we found and bought our NM house Thursday

[NMDemDist2]

one acre, 3/2 mobile home with a 20x30 shop for less than we thought we'd have to spend. although it is a "single wide" it is the oversized 18' width instead of the standard 12'

the floor plan is wide open, I can watch TV and talk to hubby while in the kitchen which has an island. there is a good sized dining area with a built in hutch and the utility room has good storage and room for my freezer in addition to the washer dryer.

we are doing some major upgrades (with the $$ left in the budget since we got a great price) ASAP to wit:

replace the worn out carpet in 2 bedrooms, the living room, kitchen and the dining room with hardwood vinyl planking (the hall, guest room and main bath have already had new saltillo tile installed)

build a 10x30 foot deck out back

total remodel of the master bath

but it has everything we need, the location is perfect, the roof is lifetime metal, the AC unit is BRAND NEW, the shop is perfect for our coffee roasting facility, the septic is HUGE, the trees are already in and mature, the front porch is gorgeous, the land around us is owned by the neighbor who refuses to sell because they like their privacy and the land behind us has no easement so no one can use it LOL

the bad news kids is I was so tired I forgot my camera. no pics yet sorry but here's a comparable floorplan to our house. the 2nd &3rd bedroom layout is exactly like ours, the kitchen and diningroom are flipped and the master closet is mirrored across from the utility room, the master bath takes the entire 18' width on the east wall, but it will give you an idea but ours is 1360 SF instead of the 1330 shown in this floorplan (so it's 2 foot longer I guess)

http://www.mh-quote.com/FindHome/FloorPlan.asp?Model_ID=227&offsetSearchResults=30

for more info, here's another post on how we came to this site

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=245&topic_id=22072&mesg_id=22072

[Warpy]

1. Single wides are pure heaven when you have someone

come to stay in that bedroom down at the end. They have their own bathroom and you don't hear them at all at night. That's one part of trailer living I miss quite a bit.

One thing you might consider when you're renovating, though, is that everything in a trailer is scaled down. Make sure you take really good measurements of everything. Standard items will probably not fit, and I'm talking about appliances, sinks, tubs, etc.

I loved living in a trailer. A well thought out small space was much nicer to live in than a poorly thought out large space.

[NMDemDist2]

3. agreed! and the only appliances I have to replace are the washer dryer

the guy who's helping us with the remodel is the Fleetwood Manufacturer's warranty guy, so he knows mobiles thank goodness!

the freezer I have looks like it will fit perfectly (mine is a smaller upright) and the washer/dryers looked standard sized

the space is really well used EXCEPT the master bath which we are basically gonna gut 2/3 of it. I hate those "garden tubs" that are just a huge waste of space and in this one it's smack dab in the MIDDLE of the bathroom splitting the two vanities :argh:

we're ripping out the tub, shower enclosure and one vanity and building a walk in shower on one whole side. we'll leave the other vanity and john in place. i'll keep you posted as we talk with the contractor

[eleny]

2. Congratulations!

I've been checking the forum and this is the best news. You're out in the country, now. Can hardly wait to see pics of your place and hear your fix up war stories. This is going to be great fun for all of us!

[NMDemDist2]

4. argh! don't jinx me! there will be no "war stories" there will be only

gorgeous before and after pics

repeat after me "No war stories, just gorgeous"

:rofl:

[eleny]

5. Warm, I meant warm! It's too late for me to edit my spellink errer!

war = warm! How's that for fancy footwork? :silly:

[Stinky The Clown]

6. Dontcha hate those typos?

Way ta Go! Shannon ... I bet you're feeling pretty good right baout now.

And to have money left over after buying. That's a REAL bounus!

[NMDemDist2]

11. thanks H2S! and the "money left over" is going straight into upgrades

and remodels, but glad to have it so we can get the place ship shape right off the bat

[wildeyed]

7. Sounds cozy and nice.

What does the land look like? Can't wait to see the photos! Now we all need to keep fingers crossed that inspections go off without a hitch........

[NMDemDist2]

9. ROFL "cozy" = SMALL

but actually it's got 200 more square feet than I have now but with no garage storage might be an issue, but hell, that's why God created Rubbermaid sheds right??

either that or I go all feng shui kung fu on my stuff :rofl:

the land is sandy clay caliche with lots of limestone in it, I'm already researching gardening books for the area. and the old owners had horses so I'll get some good stuff to get my compost pile started hehe

here's the pic from Realtor.com

[wildeyed]

10. Actually, it's not all that small for only two adults.

Our first house was only a smidgen bigger, and it seemed like a mansion compared to the apartments we had had when we first moved in. Several kids and dogs later, and it no longer seemed so spacious, but I guess that is typical.

I noticed they sell sheds at Costco. We are out growing our current shed, and might need to add another, too.

Yeah, you have trees!

