Roatan Insights © June 2001
News from the Honduras Bay Islands and North Coast
June 2001
By Pierre Renaldo, The Coastwatcher©

Summertime and the livin' is easy.

Your daddy's rich and your mama's good lookin'. And the weather is hot and y'all feel like you're cookin'.

How's that for plagiarism? What else would you expect in the tropics in June? We learn to pace ourselves in these hot weather climates. Building up a tolerance to the heat is something that just seems to happen.

Note the word tolerance because there is a difference between putting your mind above discomfort and acclimatizing. We just don't think about it much anymore. True enough when you exert yourself a little and the sweat runs into you eyes, it is definitely noticeable, but we have become acclimatized.

You will too, so if you are sitting around up there in Seattle or Vancouver or some other cool place where 85 degrees is a record breaking heat wave, and you are just hanging out some evening talking about coming here to live and you are getting really excited, and then all of a sudden you think…..Oh! but how will I ever get through those hot months?

Let me assure you readers, the summer weather here is less oppressive than in Florida. I can personally attest to that having lived in good ol' FLA. for almost thirty years. And I mean all over Florida, because I traveled that state from one end to the other building on almost every major barrier island on the west coast and multitudes of locations in the interior. There is hardly a hotter place that I know of than being in the woods of Central Florida in summer.

The Bridges at Gravel Bay
A progress report

I am very pleased to report that the abutment foundations for the second new bridge at Gravel Bay are being excavated as I write. At this moment it is a vast pool of very brackish seawater but the little guy with the pump will show up any day now and then we should see some real progress.

I am amazed that the pump never seems to make any progress unless we have an outgoing tide. But that little guy does not give up. He is determined to pump all the water right out of the Caribbean Sea if he has to. After all, it is his job that's on the line if the water is not out of that hole by the time los roccas technicians are ready for their rock heaving contest.

The trucks are bringing in the fill that is needed to build the approaches for bridge numero uno. Those big loaded dump trucks are taking a big toll on the other rinky-dink wooden bridges that they have to cross between Gravel Bay and the West Bay Road, from whence they are carting the fill.

I was behind one the other day and as he crossed an old wooden bridge, the planking just sprung up in pieces, as the heavy load was exerted on the span.

Wow! They will have to replace all of those little old bridges by the time these guys are finished. But it's a good way to keep busy, as you go along destroying the existing bridges, while you are building new ones. Unless the funds dry up.

Then we would be back to the old days of driving through the drainage creeks and seawater. That's when los roccas technology is really useful. Throw in a bunch of roccas to keep from getting stuck. Carumba! Are we smart here or what?

The concrete work on bridge number one really looks good now that the forms have been taken away. I am still wondering what they will be using for the roadbed over the spans. I'm getting a sneaking suspicion that it will be some kind of prefabricated concrete, a big reinforced slab all ready to drop into place. And we will have an instant bridge.

I wonder how many guys it will take to lift it?

That's what they did a few years ago when the collapsing bridge going to the new courthouse, was about to give out. I went over that way one day and bingo, there was a complete new bridge in place, that would have taken months to build. But some ingenious engineer had fabricated a whole completed bridge that was just there already in the snap of a finger!

There has been more paving around the big municipal pier where the cruise ships come in. The reason I know about that is because last Sunday morning when I got all the way into town after bumping over the entire length of the coastal road, the barricades were just being placed, along with many roccas to insure that work would not be interrupted by anybody silly enough to want to go into town on a Sunday morning.

Sooooo, I just turned around and drove the seventeen extra miles around the long way after being a quarter mile from the office. Oh well! We can't stand in the way of progress. I wonder if that road building company has ever given the public a little advance notice about road closings.

It would probably be the guy who stands out there waving the red bandana.

"Hey Gringo! We gonna close upa dis road in about two segundas."

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Great News From globalnet.hn

Five years go when I signed with Globalnet as my Internet service provider, they informed me that all Internet access would be charged as long distance calls by our wonderful telephone company, Hondutel.

I was assured however, that Globalnet was in the process of erecting a transmitting tower on Roatan to circumvent this expensive problem, and not to worry, that everything would be just peachy by mid-summer.

