Building superb houses in tropics.

Completed

Bastimentos island

A house Arthur designed and built on Bastimentos island, Panama. An owner-builder project, shaped by its island setting.

In progress

El Espino

A current build. Follow the project as its design and construction story is documented.

Planned

Los Planes

A second house is planned for a 1,500 m² finca. The land area is not the proposed house size.

How to Compare House-Building Quotes in Panama

Compare Panama house-building proposals by floor area, scope, exclusions and allowances before judging the price per square metre.

Choosing a Roof for a Tropical House

Compare tropical roof options by heat, rain, condensation, maintenance and documented product limits, not just the roofing sheet price.

Humidity in a Tropical House: What to Measure and What to Ask

Understand indoor humidity, record useful observations and prepare better questions about moisture in a tropical house without guessing at the cause.

Plan a Tropical House for Shade, Breezes and Everyday Use

Build a room-by-room cooling brief for a tropical house, coordinating shade, natural ventilation and air-conditioned spaces before construction.

Planning an Earthquake-Resistant House in Panama

Prepare questions about the site, structural design, local requirements and construction records before building an earthquake-resistant house in Panama.

The House Handover File: Records You Will Want After Moving In

Organize a practical house handover file with equipment records, operating instructions, outstanding items and maintenance responsibilities.

How I Designed a Termite Shield for 6-Inch CMU Walls

My chosen termite shield design for El Espino: 24-gauge galvanized steel at the CMU floor edge, Sikaflex-221, Sika-1, visible inspection edges and Taurus SC.

Planning Rainwater Collection: Quantity, Use and Water Quality

Separate rainwater collection volume from water quality, compare illustrative rainfall volumes and plan testing, materials and maintenance for the intended use.

Planning a West-Facing View in a Tropical House

Plan a west-facing tropical view with exterior shade, useful daylight and a clear window brief, then compare options before committing to a floor plan.

Before the Floor Plan: A Design Brief for a Rural Finca

Build a practical rural-finca design brief that separates household priorities, verified site information, service questions and unresolved decisions before drawing the house.

Changing the Plan During Construction: Keep a Clear Decision Record

Keep construction changes understandable with a record of scope, design review, cost, time, authorization and the drawings the site team should use.

Planning Material Deliveries for a Rainy-Season Build

Coordinate deliveries, protected storage, inspection and installation readiness during a rainy-season house build without relying on a universal tarp or drying rule.

Plan Home Wi-Fi Around the Rooms You Will Actually Use

Plan internet and Wi-Fi for masonry walls, workspaces and separate buildings, with a practical brief, testing plan and questions for the installer.

Leaving a Tropical Home Empty: Make a Plan for Checks and Responses

Prepare a tropical home for periods away with a maintenance plan, named contacts, meaningful observations and a response process for missing reports or problems.

Build a Whole-Project Budget, Not Just a Builder's Quote

Organize a house-building budget around the full project scope, cost ownership, uncertainty and payment timing, without relying on a generic cost per square metre.

Compare Home Energy Use Before You Claim a Saving

Read home energy records with billing days, meter scope, weather and occupancy in view. Learn what a simple kWh-per-day comparison can and cannot show.

Septic Planning Before You Fix a Rural House Layout

Prepare a rural wastewater brief before fixing the house layout: site evidence, responsibilities, access, approvals and operating records.

Coastal Roof Warranties: Check More Than the Number of Years

Compare coastal roof warranty documents by site eligibility, exact product, covered failure, exclusions, maintenance and final issuance.

Plan a Tropical Veranda Around Daily Life

Plan a tropical veranda with furniture, clear routes, shade, daylight and wet-weather use considered together before choosing its depth.

Plan Service Access Before Walls and Ceilings Close

Review equipment access before finishes hide the problem: normal use, professional servicing, replacement routes and coordinated drawings.

Thermal Mass in a Hot-Humid Home: Where Does the Heat Go?

Understand heat storage before choosing heavy walls or floors: warm nights, room operation, insulation and the questions a design study should answer.

Ceiling-Fan Planning: Start With the People, Not the Room Center

Prepare a ceiling-fan brief around occupied seats, usable speed controls, comparable performance data, exposure ratings and safe service access.

Bathroom and Laundry Planning: Give Everyday Moisture a Way Out

Plan showers, laundry drying and appliance choices together: exhaust destination, humid outdoor air, condensate handling, controls and verified handover.

Long-Lead Home Purchases: Connect the Order to the Work It Enables

Build a useful procurement record around approved selections, supplier evidence, dependent work and changing forecasts, without inventing delivery promises.

Compact, Courtyard or Pavilion: Compare the Plan Before Choosing the Look

Compare three house forms against the same tropical-home brief: actual breeze access, courtyard evidence, daily routes, room operation and complete project scope.

Test a Floor Plan With the Furniture in Use

Review interior storage and circulation with chairs pulled out, cupboards open and real household tasks in mind, before fixing the room layout.

