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Have questions about decorating or building your tiki bar or tropical theme room E-mail us at; help@paradisefoundonline.com
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I was wondering where you found your “Mash” like sign that
is seen in the picture of your backyard. I’m not even sure what to call that
kind of sign to search on the internet. Thanks in advance for your help! Love
your website!
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Actually, we made those ourselves. I painted them and my husband cut them out of unused fencing. Each slat of the fencing had an arrow on the end, so they worked very well for directional signs.
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I have started building a bar in my basement and I'm wanting
to make it into a tiki hut with the thatch roof and tiki decor.. I am wanting
to make it seem like an island get away. I need ideas for type of counter
top??? I was thinking concrete.. but not to sure...
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Depending on your budget, there are alot of ways to go about it. On the really expensive end..., if you have a stone dealer or a monument dealer near by, you could try for some reasonably smooth, flat pieces of lava rock that you can marine urethane or epoxy. Check with some counter top manufacturers to see existing "glue down" coverings. I've built a "frame" of sorts. I laid inside some pieces of bamboo rods. You can find those at building supply centers or places like Pier One Imports. A hardware store can provide clear epoxy that you must mix yourself (watch the fumes!) and pour over the inlaid frame. How about a roll of tiki or palm tree wall paper (or similar covering)that you could marine urethane. If you're doing this yourself, check with your local library for a book on "carving" and make your own design from a clear piece of stock lumber and marine urethane. How about some semi-round landscape tmbers that you can finish to look bamboo-ish. Or, why not go for the gusto and look for some 4" bamboo poles, rip them lengthwise and tie them together "cast-away" style? (I'd use some kind of permanent finish over whatever surface you settle on. Spills from your favorite alcohol, beer, wine, (and "glass rings") as well as candle wax will ruin your hard placed efforts really fast. Wow! I was really on a roll there. If you have any other questions lemme know. I'm sure I can provide you with additional suggestions.
I am designing a tiki bar for my pool patio,the back side of the bar will be facing a wall. I plan to do a semi-circle shaped thatch roof butting against the roof. My question is how easy is it to cut and reshape a 4x4 thatch panel to have a contour? I plan to use 2-3 panels. Will it come apart if I cut it?
I think the thatch will come apart if you cut it without being careful not to damage the "seam" end. Maybe try patio umbrella capes. You would cut them length wise as opposed to on the seam. You would have to Knot the cut ends of the seam edge in either situation.
I am in dire help for suggestions for a "buiding challenged" couple, hope you can help us!! We just had a deck built and now what to give it a tiki hut theme. We have bought a small patio bar and now want to semi enclose it for a tiki bar look and a place to sit out of the sun. I had been thinking on the lines of using some lattice on three sides with a thatch roofing. It sounds easy in my head but not on paper ! The roof supports and thatching is where I really need the help. Living in the north this would be a seasonal decoration so can't be too difficult to take up and down.
I'll need some more information.
1. How much room do you have? (dimensions)
2. Is the area you're considering on the "weather" side of the deck?
3. Just how "challenged" are you? will you need a contractor's help?
4. Will the enclosure be "free-standing" or attached to your house?
5. Is power available at that spot? Is plumbing available at that spot?
I'd better quit with all the questions for now. If you can send some digital pictures that would be helpful, too! Oh, by the way, where is "the north," if we may ask? That would affect the materials you should consider... (notice I didn't ask about your budget yet)
Thanks for the inquiry.
We are redecorating our 10 year old son's bedroom into a beach/Florida theme
that he loves (we live in Minnesota). I would like to make a tiki light
fixture for above his bed that would have track lights underneath of it for
reading. I saw that you sell a thatch panel that would probably work well.
Possibly I could support this look with bamboo on either sides of the tiki
roof. Any suggestions on how to assemble something like this?
Your question posed another question (or two).
1. Thatch is made of woven grass - as you already know. Have you considered the output temperature of the track lighting? If I'm not mistaken, the track supports "spot" lamps. Please check your local building and electrical codes for the proximity requirements of the fixture to shade (grass thatch).
2. Are you doing the work yourself? Bamboo requires special attention to cutting and assembly.
3. Will the light be "free - hanging" or attached to the ceiling?
I apologize for making your wonderful idea difficult. I'd rather not have anything happen to your son if all things where not considered?