"Si Senior! No problemo!"

Well I guess when you consider an interval of five years by Honduran standards, that's really like the blink of an eye. Of course our wonderful telephone company, Hondutel was behind the entire delay, doing everything possible to hang on to those astronomical long distance charges.

For my office it amounts to between fifty and sixty bucks a month, plus the monthly fee to Globalnet. It's a lot of dineros to donate to the worlds worst telephone company, for providing us with the epitome of mediocrity.

But back to Globalnet. For the first time ever, this morning, I accessed the Internet as a local call. Yep! Right here in Coxen Hole. And even though I didn't have anything urgent to send out, I dawdled around on the net just for the heck of it. I wish those jerks at the telephone exchange could have seen me flaunting that free time right in their kissers.

YOU DIDN'T GET ME TODAY, YOU FLYSPECKS OF HUMANITY! YOU CLOWNS OF THE WORLD!

I salute you Globalnet. You have done it in spite of them. Nothing has changed in my address as a result of this wonderful progress. My e-mail address is still: elouis@globalnet.hn

Just one more little aside and then I will be finished with this month's Hondutel bashing. This is the month of the newest "deadline" for the Honduran government to sell controlling interest in the worlds worst telephone company, Hondutel.

As you may recall, there have been very many previous deadlines so I'm not very excited about this one. It will probably be put off to the next presidential administration. Let the new guy take the rap, Right? Isn't that the way of politics?

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Many people have asked about what the educational standards of the school system are like here. Some have been considering coming for a trial period and putting their kids in school on Roatan. I have only come to some conclusions by observing and talking to students who have graduated from the public school program, and a couple of the teachers.

Tell me what you would think if your fourteen year old sixth grader could not tell time or had never seen a map of the world during his/her six years of schooling. One young man said the teacher taught them to tell time from a digital clock but he never learned how to tell time from a standard clock face, the kind with the funny little hands that go around.

Another had never seen a world map until she came into my office to clean. She had never heard of, nor been exposed to the subject of geography. I'm not kidding.

So if any of you out there have geography books and toy clocks that you want to get rid of, please bring them with you when you come to visit. Please don't attempt to send anything, because then the Aduana will want his cut, so just bring it with you if you want to help out a little.

Gee! It just dawned on me that the reason everybody is late in this country is because they probably can't tell time, unless they have a digital clock. And besides that they probably don't know how to get from point "A" to point "B" because they don't know anything about maps.

Unless you can send your children to a good private bilingual school you can rely on a very mediocre education for your kids if they attend public schools on Roatan. My opinion exclusively, and others may disagree.

Another question I am asked much too frequently. Do I know a good of any good rentals, and could I check into getting places for people to stay.

Well friends, as much as I would like to help, I'm not the guy to ask. I have very little knowledge of the availability of rental situations of any kind. Look on: www.roatanet.com . There are all kinds of things available there. Ask their discussion group. That's where you'll find the good places. I'm not in the business of travel and accommodations. I build things. So if you want something built, talk to me about it. I do not do room rentals. Please don't ask.

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This month I will touch on a subject that I have not dwelled on often, but those of you who plan to live here some day should be aware of things that are different when you live on an island. The subject is:

Corrosive Atmosphere with High Humidity

I will also include an excerpt from my book, "How to Build Your Dream Home in a Third World Paradise" which you can purchase by going to: http://www.eroatan.com/cgi-bin/pierre.cgi?books.

Now let's get on with this months very important subject.

Highly corrosive atmosphere with high humidity is a condition that is likely to be a continuing problem when you are living on a Caribbean island. If you live within a mile of a coastal area, you will be in a corrosive atmosphere all the time. The closer you are to the water, the more pronounced the problems will be.

Here are some measures you can take to help prevent rust. Make sure all nail and screw heads are properly set and puttied or caulked to protect them from the salt air. The elements that come into play in order for rust to begin are moisture, salt, and oxygen,

Any metallic surfaces that will remain exposed to the atmosphere, like joist hangers, tie downs and screw/bolt heads should be coated with a rustproof system such as Rust-O-Leum or other rust inhibiting coatings. These surfaces should be checked periodically because some exposures are more prone to the elements than others.

