Wayne Boatwright wrote:
On Tue 07 Oct 2008 04:49:42p, aemeijers told us...

gecko wrote:
I have a double-wide trailer in Delaware and need to replace all my
rugs due to an errant dog who has now passed.

I am thinking of trying hardwood flooring or laminates, but I have to
wonder if I can do that. I am thinking that my sub-flooring might not
handle hardwood flooring. Laminates might be possible since my
understanding is that they can be installed as 'floating'. I am not
sure I really care for laminates however.

I guess what I am looking for here is any advice pertinent to my
concerns - even 'don't do it'.

Thanks

-GECKO
How dry is it under that trailer? Most trailers I have seen aren't real
solid on the bottom, and hardwood does not cope with moisture well. Not
to mention the problems with the floors getting taller on all the doors.
I'd go with a good grade of textured vinyl and area rugs, myself.

--
aem sends...


Again, age, manufacturer, and method of installation of the double wide
unit are key to its construction and the various characteristics that some
folks are criticizing/evaluating without knowing all the details.

Modern manufactured homes, in this case a double-wide, often exceed the
specs used for stick built homes. They go through rigorous inspections,
are well insulated, have sturdy subflooring, and are extremely well sealed
from the underside.

Unless the OP states otherwise, I rather doubt that this qualifies as a
"trailer".

Manufactured homes, whether they are installed above grade or "ground set"
at grade, have no more moisture underneath them than a stick built home
with a crawlspace.

I think we need to hear more from the OP to accurately make any kind of
recommendation.

OP did state otherwise- he called it a 'double-wide trailer'.

What you are describing is, around here, called a 'modular' home. I
never hear the term double-wide applied to those. Basic dividing line
seems to be, is the house designed for use in a 'manufactured home
community', or as a alternative to a stick-built house?

I'm old fashioned- if it has metal floor joists, it is a trailer,
AFAIAC. Yes, most of them are a lot better than they used to be. But by
virtue of the price point they have to make, they all compromise
somewhere. Flip side of that is, few stick-built houses are as good as
they used to be, unless you have the money and knowledge to make the
builder build it properly.

And as to the moisture underneath- unless they are on a real foundation
with proper drainage, yes, they are prone to being damp underneath.
Skirting is decorative, if it only goes down to ground level. Most crawl
spaces I have seen are damp, too, since almost nobody bothers to address
drainage in those either. I'm lucky- on this half-ass addition I am
sitting in as I type this, at least they did the crawl right- deep and
dry, with correct grading on the outside. More like a 3 1/2 foot tall
basement with a dirt floor. Sure wish they would have spent the extra
few thousand to make a real basement attached to the original basement,
though.

--
aem sends...