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We’re so proud to share another great DIY mobile home transformation!
Judy and Michael Gutierrez wanted to be closer to their son and granddaughter in Santa Rosa, California.
They found a 1968 International Newport Single Wide (12’ X 16’), with an addition, in an older mobile home park in Santa Rosa and began a complete DIY mobile home transformation.
Cute mobile home!
Judy says she likes this older park because the lots are wider than in some of the newer parks so they have nice yard space. In addition, the lot rents are on the low end of the scale because the park doesn’t have a lot of amenities like a swimming pool. That’s alright with Judy though, she says it makes living on retirement income more affordable.
DIY Mobile Home Transformation – Very Vintage to Modern Marvel
Their vintage mobile home was a great deal but it needed to be modernized so Judy and Michael got to work.
The couple has done some remodeling in the kitchen, the living room, one bathroom, the laundry room, and their storage room.
‘Tongue and Groovy’ Shiplap Walls
The couple used pine shiplap on their ceilings and walls. Shiplap is a very popular choice these days for wall covering.
Shiplap is a type of wooden board used commonly in the construction of barns, sheds, outbuildings and inexpensive or seasonal homes. It is either rough-sawn 1″ or milled 3/4″ pine or similarly inexpensive wood between 3″ and 10″ wide with a 3/8″ – 1/2″ rabbet on opposite sides of each end.[1] The rabbet allows the boards to overlap in this area. The profile of each board partially overlaps that of the board next to it creating a channel that gives shadow line effects, provides excellent weather protection and allows for dimensional movement.
Slowly but surely.
The Gutierrez’s used unpainted shiplap and Judy love the way it turned out. She admits it’s her proudest DIY mobile home transformation achievement.
Vintage mobile home ceilings almost always need some work. Since shiplap comes in planks it’s an easy way to update damaged or sagging ceilings. It gives a warm, substantial feel to otherwise dated room and the natural texture is a perfect way to add a focal point to a room.
The addition gets a new ceiling.Looking up is tough during a ceiling makeover but it is so worth it!New ceiling!
DIY Plumber’s Pipe Shelving
Plumbing pipe is a popular and affordable way to make shelves and entertainment centers so naturally, this creative couple used it!
They built a custom DIY plumbing pipe entertainment center and bookshelf around their wall-mounted television.
Judy and Michael gave their bathroom a new modern look by using corrugated sheet metal and secondhand finds. It looks great!
Here’s what the shower looked like at the beginning of the DIY mobile home transformation:
Sheet metal is a popular material for home improvement projects and has been used on several mobile home remodels and improvement projects. It’s water resistant, rustproof, and affordable.
The bathroom gets a transformation, too!
The sheet metal shower after:
Affordable and cool!A sheet metal shower is so cool!
Before the DIY mobile home transformation in the bathroom.
The bathroom sink and counter has a more modern look. They got their bathroom sink from Habitat for Humanity Restore. Habitat Restores are a superb resource for building materials and all things for the home. It’s a favorite of mobile home owners because you can get a great deal and your purchase helps fund a worthy cause.
Messy!During the DIY mobile home transformation in the bathroom.
The bathroom counter and sink after the mobile home transformation:
The bathroom got a makeover, too!
Savvy Storage Room
Having done most of the work themselves, Judy estimates that they spent $500 or less for each room, with the exception of the storage room, which is really more of a long, wide hallway.
The couple put cabinets in the space to increase storage; always an issue in a single wide. Judy also has her desk located there and says it may be her favorite room. By putting in lots of cabinets the price tag for the storage room topped out at around $1000. They also used DIY vinyl flooring planks in the home.
The new ceiling looks great! What a wonderful DIY mobile home transformation.
Mobile Home Kitchen Transformation
The kitchen got a cool new look with a vintage twist!
Here’s the before:
The wall oven was removed and in its place, a large storage cabinet with a magnetic message center door was installed. Under the cabinet is where the microwave sits.
The counter stove was removed and in its place, a cool vintage stove was installed.
It’s a great use of space!
Here’s the after:
A sleek island was installed in the middle of the kitchen to optimize counter space. Below you can see the cabinetry space where the wall oven used to be:
A close up of the new classic stove and oven:
Judy’s Mobile Home Transformation Interview
Judy and Michael have found that living in their older mobile home is a very economical way to go, especially if you are willing to put in some sweat equity. Learning a few tips from mobile homeowners that have completed their own DIY mobile home transformation is a great way to prepare. Fortunately, Judy was kind enough to answer a few questions for us!
Name:
Judy and Michael Gutierrez
Location:
Santa Rosa, California
Make and model of the home:
1968 International Newport Single wide 12′ x 60′ with a couple of small additions.
Tell us a bit about yourself, your project, and your home:
We are a couple who moved from Colorado to CA to be close to our oldest son and granddaughter. We couldn’t sell our home in CO so we rented it out and purchased this very old mobile home in a small park in Santa Rosa. It was a great deal but has needed a lot of work! We have semi remodeled the kitchen, the living area, one bathroom, the laundry room, and a storage room. We have done almost all the work ourselves to save money.