Anything ferrous exposed to saltwater or salt atmosphere will deteriorate very quickly. Saltwater will also have a deleterious effect on non-ferrous metals like aluminum. They are subject to corrosion and eventually become brittle. Aluminum cans thrown into saltwater will completely dissolve in a very short time. Zinc-coated (galvanized) surfaces will eventually yield to corrosive elements if not properly maintained.

If you intent to install a metal roof on your home then I recommend the alloy coated products similar to Gal-va-lume or the factory baked enamel coated metal roofs that are also back primed. Be sure that any field cut edges of metal roofing are re-coated with rust inhibitors.

Household Interior.

Everything gets rusty very quickly. We find rust spots on our stainless steel cutlery if we do not dry our knives immediately after they are washed and then put them away in a dry drawer, or knife block. Everything metallic, ferrous metals, will rust very quickly in this atmosphere.

Stainless steel sinks, non-brass plumbing fixtures, furniture, appliances etc. will need to be given special attention in order to avoid problems with rust and corrosion. Any scratches on appliances should be painted or waxed to prevent rusting.

Windows and glass surfaces should be cleaned often. Salt spray left on glass surfaces will actually etch the glass if not cleaned off soon enough. Be sure that the water you use for cleaning is potable, and does not contain a high concentration of salts. Some water supplies on Roatan are heavily laden with salts, and other corrosive minerals.

Be sure to bring plenty of air-tight containers with you for storage of your dry foods, such as grains and pastas. The screw lids or pressure seals like the canning jars with the gaskets and wire snaps on the tops are best. These are very helpful in keeping your stored foods from becoming mildewed or vermin infested. Just remember that you would do all the things that are necessary for living on a boat. You boaters out there will be at a distinct advantage.

In some locations you will find salt crystals accumulating on your household surfaces, like floors, furniture and countertops, unless you have central air and you keep your windows closed constantly.

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Now we can get into another meaty subject. If you are contemplating building a home in paradise or any other place, read the following carefully.

I have chosen this excerpt specifically because this is probably the question I am asked most frequently and part of the silliest discussions known to the scam artists of Roatan.

Q. "What is the cost per square foot to build on Roatan?"

The Great Cost Per Square Foot Scam

Sorting through all the hype and baloney may well be one of the most time consuming and confusing steps in the entire construction process. The more people you get "quotes" from the more confused you will become. Here are a few suggestions to keep you from getting ulcers, apoplexy, hives, nervous breakdowns, and hemorrhoids.

Limit the number of people you will take bids from and you will eliminate a good bit of nonsense from the process. Some people come here believing the more the merrier and actually seem to think that by getting twenty quotes they will come up with that golden goose.

It will be a goose for sure.

Do your homework. Don't waste your time with the ballyhoo boys. They will tell you anything you want to hear. Don't fall for that old LOWBALL trick. You might think you found a sleeper, but there just ain't no magic that makes this one guy so much less expensive than the rest.

Forewarned is forearmed. Let's go back to the basics. Get your specifications and working drawings finalized. Make everybody quote on exactly the same documents. No exceptions! If you are being quoted on an idea that is one of a builders plans, make sure your specks or your list of the essentials are all included. Site work to turn key!

Q. "What is the true cost per square foot of a building?"
Q. "How do you determine this magic number?"

The true cost per square foot is a forensic number. It can only be determined when a building is 100% completed and all costs are calculated. If this type building is repetitive, a builder then can determine that this particular building, when repeated, will cost $xx.xx per square foot with updates for price increases on materials, and differentials due to site conditions.

When a cost per square foot is thrown at you without any plans or specs, how can you know what it includes? Just a spoken word without any documentation? That's a typical lowball tactic, pie in the sky. The used car dealers invented that ploy to keep people on their car lots.

Builder Charlie quotes $52. sq. ft. Builder Rick quotes $55. sq. ft. Great figures. But can you really buy what you want for those kinds of numbers? And will the builders really ever produce or finish a project on the basis of lowball sq. ft. quotes?

