Mobile Homes...

[plowindeeper]

I second what RoMad said My neighbor built a pole barn over his double wide when it started t leak. He fixed so that when he was able to build he could move the DW out and still have a shed, I also know of a feller that has a FEMA camper in his shop for a "office".

 

[paulharvey]

This is what I plan in a few years, but right now funds are too limited. About metal, when you can get galvilium for $1.50 per lf (3 ft wide), who would use shingles at $27 per bundle (33 sq ft). I was really surprised at what a cheap 25 year 3 tab shingle costs, I used nearly the whole bundle by the time I finished the one repair. I knew I didn't have time till after Christmas to work in the other one.

About the roof over, I have a fake dormer on the front of the house that would complicate that. I think in maybe 2-3 years ill do metal roofing. I actually have roughly 5000 metal building screws in my shed, from when I worked in a couple 8400-20,000 sq ft PEMBs. Not quit sure how much it would cost me for panels, trim, ect for a 1400 sq ft house. Also would make sense to do a 3/4" rigid foam under the panels at the same time, and that stuff isnt cheap.

 

[paulharvey]

Also Ive got an actual related question about flooring. In the room with water damage, I ripped all the carpet and pad out, pulled all staples, dried it really well. Wife decided I would put in a laminate would floor. It was cheapish, $99 for 150 sq ft. I decided to paint the sub floor with a water based Kilz primer to seal it real good.

Now the question... padding? If I get commercial padding, it raises the cost a lot, 2 rolls at $25 each, so my price per square foot is basically $1.00 total, not really a bargain. I have 95% of a roll of 30# roofing felt from my roof repair, and I was wondering what everyone thinks of using that. I know it wont pad the floor, but that part I'm not worried about. I am concerned about everything laying down flat and straight, and I would think 30# felt would bridge the joints in the plywood better than nothing.

Im cheap but I dont want to kick my self in the butt every time I look at this floor. It is in my 2 yr old daughters bedroom, so its not high traffic. Its Project Source Winchester Oak 7mm laminate from Lowes.

 

[Retired Iron Peddler]

My wife and I lived in a custom built 18'x 80' single wide Palm Harbor with real 2x6 studs, insulated walls, insulated windows, and insulated steel residential exterior doors for 18 years quite comfortably. It was designed by my wife as a one bedroom, two bath with a large kitchen/dining/living room area with a vaulted ceiling and large walk-in closets. The roof trusses were full size 2x4s, covered OSB decking, and real asphalt roofing paper under the composition shingles. The toilets were real porcelain and the sink and lavatories were cast iron, not cheap plastic. The combination tub/showers were residential one piece fiberglass over the insulated floors. We visited the manufacturing plant during its construction and were able to see the many of the construction details while it was being built. The MH transporter said it was the heaviest single wide he had ever transported.

We had it installed and anchored (after removing the wheels, springs, and axles to make it as low as possible) to a full length and width concrete slab and under pinned it with matching wall paneling and insulation and access doors. We used the are under the home for dry storage. It was all electric using electric resistance heat in the winter and our electric bill wasn't over $150.00 in the winter. Winter temperatures were as low as -2F one winter and it sustained winds in excess of 80 mph during severe spring thunderstorms. We left it in place when we sold the property it was located on and it is still being used today as a rental.

Bill

 

[NY_Yankees_Fan]

I'm old enough to remember when we didn't have mobile homes, RVs, travel trailers, mobile home parks, etc., but we did have house trailers and trailer parks.:laughing: In 1959, I bought a 1952 Henslee house trailer. It was 8' wide and 28' long. And in the trailer park there were some people who had those monstrous, luxurious 10' wide Hicks trailers that were over 30' long.

Bird,

I have been reading your comments for well over 12 years now. I am always amazed at your memory and attention to detail. How the heck do you remember the date, model, dimension of something from 1959. I was 2 in 59 and heck I can not remember what I did 5 years ago!

Thanks for all of your contributions to TBN in 2013.

