# Need advice on remodeling/renovating a prefab (mobile) home



## majakdragon

I can appreciate your wanting to upgrade but you need to realize that mobile homes are a bit of a different animal than stick built homes. The basement idea may not be possible. Most mobiles need a lot of support throughout the underside to keep it level. When I had my mobile in Florida, I also found that the electrical switches were not the same as for a stick built home. I had the rocker type switches and when one went bad, I had to purchase a new one from a mobile supplier. I found that the switches were also connected with the "push-in" (stab)connectors rather than using the connector screws. That was an easy change though. The ceilings in most older mobiles are full size panels. You MAY be able to remove them and replace with drywall. Paint, tile and wallpaper are pretty much doable. If you have current wall paper on walls, you will most likely find that the wallpaper is a permanent part of the wall, but I recovered a couple walls by just prepping and papering right over the old stuff. When mobiles are built, it is a "speed" process. Many things that would be a 2 step process on a stick built home are a one-step in mobiles. You can do many things to upgrade your home but please investigate how it was originally done before tearing up large areas. Good luck with your projects.


----------



## Darylh

My home is a Deregisterd 20 x 46 mobile with a 10 x 24 addition. You would not even know it was a mobile unless you went in the attic.
My home has a full crawlspace cement foundation and has cement pilars through out the crawl but a basement is also fesible but you will need beams in the proper location and in fact there is one down the road from me. In case you did not know up here in canada if you put a foundation under your mobile you can have it Derigesterd which means its now a home. Taxes and insurance are the same as a home.
As peviously mentioned you must find out and investagate your mobile before tearing anything apart.Mobiles are usally 2x3 framed and do not like drywall unless it has been put on a foundation. I know this from others complaining about cracks in the wall because of to much movement. But i will tell yah if the lower ceilings don't bother you there are a lot of things you can do to it over time and here is a example.
My home has been stuccoed,new pitch stick framed roof which sits on top of the original roof but I think you now have to have posts and beams around the piremeter but anyway the interior has had all new plugs, switches, and in most cases new boxes( consult an electrician first), drywall everywhere, new tile and click flooring, hardwood in living, dinning room. Doors, moulding, crowns all new. New Kitchen cabs and couter tops. So yes what you are thinking is very visible but take the time to ask questions and take a very good look at your own mobile before tackleing anything. I will post some pics just to give you an idea on what can be accomplished.


----------



## Darylh

as promised here are a few pics I shot just now. You can see how it does not look like a mobile and hopefully it will give you some ideas.


----------



## countrylifemom

*Thanks for the encouragement!*

Hi Darylh!

I just looked over the pics you sent me on the reno job you've done on your home! Wow! You're right, it sure doesn't look like a mobile home anymore! :thumbup: 
Our mobile is a 1990 model and it has 2x6 wall construction, believe it or not! We only have it blocked underneath, no solid foundation of any kind. It's a 16x80 sized model. Overall it is in very good shape but it just needs some updating. The biggest question I had was about the shifting on the floors and walls because of the way it is blocked underneath - every eight feet on wooden piles which are laid on a 2x12 on the ground. The "wallpaper" is that prepapered vinyl stuff covering 1/4" drywall with the "joiner" strips that match. So none of the "drywall" has been taped or mudded, I guess for making it less damaging for the moving process. Do you think if I just wallpapered over these walls without the strips, would the wallpaper rip with movement over time? (I lived in a prefab modular house before moving here and I did the wallpaper and painting. This house was on a newer basement and it still shifted and the wallpaper ripped!) I would love to paint but I really hate those strips on the wall and paint would just show them up even more!! Do you think I could tape and mud these joints or would they just crack because of the "foundation"? 
I know these are a lot of questions but you are the first person with experience in this area that I have been able to talk to. I appreciate any advice and help from you. I love what you did to your home and would love for my home to turn out as nice! The extra little touches like the moulding and trim sure make it classy. Love the colors too! You've done an awesome job! :thumbsup: Thanks for the reply to my situation and I look forward to hearing back from you again some time. One more question: Did you do most of the work yourself or did you hire contractors? I am more of a diy'er and would love to tackle this place . I want to do it right and do more research and learn from other people's mistakes first before going all out on this home. Thanks again, you've inspired me!........................countrylifemom


----------



## Darylh

I am just on my way out the door and won't be back till tommrow so I will get back to you as soon as I can and thankyou for the kind words.


