Living in a Mobile Home

Question

I live in a Mobile Home. I've never seen any remodeling ideas for a mobile home. Would like to see more. We're trying to figure out what to do with our kitchen for more storage and space.

Blythe Brownlow · Answer

I think these people did a great job--hope this helps! Also, head over to my blog (29tuesdaysdesign.blogspot.com)--I have lots of tips to increase storage in a small space! http://www.hometalk.com/diy/outdoor/campers-rv-s/makeover-of-a-mobile-home-photo-heavy-post-1081778

Vintage Restorations.....Formerly Closet Furniture · Answer

Just remember you have an open pallette because there a usually no supporting walls on the inside so you can whatever you want. I overhauled the front room of my M.I.L.'s house with 3/4' T & G beaded Pine and a new front door. Btw you will find the interior walls are usually 24' on center unless it's a busy wall (windows, doors, openings, etc.) and exterior 16' on center

Judy · Answer

Did see a site couple weeks ago, course now can't think where I was looking. Google vintage trailers, large and small. What people are doing with the small vintage could be adapted to the larger mobile homes/trailers.

Wamsher Construction · Answer

THERE ARE MID WALLS THAT ARE STRUCTURAL IN MOBILE/MODULAR HOMES. Typically they are the 1/2 wall the divides the kitchen from family room area on the A side!!!!they have a 5,000 pound load pier pad for most double wides directly under the wall.

Confessions Of A Junkaholic · Answer

Hi @@Alice I love these kinds of challenges. With no pictures of what you currently have I'll just throw out a few things I would do - 
Wire baskets on top of your fridge to hold items you don't use often. Hang Velcro or temporary sticky strips on back of items inside cabinets. 
You can use large magnet strips on your backsplash to hold knives, also you can also use same for spice jars. You can do yourself by getting small jars (at Walmart or Dollar Store, Goodwill) putting spices in them and they will adhere to magnet strip. ou can attach small metal baskets to the front or side of your fridge for napkins or light items. 
A shoe holder that you hang on back of a door (has clear pockets on it from top to bottom) You can use this on inside of closet door and instead of putting shoes in pockets put in cleaning supplies. This frees up a cabinet that holds lots of different items. BTY just vinegar and water works wonders so you don't have to buy lots of different cleaners. 
At your kitchen table or eating area replace chairs on one side with bench that opens so you can store extra table linen or items you don't use often.(You can find these at yard or thrift stores and paint them to match décor).
 If you can put a shelf over stove this would be great to hold cooking utensils. You can buy inexpensive risers at Walmart. These wire shelves double your space in cabinets by giving you an extra self that you can remove if necessary. 
Best advice I can give is to organize. If you haven't used something for years, perhaps it's time to rethink if you need it or not. You can pass your unused items on to family members or donate them.
Hope this helps

Janet · Answer

I also live in a mobile home doublewide and want to remodel my kitchen and make it larger but can find hardly anything to help me.

Peachie6560 · Answer

I, too, live in a mobile home....from the 70's. I get very discouraged with these living conditions. We have painted the wood paneling to brighten it up and added a living room on to the trailer. I want to tackle the kitchen cabinets which are particle board (currently painted blue). But have been afraid to take the paint off. Suffering from a herniated disk at the moment so not much ability to paint. I wish you luck. And will watch for some good hints.

Jill · Answer

I too remodeled my mobile home. It's been an on going project now for nine years with me doing all the work. I have redone the floors, gutted and redid one bathroom and decorated the inside. I have replaced drywalls and moved walls. I still have my kitchen, laundry room and master bath to do, but in time....Just remember if you are going to do any major remodeling, that your home is leveled first or all that work could suffer.

Vintage Restorations.....Formerly Closet Furniture · Answer

I stand corrected Wamsher Construction....So it's like a bulkhead on a boat? Does it Retain Floor to Ceiling integrity at a mounting point? Does it make a difference if the Mobile home is on a standard cement foundation? That's just for Mobile not for Modular?

Wamsher Construction · Answer

well if you are on a foundation it shouldn't matter. Its a function of picking up the truss span in most double-wides. It typically gets a 5,000 or 5K pier. The ridge of the home is carrying a tremendous amount of square footage at that point. This isn't always the case but 9 out of 10 times in my experience. If you have any concerns you can shoot me a pic or a sketch of the original floor plan and i can tell you more.

