Archive for January, 2008
Green home construction – Day 25 in the construction of a Nicaraguan Earthship
Thursday, January 31st, 2008
The water catchment is taking form. In the next few days we will tie the finish coat on the middle dome into the gutters and cistern. We’re sloping the flow at 1 inch every four feet.
Lot signs are going in on Day 24 of the construction of a Nicaraguan Earthship
Wednesday, January 30th, 2008
It’s midway through the week and it looks as though we will accomplish our short term objectives. Today we saw two hits on the dome and both gutters built up significantly.
Although the inside of the building is not currently a high priority, there are enough hands that we are able to continue with “packout” and adobe plaster. The vapor barrier is partially up in both domes as well.
A green real estate community south of San Juan del Sur
All around us things are happening. The community itself is truly developing. Lot signs are up for the remaining six lots and the road has already received its preliminary grading and compaction. The signs mark the sites for new Earthship buildings in this growing green real estate community located a little south of the town of San Juan del Sur.
The roads will be to high standard. Tim is using a very experienced crew and the material he’s throwing down is quality grade that should compact down nicely.
Green building – Day 23 of the construction of a Nicaraguan Earthship
Tuesday, January 29th, 2008
The middle dome is ready to receive it’s first coat of plaster. Inside the building, Seth has been discussing the art of adobe plaster with the local Nicaraguan crew. The plaster work is coming along well. Lot’s of busy hands all around us.
Sometimes it’s hard to believe it’s been only 23 working days.
Day 22 of the construction of a Nicaraguan Earthship
Monday, January 28th, 2008
Monday is always a natural time to lay out goals and expectations for the week, and with the addition of Phil and Seth, two of Earthship Biotecture’s finest, we decided to set our goals high.
All in all it was a decent Monday. We were able to get a skeleton of rebar up and supported for the form of the dome. The arches are glommed and scratched, ready to receive a shaping/final coat. And the wing walls are only two tire courses short of being done.
Nicaragua real estate: The buzz about the Nicaraguan Earthship is building
Monday, January 28th, 2008We’ve been keeping a daily blog on the construction of a house made out of tires which cools itself passively, creates its own power and harvests its own water. Known as an “Earthship” the house design was conceived by architect Mike Reynolds from Earthship Biotecture, in Taos, New Mexico.
Ever since the construction team arrived in Nicaragua and teamed up with the local community of El Carizal to begin the building, the buzz has been growing:
- Steve over in Newcastle, England updated his readers about the Nicaraguan Earthship
- Closer to home, MyBootsnMe visited the site and took a couple of great shots
- La Prensa, Nicaragua’s daily national newspaper wrote an article about a house made out of a thousand tires and thousands more bottles and cans (Spanish)
- And Dave Kniffen from Casa Llanta reflected on the vision behind the Nicaraguan Earthship initiative in a thoughtful article written on Day 16 of the construction.
There’s also a You Tube video for those who want to see a day by day demonstration.
[youtube]Fa-lcGJberI&rel=1[/youtube]
We are proud to market this Earthship community to our network. The location is great (only 15 minutes south of San Juan del Sur), the logic of green building can’t be faulted, and the construction quality is top class.
Download the floor plan from our property listing, spread the word, contact us for more information, and help kick start what could be the beginning of a green movement in Nicaragua real estate.
Green real estate in Nicaragua: Day 21 of the construction of a Nicaraguan Earthship
Sunday, January 27th, 2008
The west dome has received its final coat. This morning we were hit with about a twenty minute downpour and decided that pounding tires would need to wait due to all the fresh mud. And since the dome was already wet and needed to be done eventually, we decided it was a sign.
So with Camilo sifting out the sand, Eliseo on the mixer, Eduardo and Faustino making bucket runs; Marlo and Fernando led the charge. The local community of El Carizal here are very familiar with concrete since the majority of the structures in Nicaragua are done with little more than rebar, cement, water and sand.
Every day we get more excited about the potential for green real estate here in Nicaragua
On Monday we will see Phil and Seth (Earthship Biotecture) as they have decided to come back down for another week of working on the Earthship, training the local Nicaraguan crew and, ultimately, “putting housing back into the hands of the people.”
Green real estate in Nicaragua: Day 19 of the construction of a Nicaraguan Earthship
Friday, January 25th, 2008
The greenhouse wall is ready to accept the bond beam. Fernando, Eliseo and Marlo will spend the first part of tomorrow plastering around the few bottles that are left while Eduardo, Freddy, and Miguel Angel (who has re-joined us for a few days) will pound out a few tires to channel water away from the building in the rainy season.
Although cleaning bottles is slow and meticulous work, I am still pleasantly surprised with the progress considering that this is really only the 19th work day on the site of the first Earthship to be built in Nicaragua.
