BajaNomad - How do Palapa-style homes work?

How do Palapa-style homes work?

Kgryfon - 5-18-2013 at 11:01 PM

I've seen a few postings about palapa-style homes and am curious. It looks like a shell under which you park your RV, yet the "shell" is fully furnished like a house. They look totally open to the outside world. How do you keep it from being looted when you are not there? How do you protect the furnishings from the elements?

woody with a view - 5-19-2013 at 10:08 AM

https://www.google.com/search?q=palapa+style+homes&tbm=i...

google is your friend....

[Edited on 5-19-2013 by BajaNomad]

neilm81301 - 5-19-2013 at 10:12 AM

Are the traditional, thatch palapas kind of problematic, attracting scorpions, etc.? Seems I read that here.

Neil

DENNIS - 5-19-2013 at 10:29 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by neilm81301
Are the traditional, thatch palapas kind of problematic, attracting scorpions, etc.? Seems I read that here.

Neil

And rats. They like to live in the fronds.

grizzlyfsh95 - 5-19-2013 at 11:01 AM

Palapa shelter for RV...great
Palapa roof on enclosed dwelling...not so much

DaliDali - 5-19-2013 at 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by DENNIS

Quote:

Originally posted by neilm81301
Are the traditional, thatch palapas kind of problematic, attracting scorpions, etc.? Seems I read that here.

Neil

And rats. They like to live in the fronds.

I have NEVER seen scorpions or rats in or around my palapa roof.
Nor have I EVER seen a scorpion or rat around my immediate surroundings.
Little mice yes.....RATS no....unless you count "ratas" of which there are the infrequent few.

rhintransit - 5-19-2013 at 11:17 AM

I've had scorpions drop onto my bed from a palapa roof. so I started sleeping under mosquito netting. no experience with rats, though I do know some cats like to climb up/scratch around (one neighbor's cat even used the roof as a cat box). bugs, roaches, scorpions, yes. in good shape they are very secure from rain..better than most flat roofs down here.
of course people keep adding on, enclosing things first seems to be a bathroom, then a bodega, then an outside kitchen, then screen or plastic window walls, etc. all you have to do is watch the natural evolution to see the downside. and the upside.
palapa roofs are beautiful, rustic, authentic, but I'd never have one again.
as for making things safe when you're not there...lots of things you can try, like strong bars/locks on bodegas, good year round neighbors, good landlord (many on leased land), being in a gated community, etc, but if someone wants in, anywhere in Baja, they'll get in.

CaboMagic - 5-19-2013 at 11:20 AM

We rented 2 different houses in CSL with palapa roof .. the first in 1993 in Villa Serena and OMG we had tons of scorpions and snakes. I did not like it .. I'm too much of a prissy city girl.

From there we went to the mid level of a 3 story house - top level had palapa roof where the owners lived .. they fumigated every month - they had to .. couldn't stay there after 3 months because not only did it just stink from all the fumigation, the bugs would come to second level to get away!

We've seen some great palalpa roofs built for RV coverage that extend to cover outside living space. I imagine they require regular fumigation and repairs following storms.

Palapas... cool...!

Mulegena - 5-19-2013 at 11:28 AM

Palapa homes. Gotta love 'em.

Many of the people of Baja still use them.

The limits of what you can do and make with a palapa house are only defined by the limits of your imagination.

Baja palapas are made from two basic materials, I believe, palm fronds or petate.

Petate is big sheets of woven material made from split cariso, which is a slender bamboo that grows along the riverbanks, indigenous here in Baja. They sell for about $300Pesos a sheet depending of the size and quality and the quantity you wish.

Palm fronds are a natural by-product when tree guys clean the many palm trees. They sell for about 5 pesos per frond. They make great roof covering and can be made into walls, too.

You can use these materials on their own or combine with other more durable materials like bricks, cardon cactus, or rock walls to create, well, pretty much whatever kind of structure you want.

I remember living in a palm frond house. A mother hen and her babies lived in the livingroom wall-- totally enjoyed them. Incidentally the floor was hard-packed dirt, and I loved that, too. Just sweep it clean every day and sprinkle water and you're good to go. There was also a big-a@@ spider lived in the kitchen ceiling; she set up shop there to catch the other bugs that would dare to enter the house-- no complaints about her once I got used to her presence and no worries about other bugs in that house!