Mobile and Manufactured Home Living · Answer

Hello! You are absolutely right, there's not enough online resources for mobile and manufactured homes. I also live in a mobile home ('78 single wide) and when we bought it a couple of years ago I couldn't find hardly anything to help get me started on the remodel so I started my own site. I've never advertised it but it gets quite a few visitors so hopefully it's filling the void a bit. I think most people find it by searching on Google or through Pinterest. There's over 225 posts and everyone of them are about mobile or manufactured homes, mostly remodels and makeovers :) I hope you can check it out and find some inspiration. I usually wouldn't spam the comments like this but I felt I had exactly what you're looking for so I hope you don't mind. I'm not for sure what the rules are on posting links so if it doesn't show up please Google 'Mobile Home Living' or aybe you can click on my avatar and it will show you the address. The link is http://mobilehomeliving.org. Oh, and by the way, I am always looking for more homes to share so please consider it :) Thanks and sorry to just jump in like this.

Alice · Answer

Thanks for the info, I think that might be just what I was looking for. I'll take a looky see.

Alice · Answer

Thank you so much for suggesting that link!!!! I've just been browsing through it and there are some wonderful ideas!!! I have a couple friends that also live in mobile homes that I plan on giving them the link too. thanks again!!

Mobile and Manufactured Home Living · Answer

Hi Janet! Thank you so much for letting me know about the photos. I'm still learning about running a website and there's a lot more to it than I realized. One little error can make 10000 other things go wrong. I'll look into it immediately :) 
It just so happens my husband is a master plumber so I have a little knowledge about plumbing and in my humblest of opinions I think that unless your pipes or connections are leaking, you should be fine unless you just want to get it all out of the way at one time. I say this for a couple of reasons. First, most manufactured homes has plumbing that runs under the home, parallel to the heating ducts so the only areas where it would be a big hindrance to replace would be the bathtubs and showers. The waste and water lines usually go straight down through the floor at all your faucets and toilets so it can be easily replaced without worrying about walls. Secondly, the material used for the pipe was not bad in 1989 so it should last you a good time (in other words, it wasn't copper). These days most everyone uses PEX (it's flexible and has very tight connections) so running water lines isn't as big a hassle as it used to be. I would recommend that you make sure there are shut off valves put on each water outlet or at the very least make sure your main shut off valve is easily accessible and working properly (it should be under the home, near your water hose bib). One aspect you will want to check into is where your ventilation stack is (look at your roof for a pipe, it's probably around your master bath/laundry area). Replacing that would require getting into a wall. However, its just for ventilation so it shouldn't need replaced. Usually just re-sealing around the roof is the most that will ever need done with it. 
Plumbing is one of those things where a lot of do-it-yourselfers go wrong. There's a lot more to it than what most people think and unless you can get someone in there that knows the proper grades and ventilations needed (there's wet and dry vents and they must be placed at the right places), you could end up with a mess. I suppose what I'm trying to say is that the old motto applies: if it ain't broke, don't fix it..lol 
I wish you the best and if you have any more questions please feel free to contact me. I'll do my best to help!

Jill · Answer

@Alice, it sounds wonderful, I would love to see your pictures. I wish that I had just textured and painted it now, as the wallpaper is starting to lift on the seams a bit. But, renting a machine to do that wasn't in my budget and the wallpaper we used was clearance and came out to less than $40 including the tool and paste . We reused the tub and enclosure, the toilet, and the medicine cabinet. I replaced the flooring, vanity, sink counter combo, some pipes, faucet, towel bars and other accessories.

Dianna Wood · Answer

We just spent two months renovating a 520 square 1964 mobile home. http://thewoodssecretgarden.blogspot.com/search/label/mobile%20home%20living

Dianna Wood · Answer

You can also try; http://mobilehomeliving.org/

Janet · Answer

great website thanks!

Rick Hale · Answer

I'm not sure of your needs (I'm single) but as you know, most of these single wides are of the 2 bedroom variety. I recently purchased a 12x65… mid 70's. You know the drill… small kitchen, small living room. Down the hall a small bedroom, then a bathroom, a larger bedroom in the rear. I knocked out the partition / hall walls from the 1st bedroom. Then moved the Entry door over and expanded the kitchen area. By sacrificing the smaller bedroom I've essentially doubled the size of the Kitchen and living room into a all open living area, separated by a new peninsula bar counter. I have now doubled the Kitchen Cabs and counter space and have a full appliance package… side by side refer, D/W, Compactor, Micro/hood over the range.. the works. Still room for a dining area without feeling cramped. The living areas now feel much larger for a home this size.. Face it, we really spend little time in a bathroom. We don't do much in the bedroom.. The kitchen/living room areas are where we spend our time, where we live and entertain our guests. If you are single or an empty nest couple… dump that 1st bedroom, open up your living area. Also… many people suggest that you keep consistent paint colors throughout. I disagree. Be creative. Between the wall and trim colors, I have 6 different colors running throughout my Entry/Kitchen/Living Room, including rich and warm spice colors. Instead of feeling compelled to satisfy yourself with lighter colors to enlarge your small space, use creative lighting to accent color. I have 4 windows within this area, they are all 'treated' differently… trim/blind colors. This helps create the illusion of different spaces within one space. Just because we live in a box… it doesn't mean we need to feel like it. Finally… another suggestion. If you live in a mobile, you probably live in a mobile home park. If you open your window blinds you are probably faced with another MH 20 feet away. There are hundreds of different 'Peel and Stick' window treatments available to put on your window glass. From the simple obscure to rich Stained Glass… Open your blinds, enjoy the light… forget you are living within a few feet of your neighbor.

