Mobile Home options

Janet
by Janet
We bought a mobile home a couple of years ago and need to know some basics about how to redo cabinets and whether we can paint the walls.

  9 answers
  • We did a renovation on my mother-in-laws kitchen in her mobile home. We repainted everything including the entire inside of the house. Grated there were 6 - 8 of us working so it went pretty quick and spent time at the pool while waiting for things to dry in between coats.

  • Sarah Barganier Sarah Barganier on Aug 15, 2017

    You just need to determine what both are made of; most walls are a type of wall board or paneling.

  • David Pringle David Pringle on Aug 15, 2017

    If your walls are the complete panels with wallpaper covering them you may not be able to remove the paper. Painting over it may be your choice. Luckily, this kind of board usually does not have any seams, so you'll have uniform textures after you've painted it. Considering that many surfaces in mobile homes contain formaldehyde, it may be prudent to paint to seal the walls. Cabinets tend to be similar to a regular home and should be easily replaced

  • Terri Terri on Aug 15, 2017

    You can paint it all, just make sure you use a good bonding primer like Zissner for your cabinets, if the walls have any texture it will show through even after painting, some people will use faux painting techniques to disguise this, check out some options on Pinterest


  • Cynthia H Cynthia H on Aug 15, 2017

    It depends on the finish on the walls and the cabinets. We had one years ago, and removing the cabinets was a pain, because of the way they had attached them to the walls. It would have been easier to paint them, in retrospect. Painting wood look paneling isn't hard if you seal it first. Use good quality paint for any of your projects. I repainted the ceilings, too, using Kilz first.

  • DesertRose DesertRose on Aug 15, 2017

    See your local hardware store advice on the cabinets but I am sure they can be rough sanded, wiped, and painted. Take the doors and knobs off. You might update them with new knobs too. The walls should be painted with Kilz odor less prime paint first, then apply any latex paint you like to the walls. We have done this a number of times. Have fun! We added a wallpaper border at the top in the larger rooms.

    • Janet Janet on Aug 15, 2017

      The cabinets are not wood. They are paper covered to look like wood. The paneling has these trim boards every four feet or so

  • Bobbie Bobbie on Aug 15, 2017

    I live in a mobile home and yes I have painted every wall in the place, The cabinets I have are a vinyl coated wood and unless you want to remove all the vinyl I'd not do them. I know lots of people who have painted them but it takes extra measures and lots of work to make it last and look good!!

  • Sandra Allen Sandra Allen on Aug 15, 2017

    You can do both. Remember that mobile homes have what is called POC in the bathrooms and kitchens. This stands for plastic over corrugated. its' hard to get paint to stick without primer. Here is a pinterest link with tons of ideas.


    https://www.pinterest.com/mayce68/remodeling-mobile-home-on-a-budget/?lp=true

  • Janet Janet on Aug 15, 2017

    Thanks! It just seems like everything is cheaply made. The cabinets are some sort of pressed stuff with a paper coating that looks like wood. All of the faucet handles are falling off and I want to rip out the carpet! I am happy to see that there are so many ideas out there! Maybe a little at a time!