----------



## AtlanticWBConst.

Darylh said:


> I am just on my way out the door and won't be back till tommrow so I will get back to you as soon as I can and thankyou for the kind words.


I agree as well, very nice work. 

Mobile home???.where??, all I see is a nice custom house....


----------



## Darylh

Thanks for the words and welcome to 2007 and a way we go..
*The foundation sounds like it would not be good enough for any drywall especialy 1/4" drywall. It would just crack.I would think with 2x6 walls thick vinal wallpaper should be fine but I just don't know.*
*This home has a 2' crawl space (concrete)with proper sized footings for 8x16 concrete blocks which are about every12 feet with 8x 16 concrete blocks see attachment.We also have cable and turnbuckles under the home which are ancored directly to the footings. Without a proper foundation theres going to be to much shifting for drywall work. As far as floors go if tiling make sure you screw the floors down before putting your new floors down, Use a good cement board and if going hardwood use plenty of nails.*
*The foundation work Stucco,electrical was hired out. Concrete work, stucco, new roof, some electrical, drywall was done before I bought the place but he did a terrible job on some of the things that I have since fixed and of course we have givin the place major Cosmetic Surgury. to much to mention but you do have the start of the right place to do all this with those 2x6 walls. go for it and keep in touch with us..*


----------



## nomez811

The pics here are wonderful......we are in the process of closing on a 1999 modular , 2400 sf, on 9 acres......the land was the selling point but the square footage for the money didn't hurt, lol.... I am looking for input on how to remove those nasty batting strips and cover the old Early American printed wall paper.....I had thought I would remove the strips, drywall mudd the gaps and recover the walls smooth with a paintable wall paper.....does anyone know if I am heading for disaster? lol........the home is on a standard foundation so shifting or movement should not be a problem..... I just want to be sure that I do not go at this whole heartedly and find out that I have made a horrid mistake, lol.....

All input is welcome....and appreciated !!


----------



## steve1234

I am the proud owner of a Pink Flamingo Brand Trailier.........

Prior owners added on to the front, back and end (hitch side). Perimeter foundation and second story on the end piece. The original roof was extended over the front and back add-ons, so the interior ceiling was really low. Since the hitch side add-on with the second story was built up from the foundation it had standard height ceilings. The exterior roof was built over the whole house so it looked like a regular house from the outside, but you had to duck going in the front door due to the interior ceiling height. Since the exterior roof was added after the fact, there was a major "hinge" above the short wall top plate, which was a problem with the remodel, turn re-build.

The house was sold as a house and not a trailer. The inspectors I had during the buying process were going to leave after they figured out what they were inspecting, I convinced them to stay. Their report included many references to the phrase "unconventional construction techniques". 

We are now remodeling (rebuilding). The steel trailer frame is being left in the center of the house. All the structural loads were moved off the trailer and supported with new footings. We now have several beams that span the length and width of the trailer. 

We found many interesting things during demo. I learned that trailer "codes" differ from home codes. The stuff I found sent a chill down my spine knowing that my family was living in the "house" prior to the remodel (and during actually). Many of the chilling discoveries were based on incomplete transitions between trailer and "house". The electrical wires routed through jagged metal trailer siding is just a sample. 

I believe we will have a very nice home if and when we finish, and it will be built around a trailer. There is a lot of effort involved, but anything is possible. Good luck......


----------



## nomez811

Wow Steve that is quite an undertaking.......but it looks like you will have a beauty when you are done.....

The house we are buying is not a trailer, it is a modular home set on a permanent foundation..a manufactured home so to speak......the terminology is something I can never quite get a grip on ,lol..... it is a house made in factory in sections and placed on a permanent foundation.... but the inside, for transport reasons, is made with those nasty batting strips so that road movement will not crack the walls...I want to change that since the house is never going to move again, lol, I want real walls....maybe not the expense of hiring a dry waller but atleast walls without strips and some conventional moldings rather than the this plastic looking moldings that exist....I just want some reassurance that the work I do will hold up ....

Thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences,.....it gives me a lot of hope


----------



## Darylh

I do not have a lot of experience with this procedure but it accrues to me if you take the strips off, re nail the edges, sand smooth and then run a bead of latex caulk and smoothen with a putty knife you will have better success than using drywall mud, it will just crack and would inturn put a ripple in your new wallpaper. Just my nickels worth.


----------



## anglpie2

Wow Daryl, 
I registered just to see how you transformed your mobile home and WOW!!! That is pretty much all I can say about that!!! It is amazing to see... I didn't even know that was possible. Good job. Oh and your wife's interior designer eye really is what brings out the work. At first I was thinking, a man doesn't normally think to put colors and accessories together like this. ( I know my husband doesn't, lol) The place looks great!


----------



## veranda

*batting strip removal*

Hi... Just as Anglpie2 did, I have just registered to this site because we are selling our "Traditional built home" and retiring to a pre-manufactured, on a foundation, located out in the country that will be ours "bought and paid for"....Wahooo! I want to first begin remodeling the interior, which includes removing those batting strips from the wall and making it look more like a stick built interior. An ealrlier post mentioned removing the strips and filling the cracks with a caulking or putty. Has anyone tried this yet? If so, what kind of success did you have? (next I will be tackling that "plastic looking" bathroom, but that's another day). I appreciate any response. Thank you and I am looking forward to future posts.


----------



## Darylh

anglpie2 said:


> Wow Daryl,
> I registered just to see how you transformed your mobile home and WOW!!! That is pretty much all I can say about that!!! It is amazing to see... I didn't even know that was possible. Good job. Oh and your wife's interior designer eye really is what brings out the work. At first I was thinking, a man doesn't normally think to put colors and accessories together like this. ( I know my husband doesn't, lol) The place looks great!


 Welcome to the site. Thank you, she is really good at colors ( me to sometimes:laughing: ).


----------



## Darylh

veranda said:


> Hi... Just as Anglpie2 did, I have just registered to this site because we are selling our "Traditional built home" and retiring to a pre-manufactured, on a foundation, located out in the country that will be ours "bought and paid for"....Wahooo! I want to first begin remodeling the interior, which includes removing those batting strips from the wall and making it look more like a stick built interior. An ealrlier post mentioned removing the strips and filling the cracks with a caulking or putty. Has anyone tried this yet? If so, what kind of success did you have? (next I will be tackling that "plastic looking" bathroom, but that's another day). I appreciate any response. Thank you and I am looking forward to future posts.


 Welcome to the site, 
What is the finish on the walls now and are you going to wallpaper it or ?


----------



## deeanderson

*updating my mobile home*

Hi Darylh, 

I also registered just to see how you transformed your mobile home and I also say WOW!!!. I attended a Home Depot class tonight on How to install crown molding because i want to update my home. But after looking at your work, I am beside myself. Are you a carpenter? Things that I want to do is replace carpet, remove the seam covers from the wall and make it flat then paint, add crown molding and other trim work. Do you have any suggestions on what I should do first? I have limit carpentry skill but i have worked with my father before he past away.


----------



## Darylh

Welcome Dee, thank you very much.
The order in which I do things can differ from time to time but it also depends on your knowledge. Normally I would prep the walls for painting and prime , prepaint all the trims, put the new floor down after I have screwed them down to help prevent future squeaks, install, crack fill and caulk trims, put final coat on trims and then paint the walls and your done.


----------



## annabell

Just wondering how is the remodeling going. I'm about to start on mine and need a little encouraging. It's seems so impossible.


----------



## Darylh

Welcome to the site annabell, Yah it can be a little discouraging and over whelming at first but let me tell you once you get started it can be a lot of fun, so jump in there:thumbsup: . What exactly are you doing?
I also was a little curious how the renos were going


----------



## annabell

Thanks. Yes very overwhelming. My problem is having so many projects started at once. First thing i'd like to do is get rid of these strips on the walls. I removed one and found probably 20 tiny nails minus the heads left in the wall. My trailer is only 5 years old and is in great shape but annoys me to the core looking at all the fake wood and ugly print on the wall paper that i found out is actually part of the wall. Yours is reallysomething to be proud of. I'd kiss those hardwood floors if they were mine. Lol.