Green real estate in San Juan del Sur: Day 18 of the construction of a Nicaraguan Earthship
Thursday, January 24th, 2008It always feels good to have work for someone. Today Frederico and Eduardo re-joined the work force. We are now six from the El Carizal community just south of San Juan del Sur and myself, a lucky seven for the rest of the week.
Today the greenhouse wall received a nice smooth (floated) coat. The exposed bottles were continuously cleaned to prevent the fresh concrete hardening on them. It really is a beautiful wall.
We have a nice rhythm going now. More supplies are set to arrive tomorrow. We’ll see what gets done…
Nicaragua real estate update: Day 17 of the construction of a Nicaraguan Earthship
Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008Today was the first day of work on the site after the holidays. Of the original 13 workers from the community, I am beginning to separate out the best of the best. I invited the top three (decided on when I left on December 23) to help me get started. Fernando, Marlo and Eliseo will likely be “junior foremen” through the remainder of this project.
We spent some of the morning reorganizing and reacquainting ourselves with the tools, reminding each other that between the four of us we are ultimately responsible for Casa Llanta equipment. Thanks to some timely donations I was able to bring down two “bucket belt” tool organizers and some tools that are now “ours” and it seems like they take pride in that…
The first priority in this week will be raising the greenhouse (front) bottle wall. Once that has been set to bond beam height, we will plaster and float the final coat of the West dome. Other things we plan to cover this week are a complete burial of the cisterns, complete the gutter (for water catchment) on the west dome, and MAYBE a finish (floated coat) on the greenhouse wall…
Good first day back.
Choose Nicaragua: A real estate tour of the best Nicaragua has to offer
Thursday, January 10th, 2008
Some of the best real estate deals on Earth
“Nicaragua is virtually unknown to most people and usually misunderstood, which is why forward-thinking investors can find some of the best real estate deals on Earth in this country.” MSN Money
We invite you to review the very best real estate in Nicaragua
Over the past few months a select group of developers have come together to showcase a broad palette of real estate options under a unified banner – “Choose Nicaragua.”
We can say in all good conscience that this group represents the very best Nicaragua has to offer.
That is not a glib marketing statement – these market leaders represent the top properties and investment opportunities across the country as a whole. We at Coldwell Banker Nicaragua have been working in-country long enough to know the difference between quality and hype.
A special three day private tour to celebrate the launch of the group
To celebrate the launch of the Choose Nicaragua group, we have designed a special three day private tour where you will have the opportunity to take a close look at these five magnificent offerings.
We have so much faith in these developments that we are pleased to cover all in-country expenses, with no obligation whatsoever.
But, most importantly, each developer has reserved the best locations, at the best prices, specifically for this launch offering. This means that you’ll pay far less than anyone else who comes in after you.
Click here to learn more about the tour and the special offers
Each of these properties is outstanding – they stand out from the crowd Magnificent ocean view villas at Piedras y Olas…Pelican Eyes, a luxury resort with record-breaking occupancy levels; beachfront “casitas” and condos at Milagro del Mar at Gran Pacifica; your private ocean view home-site with views to Costa Rica at Brisas del Pacifico; a beachfront home-site or condo on a championship golf course at Montecristo; or property overlooking a crater-lake and proposed world heritage site at Club Vistalagos.
There is something here for everyone – and all of it best-in-class: Ocean view parcels, golf condos, income generating units, luxury resort hotel property, surf real estate, eco-inspired communities and beachfront property. These properties appeal to both head and heart.
You’ll first connect on an emotional level, then you’ll run the numbers, as we have done, and see the hard logic of the investment.
Click here to learn more about the tour and these five magnificent properties
These developers are defined by what they do – they are creating a product you can actually see and touch
The investment choices offered here are all distinct in their appeal but the Choose Nicaragua group all share one very important characteristic:
Resident developer/owners with a passion for perfection and a single minded commitment to delivering a standard of quality that will live on for generations to come.
They are not developer speculators who visit the country every now and again. They live in Nicaragua full time, have moved here with their families and are here to stay. And no stone is left unturned in their unwavering commitment to superior client service and all it stands for.
A tour that goes beyond
We urge you to make your arrangements right away to take advantage of the special offers from the Choose Nicaragua developers. The special prices, as with all good things, must come to an end. They will only be available for participants on the private tour visiting the country before February 29th 2008.
Please click here to learn more and to arrange your tour. Send us dates that will work for you and we will make arrangements and reservations around these.
We look forward to being your host in beautiful Nicaragua.
With very best wishes for the New Year,
Claudia, Sara, Kirk and the Coldwell Banker Nicaragua Team
