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Construction
Taking into consideration the island’s weather, HPH-RD builds sturdy homes of masonry block and reinforced concrete roofs, resistant to the hurricanes common in this area. Newly constructed houses have two bedrooms, dining room, living room, kitchen and bathroom in a space of about 50m². HPH-RD was one of the first Habitat organizations to build multi-family apartment dwellings. We have also launched a major effort to expand our home improvement projects, for example replacing a weak roof with a new weather-resistant roof, installing a solid floor to replace a dirt floor, adding a bathroom to replace an outdoor latrine, providing doors and windows, or making additions of living or work space to existing homes.
Your team may do a variety of different jobs, such as: mixing/pouring/carrying cement, laying blocks, stockpiling and moving materials, leveling poured concrete, digging holes (for septic tanks or cisterns), cleaning and picking-up at the construction site, painting, etc. You will not be expected to handle power equipment. You will probably use basic hand tools, including shovels and picks, hammers, pry-bars, trowels, and plenty of elbow grease. But you will never be expected or asked to do anything strenuous beyond your capacities. Be sure to always communicate if you think a task is to demanding for your body, each person knows himself better than anyone, and sometimes our body has more vulnerability to certain activities than other.
Please keep in mind that construction in the Dominican Republic is different than what you may be familiar with in your country. Typically there will be one construction foreman (maestro), other local masons and/or helpers on site to guide you. Our foremen have extensive experience in building Habitat homes, and while at times it may seem different or not make sense to you, they have a good reason for doing it their way. We also use a lot of manual labor, which can take longer and may seem inefficient, but helps to keep the cost of the homes at a minimum level and is still effective. Again, an open-mind, flexibility, and willingness to share and learn will enhance your Habitat construction experience immensely!
The different activities you might be doing are:
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Hauling (often by hand) dirt, sand, gravel, water, cement blocks, bags of cement, etc.
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Moving Caliche.
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Digging footers, trenches, wells, latrine pits, etc.
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Tamping the foundation.
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Forming the rebar structure, including cutting, bending and tying the bars.
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Mixing cement or mortar.
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Laying cement blocks or bricks; filling and finishing masonry joints.
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Finishing slab floors.
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Daily site management and cleaning, including assisting with a physical inventory of construction materials.
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