I want to make a tiki above my bed, any ideas how to do
that?
I need more info to answer your question about the
decoration above your bed. Do you want to hang a carving on the wall?
I want to make almost like a mini tike hut and
put it above the head over the bed using raffia. If I could like screw
bamboo into the wall at the head of the bed and to the middle of the side
of the bed? Like if I could cut a tiki umbrella in half and put that above the
bed somehow?
What you suggest sounds quite possible. Are you
doing the work yourself? Bamboo is a bit more tricky to work with than regular
materials like pine studs. Check with your local building supply store for the
proper cutting blades so that no one gets hurt. The bamboo will be/make a mess
if not cut correctly. The umbrella capes would need to be "mended" on the cut
edges to prevent the unraveling of the thatch.
Check
out our page on Working With Bamboo.
Take
some pictures and let us know how your project comes out!
I have read your section on working with bamboo. Is it possible to build a small tikibar with bamboo you cut down yourself? If so, what additional steps need to be taken, besides the cutting and pre-drilling of holes?
If you want to use freshly cut bamboo you may run into an unexpected issue. Freshly cut material is considered "green." Just like when you cut down a tree, the wood has natural moisture in the fiber - so will your freshly cut material. I'm not suggesting that you not follow your plan but when your material dries naturally, it will likely shrink and split lengthwise.
The pre-drilling suggestion was intended if you were planning to use bamboo as a "facing" material over wood framing members. If you plan to use bamboo as the framing, your joints are lashed together with fiber "strips" that you can get from your supplier (or use rope or some "non-stretching" material). Also, if using bamboo as framing material be sure to consider using 1 1/2" or 2" rods so it will have enough strength for practical use. Be sure to search for some pictures to see what you're getting into before you start.
It sounds like quite a nice little project. When you've finished, send along some pictures if you'd like to share your part of "paradise" with the rest of us.
Do you have plans for sale? We are interested in building a tiki hut with palmframs in our back yard. We would love to just have someone put one up for us but they want between 14 and 20 a square foot and we would really like a 22 x 24 square one. Please let us know one way or the other.
Thanks for visiting us at Paradise Found Online. I have a few questions to ask so that I am better able to answer your question.
1.WE DO NOT HAVE PLANS FOR SALE
2. Budget is a big issue for design and materials. Do you want the framing to be all bamboo? ($$$$$$$$) Or conventional materials that you'll dress (finish/trim) to the desired look you'd like to have?
3. Where you live is also a big issue since the weather may limit your materials selection (availability). Or it may cause unforeseen maintenance and "winterizing."
4. What do you have in mind as far as the "palmframs" that were mentioned? Do you mean thatch or do you actually want palm branches (called fronds)? Is this what you'd like for the roofing material?
5. How about plumbing? How close to sanitary lines are you for a "tap-in?" (Are you after a wet sink set-up?)
6. How about electricity? How close to your electric supply will you be? You'll need quite a bit of power unless you're just after a pavilion style set up?
7. Are you doing the work or will you get a contractor? Bamboo working is not for a novice no matter what you may see on the TV home shows. I have many years experience in the construction business. I won't kid you about this being easy... Building a structure the size you listed is a major project - not something for a "weekend warrior." Please do all your homework before you start anything of this magnitude.
8. Have you checked the local building code to see what type of structure you can have and where on your property you can put it?
9. Finally (I hope I haven't discouraged you so far), may ask for some digital pictures of the location so that I can get a "feel" for the kind of structure that should go there.
By the way, the hut on the "Paradise Found..." About Us page is 10' x 20' and is Pennsylvania weather-proof. The design is about as cost effective as one may consider. Oh, and that buffalo in the pool is yours truly! Let us know how we can serve your needs.