DENNIS - 5-19-2013 at 11:30 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by DaliDali
.....RATS no....

Stealth rats. You don't see them, but they see you, and they have excellent vision as well which is necessary for them to jump from the roof onto your neck and tear into your jugular vein and suck out all your blood before you have a chance to do anything.
Real ornery lil critters. Yep....real ornery.

Sweet dreams. :biggrin:

Skeet/Loreto - 5-19-2013 at 12:45 PM

Great!!\

My Mesicano Friends and I and my Wife built Rancho Sonrosia just North of loreto starting in 1980;

First: Palm Ojas selected from Plams growing in the Mountains 14,000 of them.
Second Roofing and Rails cut from Mountain Palms,
Third: c-cks from San Nicholas very near to the Petrogliffs were used for the foundation and Columns.

Flooring was Handlaid Tile. from La Paz.

We used Ceiling Fans only as we were on the Beach Air condition was not necessary.

67 Hand Maid wooden Windows which stayed open most of the time.

Never had any Problems with Rats, Scorpins, or any other Pests. It was great living for many years.
If i were to go back i would live in a Palapa.

Make sure you use Palms from the Mountains and you will have very few problems

Skeet/Loreto

DENNIS - 5-19-2013 at 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Skeet/Loreto
Never had any Problems with Rats, Scorpins, or any other Pests.
Skeet/Loreto

We forgot to mention, "Bats in your belfry." Thems is serious. :lol:

Russ - 5-19-2013 at 01:02 PM

We have discouraged palm roofs. After a few fires the folks with real homes next to Palapas have requested that if there are any improvements that the roof be more fire resistant. There are still many palapas out in front of homes with palm roofs. I personally love the feel they give to a neighborhood. And of course I much prefer a net over a palm roof than in the water.

DENNIS - 5-19-2013 at 01:07 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Russ
I much prefer a net over a palm roof than in the water.

Good one, Russ. That should be a bumper sticker.

Lindalou - 5-19-2013 at 01:07 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by DENNIS

Quote:

Originally posted by DaliDali
.....RATS no....

If he did not know his leg was being pulled the first time, he should now. :yes:

Skeet/Loreto - 5-19-2013 at 01:14 PM

BATS ! Yes we had a problem one time with Bats.

One beautifull night there was a Full Moon. My wife and I had just got into Bed when a Marine Bat flew in and was hit by a Fan blade and ended up in the bed next to my Wife.
You have never seen a Women leave a Bed in such a Hurry!!!!
From then on we left a small light on outside on the Porch and never had anymore Problems.

DENNIS - 5-19-2013 at 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Lindalou
If he did not know his leg was being pulled the first time, he should now. :yes:

Pull Skeet's leg?? Never. :biggrin:

Actually, rats do live in Palm Frond roofs, but my experience was in Puerto Vallarta. Maybe Baja isn't a rat zone like in the tropics.

Love Ours

thefishaholic - 5-19-2013 at 01:52 PM

We love ours except this year we have had problems with the bugs. Everyone had that this year tho.
Normal years are great living outside as the weather here (CSL) is why so many snow birds live here.
We have an enclosed bdrm so can get away from bugs.

Better insulation than tile or metal and quitter when it rains.

Make sure you lay the palms not more than 4-6 inches apart or they will deteriorate sooner. Also use at least a 5/12 roof slope.
Also most times the Palms come with "Palmitas" and are controlled with a onetime spray.

As everywhere in Baja you will have to keep up with spraying no mater the const method.

Palapa roof construction, con't.

Mulegena - 5-19-2013 at 02:21 PM

Good points, Mr. Fish.

We put a palapa up on the top of our two-story pueblo-style house. Its accessed by a sturdy ladder from the second-floor porch.

Killer views 360 degrees! However, we're on a hilltop and that roof is the highest structure around and subject to hurricane winds whenever Mulege is hit.