[NMDemDist2]

12. yup, it should be fine for us with a shed, although they have a leanto

now that will get us started

and the trees are nice, there is a group of them right on the road that shields our front porch from view too

[NMDemDist2]

8. here's the only pic I've got off Realtor.com

[I_Make_Mistakes]

13. I guess the universe rewarded you for all your hard work and all

your good will towards those of us in DIY! You must really be on cloud nine, got something that fit your desires (not, need, but, exceeded those), with the extra $ to spend on making it yours!

I can't wait to see what you do with the bathroom, what we will we all do for the next 1 month +.

Congrats on the new abode. My aunt lives in upstate NY, on Keuka Lake (very rural with no ground lights), the night view of the sky is the most awesome thing that I have ever seen! You could actually see satellites moving across the sky. They have a very small dock, and I would go out every night before I went to bed to chill, the night sky is just as relaxing as the sound of ocean waves rushing to the beach!

I am so envious of you, yet I also know that you deserve such a great place that will provide such great peace!

[NMDemDist2]

14. thanks so much for you kind words! and we are hoping to build a

walk in shower in there including a glass block wall

we'll see if our budget can stretch that far :bounce:

[wildeyed]

15. Oh, I researched glass brick walls for my last project.

I got the 411 on that project. Let me know if you want the details.

[NMDemDist2]

16. yes please! we are putting in a walk in shower for sure and the blocks

would add so much light

if you could that would be awesome! :yourock:

[wildeyed]

17. It is not that hard.

The main issue is, the blocks are heavy. You will have to double or triple the joists under the wall to support the weight of the glass block. You will also need to place the wall next to an existing stud in the adjacent wall, or add one to anchor to.

After that, it is relatively easy to build the wall. Will you be doing it yourself or hiring a builder?

The block comes in many different styles and opacities, so don't limit yourself to what they have at Home Depot. Go to a specialty tile store, you will probably need to go, anyway, to pick out tile for the bathroom. They should have a selection of glass brick, as well.

I think the glass brick is an excellent idea for your bathroom. We were considering it for the same reason, adds light, but because our shower area is so small and contained already, I didn't think it was worth the effort. But you will have a bigger area to work with, and all that glorious desert sunshine, too!

[NMDemDist2]

18. will my mobile home handle the weight ya think? that could be tricky

I'll have a builder to move the plumbing and do the demo at least so I'll ask him, he's supposed to be a mobile home guru around there.

he's gonna call tomorrow but that's the last job he's doing (after floors and decks) so we'll have some time to design the area

[wildeyed]

19. I dunno.

Maybe you can build a pier under the home to support the weight?

If the glass block won't work, a frameless enclosure probably would. http://www.bathroom-shower.com/products/24

It is lighter, and lets in the light. I bet they have an opaque version if you wanted more privacy.

[politicat]

20. No on the weight.

The subflooring can't handle it. We looked into glass block for the old, burned house. The platforms they're built on can't handle that much weight in one area.

Is it on a foundation or is it still on piers? If it's on a foundation, it can handle most anything. But piers are basically heavy duty cinderblocks.

Having cleaned up the mess when a friend's 800 pound (not including water) aquarium went through the floor of her site-built house...Trust me. There are some things that are nice to look at, but not worth the ultimate cost.

[NMDemDist2]

21. it's on ridiculously overengineered piers

the old owner is a concrete wizard and although it's not a "certified" foundation, it's attached to the max. he did a cinder block front porch with poured concrete steps that you wouldn't believe!

IIRC his wife said they poured three long concrete pads and attached it

[politicat]

22. Still, check the subfloor and have it really evaluated before you put in

glass block.

800 pounds of aquarium, 500 gallons of water, $2500 in fish and coral.... and the insurance guy laughing his ass off? Priceless. Literally. She never saw a dime and had to have her floors re-built.

Glass blocks run 6.4 pounds (according to a standards google) and you'll need about 300 of them, plus mortar.

[NMDemDist2]

23. for sure! but not sure we need 300 for a 5' long stem wall

the rest of the enclosure will be tile on backerboard but it probably won't work with a total wall

hopefully we can at least top the stem wall with a couple rows to let in some light, but that will depend on what the contractor says and if he can get it over a section of the frame

we have plenty of time to see what we can afford and what the house can handle before we dig into this project

[eleny]

24. Wondering...

I was wonderng if the shower enclosure was going to be large enough so that the glass block wouldn't get hit with a lot of water and soap splashings. If not, then maybe that glass shower enclosure posted by wildeyed could be a practical and beautiful alternative. Seems like it would be easier to keep clean, too, with a squeegy. But I can see how glass block provides privacy and light, though.

[NMDemDist2]

25. i'm researching acrylic blocks now too, but am liking the idea of a

stem wall so down the road I could install cabinets or whatever on the bathroom side. Acrylic will be more difficult to maintain but the house has a water softener installed so that will help and the good news is that acrylic weights 3/4 of a pound each instead of 6+ pounds each

[eleny]

26. Don't you just love alternatives

And the net makes them so easy to ferret out.

[NMDemDist2]

27. we may go with a 4' stem wall and then top it with the blocks

the best of both worlds eh?