What kind of house to build in Batumi: the choices at each step

What kind of house to build in Batumi depends first of all on the plot and on how you will live in the house. Materials and building services are chosen to fit these two answers, and almost every decision leads to the next one. A flat roof with a terrace changes the calculation for the slab under it, and a heat pump only makes sense in a well-insulated house.

What kind of house to build in Batumi: where to start

The plot suggests the first decisions. The ground survey shows what foundations you need and whether a basement is worth building. The slope determines how light the house should be, and the distance to the sea, what protection the metal needs. If there is a gas main and a sewer near the plot, the heating and sewage questions are largely settled before the design starts.

The second group of decisions depends on how the house will be used. A year-round house needs heating for the whole winter and insulation without gaps. In a house you rent out, soundproofing and ease of repair come first: anything guests break should be quick to replace with the same item.

Frame and walls

For a house with large spans and lots of glazing, the first choice is between cast-in-place concrete and a steel frame. By the sea a concrete frame lasts a long time if the concrete is dense and the reinforcement has the cover the design specifies. It is better at stopping sound and does not burn, but it takes longer to build and depends more on the weather. A steel frame is lighter and goes up faster, but by the sea it needs durable protection against corrosion and fire.

In practice, the choice between cast-in-place concrete and brick is about what holds the house up. If the brick is load-bearing, in a seismic zone it needs reinforced ring beams and cores, and the size of openings in such a wall is limited. In a concrete frame, brick is only infill or cladding, and the layout becomes more flexible.

The choice between aerated concrete, brick and foam concrete blocks is a choice of infill for the frame. Aerated concrete beats brick on insulation and laying speed but loses on how it handles water, so by the sea it needs a facade that keeps the wall from getting wet. Foam concrete is similar to aerated concrete, but it hardens without an autoclave, and its strength and dimensions vary more from batch to batch. That is why we use aerated concrete for a house you live in and keep foam concrete for outbuildings.

Light frames, timber and modules

Light gauge steel framing (LGS) and a timber frame have a similar wall structure but different weaknesses. By the sea steel rusts and conducts cold, so the insulation goes on the outside of the sections. Timber rots if moisture stays in the wall, so it needs dry boards and a properly installed vapour barrier. A steel frame and LGS differ in scale: hot-rolled sections are used for large spans and several storeys, LGS for a house of one or two storeys.

Between SIP panels and a timber frame, the choice comes down to speed and how the wall releases moisture. SIP panels go up faster, but almost no vapour passes through such a wall, so the house needs mechanical supply and extract ventilation, and a damaged panel is harder to replace than a section of boarding. The choice between a log house and a timber frame house comes down to taste and to how much facade upkeep you are prepared for. Logs give you walls of real wood but settle, while a frame is lighter and can take any facade.

Glulam has minimal shrinkage and cracking. Solid profiled timber is cheaper, but after assembly the house has to stand for a while before the finishing can begin. A modular house goes up quickly on the plot once the modules are ready, but their size is limited by what fits on a truck, and the plot needs access for a crane. A traditionally built house takes longer, but the layout and spans can be whatever you need.

Roof, facade and windows

A pitched roof forgives more mistakes: water runs off it on its own, and a leak is easier to find. A flat roof is worth it if you will really use the roof terrace, because for the local downpours its waterproofing and drainage are built with a margin and need closer maintenance. By the sea, metal roof tiles need a coating designed for salt and protected cut edges, and they are louder in the rain. Asphalt shingles are quieter and easier to lay on a complex roof, but they need a solid deck and a ventilated space underneath.

A ventilated facade and a rendered insulated facade (insulation finished with render, also called ETICS) differ in how the wall dries and how it is repaired. Behind a ventilated facade the wall dries out through the air gap, and a damaged panel can be replaced on its own, but this facade costs more. A rendered facade is thinner and cheaper, but a crack in it is hard to repair without leaving a patch, and aerated concrete needs a vapour-permeable system. By the sea we use an aluminium or stainless steel subframe for a ventilated facade.

Aluminium or uPVC windows are chosen by the size of the openings. Large sliding doors and panoramic glazing are made from thermally broken aluminium, while for ordinary windows uPVC is warmer and cheaper. Either way, by the sea the hardware matters a lot: hinges and locks need an anti-corrosion coating, otherwise over time the window gets stiff to close.

Foundations and building services

Whether you need piles or a slab is decided by the ground survey. On a slope, and where firm ground lies deep, piles are usually needed. A slab works well on a level plot with uniform soil and also forms the base of the floor, but where the groundwater is high it needs serious waterproofing.

The choice between a heat pump and gas depends on whether there is a gas main by the plot and whether you plan to spend winters in the house. We check with SOCAR Georgia Gas whether a connection is possible before the building services design. An air source heat pump works without gas and can cool the house in summer, but it requires a well-insulated house, enough incoming electrical capacity and an outdoor unit with an anti-corrosion coating. A gas boiler is cheaper to start with if the network is close.

A septic tank is installed when there is no mains sewer nearby or it is too far away. Within Batumi, the water and sewer networks are run by Batumis Tskali (Batumi Water), and we find out its connection conditions before the design too. For a septic tank, what matters is the groundwater, how well the soil absorbs treated water, and access for the tanker that empties it.

Building or buying a finished house

A finished house is available straight away, and you can see it before buying, but you haven't seen what is hidden in the walls and under the floors. Building your own takes longer: the plot, the design, the permit and the construction itself. In return, you control the seismic calculation, the materials and the concealed work from day one.

If you choose a finished house, order a survey before the transaction. An engineer looks at cracks in the load-bearing structure, damp in the plinth, the roof, the wiring and the drains, and we check the building against the Public Registry extract, because ownership only begins once it is registered. Sometimes the repairs the survey reveals eat up the difference in price, and then building your own makes more sense.