It did just fine in the last Hurricane Paul but didn't keep the rain out (which was blowing in sideways 'cause its a hurricane). The roof stayed put, perhaps because we attached the palm fronds with 2 inch screws with good-size washers, not nails which tends to split the wood.

We'll see how they hold up with time. Palm fronds dry and get more brittle with age. We felt the screw and washer technique might hold up longer... no one wants to go back up on top of that third-floor roof to fix it!

Lindalou - 5-19-2013 at 02:50 PM

When we lived in Santispac, we all had palm frond roofs and no rats, they did keep them oiled down though.

Mulegena - 5-19-2013 at 02:57 PM

Oil the roofs or the rats?

Seriously, what oil or oil-blend? Chapatote, a mix of gasoline (preferably diesel) and used motor oil? Was it sprayed on or... ?

DENNIS - 5-19-2013 at 03:15 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Mulegena
Seriously, what oil or oil-blend? Chapatote, a mix of gasoline (preferably diesel) and used motor oil? Was it sprayed on or... ?

Chapapote...tar. Remember the Tar baby in the Uncle Remus story? They called it Chapapote in the Spanish version.

rts551 - 5-19-2013 at 04:38 PM

Have you seen the aftermath when a series of palapas burn?... Happened in Conception Bay a few years back. Fire would be one of my worries,,especially if well oiled.

chippy - 5-19-2013 at 04:49 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Skeet/Loreto

Third: c-cks from San Nicholas very near to the Petrogliffs were used for the foundation.

Kgryfon - 5-23-2013 at 07:57 PM

Thanks for the replies. I was more wondering about human pests than those from the insect kingdom. So when you pull your RV out of one of these and go back to your other home, you pack up all the books, the stove, fridge, pots and pans, etc. and put it in storage somewhere? And if you leave the place to go to the store while living there, you just trust your neighbors?

Kgryfon - 5-23-2013 at 08:23 PM

And thanks for the link, Woody, but I was asking more about the RV/half-house concept rather than full-fledged houses with palapa roofs.

Loretana - 5-23-2013 at 11:23 PM

If you had seen the exploding palm trees and palapa roofs at the Tripui Trailer Park fire in Puerto Escondido south of Loreto back in 2004 you would never consider living under one, much less storing your boat, trailer or other valuables under one.

The whole place was toast in a matter of 15 minutes. And I mean the whole place. It was shocking.

rhintransit - 5-24-2013 at 10:18 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Kgryfon
Thanks for the replies. I was more wondering about human pests than those from the insect kingdom. So when you pull your RV out of one of these and go back to your other home, you pack up all the books, the stove, fridge, pots and pans, etc. and put it in storage somewhere? And if you leave the place to go to the store while living there, you just trust your neighbors?

A. yes
B. totally depends on where you are

DENNIS - 5-24-2013 at 10:29 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Kgryfon
And if you leave the place to go to the store while living there, you just trust your neighbors?

If you can't do that, you're really in the wrong place. :light:

Palapa

J.P. - 5-24-2013 at 11:06 AM

One of the most beautiful homes I was ever in was in Manzanillo . It had a atrium style living area and a Palapa Roof the rafters appeared to be Bamboo and the Palm fronds were hand laced and tied. The underside of the finished product was Varnished.It was truly a piece of art.

msteve1014 - 5-24-2013 at 02:46 PM

I think most will agree they can be beautiful, but the risk of fire, the upkeep, the rodents, seem to point to newer building methods. Maybe better for a big covered area out in the yard.

J.P. - 5-24-2013 at 04:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Loretana
If you had seen the exploding palm trees and palapa roofs at the Tripui Trailer Park fire in Puerto Escondido south of Loreto back in 2004 you would never consider living under one, much less storing your boat, trailer or other valuables under one.

The whole place was toast in a matter of 15 minutes. And I mean the whole place. It was shocking.

Yes it burner fast but there was a vast amount of propane at each site that hyper fueled the fire, it was a very bad fire.
I lived in Houston Texas a lot of years they used to roof huge housing developments with Split Wood Shakes and a fire would wipe out a whole neighborhood until they outlawed the use of Wood Shakes.

[Edited on 5-24-2013 by J.P.]