----------



## Arlo

This forum is the BEST for house repairs but there is a good site on mobile homes at mobilehomerepair.com In the decorating thread there is a lot of experience with painting paneling and wallpaper panel or whatever it's called. There's also a really good recent thread with pictures about painting and epoxying countertops to look like granite. I think the consensus is that folks who live in the frigid north have some problems with taping seams due to frost heave at their piers (concrete blocks). You can get a liner wallpaper really thick to go over paneling and it looks pretty good when painted.


----------



## annabell

Awsome. Thanks. I thinks that's the way i'll go. I found some really thick paper at lowe's .


----------



## bigthys71

I am very glad I decided to type a question on renovating mobile homes. I am in the early planning stages on a renovation. I just have no clue as to cost what I can or can't do to my mobile home. I want to add a bedroom, dining area and family room. Does anyone no approximate costs to add three rooms. Thanks in advance for any response Scranton, SC


----------



## rxgirl

Hi everyone, My husband and I are redecorating our den in our 1995 doublewide home. I want to remove those pesky strips on the walls. Any help as to what to use on the walls once I remove the strips????????


----------



## Big Bob

those pesky little lattice strips that probably match you vcg (vinyl clad gypsum) are covering an unfinished butt joint.
if this is the case.. what do you plan on doing?...what do you want your new finished walls to look like?
can you post a pic or two?


----------



## annabell

*yep*

Exactly.just finished remodeling one of my bathrooms. When i finally got the strip off the wall, there were hundreds of tiny headless nails sticking out. I mudded the crack, sanded it down and then used a textured wall paper. I'll take some pictures and post them. It was such a pain. I'm paying this mobile home off as soon as possible and getting rid of it. I think there was every shortcut in the book used to design these things. :furious: Do you have any experience with these fabulous homes. :laughing:


----------



## rudy0791

*mobile home flooring*

I am new to the DIY site. I and my lady friend are going to fix the floors in her 1970's 14 X65 mobile home. There are soft spots in the bathroom and back bedroom probably from being wet at some time. I assume I will have to remove the carpet in the bedroom and linoleum in the bathroom, then put down some 3/4 inch plywood for the subfloor. We plan to replace the tub/shower combo with another tub/shower or just a shower stall. Does anyone know where to find some plans on how these mobiles were constructed? I would like to see some plans before starting this project so I can figure out how to attach the new sub flooring. I plan to do the work myself.


----------



## Big Bob

You can try some manufacturer's web sites for plans, but I don't believe you will get real lucky finding 70's plans. 
Odds are 2x6 pine floor joist 20" OC with 1x4 {pressed-wood (particle board)not OSB] glued and stapled to top of 2x6. 5/8 or 3/4 4x8 sheets (pressed-wood) glued and stapled on top. 

Plan on adding blocking to your area repair. If you can stay away from the walls.. the repairs will be much easier.

Let us know if you need more info... and welcome to the site.


----------



## RGBJLB

I joined the site to see the Darylh's renovation pictures of the not-so-mobile home, to see the nightmare reno someone else is going through, and to read as much as I can because....we just bought a mobile home, and we need to renovate it. Thanks for all the information I have read so far. We just finished renovating an RV, I hope a mobile home is just as easy, or familiar. :clover:


----------



## Darylh

RGBJLB said:


> I joined the site to see the Darylh's renovation pictures of the not-so-mobile home, to see the nightmare reno someone else is going through, and to read as much as I can because....we just bought a mobile home, and we need to renovate it. Thanks for all the information I have read so far. We just finished renovating an RV, I hope a mobile home is just as easy, or familiar. :clover:


Welcome RGBJLB, there will be some familars but remember one is used to travel on the road with and one is not. If you can remodel a RV I am sure you can do a mobile, just have patients and take lots of pics and post them with your questions. It is a lot easier to relate questions with a picture. A little info on the mobile like year, size also helps. Good luck and keep us up to date with pics.


----------



## rudy0791

*To Big Bob*

Thanks for the info. What was the blocking that you mentioned? 

I did find a site which had a drawing of general mobile home construction. It was helpful. http://www.mygreathome.com/fix-it_guide/diagram.htm I believe what you said is what I will find when I tear the floor covering off. It should be fun. I hope to contain my trips to Home Depot to 3.


----------



## RGBJLB

Rudy, 

Thank you so much for sharing that link with everybody. I'm sure it will come in handy when we are doing things.


