One camp is to do with the builder’s own business and the other camp is to do with the architect and the architect’s project. WhatContinue reading
Lean Construction – what’s that all about? Can we learn from this in Spain?
Lean Production is a philosophy that came out of Japan after the Second World War. It means maximum efficiency. At every stage you focus only on the customer’s needs, adding maximum value, and reducing waste to a minimum. In other words you are as efficient, and as competitive, as possible. Lean Construction applies this philosophyContinue reading
How to Repair Damage to Steel Reinforced Concrete in Spain
Most buildings in Spain are built using steel reinforced concrete. There are many reasons why damage can occur: poor design and specification, overloading, movement due to ground movement and fire to name a few.
Many people think you can simply remove the damaged material and replace it with any kind of mortar but this not the case.
Building with a modern timber frame in Spain
Timber frame design and technology has come a long way in the last 40 years and Spain is slowly waking up to the benefits. These days, a modern timber frame building can actually outperform a reinforced steel concrete frame (which is almost the only Spanish house construction method) in most circumstances. While not totally unknownContinue reading
Off Site Construction Spain: Is it Green?
Modern timber frames, kit houses, prefab buildings and modular homes in Spain have a number of advantages but are they particularly green? Not necessarily. The thing is you generally have more control so they lend themselves to energy efficiency. The question of embodied transport related energy needs to be asked. This needs to include transportContinue reading