I read the info on your website and wanted to see if you would be interested in preparing some plans for me. We would like to build a tiki hut approximately 10 foot by 25 foot. We need it to be at least 11 foot tall because we plan to build the tiki structure and then have a deck built underneath so we can build in a hot tub (put the hot tub on the ground and build the deck high enough so that you step down into the hot tub from inside the tiki hut.) We would like to have power in the tiki hut, but no water. We will have at least two ceiling fans and power at the bar area. Also we are planning on having a tv out side so we will have cable and additional electrical outlets. We will be doing the construction ourselves, but the electrical work will be done by an electrical contractor. My brothers own a construction company, and one is a GC, so I got a lot of help in the construction arena. We would like to have the back ! wall of the tiki hut solid, for privacy. Our neighbors have a two story house. The other three sides will be a half wall but with slats, not solid. The doorway will have steps leading up to it, since the deck will be raised, but no doorway. I am not planning on doing most of the exterior construction in bamboo, but I will look into it. I live in Vero Beach Florida. We have had three hurricanes (Frances, Jeanne, and Wilma) in the past two years, so whatever we build will need to be strong. I have been reading about this Polymer tiki thatch - I think we will use this for the roofing because supposedly it will last for 20 years, be watertight, and withstand hurricanes (Ha!). I will have to check into price though. Any advice you can give would be great. If you could please get back to me with an approximate price for plans that would be great. Please let me know if you have questions. Thanks
Determining the style of hut is obviously the place for you to begin. You mentioned the dimensions that you have in mind to include that measure of privacy. It sounds like the size of the one I built for Joanie (it was on the homepage for a while), but not quite as tall. Back to the style.... Are you after a "look" similar to those on the "durathatch" pages at Tikimundo? Or maybe the "castaway" look with more solid wall construction? Would you cover the walls and roof with thatch over sheeting? Or maybe a "ribbed frame" structure with thatch as exterior covering? I'm not sure I know what you have in mind with "slats." Would that be "castaway" style sort of like "Gilligan's Island" but just on the frontand sides - but with a panel/sheeting rear wall?
The platform is the easy part or so it seems. Your brothers are builders so floor layout and construction shouldn't be anything out of the ordinary. A small suggestion to consider would be to put the tub on a concrete slab. The tub will carry alot of water weight and may cause settling on soft ground. What kind of flooring did you have in mind for the platform? Will the interior of the hut be exposed to (blown in) rain? This will affect the walls and floors.
Back to the hut. You wrote "We would like to have the back wall of the tiki hut solid, for privacy." and "The other three sides will be a half wall but with slats, not solid. The doorway will have steps leading up to it, since the deck will be raised, but no doorway." Please consider some wide treads (12" at least) for the steps. This may hopefully prevent slips/falls if you intend to entertain family and friends that will have "pruney" wet feet after "tubbing." I'm guessing that "the doorway... with "no doorway" indicates you don't want a gate or "dutch-style" 1/2 door - just a "walk right in" openning? Check with your insurer to see if the tub area needs some type of enclosure. That also may be a local building code issue. I'll bet your brothers can help with that one, too!
Finally, your roof will indeed to be extra hurricane proof with three sides open (at least 1/2 open). Think of the "big bad wolf at the little pig's house of sticks." It'd be sad to think that the first big challenging wind could send your brand new tiki hut flying off into the next door neighbor's yard. Again, your brothers will have the best knowledge of the building code requirements in this respect. That polymer thatching for the roofing material sounds pretty good but is something new to me. I'll probably look into it myself. The grass thatch lasts one - possibly two seasons for me here in Pennsylvania. I even take it all down at the end of the summer season since it'll definitely not withstand the freeze cycle.
Looks like I got a little "carried away" again. Please consider some of these things I've sent to you so that the end result will be enjoyed year after year in the manner you intend it to be. I can provide additional suggestions once you narrow down some of these items.
P.S. I forgot an important point for you to consider related to the floor dimensions. You estimated 10' x 25' as a rough size. Please check the diameter of your tub (outside edge to outside edge). From past experience doing what you have in mind at our house, you may want to consider allowing at least 3 feet of walkway space all around the tub.
What is the size of your tub, by the way? (oval, square?) The tub shape will have a primary affect on the style and shape of the hut. What else do you plan for inside the hut? A lounge area with a bar or just lounge furniture around the tub, perhaps? Again, there are alot of factors that you might consider before settling on the size, shape and style of hut. Good planning eliminates the "I should have...'s" later! I'll bet you can use your brothers to "sound off" some of your preliminary ideas! Let us know how we can continue to serve you.
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