----------



## dallas2miwuk

Ok, here goes, I am also new to the forum. We are in the process of purchasing an approximately 23 year old double wide 24 x 63 in a park. I would like to add a 5 foot bump out to the end wall which has the master bedroom/bath to make it more liveable for us and intend to add a another closet at one end and more bedroom space. Obviously we have to extend the roof but what about removal of this end wall? Do you think they will allow it and what kind of costs are we looking at? Anybody with any ideas? I got perrmission from the park, by the way but they said we will have to get building permits (I intended to do that anyway) I also would like to remove one window and put a door in my son's room with a deck for him as he is handicapped (in case of emergency). I have lots of other remodeling ideas but my other main complaint/concern is the ceiling of those "panels" which I consider super ugly......can that be sheetrocked? Also can that type of ceiling be lifted or raised for a little more height in the living areas? I also intended to put in sheetrock and then foil insulation for additional r values. I like a cozy well insulated house. The house is a little dated but in good condition and has not been ragged out.


----------



## Daylene

*Your home looks fabulous*

Hi,

We just recently purchased our 2 bdrm 2 ba home and are very anxious to make many upgrades. The first thing we want to do is upgrade the kitchen cabinets - or at least refinish them because they have been painted so many times they look horrible. Then there is this lower breakfast bar that appears it may have been made for someone in a wheelchair, but we're not sure. The stove is there but it is raised. I will try to get my husband to take some pictures. Also, our oven is not working properly - it only heats on broil. The oven appears to be smaller than those in a stick built home. If I were to replace the oven could I replace it with a stick built model or do I need to purchase one from a mobile home supplier?

Thank you much for any advice.

Daylene


----------



## majakdragon

Dallas2miwuk, You really do want to check on the permit requirements. I had a mobile in Florida, and to add a room, you were required to not actually connect it to the mobile. They had a seal that connected the home to the addition. Not sure of the reasoning.
Daylene, after living in a mobile for 11 years, I learned a lot about working on them. Biggest problem I had was electrical switches. Mine were the large rocker type and although hardware stores sold ones that looked identical, they would not work. Found out they had to be made for mobiles. I had a stove replaced and it was a standard 30" size. You may need to increase the opening if yours is made specifically for a mobile. Luckily we had a mobile home supply business near us.


----------



## Nikitasmith01

I am so glad I found ths forum. I've been wanting to remodel our home especially to accomadate a growing family. it's currently a 1 1/s bedroom, but I wanted to extend up the whole front of the trailer and add maybe another room or two. make it look more like a house plan than a mobile home flppr plan, I also wanted to redo the kitchen cabinets and tile the entire floor through the house bedrooms included, we have a bichon frise, and I dont like the idea of a dog and carpets. any ideas or suggestions would be great.. I've heard of people putting down ..I think hardy back before tiling.. is that great?


----------



## RGBJLB

Well, I have heard about hardy board being put down on the floor, but I have been advised by some people who live in mobile homes not to install tiles or anything else that needs something like plaster or grout, due to it cracking when it settles. I'm not sure about that, but I will definitely take it under advisement.


----------



## vegascarpenter

veranda said:


> Hi... Just as Anglpie2 did, I have just registered to this site because we are selling our "Traditional built home" and retiring to a pre-manufactured, on a foundation, located out in the country that will be ours "bought and paid for"....Wahooo! I want to first begin remodeling the interior, which includes removing those batting strips from the wall and making it look more like a stick built interior. An ealrlier post mentioned removing the strips and filling the cracks with a caulking or putty. Has anyone tried this yet? If so, what kind of success did you have? (next I will be tackling that "plastic looking" bathroom, but that's another day). I appreciate any response. Thank you and I am looking forward to future posts.


I took the wood strips off and I used drywall mud it's very hard to get it just right but it turnd out great now there is no seem's


----------



## Darylh

RGBJLB said:


> , *but I have been advised by some people who live in mobile homes not to install tiles or anything else that needs something like plaster or grout, due to it cracking when it settles*. .


