Welcome and thanks for reading our Fall newsletter.
In this issue you will find:
* Building a solar heater
* More solar heating tips
* Installing a tub or shower drain
* A story from 'The Life of a Mobile Home Repair Man'
* The perfect Christmas gift!
* Picture of the month
* Tip of the month
BUILDING A SOLAR HEATER
by Mark Bower
Long before the start of the cold season, Jack Sage (JES) from Montana and I listened to news reports of how heating costs this coming winter would be sky high. Paying last winter's heat bill was tough enough, so knowing we'd have even higher heat bills this winter was, to say the least, scary. We both agreed to do something about it.
So throughout the summer Jack and I explored various options of creating 'cheap heat.' The most sensible solution we found was to heat the air in our home using a solar heating panel. Yep, we decided to let the sun help heat our home.
We spent countless hours reading and searching the internet for information on building a solar heating panel. Solar power was big in the 70's and early 80's, so you'd think finding good information would be easy. Well, it wasn't. We found a lot of information, but some of the it contained errors, some information was incomplete, and others required parts which were either hard to find, no longer available or expensive. So we put our heads together, tried this, tried that, and finally came up with a workable solar heating panel that doesn't cost a lot to build. To see our version of the solar heating panel, click here.
MORE SOLAR HEATING TIPS!
by Mark Bower
Whether or not you decide to build a solar heating panel, here's some more tips to help you let the sun reduce your heating bill this winter.
1) Let the sun shine in your south, east and west windows. When the sun passes, close the curtains to keep the heat in.
2) Use curtains instead of mini blinds over your windows. Curtains do a much better job of holding in the heat and keeping out the cold.
3) Same applies to your skylights. Let the sun in during the day, and close them off during the evenings to prevent heat from escaping.
4) This last tip we are still testing, but will mention it anyway. That is to replace sections of skirting on the south side with glass. This will allow the sun to radiate heat to underneath the home and perhaps help the floors from becoming as cold. But like I mentioned, we are testing this and will report more about it later.
INSTALLING A TUB OR SHOWER DRAIN.
Fixing a leaky shower drain or installing a new tub? Here's the scoop on hooking up a new drain.
Click here!
A STORY FROM 'THE LIFE OF A MOBILE HOME REPAIR MAN'
 by Mark Bower
I offer a 24-hour emergency repair service as part of my business. Most of the time when I receive a weekend or after-hours emergency call, it's normally a customer with a water leak or frozen pipes.
The emergencies I dread the most are the calls that come in very late at night. When someone calls then, its normally because they have a serious water leak and don't know how to shut the water off. But 9 out of 10 times, I can tell those late-night callers on the phone how to shut off the water. If they succeed then I go back to sleep and visit them the next day.
Last spring I got such an emergency call. As Murhpy's Law would have it, it couldn't have come at a worse time.
That evening a friend and I had decided to travel 200 miles away to pick up an old parts car we bought. We arrived at about 8pm and loaded the car. The trip home, however, did not go well. We figured on being home shortly after midnight. We had driven about 50 miles towards home and got a flat tire. Put on the spare tire, only to drive 10 more miles and have it blow. Of course we were in an area in which cell phone's don't get a signal. So we walk to a farmer's house for help.
By midnight we are once again on our way. We drive about another 20 miles and run into thick fog. We ended up driving the rest of the way home going 20-25 mph. After unloading the car, I arrived at my front door around 4:30 am -- very dog tired. Too bed I crashed.
Then after a whopping 1.5 hours of sleep, I get a frantic 6:00 am call from one of my elderly customers. Water was spurting out of their water heater, and they weren't able to crawl underneath their home to shut if off. They had called twice, as I was so tired I didn't hear the phone ring the first time. I'm thinking, "Why Me?"
Yep, I drug myself across town and shut their water off. Then returned home, got some sleep, and returned later to replace the water heater. Later that day my friend called telling me how hard it was to be to work by 8am. I said, "Well, at least you weren't out doing emergency calls at 6am!"
Christmas Gift Idea!
THE MANUAL FOR MANUFACTURED/MOBILE HOME REPAIR AND UPGRADE
Christmas Special - $29.95 (regular $34.95)
The perfect Christmas gift for do-it-yourselfers working on their mobile home! This 125 page book is written by us at mobilehomerepair.com, the professionals who are out in the field every day repairing manufactured homes. The book shows actual pictures from projects we were hired to do.
Designed for homeowners as well as contractors, "The manual for manufactured/mobile home repair and upgrade" is packed full of useful repair techniques. But it's more than just doing repairs, it's also about upgrading and improving a manufactured home. For instance, not only will you learn how to stop a metal roof from leaking, you'll also discover an inexpensive way to replace it. Want to relevel your own home? This manual gives you step by step instructions. Need to replace your waterlines? Then you can't miss the information found here.
Even if you don't do your own repairs, this manual will give you invaluable knowledge of how a repair should be performed so when you do seek a contractor, you know the right questions to ask. Written by us, this manual should be required reading for every owner of a manufactured home.
Table of Contents
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PICTURE OF THE MONTH
 As we talk about alternative energy, it just seems fitting to include a picture of a wind farm located in South Dakota. The wind farm was just built this past year and has been running since about October of 2003.
TIP OF THE MONTH
Sealing an Addition
Unless both your home and addition are on frostline footings, they probably shift independently. If you're having trouble keeping the gap sealed where the addition meets the home, you'll enjoy this tip.
1. Screw a 1x6 board (A) to the home.
2. Rip the 1x4 board (B) so its only 3.25" wide. The ripped edge should be a 10-15 degree bevel (E).
3. Predrill screw holes (C) through the width of board B.
4. Apply weatherstripping (D) on the inside edge of board B.
5. Butt board B up against board A. The weatherstripping (D) should be against the addition, and the beveled edge butted so you don't notice the bevel (E).
6. Drive 4" screws (C) through the predrilled holes in board B into board A. As you tighten the screws, the bevel (E) will pull board B towards the addition, compressing the weatherstripping (D).
7. Caulk the butt (E) and along all edges of board A.
This design allows your addition and home to shift independently, yet the gap between the home and addition stay sealed because board B is attached to board A and not the addition.
If you have a picture or repair tip to share, please e-mail it to us.
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