Heavy Rains in Costa Rica – From the point of view of an architect

After getting huge amounts of rain over our homes and buildings, and experiencing all those landslides all over our roads I cannot help but to write about a few good architectural and landscape design tips regarding ” rain proofing” home building.

There needs to be an understanding that water in the tropics is a force of nature. A small river or groundwater and excessive rain can turn into a powerful force of destruction. It can affect the place that you live in, the streets you use every day, and your life for a couple of days.

So here’s some simple tips that will be helpful in the long term, to ensure protection of your future home in Costa Rica.

Know the soil conditions.

This is extremely important as this is the only way to know if the ground will resist the load of what you are about to build. Soil tests help to find groundwater, or signs of abnormal behavior of the different layers and components of your lot’s soil.

Don’t be surprised if you find some groundwater (great excuse for building a well!) Remember that Costa Rica is known to have “relatively” new land composition. Central America was America’s last chunk of land that emerged from the ocean when the continent was just finishing to shape as we know it today.

This means that our soil conditions are very fertile. That’s great for agriculture but not necessarily good for building. Fertile grounds absorb a lot of water, therefore usually about 1 or 2 meters of soil need to be removed before construction begins. And a small layer of soil replacement (ballast cement) might be needed underground to sit your footings or all the surrounding areas of your house.

Use waterproofing products over your footings and walls.

Regardless of the materials or components these are made of, there are products available for for every type. Sealants for retaining walls, elastic paints (yes, elastic, they won’t allow water to penetrate), resins, coatings, adhesives are just some suggestions.

Another great tip is to use geotextiles over your retaining walls, under slabs, over green terraces, on underground construction in general. These products contain a layer of material that will stop protective elements like bituminous membrane, or waterproofing additives from disintegrating.

Pipes.

If you have some slopes on your lot, it is recommended that you build a small pipe on the upper side of the slope, to lead rainwater just where you want it and not into your house. You can actually have a small drainage system using vegetated swales! If there is any water left, here’s an idea: recycle! Use that water to fill your toilets!

Try saving as many trees as possible when building.

Not only are you helping this world, but here’s something you may not know: one of tree’s main goals in life, despite producing oxygen, it to hold the soil together. That’s right. They are the best retaining walls that you will ever have.

Written by Costa Rica Architect Gloriana Mejia who focuses tropical modern architecture and believes in following very basic principles: simplicity as a guide for good design, compact areas as a solution for space, passive solutions for sustainable architecture and context as a main character of the frozen music that architecture is….

If you want more information about hiring an architect to help build your home in Costa Rica, please contact Gloriana Mejia using the simple form below:

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.