One of the best ways to cure this is to use hardie on the floor that is mortared in and the seams taped. 1/2" is best


----------



## Darylh

Nikitasmith01 said:


> I am so glad I found ths forum. I've been wanting to remodel our home especially to accomadate a growing family. it's currently a 1 1/s bedroom, but I wanted to extend up the whole front of the trailer and add maybe another room or two. make it look more like a house plan than a mobile home flppr plan, I also wanted to redo the kitchen cabinets and tile the entire floor through the house bedrooms included, we have a bichon frise, and I dont like the idea of a dog and carpets. any ideas or suggestions would be great.. I've heard of people putting down ..I think hardy back before tiling.. is that great?


The one thing you need to check on is the foundation that your home is sitting on. Mine has a proper crawlspace foundation with pads, Pier's and tie downs to help stabilize the home. Without it you get movement that runs havoc on tiles and drywall since the home moves so does everything else.
Another suggestion to flooring is Laminate, I hear lots of people with animals swear by this but not the cheap stuff, and you don't have the movement issue with that stuff either.
1/2" hardie motored in and seams taped is the best way to tile these :thumbsuplaces and don't forget to re screw the floor down. There are many different types of thin set and grout, and should have flexibility to them. Go to the flooring section of this forum and the tile experts over there will have the answers to this.
What we did is use tile in Entry, Laundry,Kitchen,Hall, Bathrooms. We put hardwood in living dinning and laminate it the bedrooms. It has worked out great even though we do not have Animals anymore.


----------



## boughtadump2010

*New Pitch stick framed roof?*

Can you tell me how you had the new pitch stick framed roof done, and what kind of price?


Darylh said:


> Thanks for the words and welcome to 2007 and a way we go..
> *The foundation sounds like it would not be good enough for any drywall especialy 1/4" drywall. It would just crack.I would think with 2x6 walls thick vinal wallpaper should be fine but I just don't know.*
> *This home has a 2' crawl space (concrete)with proper sized footings for 8x16 concrete blocks which are about every12 feet with 8x 16 concrete blocks see attachment.We also have cable and turnbuckles under the home which are ancored directly to the footings. Without a proper foundation theres going to be to much shifting for drywall work. As far as floors go if tiling make sure you screw the floors down before putting your new floors down, Use a good cement board and if going hardwood use plenty of nails.*
> *The foundation work Stucco,electrical was hired out. Concrete work, stucco, new roof, some electrical, drywall was done before I bought the place but he did a terrible job on some of the things that I have since fixed and of course we have givin the place major Cosmetic Surgury. to much to mention but you do have the start of the right place to do all this with those 2x6 walls. go for it and keep in touch with us..*


----------



## Darylh

It was a very easy and simple design and was done prior to me purchasing the place.


----------



## Kriss

countrylifemom said:


> Hi Darylh!
> 
> I just looked over the pics you sent me on the reno job you've done on your home! Wow! You're right, it sure doesn't look like a mobile home anymore! :thumbup:
> Our mobile is a 1990 model and it has 2x6 wall construction, believe it or not! We only have it blocked underneath, no solid foundation of any kind. It's a 16x80 sized model. Overall it is in very good shape but it just needs some updating. The biggest question I had was about the shifting on the floors and walls because of the way it is blocked underneath - every eight feet on wooden piles which are laid on a 2x12 on the ground. The "wallpaper" is that prepapered vinyl stuff covering 1/4" drywall with the "joiner" strips that match. So none of the "drywall" has been taped or mudded, I guess for making it less damaging for the moving process. Do you think if I just wallpapered over these walls without the strips, would the wallpaper rip with movement over time? (I lived in a prefab modular house before moving here and I did the wallpaper and painting. This house was on a newer basement and it still shifted and the wallpaper ripped!) I would love to paint but I really hate those strips on the wall and paint would just show them up even more!! Do you think I could tape and mud these joints or would they just crack because of the "foundation"?
> I know these are a lot of questions but you are the first person with experience in this area that I have been able to talk to. I appreciate any advice and help from you. I love what you did to your home and would love for my home to turn out as nice! The extra little touches like the moulding and trim sure make it classy. Love the colors too! You've done an awesome job! :thumbsup: Thanks for the reply to my situation and I look forward to hearing back from you again some time. One more question: Did you do most of the work yourself or did you hire contractors? I am more of a diy'er and would love to tackle this place . I want to do it right and do more research and learn from other people's mistakes first before going all out on this home. Thanks again, you've inspired me!........................countrylifemom


