Government Housing

The casitas are small, but adorable. First addition is
always a TV dish

The Panamanian government is building nice little two bedroom houses in rural areas all over Panama. They are free, but only to folks who own their land and tear down their existing traditional houses. They have good standard wiring and indoor plumbing, with flush toilet, which is a HUGE step up for most folks. The walls are poured concrete, using slick plastic forms. The contractor uses mobile concrete trucks, which produce continuous concrete on site

An overflowing septic tank, due to bad drain-field design

One of my projects this service tour is to help solve the issues of heat and septic problems. The houses have tin roofs, instead of the much cooler thatch roofs. The plumbing and fixtures and septic tank are all good, but some of the drain fields are grossly inadequate, causing back-up into the house.

My friend Jonathon shows off his living room - only 1/2"
of insulation, Nice louvered windows

So far, heat solutions include covering the metal roof with a thatch roof, planting trees for shade and opening all interior doors. This cuts down on privacy, but allows good cross ventilation.

Typical kitchen. Small but good sink, stove and fridge

Septic solutions are harder. The drain field area MUST be increased from the current 25 sq ft to at least 80 sq ft. I've acquired some bilge pumps to give temporary relief, but that is a short-term fix. The good news is that only about 20% of the drainfields were badly installed. Obviously, those folks are mad as Hell.

This nice lady LOVES her new house and is proudly planting
shrubs and a garden out back, near the drainfield

But, I spoke with many who are delighted with their brand new housing. Their lives are easier and cleaner and many have taken to planting and landscaping around the homes.