Double Wide Creation

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kinyocase
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Aug 21, 2013 5:42 pm

Hello folks, my wife and I have been living in a 1976 single wide for a few years now while looking for something bigger. Nothing has come up in our price range except a “decent” 1984 Kit single wide. The price on the Kit was unbeatable at a whopping moving fee. I did the take down and am doing the setup myself so we saved crazy money on that part. I've had crazy ideas for quite a while to bridge two single wides together creating a double wide, and it looks as if that is my developing plans. I fully understand that the concept of doing this is almost illogical due to the fluctuations I will see between the two mobiles during frost heave, but it's a challenge I am willing to take on. During this entire process I am going to be doing a few threads much like JeffInFL is doing with his progress.

My first thread that you see here will be the general build thread from setup to merging of the two homes. My plans are to create breezeways between the two mobiles with well insulated one foot walls. I've already got the mobile placed with a one foot gap between the two of them. I'm in the process now of leveling the 84, and will follow this with a re-level of the 76. Following the leveling process I will begin cutting the walls and framing in for the breezeways. This of course will all come in time, so for now how about a few previews of what the 84 looks like in the condition I got it.
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The black wall that you see there is a custom build "fold out" by the guy that we got the mobile from. He had a fully built addition on top of this that I had to take down in order to move the home. Unfortunately most of it was rotted and the floor will need replaced.
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This was a bedroom for one of his kids, but will be renovated to become a reading nook/dining room along with the adjacent bathroom as seen below.
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As you can see this is the secondary bathroom that will be merged with the above image to create a large dining/get together area.
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The above image is looking through what will be the living space into the entry way that goes into the soon to be dining area.
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Making our way further back into the house this is a view from the living area going into the old kitchen which will be torn out and converted into a rather spacious bedroom for our daughter. You can see just on the right edge of the image is an open door, this door leads into the master bedroom/bathroom as seen below.
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So this is looking into the master bedroom from the hallway that you saw in the previous image. In this master taking a left and another left gets you into a quite spacious walk in closet that I didn't get pictures of. Further into this room you see the door into the master bath that follows.
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The above is the left hand side of the master bath which holds this large tub. This will be taken out as just stepping into it I can feel the floor of the tub sink in pretty far.
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The above image is looking from inside that tub toward the door of the bathroom. You can see there is a rather tiny walk in shower that holds a shower head just at eye level. If I keep this I will be raising everything up another foot or so to get it above my head, and will be going ceiling high with the shower walls.

Well there you have it with my little project that will undoubtedly take me at least a year to get any form of function out of the house. I really look forward to sharing all of my progress with the folks on this forum, and am more than willing to field any questions you may have.
kinyocase
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Aug 21, 2013 5:42 pm

Just thought I'd give a quick view of the belly. The belly wrap was ripped straight in half from front to back for what was probably a few years. Fortunately every single joist looks to be in fantastic shape and will be good for building on. Most of the plumbing will be coming out and free up a lot of space for re-insulating under there.

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opinion free
Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2012 3:24 pm

Just want to wish you and your family, the 'Best of Luck' and 'Patience', during this ambitious and comprehensive project. I really like that you have a vision in mind, and your allowing yourself a year to realize this, for your family. Some of your ideas may sound a little challenging but in the end, hopefully, will be visionary.
Please try to keep your family updated and involved. I find this makes the difficult times, that always occur during remodeling, easier for everyone. Looking forward to reading and seeing pictures of your new family home.
Much luck and love.
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Greg
Moderator
Posts: 5696
Joined: Wed Feb 28, 2007 8:01 pm
Location: Weedsport, NY

Hi & welcome. It's doable It will take some engineering. Now for the big question, before you go much farther has the code/building officer been told of your plan? He is one person that you want to work with since he has the power to shut you down. Some are very easy to work with, others....

As you said frost heave will be an issue. Below frostline footers are a must. Now if you are really clever, you could use I beams across the width of the 2 homes so BOTH homes are supported by the beam. that may both tie the two together and help support them equally.

The other issue will be the roof. You should think about doing a roof over with one large roof.

Greg
"If I can't fix it, I can screw it up so bad no one else can either."
kinyocase
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Aug 21, 2013 5:42 pm

All things have been cleared with the building office. We are already in search of another frame to cut the I beams to fasten under both homes. A full roof over is in the plans to cover both singles as one. The aluminum siding from the 76 will be coming off next spring to be replaced with smart siding that will wrap around both houses. The roof over is going to span an extra foot around the entire house to create eaves with vented soffit.

For money reasons at this point in the year the piers are simply above ground, but come next spring when all this work really gets serious I will be doing below frost line pier foundations. I am a ranch hand so my work slows in the fall/winter months and goes crazy come spring summer months so you will see a large amount of my work being done around that time.

Thanks for checking in and giving me your comments folks, I really look forward to sharing this experience with the lot of you.

John
ponch37300
Posts: 622
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2008 6:12 pm
Location: wisconsin

Sounds like an ambitious project!