Installing “3/4-Inch” Plycem Over 12-Gauge Carriolas

My El Espino floor guide: identify 20 mm Plycem, coordinate 12-gauge carriolas, support board edges, choose compatible screws and quiet-floor cushioning, and prepare finishes.

Air-Conditioning Size and Humidity: Ask What the Proposal Was Designed to Handle

Review the load calculation, temperature and moisture needs, actual equipment performance and part-load operation before accepting an air-conditioning proposal.

Cool-Roof Ratings: Compare Reflectance, Emittance and SRI on the Same Basis

Read cool-roof product ratings without confusing initial and aged values, solar reflectance and SRI, or a surface rating with whole-house energy savings.

Choosing a Home Hot-Water System: Start with Use, Space and Available Service

Compare storage, tankless, heat-pump and solar hot-water proposals against household demand, installation space, energy supply, maintenance and local support.

Planning Household Water Storage Before Choosing a Tank

Plan household water storage around essential uses, outage patterns, refill access, maintenance and coordinated structural and plumbing decisions.

Planning Windows for Useful Daylight and Everyday Comfort

Compare windows room by room for useful daylight, glare, heat, ventilation, privacy, insect screens and rain before finalizing the opening schedule.

Solar-Ready Home Planning: Keep Future Panels From Becoming a Redesign

Prepare a useful solar-ready brief before choosing panels: coordinate roof changes, shade, future routes, household goals and evidence for the next decision.

Photo: “Natural gas backup generator (BUG)” by Ben Paulos, CC BY 2.0; cropped.

Plan Home Backup Power Around Essential Household Needs

Prepare a home backup-power brief around essential loads, outage scenarios, safe operation and professional system design before choosing equipment.

DIY Galvanized Sheet Metal Ductwork: Pittsburgh Lock Seams for Beginners

A practical Pittsburgh seam lesson for El Espino: matching pockets and flanges, tool-specific allowances, assembly, closure and inspection.

How to Insulate Metal HVAC Ducts with Closed-Cell Elastomeric Foam

How I am examining closed-cell elastomeric duct insulation for El Espino, with ArmaFlex panel sizing, corner bonding, wet-sealed joints and protection.

Outdoor Lighting Planning: See the Task Without Lighting the Neighborhood

Plan outdoor lighting around real tasks, glare, neighboring windows, controls and weather exposure, with a practical comparison and evening-review worksheet.

Stormwater and Wastewater: Verify the Routes Before You Pave

Separate rainfall runoff from household wastewater, understand combined and separate sewers, and record the destinations to verify before changing a site.

Stucco, Brick Veneer and Fiber Cement: Compare the Whole Wall

Compare stucco, anchored brick veneer and fiber-cement cladding by the wall system behind the appearance, including rain control, interfaces and proposal scope.

Choosing Exterior Timber: Match the Wood, Treatment and Exposure

Understand exterior timber species, heartwood and sapwood, preservative treatment and use categories before comparing products for a tropical house.

Concrete Curing Explained: Why Hardening and Drying Are Different

Learn how concrete curing supports hydration, compare moisture-protection methods, and separate curing records from loading and floor-covering decisions.

Home Acoustics: Separate Room Echo From Sound Between Rooms

Understand room reverberation, sound isolation and acoustic ratings before choosing finishes, partitions or windows for a tropical home.

Choosing Wet-Area Floors: Match the Surface to the Way It Gets Used

Compare wet-area flooring by actual use, slip-test evidence, surface texture, grout and maintenance, rather than one rating or a showroom sample.

GE TM4020CCU or Smart Breakers? What I Would Compare for El Espino

A practical El Espino comparison of the GE TM4020CCU and smart breakers, including protection, monitoring, installed cost, and ground-bar compatibility.

Planning Pool and Outdoor Bar Power for the El Espino House

Planning pool and outdoor bar electricity for El Espino: equipment loads, circuits, GFCI protection, grounding, bonding, weather exposure, and maintenance.

How I Would Organize DIN-Rail Junction Boxes at El Espino

How I am planning readable DIN-rail junction boxes for El Espino, with a paper layout, nominal 8×8×4 enclosure checks, circuit labels and space for maintenance.

The Garden That Cools the House: Shade Without Losing the Breeze

Imagine a leafy garden room that welcomes shade without forgetting the breeze. A lively guide to canopy, privacy and planting for tropical living.

An Outdoor Kitchen People Actually Want to Use

Follow the journey of a tray to an outdoor kitchen made for good company, with shaded serving, a separate uncovered cooking area and a sensible rain plan.

Three Ways to Build the Same Tropical Dream: Block, Timber or Steel?

I compare concrete block, timber and steel as complete tropical house systems, from the hidden structure to comfort, local workmanship and maintenance.

Is the Bosch SM048 Worth Considering for My El Espino House?