Alice · Answer

Rick, thank you so much for you info. Very good suggestions. Our bedrooms are at either end of the trailer and we have 2 full bath at either end of the trailer. We have an island with a stove in it and we thinking of removing the island and reconfiguring the kitchen without the island. And I agree with you, use different colors in different rooms, that's what we're doing. And I really like the peel and stick idea cause we have free roaming chickens in our park and 3 dogs and they go crazy when they see the chickens but I hate pulling the blinds cause it gets so dark and dreary in here. Many good idea, thanks much.

Wamsher Construction · Answer

Just a little FYI for all of you DIYers. The majority of mobile homes with paneling on them (pre Sheetrock era). Utilize the paneling as part of the structural assembly. It's important to remember that what may seem a relatively flimsy piece of paneling is nothing of the sort. I can assure you there is no 'extra' or unecessary parts or pieces in a mobile home. The walls were built and  tested with HUD utilizing the paneling as a MAJOR part of the assembly. If the panels are glued this is most certainly not cosmetic paneling by any means. Does this mean your home is going to collapse if you remove some paneling? Not necessarily, but 40 years of service an extra roof (or two) a doorway and/orb window or two , and pretty soon you have considerably changed the structure you reside in. If you live in a high wind exposure or siesmic area or if you ever plan on transporting the home you are going to want to reconsider removing any part of the home without considering the structural aspects. I always tell clients to leave paneling intact when possible and consider it structural IT IS!

Alice · Answer

Thanks for the info, I didn't realize that. We plan on painting ours not removing them, thanks goodness. Again, thanks for the info.

Rita Garcia · Answer

We removed this island that separates our kitchen from living room. It really opened up our living room and kitchen area, made our 1962 single wide Mobile Home look nice a bright and big..

MaryStLouis · Answer

We have a mobile home near a lake in the Ozarks. It's a double-wide and I have learned to embrace its many idiosyncrasies. We are fortunate in that our kitchen is large but it's still a compromise. I have recently finished refinishing all the cabinets and when we bought a new dishwasher we realized that our base cabinets are only 22' deep, meaning that the dishwasher sticks out a few inches, enough to reveal some of its metal frame...definitely not the look we were going for.
Is there room to add onto your island? I read that your island is bordered by other items so it may not be possible. My husband retrofitted ours to be a foot longer and built a spice rack into one side of it. This freed up an entire upper cabinet by the stove for much-needed storage. I've attached a photo so you can see what I mean. This was taken prior to refinishing the cabinets.

Ronnie · Answer

I also have a mobile home. You might like, mobilehomeliving.com or myheartsongmobilehome Good Luck

Les and Gina · Answer

Go to https://www.facebook.com/Meadow-Park-Trailer-Court-150029881833543/ you will get LOTS of ideas Les is a visionary at remodels

Nancy · Answer

Learn to adapt!  We live on a floating home, not a house boat, and storage is always a problem.

Pat · Answer

We have a mobile home we live in in the winter.   In our park people are always redoing things because the units are old.   It would be fun to see ideas.   Mostly we compare notes with the neighbors.

Diana Deiley · Answer

Me too, I live in a retirement community of 400 manufactured homes. Everyone remodels to fit their needs at one point or another. For some, it's the kitchen, then the bathrooms, me....it's the closets. I miss those walk-ins. So I hung double poles in two closets and added shelves in another converting it into a linen closet. Another is used for coats and the last is used for brooms, etc. Try painting ceilings satin white and keep wall colors on the lighter side. I have white mini blinds and hung white sheers 4' from the ceiling. Every room looks bright and roomy. Have fun with what you do. It's yours, so make it you! And don't forget to shop your local thrift stores and Habitat for great bargains in lighting, sinks, vanities, etc. Best of luck.

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