I hope you and the family have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

 

[RoMad]

Now the question... padding? If I get commercial padding, it raises the cost a lot, 2 rolls at $25 each, so my price per square foot is basically $1.00 total, not really a bargain. I have 95% of a roll of 30# roofing felt from my roof repair, and I was wondering what everyone thinks of using that. I know it wont pad the floor, but that part I'm not worried about. I am concerned about everything laying down flat and straight, and I would think 30# felt would bridge the joints in the plywood better than nothing.

I have used felt under siding but never under wood flooring. If you already have it, I dont really see what it would hurt and it would be better than nothing in my opinion. Someone else may know of a reason you shouldn't use it.
As far as bridgeing the joints they should be smooth. If you have a little offset in some of your joints buy some cheap thinset and trowell it on to even them out. I have made some pretty uneven joints look good doing that.

 

[jinman]

Does anyone know of a mobile home that will appraise for more than it cost new? I'm not saying they don't exist, but I don't know of a single mobile home that appreciates in value. Now, I'm not talking about resort areas where the land under the mobile home may be much more value than the structure. I'm talking about an actual mobile home that isn't a modular home on a full foundation.

I think mobile homes are built lightweight because they have to be transported. If you build the structure heavier, you have to start with a very heavy frame. A comparison of frames should tell you something about the structure above without having to do a tear-out to inspect. Even so, you always have to consider that mobile homes are built in a factory by people who are more assemblers than builders. Whatever shortcut they can take and cover up will be taken. I don't have intimate knowledge of construction techniques on better mobile homes. I know I had a 24' Coachmen camper trailer that was supposed to be one of the higher quality models. When I removed a light fixture, I found they had all been installed by somebody who used a ball-peen hammer to bust a hole into the paneling for the electrical wiring. the mounting bracket hid their splintered holes. It was this way on every light fixture in the whole camper. They were not drilled, just a hole busted through and wires fed to the light.

After we were married, my wife and I sold her double-wide and the 22 acres attached. What a hassle. Bank after bank turned down mortgages because they said the land was worth way more than the mobile home. Just when I had decided we would have to get a severance down to 2 acres and the mobile home, the buyer found an appraiser who was also a real estate salesman. For a 6% deal, he managed to make the mobile home appear to be a modular home on a foundation and changed the appearance of the mortgage. Lenders appeared and the property sold. Without that bit of "fabri-creativity," the property would have had to be restructured as a house and separate land loan. I'm so glad my current house never had wheels under it. You can live well in a mobile home, but I believe at some point they will be far more troublesome than a foundation built home.

 

[lostcreekranch]

That is why these things explode when a tornado just gets close. No structure.

Rick

 

[bcp]

That is why these things explode when a tornado just gets close. No structure.

Rick

They attract tornadoes.



Bruce

 

[AchingBack]

Since 1976 I've lived in a 1973 14x65, Flamingo mobile home. They must have named it a Flamingo, because it was best suited for life in the tropics. The walls are 2x4 on 16" centers. I replaced the aluminum siding with building wrap, and Duratemp, T111, 4x8 sheets. The roof has been redone with a rubberized system, all windows converted to double pane. I paid $2400.00 for the mobile, and have spent about $12,000 in upgrades.

The home is comfy cozy, and receives loads of compliments. Best part of the whole thing, annual property tax is less than $30.00, a huge savings compared to homes in the area assessed at a minimum of over $2500.00 per year. With the money I save, I continue to make modes upgrades at my leisure, and the taxes always go down because it is a lowly house trailer. I'm laughing all the way to the bank.

 

[kenmac]

Since 1976 I've lived in a 1973 14x65, Flamingo mobile home. They must have named it a Flamingo, because it was best suited for life in the tropics. The walls are 2x4 on 16" centers. I replaced the aluminum siding with building wrap, and Duratemp, T111, 4x8 sheets. The roof has been redone with a rubberized system, all windows converted to double pane. I paid $2400.00 for the mobile, and have spent about $12,000 in upgrades.