My planning evaluation of the Bosch SM048 for El Espino, covering model identity, water-loop design, humidity, discontinued equipment, and local support.

That Beautiful Wardrobe Has a Wall Behind It

Before I choose the wardrobe doors, I look at the wall behind them: climate, moisture sources, hidden surfaces and practical questions for the design team.

Framing Interior Walls in a CMU House: 2.5-Inch Metal Studs vs. Wood

For my El Espino CMU house, I compare 2.5-inch steel studs and wood partitions, from gauge and wall thickness to openings, backing, services and boards.

Six-Inch Concrete Block: What That Little Label Leaves Out

Understand nominal, specified and actual concrete-block dimensions, then ask about the exact product and designed wall without treating six-inch as a structural verdict.

Those Fasteners Look Fine. Do They Belong Together?

Follow contact, runoff and product documentation when reviewing metal-cladding and fastener proposals. An owner-level guide, not a metal-pairing chart or installation recipe.

Renovate or Rebuild? I Would Start With the House I Want to Live In

An owner-level discussion of renovation, retaining and adapting, and rebuilding, with condition checks, permissions and comparable proposals.

Raised Houses and Open Ground Floors: What I Would Ask the Structural Engineer

Owner questions for raised houses and open ground floors: load paths, stiffness, strength, site hazards, intended uses and professional assessment.

Before I Put a House Beside the Water, I Want These Questions Answered

An owner conversation about coastal rights, public shores, environmental questions and local permissions in Panama.

That Color on the Map Does Not Tell Me Enough About a House

How I would read planning maps with their legends, dates, written rules and official confirmation, without treating a color as permission.

Pool electrical safety: what I would ask a qualified inspector

Owner-level questions for a qualified pool electrical inspector, including inspection scope, records, exposure and follow-up.

The Electrical Panel Paperwork I’d Want Before Handover

Owner-level questions about electrical panel directories, installed records and verification, with clear professional and regional boundaries.

How I Would Surface-Mount 1-Inch PVC Conduit on the El Espino Block Walls

My proposed method for surface-mounting one-inch electrical PVC at El Espino: wall anchors, suitable supports, thermal movement and an accessible route.

Before I Buy a Building Lot, I Want the Answers in One Place

A friendly owner guide to organizing property, authority, ground, access and service questions before buying a building lot.

A House With a View Starts With Questions About the Ground

Owner-level questions for coordinating geotechnical evidence, foundations, slope, water, access and long-term care on a proposed tropical lot.

Building in Panama? I Want to Know What “Approved” Actually Means

A first-person owner discussion guide to local authorities, professional responsibilities, current rules and the scope of building permissions in Panama.

Three Drawing Sets, One House: Who Makes Them Agree?

A friendly owner guide to architectural, structural and services drawings, shared design questions and locally agreed professional responsibilities.

The Big Opening and the Invisible Work Around It

A first-person owner guide to generous openings, continuous load paths and coordinated design questions.

The House Is More Than Its Frame: Tanks, Equipment and Ceilings

An owner-level guide to tanks, equipment, ceilings and earthquake coordination without installation instructions.

Roof Membranes and Insulation: What I Would Ask About the Whole Assembly

Owner questions about roof membranes, insulation, moisture, drying and the evidence behind a complete assembly.

Overhangs, Gutters and Downpipes: Following Rain Past the Roof Edge

Owner questions about overhangs, structural review, gutters, runoff, overflow and professional maintenance.

Steel Beams and Light-Gauge Framing: Who Is Doing Which Job?

Owner questions about structural steel, cold-formed framing, assigned roles and coordinated interfaces.

Why Choosing Tile Changes the Conversation Under Your Feet

Owner questions about tile, supporting floors, movement, surface compatibility and moisture.

Brick, Stucco or Fiber Cement: What Will I Actually Be Maintaining?

A handsome wall deserves a useful care conversation.

Mini-Splits or Ducted Cooling? I Would Start With the Bedroom Door

Start with the house at bedtime, not the brochure.

Where Would I Put the Outdoor AC Unit? Before the Garden Gets the Last Word

A useful corner needs more than a good hiding place.

A Cool Bedroom Beside an Open Terrace: Where Does the Indoor Air Begin?

Give the terrace breeze and the cooled bedroom a shared plan.

A Damp Wall Deserves Better Than a Fresh Coat of Guesswork

A wall mark deserves a clearer question before a new color.

Before the Electrical Plan, I’d Make a List of What the House Will Actually Do

Plan for the household, including the forgotten freezer.

Outdoor Outlets: I’d Plan the Afternoon Before Picking the Socket

Plan the afternoon before picking the socket.

A Home Battery Needs a Place in the Plan, Not Just a Spare Wall

Find the place while it is still a drawing.

Before the House, Ask Where the Water Comes From

Three possible supplies. Better questions before the house.

Before Handover, Give Every Water Control a Name

Match the label, the record and the explanation.