Q. "WHAT IS THE TRUE SQUARE FOOTAGE OF A BUILDING?"
Q. "WHAT AREAS SHOULD BE INCLUDED?"

THIS IS WHERE THE SCAM ARTISTS WILL GET YOU.

LET'S SAY YOUR PLAN INCLUDES:

* A SCREENED IN PORCH ACROSS THE ENTIRE REAR OF YOUR HOUSE.
* THERE IS A SECOND FLOOR WIDOW'S WALK WITH A LARGE OBSERVATION DECK ADJACENT TO IT.

Q. "Should all these areas be included in the square footage calculations?"

Of course. Everything under the roof has to be included. It all costs a great deal of money to produce.

There just ain't no such thing as a free lunch! Nobody is going to take a loss to build you a house!

Q. "Is there such a thing as a uniform cost per square foot that can be applied to any size or shaped building with unknown spec to boot?"

A. Of course not!

If you believe in the tooth fairy you will believe that one. How could anybody be so naive? But people fall for it all the time. And the reason for that is, they want to believe it. Remember the con artist's stock in trade is to "Concoct a story to incite greed." When you fall for it you're suckered.

It is not physically possible for a one-story building and a three-story building to have the same cost per square foot. There can be a multitude of variables that will make two one story buildings of exactly the same size cost radically different amounts per square foot.

Example of what the cost per square foot includes.

Let's presume your specs include the following: A concrete block house on monolithic slab; wood frame interior walls; screened-in porch across the back; stucco over exterior block; drywall and insulation; fiberglass roof shingles; aluminum windows and sliding glass doors; central A/C; ceramic tile floors throughout; ceramic shower stalls (2); attached two car garage with two 7'x10' steel overhead doors including operators; European cabinets in kitchen and baths with laminate counter tops; painting of interior and exterior surfaces.

That is a typical Florida style house, which is very appropriate in the tropics. Now if you include an allowance for site preparation and driveway, you can get a quote on the construction costs. Take the bottom line and divide all the square footage under roof into the dollar amount for the average cost per square foot. Yes, you have to include the garage even though it is not living area, and the porches and decks and patios.

Case History

Mr. P. came into my office with a 'house plan', which was pencil lines drawn on graph paper. It was in quarter inch scale he told me, and he would like a price on it as soon as possible. After briefly looking over the 'plan' I could see many omissions and errors that would make the house very cumbersome if built according to his layout. I later gave him a very general ballpark figure, suggesting that he bring a detailed plan back when he had finalized his ideas.

Several months went by and I had completely forgotten about Mr. P. Then I received a phone call from him. Would I be able to give him a quote on his plan he wondered? He had hired a designer and had working drawings. Could he drop the plan off this afternoon? "Certainly", I agreed.

His idea consisted of a two-story house, a master suite with a large bath on the second floor. The first floor had a kitchen and family room, living room, formal dining room, two bedrooms and one bath. The family room opened onto a large screened porch. There was also a screened-in porch of the same size, directly over the ground floor porch, off the master suite on the second floor.

He had specified oak parquet flooring throughout the entire first floor and carpeting on the stairs and the floor of the master bedroom. The master bath had a glass block shower, a bidet and marble top vanity. The baths were to have ceramic tile floors.

When Mr. P. came back he was shocked at the price I quoted for his project. He promptly announced that builder Jack had quoted him $61. per sq. foot over the phone and he had to go with such a bargain price. He thanked me and left.

A week later he was back in my office, out of breath and most apologetic. Could we talk about eliminating a few things on his plan to lower the price a little? I asked why he did not go with the bargain price builder Jack offered.

"That price was for his stock model one story house that he builds for everybody and it did not include any porches, bidet, glass block, oak flooring or ceramic tile floors. So his price really turned out to be much more than $61. And far more than we can afford. We need you to recommend eliminating a few items from our plans to get us into our price range. Your numbers came the closest to what we can spend.

The Moment of Truth
The Great Equalizers:
The Outline Specification, and Detailed Working Drawings.

This is the best and quickest method of getting to the true price. All the chatter and boasting about lowest price per sq. ft. will evaporate when you have a detailed list of your requirements and a good set of detailed working drawings. Here are some hard questions you should ask when you are getting price quotes

*What specifically does the price include if you are using a builders plans?

