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Thread ID: 59003	2005-06-18 22:36:00	Heat Pumps	rny (6943)	PC World Chat

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
365084	2005-07-10 00:42:00	Why would you live in a mobile home,if you have no intention of being mobile?.Just for the slow ones amongst us.	Cicero (40)
365085	2005-07-10 03:25:00	snip BEWARE OF THE MINT PLANT! IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE! :angry Your advice is really sound Joe! Wise people in Godzone plant mint in containers that don't allow it to escape! Ours is in the old style concrete laundry tubs that were once very common and can now be obtained from recycling firms. And no, we don't have kangaroos - they come from West Island, which certain people call Australia, home of the Deputy Sherriff of the South Pacific, Wee Johnnie ("they threw their children overboard") Howard. Some plonkers (one of them was the late and unlamented Governor George Grey) introduced wallabies (sort of a smaller version of kangaroos) to Godzone. They live in North Island places like some of the Hauraki Gulf Islands, and in the South Island they live around Waimate. Apparently they are fun to shoot, if you like that sort of thing. :waughh: BTW, lorry and lorries are terms that we really only encounter in colonising texts from the former Motherland. Truck is more common here.	John H (8)
365086	2005-07-10 04:06:00	CICERO: We buy mobile home for a few different reasons . . . there are building codes to consider . . some are more lax than others and allow anything that stands and creates a shadow to pass as a home . . . . others are more strict and require a certifiable set of construction standards . With that in mind, there is a very broad area that accepts mobile homes nowadays . The other day there was a mobile home for sale in Malibu, and get this: the land under it is rented for many pesos a month, but the home itself was listed for 1 . 6 million dollars US! I would not want to be the loan officer who makes that loan! It might have more "stuff" but it was basically the same size as ours, 24' x 65' . Anyway, as I was saying mobile homes area usually better built as they are factory assembled where the quality control can be done by the factory staff at all levels, not just on a three or four part inspection criteria . By that I mean, all phases of the assembly are overseen by the factory bigwigs and the workers are not subject to the elements either . The whole home is built in a dry factory and there is never any rain or snow or weather damage to the product until it gets outside . With the factory workers working on a totally different pay scale than overpaid (sorry if I offend anyone here) carpenters, electricians, plumbers, roofers, cabinet makers and installers, etc etc . , they can concentrate on the job at hand and not suffer all the aforementioned environmental variations . Then there's the availability of components too . They are usually stockpiled in warehouses at the site (the factory) and it only takes a short walk to get that custom part the owner ordered . Changes to the basic floorplans (within reason) are easier at a factory level as opposed to in the field too . Delivery of a new mobile to wherever it goes is usually by a set-up crew and a couple of trucks and drivers . I usta travel with them as a carpet layer for a while . I did that for about 4 years . All in all, I think mobiles are better built on several levels . Cost . . . per square foot, they are a lot cheaper Design . . the owner can pretty much specify what they want Quality . . . the foam injection for the insulation is structural too and rodent and vermin proof, not to mention good fire retardant . Unitized construction . . . makes them a lot stronger as they have to withstand the road trip to their destination . New appliances and utilities . . . All new wood and substrata; joists, beams, paneling and walls . Built-in desks, shelves, counters, soffets and other designs for the textures and surfaces of walls, ceilings, floors and lighting Standardized appliances that meet RVIAA codes, much stricter than stick-built homes . The tax structures are different too . The old stigma of trailer trash is mostly gone as these homes now cost about $US 70,000- $US 100,000, but still a lot less than a foundation/home alone . Just down the road here a little, are some mobile home lots with models on display that cost over $US 400,000 too . They are very custom, huge master bedrooms that equal three of our rooms here, and food pantries that are the size of our master bedroom . Giant bow-type windows, solariums, day rooms, formal dens and oak woodwork throughout, multiple fireplaces and split a/c heater systems for that person with cold feet or hot flashes . Five and six bedrooms, 4 or 5 full baths and dual pullmans are the standard . We find they are warmer or cooler as our choice with the outstanding insulation and heater efficiencies too . The home is just "tighter" to the elements . :cool: BTW: in the US a full bath means tub and/or seperate shower, toilet and sink and vanity cabinet of some sort . 3/4 bath is above minus the tub and possibly the shower 1/2 bath is just a sink and toilet .	SurferJoe46 (51)
