[Qeiafib]

Your English is better than mine Betti. Certainly better than IGotNoTime.

Good to know though, baking powder for ant control. I may try that at my door and window edges. Thanks.

[exschke]

baking powder then. the white stuff you put in bread or pizza to make it rise. sorry about my lousy English :-(

[ChrisGoldstein]

Betti, baking soda and baking powder are different things,,soda is used in baking and cooking tho to cut the acidity of sour or butter milk mostly and baking powder is used to make the bread raise. and mostly ants is ants.

[Feelundseenna]

Hello all:

I think I should state what I would like the tread to be about. I would like the members to talk about how they are able to get different ideas and things to work in Thailand. In this I mean physical items, like radios, cars, bikes, water pipes, and so on. The reason I want to bring this up is I think we as a group have a lot of knowledge that others in the forum might need and want. PLEASE do not attack other members about their way of fixing something, there are many ways to get something done and as long as it works in the end and the way you did it was good. Then is was a right way. If you have an suggestion to the member of maybe a better way, please say so. But do not say that one way is wrong.
I personally how that this tread will stay open and will be helpful to all who read it.

Thank you for reading.
The Duckman

[exschke]

baking powder (baking soda?) works miracles against European ants, they never return to the place where they once tasted it. no idea if it's available here of it if works with tropical ants, it's just a thought here, might be worth trying

[exschke]

sutopor, sure. they must have some at the places where they make pizza, I would say.... or you bring some from home maybe? it's weird things people end up stocking up on when flying home last time I had to take two biiig cheese and lots of sour cream, plus a nokedliszaggato

anybody any ideas about cockroaches? I don't have an ant problem, but yesterday I had a HUGE cockroach staring at me from the wardrobe. only dirty clothes in there, no food. I am used to having them in the bathroom, but should I leave the wardrobe door open so it can get out, or close it so that another one can't get in?!
I guess I should make a trip to the local Tesco and check out the chemicals (among other things that are long overdue).

[Cerilopasei]

Yeah, cockroach infestation is another issue. Luckily, I've always seen them at other people's places, mine's safe! So, no personal experiences yet, but there is a tried and true way of getting rid of them - give them a house!

That's exactly what it sounds like. An approximately half-foot long paper house, with dried squid inside as the bait. It is placed under the table, or wherever you see them appearing.

What makes this work is that the 'floor' of the 'house' is covered with glue. So now you get the idea. When the cockroach-motel is full, and there are still guests who wanna check in, just get a new one from your local supermarket!

Az otletet Cherry adta, azt mondta, neki bevalt.

[ChrisGoldstein]

I have had 2 remote cabins that were beyond the reach of the power grids so have had to make my own electrical energy.

Just for lighting it is not a very spendy thing but you do need a good large battery bank, My last place there had a 2000 AH bank of 6 round jar batterys for a 12 V setup with a 1500W inverter.
But due to the northern lat. I didn't get but 2 hrs of sun on the panels a day and some days none for the winter months and had to supplement with a 12V gas driven gen set for batt. charging.
Most places in the states do have a cost recovery plan in effect so that any power that you make can be sent to the grid and bought by the power co and tax breaks for the cost of the system and even loans to pay for them.. No such plan is here tho so the total cost of the system falls on you,
Most of the power for a totally solar home would be used by a mechanical reefer system as they are energy hogs but you can buy a solar absorbs ion system now that would run independent of your battery bank or even on cooking gas.
Info is hard to come by here but I did find some at www.leonics.com ,But while we are on I would like to comment on some things I came across while building our home.
First is the Thai system of cutting threads on both metal and plastic pipe fittings, They cut all threads in the standard machine thread style where the top threads are the same dia. as the bottom threads on a male fitting and not the NPT thread where pipe threads are cut on a taper and the end threads are smaller than the bottom threads, so the fitting always bottoms out instead of the threads tightening to seal before bottoming, and they say "O well just put on 6 or 7 wraps of Teflon tape to fill the gap", but tape will not hold pressure and was not made to do that anyway.
I think that is plenty for this time and can get into more funny and strange things used in Thai construction next time.

[cokLoolioli]

Srroy Dan, I konw my Egnilsh is not the bset, but some poelpe are wrose than me bileve it or not. Soemtiems I hvae a tedncency to mix my ltetres up and yet you all can sitll uendsrntd my main piotns. Cool lttile tirck isn't it? It is the sbulminal mind hrad at wrok. They sutided this at Cmabirdge Unvirsety a few yaers bcak.

Betti it is interesting that you mention baking soda, I bought a box of ant repellent last spring for my lime tree that was going to be outside. I sprinkled the powder and it worked well. The brand was Ortho, one of the biggest names in gardening additives. I was upset when I seen the main ingredient on the box was sodium aluminum sulfate. This is also the what baking powder is made of. So basically I paid $16 for a box of baking powder.

[Cerilopasei]

Okay, back with the pic, as I promised earlier.

Kantoke, holding some yummy Thai sweets that ants would die to munch on!

baking powder (baking soda?) works miracles against European ants, they never return to the place where they once tasted it. Betti, sutoporra gondolsz? Egy eve itt vagyok, de meg nem lattam az uzletekben... talan azert, mert eddig meg nem is kerestem! Koszi a tippet, majd korulnezunk. Ha talalunk, szolunk Neked is...

[Cerilopasei]

This is an unusual and interesting topic, duckman!

Ever since I lived here, it's always been a problem how to keep food away from ants! They are just everywhere, and like a miniature Marco Polo, they explore every nook and canny for hidden food! Everything that couldn't be stuffed in the fridge was open game.