So if I understand right you are placing the homes parallel with roughly a foot gap in between them and then connecting them in a couple spots? Or am I picturing this wrong?
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Greg S
Posts: 541
Joined: Wed Jun 18, 2008 10:13 am
Location: Kingston Ontario Canada

Wow major project.
The condition of that home is really bad considering the age. You may find that in the end a purpose built stick frame addition will have been less expensive and easier to do than a total reno on a beat up single wide. The only plus to a reno is that you can possibly occupy parts of it as the reno progresses. The plus to a new build is not having to deal with the issues of a reno. New build is always easier than reno work.
An individual must enforce his own meaning in life and rise above the perceived conformity of the masses. (Anton LaVey)
kinyocase
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Aug 21, 2013 5:42 pm

Ponch - you are correct that I have the two homes 1 foot apart and will be building "hallways" between them. I was using the term breezeways which is incorrect of course. Each connecting hallway will be framed in, insulated, covered housewrapped and sided. The roof over each hall will be peaked and tin covered.

Greg S - While the home looks to be in rough shape there is no water damage anywhere to be found outside of those additions I had to take down. The exterior wall studs are in very good shape, the roof tin is obviously shot as it was torn off during a ferocious wind storm.

I would love to do a full new build, but I cannot afford that kind of material up front. The reno is the only way we can do it to allow us to hit one area at a time. We will be starting with the master and working our way toward the dining at the other end of the house.
opinion free
Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2012 3:24 pm

Was thinking about your project and had a question. These small connection 'breezeways' are really going to need to be very strong and will take lots of structural stress. My take on your plan is you will have one trailer serve as the 'public or living' side and the other trailer as the 'private or sleeping' side and the connection between the two trailers will be this mini 1 foot breezeway structure.
Have you considered widening the 1 foot breezeway into something like a 10 foot deck between the 2 trailers and have the deck as the point of connection between the 2 trailers instead of the 1 foot breezeway?
My concerns revolve around this 1 foot connection between the 2 structures. That just sounds like it is going to be a future nightmare of problems. By widening it out, you will have greater structural stability with 2 independent structures connected by a deck rather than trying to reinforce the 2 trailers into one. I am by no means an engineer and mostly likely am thinking how nice an outdoor family room could be had on this 10 foot deck between the 2 trailers.
Please take no offense, just taking your idea and thinking about how I would implement it on my trailer.
Good Luck.
Dave
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JeffInFL
Posts: 171
Joined: Wed Apr 24, 2013 6:52 am

Sounds like quite a project! I look forward to following your progress.
Norm Frechette
Posts: 193
Joined: Fri Aug 05, 2011 7:34 am
Location: Norwich, CT

i dont know how the "breezeway" is going to be built between 2 floating/settling buildings that are 1 foot apart but if they are a hard attachment it may be a too stiff of a connection that may move with one building but not the other and crack away from the one building that doesnt move.

another thing to think about is that you will probably never get the floors of 2 buildings at 1 level.

i think the idea of a deck between the 2 buildings as described above makes more sense. it just may eliminate bigger problems in the future
kinyocase
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Aug 21, 2013 5:42 pm

I had already thought about the deck between, but we are planning to put our next child in the bedroom we will be building into the secondary single. That bedroom will have a temporary doorway into the master to allow us to hear the new little one crying. (Keep in mind this little one isn't created yet. This is all planning ahead.) So while the Deck is a great idea, it would separate that child beyond both my personal comfort and legal limits. Each half of the house will be living and private quarters.

I take no offense to any tips or ideas that anybody may have. I understand that the stresses on the connecting halls will be a nightmare to deal with, but I am going to have to get creative and make it work. I think once next summer hits and I have both mobile resting happily on all the required below frost line footings I should be in pretty good shape.

Thanks again for all the comments, my days got limited with work on pulling engines out of a couple trucks. Tomorrow we are heading in to buy some materials for working on the home.
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Greg
Moderator
Posts: 5696
Joined: Wed Feb 28, 2007 8:01 pm
Location: Weedsport, NY

Bear in mind the a single wide home can be converted into one LARGE room. I think that if it were me I would attach the two homes together, totally gut the second half and lay it out so it will matchs up and works with the first half.

Greg
"If I can't fix it, I can screw it up so bad no one else can either."
ponch37300
Posts: 622
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2008 6:12 pm
Location: wisconsin

What is the purpose of the 1' gap? If you are going to do a roof over why not just slide them tight together and make a double wide? Make some piers to go below frost line for them both. Then do your roof over. Another thing that caught my mind today was working on the siding and what not in that 1' gap. Just seems like a pain to me. I believe you said you were planning on redoing all siding next year, you would save a lot of money not having to do the two long walls with siding. Also with some creativity you should be able to structurally tie the two together to give some more support from separating. I would think it would save you some money overall and give better structural support.

The other thing that will have to be worked out is the main electrical. Getting the two main panels hooked up to main disconnects.
kinyocase
Posts: 27
Joined: Wed Aug 21, 2013 5:42 pm

Greg - The 84 single already matches up with the 76 the way that we want it to. The rooms are spaced where we need them the only one that has to be changed is where the current kitchen is in the 84 will be gutted and built into a bedroom, and the living area will stay a living area connected with the current area.

ponch - I had planned on framing 2x4" walls on either home with strategically placed 2x6" horizontal framing members to join the two, but I can't figure out how to move them home over close enough to butt them together. Believe me I have been trying to figure it out without have a mobile home company come do it. They want to charge 500 just to hook up to the mobile.

The two interior sides weren't going to be sided they were going to be osb sheathed and house wrapped then the two ends would be sided over so you can't see down the 1' gap. However if anyone has any ideas on how to shimmy the mobiles closer I'm all ears.
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