365087	2005-07-10 07:41:00	The more usual term for your "mobile home" as it applies here (in comparison with your type of construction) would be "relocatable" or "modular" homes. For some reason neither is done much here now, there was a small number a few years back. Probably due to our low population density and terrain. Practically all houses here are site-built, but I do concur with your view on quality, it would be easier to monitor in a factory situation.	godfather (25)
365088	2005-07-10 08:41:00	Probably worth mentioning that what portable homes that are built here tend to be at the low end of the market. Pre framing doesn't seem to be a popular in the USA.I have spoken to builders in USA and for some reason they think it is not as efficient as building from scratch on site.I suspect it's because they are used to that method and don't like to change. They have two tools there that we don't see here much,impact cordless drills and worm drive skil saws.I make this comment because I am tool mad. ;)	Cicero (40)
365089	2005-07-10 16:45:00	We are beginning to see a lot of pre-assembled parts of homes arriving on site nowadays . They are primarily just the trusses (the triangular parts that are the peak of the roof down to the eaves, the parts that hang over the sides of the outer walls) . I only mentioned that because I think there might be a little different "slanguage" about home parts and pieces from the US to NZ . (I remember a comment about "whangs" in a previous post . . . lol) . Some times there are prefab fireplaces and kitchen cabinets and such, but yes, this is still not a large practice . Aside from that, there is the "U" word . . . (secret translation: unions) that dictate the approved activities on building sites . If it takes more time and labor to make the stuff on site, then that's the way it's gonna be (or we break-a you face!) . :yuck: Now that I have the Italians angry at me, and it being Sunday . . . let everyone go to the religeous services of their choice, as I am now . . . . cul8tr guys!	SurferJoe46 (51)
365090	2005-07-10 21:58:00	They are primarily just the trusses (the triangular parts that are the peak of the roof down to the eaves, the parts that hang over the sides of the outer walls) . I only mentioned that because I think there might be a little different "slanguage" about home parts and pieces from the US to NZ . (I remember a comment about "whangs" in a previous post . . . lol) . They are called trusses here, too . You are a little out with the "whangs", though - it was dwangs that was mentioned, which are the horizontal bits of wood between the vertical bits of wood in the framing . The other name you have mentioned that is slightly different in spelling is soffet . They are spelt soffits here which are technically the underside of any architectural feature but generally people are referring to the underside of roof overhangings or the underside of a cornice at the eaves . One thing I have not come across before is a "pullman" . What exactly is that? Would it be a vanity unit/wash basin?	FoxyMX (5)
365091	2005-07-10 22:51:00	As Cicero and Godfather say, we don't have much in the way of pre-built new homes for sale in NZ. However here is one site I found with used houses and new shells. http://www.brittons.co.nz/ They are basic unadorned dwellings but a whole lot cheaper than a site built house. We do have kitset homes which are a sort of compromise, and which I have used myself for an excellent result. These people are very good http://www.mcraewayhomes.com/ And here is some US info (a little dated but useful) on mobile homes. www.ruralhome.org Most new homes here are purpose built on site. You might imagine this leads to many interesting styles and individuality but alas, no. As with anywhere, the cost of buying the land and building is prohibitive for the average person so there isn't a lot of leeway to add architectural interest. Don't get the wrong impression. About 3% of NZ homes are architecturally designed but there are also executive design packages from building companies which specialise in upmarket dwellings. There are plenty of impressive new homes in NZ.	Winston001 (3612)
365092	2005-07-11 03:25:00	There must be different definitions of portable homes in US. I noticed this morning on the news that portable homes in the way of hurricane were more likely to be affected.	Cicero (40)
365093	2005-07-11 03:43:00	That should be mobile homes.Not potable. One of them, Mitch Lamb, had just returned from a mobile home to his house in Gulf Breeze, Florida, having spent $70,000 (£40,000) on repairs. He was evacuated on Saturday.	Cicero (40)
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