I found the solution in an unusual place: Muang Boran, the Ancient City in Samut Prakan. One of the first attractions seen there is the scripture depository of an old temple. As you can see on the pic, it consists of a hut standing on wooden stilts in the middle of a small artifical pond. The clever monks kept precious manuscripts here, safely away from hungry termites. I thought that the same principle should work against ant-attacks as well.

To build my own version of the structure, all I needed was a large kantoke and a wide, shallow plastic bowl. I filled the bowl with water, placed the kantoke in the middle, and put the food on top. There. No ants munched on my food every since, and I keep my snacks Thai-style!

Another problem came with it though: in the tropical climate, algae and bacteria started to grow in the water just overnight! This is not a problem with the pond of the scripture depository, but indoors it's just nasty. So I added some bleach to the water and keep changing it frequently. Works like magic.

(The attachment shows the scripture depository. I'll take a pic of my version once I get home, and upload it next time.)

[ChrisGoldstein]

You can use any table with a dish or pot under each leg and fill with water and even float some oil on top to stop evap. or growth in the water, it is done in a lot of places I have lived.

We had problems with ants coming in our new house, even before the work was finished, the Thai workers ate every 2 or 3 hours and threw scraps of food around and had ants coming in by the millions as they ate in the new kitchen area.
We called an exterminator that came and sprayed the wood for termites and also sprayed for ants with a chemical that was a Shell chem. co product, it really works, it has been 4 years and we have had very few ants come in and it hasn't been a problem.
You can also use Boric Acid powder scattered around the outside of the house and sprayed into cracks where the ants seem to come and go, it works well and is not toxic to pets or people, it is fairly cheap if you buy the commercial grade instead of the Pharmacy grade.:cool

[ChrisGoldstein]

that commercial grade of boric acid powder is good for them too, I was told to use it by an ORKIN exterminators guy in california, he said they don't use it because it works for a long time and the stuff they use is only good for a short while so you have to have them return again next month.. But I have heard that straight plain borax scattered around will work too.

the good thing is that they are not toxic.

[Feelundseenna]

My sister and brother in-law like to stay on the farm over night. But one of the draw backs of this is there is no electric on the farm. It is funny to me because there are high power transmission lines going through the land. They have a radio and a flash light to help them at night. The radio runs off of a 12 volt motorbike battery. They bring the battery back to the house in the village to charge every 3 to 4 days.

Last month I sent them a 12 volt solar panel to hook up to the battery at the farm. I was able to find this used at a supplus electric store and it cost me about $20. Sis called Sukanya last night and asked if she was ever going to need to take the battery to the village to charge again. I think next I will see about putting full power from solar on the farm. I will let you know how it goes.
The Duckman

[Feelundseenna]

Last night my mother-in-law called and said that her village has run out of water. I said What??? Will ok, the village is fed by a pond that did not seem that big. And her family is bringing water in from the farm to use, and they also can get water from the village well. So what is the problem you ask? Will a year ago I had put in a hot water system for the shower. And now they cannot use it because the village is out of water.
I see two different solutions.
1. Put a water tank up on the second floor of the house and run a pipe to the inlet of the water heater. Problems with this is, pressure, will it have enough pressure to trip the switch in the heater and give a good shower, getting water to the tank, this means that someone will need to carry the water up stairs and fill the tank daily.
2. Install a pump. In the shower closet they have a 75 gallon open water tank. I think hooking the pump up to it and putting a on-demand-switch would give them water for not only showers but also the kitchen and other places. They could hook it in to the line in the shower and turn off the main line.
I think the pump is the way to go, and I have seen them at Big C, but my problem is I do not know which one to tell them to get, if I was in Thailand I could go and look and get the right one.
So my friends, dose anyone have a good model a pump that they are using that did not cost a lot???
Please let me know. Oh there is a handy man that I have worked with before in the village that will install the pump or the tank.
Thanks
The Duckman

[ChrisGoldstein]

It is a MARQUIS mod. MQ 130B and is automatic pressure shutdown and is easy to hookup, and I paid 2500 baht I think, but have since bought a pump that has a plastic enclosure so the rain will not hurt it at a slightly higher cost, if they are close to here I would give them the pump.
All our wells are only 4 meters deep as thats where the water is but we don't use it as the water comes from cess pools and makes your cloths and body stink if used for showers or laundry,,Everyone else uses it tho.
I have set up a series of Thai water jars and use only rain water for all our household uses and catch every drop of rain water from our roof and route it to the jars, there are pix of the system in a link in my profile page.

[GreesyBeeva]

To build my own version of the structure, all I needed was a large kantoke and a wide, shallow plastic bowl. I filled the bowl with water, placed the kantoke in the middle, and put the food on top. There. No ants munched on my food every since, and I keep my snacks Thai-style!

I love ingenuity! Great topic.

Just one question SiamJai, what is a kantoke?

áºÃÕè

[mypharmalife]

Other natural repellents are rosemary, lavender,and basil. If you notice plants that don't attract insects, plant them near the places you want to keep the buggers away from.

[ChrisGoldstein]

From what I have seen and tried of Thai sweets, I think that the ants could have em..

[Cerilopasei]

Sorry... It's a round-shaped, flat-bottom wooden bowl with legs. You can think of it as a special plate that carries the table underneath. Traditionally, Thais place many of these on the ground and eat from them while sitting on the ground as well.

Until I upload the pic of mine, please take a look at this picture from saidoo.ch. Mine looks just like this, but somewhat larger.