The home is comfy cozy, and receives loads of compliments. Best part of the whole thing, annual property tax is less than $30.00, a huge savings compared to homes in the area assessed at a minimum of over $2500.00 per year. With the money I save, I continue to make modes upgrades at my leisure, and the taxes always go down because it is a lowly house trailer. I'm laughing all the way to the bank.

While I don't live in 1, I have no problem with them , and may consider 1 for my next home. Being a plumber /Hvac owner, I'm in and around stick built homes and businesses all the time.. Believe me. Short cuts are taken all the time. Living in a MH you always have the option to up grade at any time. Just move out the old and move a new 1 in. You'll have no permit fees for hvac, plumbing, electrical, final etc,etc, which can run in the thousands. They may not be worth what you paid for it but, since the fall of the housing market, my home isn't worth what it cost to build

 

[mjarrels]

Use to be a funny web sight on why they are called mobile homes.

mark

 

[Bird]

The roof has been redone with a rubberized system

We've had RVs with the rubber roof, and a lot of years ago, my parents had an older mobile home on the Texas coast and one of my brothers and I put a rubber roof on it.

It seemed to me that the vast majority of the "problems" with mobile homes were the result of a lack of a foundation; re-leveling is common.

When we bought our place out in the country, we wanted that place for a number of reasons; cheap price, 40 x 60 shop, 30 x 40 barn, a dozen pecan trees, 2 big plum trees, etc., but it also had an old ragged 14 x 70 mobile home and a terrible septic system. I had a lot of work to do to make the place livable for a couple of years until we could have an aerobic septic system installed and have that old mobile home moved out and a new doublewide moved in.

Now maybe a site built house would have escalated in value; I don't know. But when we sold that 10 acre place, with a 5 year old double wide, I sold it for almost exactly the amount I had put into it.

Having now owed and lived in one doublewide and 3 single wides, I wouldn't hesitate to own or live in one, but only if a full concrete slab was poured for a foundation.

 

[TnAndy]

None of these would be much more money, probably less than $500 per home

Yeah, BUT.....figure 1,000 units/yr times $500, and then you see why they do it.

All manufacturers save every nickle they can, but the mobile home industry has cheap down to an art form.

 

[dave1949]

We've had RVs with the rubber roof, and a lot of years ago, my parents had an older mobile home on the Texas coast and one of my brothers and I put a rubber roof on it.

Our old MH had a "rubberized roof." It was about 10 old tires spread out on the roof to keep it from galloping in the wind. :laughing:

That trailer was beat when we bought it though, and it did provide a home while we saved-up to build on the 2 acre lot. I thought it was a huge improvement over raising a two-year-old in an upstairs apartment in town.

 

[kenmac]

I wouldn't say that MH's are less expensive than stick built because of cutting corners. I would say they cost less because, in a stick built home you have to pay the builder his fees, all the subs cost more HVAC, Plumbing, electrical, concrete , brick/ block mason, permit fees for all of these subs, etc,. With the exception of the concrete and brick/block. the HVAC , Plumbing and electrical are done to code all at the MH factory. The HVAC, Plumber, electrical, etc, people at the MH factory ,most likely don't make what the Hvac, Plumber, electrical, cabinet maker, etc, would make in the private sector.

 

[Bird]

Our old MH had a "rubberized roof." It was about 10 old tires spread out on the roof to keep it from galloping in the wind.

I don't think I've seen that in several years now, but it used to be very common.

 

[kenmac]

I don't think I've seen that in several years now, but it used to be very common.

Most MH's these days are either shingle or metal roofs

 

[Bird]

Most MH's these days are either shingle or metal roofs

Those that used the old tires were metal roofs, and they could make lots of popping noises in the wind. But yes, our last single wide had a composition shingle roof.

 

[dave1949]

Those that used the old tires were metal roofs, and they could make lots of popping noises in the wind. But yes, our last single wide had a composition shingle roof.

I don't remember exactly what model year that MH was, probably mid to late 60's. We bought it 1976 from a family that had out-grown it.

Most of the older mobile homes around here have had gable roofs added-on over them. Some are pretty extensive add-ons with covered decks, carports and such.