Hi, I remodeled my master bathroom three years ago, and I painted right over the wall paper, it worked just fine. I hated painting over the wall strips, was such a pain. When I remodel my other bathroom I'm taking the strips down and putting calking in the seams. I'd of done the same in the master bath but I didn't know you could until two of my friends did it. Both my friends live in doublewides and haven't had any trouble. 
Everyone tries to discourages anything I've started to do to my home, but thank goodness I didn't listen. Three years ago right after hurricane IKE I completely remodeled my master bath, I had horrible green carpet in there, and it even went up the tub. I ripped out my vanity, mirrors, lighting, carpet and even my towel racks. I had tile put in, tiled up my tub, and even up the wall, it's been three years and still in perfect condition. I had a carpenter come in and build me a new vanity, real wood, and granite on top. (I was also told granite was to heavy for a mobile home) I love it! I say do whatever you want to your home, don't let people discourage you, you,ll be happy you went for it.
When I win the lottery I'm ripping out the kitchen and putting real hard wood floors in there ...... they say not to do that either.


----------



## Kriss

*Bathroom remodel*

Hello, I'm new here, and just learning. I live in a 1995 mobile, I remodeled the master bath three years ago. I'm going to try and post picture's of the before and after, but if it doesn't work, I tried


----------



## Karen M

Kriss the bath looks great, good job, I am planning a remodel on mine soon, you have inspired me!!


----------



## Pittsville

Looks great! Diggin the tile choice!


----------



## scandy68

*Ideas*

Here is a website that I came across that shows just what you can do with a mobile home. Lots of ideas and inspiration.
Happy Remodeling!

http://www.mobilehomeliving.org/


----------



## sryan

Hi guys , new to the forum. I am in a similar boat to most of these posts. just bought a 1600 ft doublewide in a park so its on a concrete slab with screw jack style supports. i absolutely hate the batten strip look and was considering adding new 1/2 " lightweight sheetrock to the existing 3/8 vinyl covered rock but im concerned with the added weight. so ive decided to try removing the strips and mudding/taping the joints then texture and paint. my question is do i have to try to prime or strip the surface of the vinyl in order for the mud to adhere? and also what medium would be best for taping the joints? fibreglass mesh or reg. paper tape?:whistling2:


----------



## llazyiest

Beautiful job on your bathroom! Had to laugh at the carpet going up the tub side.


----------



## llazyiest

I just peeled the wallpaper off. Then i primed the wall before mudding and taping the seams. I did this to the kitchen and later the master bathroom. Even if a little of the walls surface comes off you can mud over it. I learned how to tape and mud the wall watching youtube videos. You can see the kitchen wall in progress in one of my posts.


----------



## Bigbluefrog

I used 1/2 lightweight drywall and beadboard for bathroom. We are in a double wide 24 by 60. On a slab with attached garage. Remodeled two bathrooms and masterbed room. See other posts for pictures. Right now remodeling kitchen..and it is 1970/early 80 model


----------



## llazyiest

sryan said:


> Hi guys , new to the forum. I am in a similar boat to most of these posts. just bought a 1600 ft doublewide in a park so its on a concrete slab with screw jack style supports. i absolutely hate the batten strip look and was considering adding new 1/2 " lightweight sheetrock to the existing 3/8 vinyl covered rock but im concerned with the added weight. so ive decided to try removing the strips and mudding/taping the joints then texture and paint. my question is do i have to try to prime or strip the surface of the vinyl in order for the mud to adhere? and also what medium would be best for taping the joints? fibreglass mesh or reg. paper tape?


No need to add more sheetrock.. the vinyl paper comes off pretty easily. Mine came off it large sheets and stips. I don't believe paint or mud will adhere to vinyl paper (or any walll paper) with a satisfactory result but you can give it a try in a spot you're planning to do anyway. Remove vinyl paper, tape, mud, prime and paint. To those who are doing sheetrock, especially in any area with water like bathrooms / laundry rooms etc, use blueboard which is water and mold resistant. To anyone who needs to try and match textured finish, put the mud on and use plastic bags all balled up and dab across the surface. I've used paper tape and mesh- I liked the self sticking mesh best.
Take my advice at your own risk. I just bumble along learning as i go.:whistling2:


----------



## llazyiest

Looks great!


----------