*Can you see a written material list ?

*Can you see a sample working drawing?

*Are the plans in metric or modular?

*Who will supply the plans?

*If using the plans of a builder, is the cost of the plans included in the price or will you have to pay extra?

*Can you review all completed construction documents before you sign?

*Does the quote include all the essentials from your list of "the 10 most important things you want in your house?"

*Will all the work conform to U.S. Building Codes?

*What is the total length of time required to complete this project?

*Will there be a specific date for completion?

*How and when will payments be required?

*Will I have choices of fixtures? Colors?

*What appliances are included?

*Will contracts, specs, and plans be written by the builder, and will they be in English or Spanish or both?

Most local contractors will not be able to produce many positive answers to these questions. They will be trying to give you the glad hand and big pearly tooth smile while trying to talk their way around their lack of documents and absence of knowledge. If they can't put an agreement into writing you are in for many surprises if you decide to go ahead with one of them anyway.

Remember, many of these people have fewer that six grades of education, and a surprising number of them cannot read or write.

I have found construction materials to cost more here on Roatan, than in Florida, by about thirty percent. Don't forget there is a 12% national sales tax on everything you purchase in Honduras. That is a lot of money!

Labor is cheaper by the day here than in Florida, but productivity in the Bay Islands is meager by comparison to anywhere in the U.S.A. You give up the presumed advantage of 'low' labor costs to the lack of productivity and craftsmanship. The workers here take a long time to produce little.

NIGHTMARE ALLEY

When I opened my office in Coxen Hole a few years ago, one of my first visitors was a very likable young man, outgoing and friendly. He introduced himself as a builder and if he could be believed, the foremost and most knowledgeable on the island, and probably the whole universe. There were many more overtures and handshakes, pearly tooth smiles and a little back slapping before he left.

A very nice guy who claimed he could do anything, and since he also owned some prime land with a view of the whole island, he would like to come back and take me on a tour some time soon.

A few months later I was looking at a project with a friend when a man came roaring onto the property where we were standing talking. His jeep made a cloud of dust as he skidded to a stop a few feet away. To say he was excited would be an understatement. He ran up to my friend and breathlessly asked for immediate help in some kind of emergency. I was not intended to hear the nature of this emergency since I was not aquatinted with the man and he obviously wanted to keep it secret.

My friend asked me to accompany him and we headed to a construction site several miles to the east. Upon arriving I saw an 'island rustic' octagonal two story house, occupying a place on a steep hillside. The construction was wood frame, but it was most unusual. There were no door or window openings visible anywhere. The siding was covering the entire outside of the building except for one opening on the lowest level.

One other very noticeable irregularity was the strange angle of the walls to the downhill side of the structure. Everything was leaning precariously! The building was in a death-spiral that usually precedes collapse. Massive structural failure had occurred.

Several people were inside the building nailing on cross bracing and there were many more braces and shoring being applied to the exterior walls in attempt to forestall the toppling of the entire house. These efforts paid off and collapse was avoided, but when I viewed the interior I could not believe what I was seeing.

There was no door or widow openings provided for, anywhere in the house. The exterior walls were framed with 2x4's on 24" centers and the floor joists were 2x8's, spanning over sixteen feet. There were no structural headers framed into the bearing walls anywhere. Little wonder the building began to spiral as the weight on the lower structure was increased by the added framing members above.

I was later told that most buildings on the island were constructed in this same manner; that the window and door openings were "cut in" wherever you wanted them after the siding was completed. No structural headers were used anywhere in the buildings no matter how large the wall openings were!

Wow! No wonder that place was falling over. And not too surprisingly; that suave young builder, Mr. Pearly Tooth Smile' that visited me in my office months earlier was the prime contractor of this disastrous project.

Solution: Be sure you check the credentials and the work of anyone you decide to do business with here. Don't take their word for anything because they all know everything about everything. Six grades of school here must make you a total expert. Many people get excited when they hear that magical lowball cost per square foot, and forget to ask the guy is he has had any experience building anything. Make him show it to you.

You may even be unlucky enough to get 'Mr. Pearly Tooth Smile', with a slap on the back thrown in as a bonus. I later learned the he did not own the land he claimed to be his either. It belonged to his "uncle who allows him to sign the papers and collect the money." Ha!

A few months ago a man wrote to me asking about a "contractor" he had hired here. He thought he had found a real sucker, a dummy who would make some mistakes and build him a house for super cheap. But his great find was floundering and would not communicate with him regarding the finances that had been expended on his project. The person he had trusted to build his house would not account for the monies or how they were spent. Nor was there any other communication forthcoming. So who is the dummy in this picture?

The owner was stuck, having spent a lot of bucks on the uncompleted house. I wonder what the final cost per super cheap square footsie was on that project?

And guess what? That was the first time that the so-called "Contractor" ever attempted to build a house. He knew absolutely nothing about construction. But he does know the con business, and he has since burned several other people until he skipped the island. I'll bet he's in Las Vegas having a ball.

Like Mr. Barnum said, "There's a sucker born every minute!"

Do I have a deal for you!

That price you have been dreaming about. You knew it was out there, it was just a matter of shopping around until you found it. You might even get me to negotiate a little. A little horse trading, ya know?

If you want a house for cheap come to me. I can do one for you for under $25. per magical square footsie. My plans, my specs, my rules, nothing in writing, just my word, a handshake (the slap on the back will be gratis) and Roatan "building codes". How can you beat a number like that?

See how easy it is? If I'm off by a few bucks no problemo, right?

Now here's a little quiz for fun. We will use two geometric shapes; one is a square and the other a circle, both with the exact same areas. Here's the question.

Q. "Presuming these two shapes were houses, both one-story homes, built on a monolithic slab, with identical specs, which one do you think would have the highest cost per square foot? Hmmmmm?"
a. The square
b. The circle

Q. "If there are two houses with the exact same length perimeters, one rectangular and one "L" shape with identical specs, which do you think would cost the most to build?"
a. The rectangle
b. The "L" shape

All you have to do to answer is put the letters in the subject slot and send.

Example: Q. 1. d Q. 2. c
Send your answers to: elouis@globalnet.hn

You can also order your $25. per square footsie "dream home" at the same time and at the same address. Cash or certified checks, U.S. funds only.

Just multiply the square footsies in your dream house by $24.98 and send me the money!

Do you really believe there is such a thing as a uniform cost per square foot that can be applied to any kind of house with any kind of specs?

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How many of you have heard about the condos that were built at one of our popular beaches, completely finished, furniture moved in, ready for occupancy and guess what?

There was not a single toilet in the entire project. They forgot to put in toilets! Sixteen months under construction and nobody ever noticed not even the plumber.

Maybe it's because lots of people here still have outhouses. They are not used to seeing toilets inside a house so to them nothing was amiss.

"Stupid Gringos always want somethin' special. Wad da ya spect, everting perfec?"

I know some people who do not think the foregoing is a very funny story.

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Every month I give you the current exchange rate of the U.S. dollar to Lempiras. The exchange quoted by the international community is a few cents more than what the local banks of Honduras are paying for dollars. The rate on Roatan as of June 1, 2001 is:

$1. U.S. = LPS. 15.39
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There is some unusual stuff coming up in the next few issues of Coastwatcher: Caribbean West. You can always find current articles about daily life here, just little incidents I experience and see, or hear about. It is often amusing and occasionally serious. See it weekly on: www.eroatan.com

On a more serious note: every once in a while I hear of a good deal on land. Just this afternoon, the furniture maker from across the street came into my office with an escatura publica (deed) on 4.25 acres of land in Coxen Hole, which he needs to sell urgently. He quoted me $4,500. per acre. A nice piece of land for under $20,000. because he needs money quickly. You can deal with him direct if you are interested. Just let me know.

The land is adjacent to the school teachers colonia going west on the paved road out of Coxen Hole.

So that wraps it up for this month.

Comments or questions?

Drop me a line:

Pierre

elouis@globalnet.hn

By Pierre Renaldo, Mountain Coastal S.A,. General Contractors, Construction Management and Construction Consultants.