Tools and materials used:
Corrugated tin in the shower, pine shiplap on ceilings and walls in different rooms, bathroom sink from Habitat for Humanity, do it yourself vinyl flooring planks and lots of paint!
The total cost of project:
It varies by room but I don’t think we spent over $500 for any room (except for the storage room, the cupboards were bought online and we might have spent $1,000 on that entire room).
Any tips or tricks you learned during the project:
Vintage mobile homes are not easy to work on. Water is your enemy. A 1968 mobile home is not like a regular home since nothing is straight and working with paneled walls and 2 x 2’s is challenging.
Proudest DIY moment:
The ceilings and wall we did with shiplap pine strips, very inexpensive and look fantastic!
Biggest challenge:
Water! During our recent rains, our floors became saturated and finding out why and how to fix that is still our biggest challenge. Other than that, everything we have done has been challenging!!! Also, working in cramped spaces together, such as the bathroom and especially the laundry room….makes for interesting times!
Favorite room in the home:
So far, I have to say it is the storage room we completely insulated and redid…it’s actually more than storage but we don’t know what to call it. It is a room that goes from the living room out into the backyard, it’s more like a long, wide hallway. I do have a desk there and lots of cupboards and I love the way it turned out.
Any advice you would give someone about buying and living in a mobile home:
It is a very economical way to live if you are willing to put in work. We are lucky, our park is older and the lots are fairly wide and have nice yards. We don’t have amenities like a pool or community room so our space rent is very low. It makes living on a retirement income easier to handle.
A huge thank you to Judy and Michael for letting us share their gorgeous DIY mobile home transformation! Seeing vintage mobile homes getting modernized is so inspiring!
And thank you so much for reading Mobile Home Living!
Kim Alley
Kim Alley is a writer here at Mobile Home Living and I am honored to have her join us! She has lived in a manufactured home for over 20 years and took on many remodeling and upgrade projects during that time. Kim has three kids, ages 17 to 25, and enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, and camping whenever she can.
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7 Comments
Hi Gladys,
If you are talking about the furniture, you can always remove a window (but that’s a lot of trouble!). As far as getting old counters, cabinets, subfloor, etc. you usually just have to cut it down into smaller pieces. One thing for sure, if it was brought into the home, it can be taken out!
Best of luck!
I recently acquire manufacture home and I need help figuring out how to take large items outside of the home is there a secret doorway? A special way of doing this? We will be remodeling soon
Any ideas ?.
Hi Lynn,
My 1978 Homette has a little eating area beside the kitchen and we built a storage bench under the window and between the two mini-walls. Here’s the post and pictures: https://mobilehomeliving.org/our-new-window-seat/
Hope that helps!
What a great home and a great story. So great you have each other and can do up your awesome retirement home together. I am just getting in to my 77 “Homette.” It too needs a lot of work. I have a question. Along with all the great work, did I miss an eating area? I’d like to enlarge my kitchen space but will have to sacrifice in order to keep the eating area. I might see if a storage bench along the wall works and a table up to that with a few chairs around. Mine’s a 77 and looks it’s age. I, on the other hand am 78 but look much younger. Hah! Keep up the good work and let us know how you are doing.
Hi,
Really nice job….beautiful.
You mention that your floors are saturated from the rain you’ve had? It is very possible that the unit has sunk some and water is puddling under your home. The ground is saturated and not being directed away from your home as it should be.You may need to have the unit lifted and re-supported with solid ground matter so that the water will run away from your home on all sides.If you are on concrete,that can settle as well.You are in a older park after all.
Awesome redo’s love those older places with character. Great job and great ideas. Thank you for sharing
What a lovely job you did! Congratulations! Hope to do the same thing you did someday.
Hi Gladys,
If you are talking about the furniture, you can always remove a window (but that’s a lot of trouble!). As far as getting old counters, cabinets, subfloor, etc. you usually just have to cut it down into smaller pieces. One thing for sure, if it was brought into the home, it can be taken out!
Best of luck!
I recently acquire manufacture home and I need help figuring out how to take large items outside of the home is there a secret doorway? A special way of doing this? We will be remodeling soon
Any ideas ?.
Hi Lynn,
My 1978 Homette has a little eating area beside the kitchen and we built a storage bench under the window and between the two mini-walls. Here’s the post and pictures: https://mobilehomeliving.org/our-new-window-seat/
Hope that helps!
What a great home and a great story. So great you have each other and can do up your awesome retirement home together. I am just getting in to my 77 “Homette.” It too needs a lot of work. I have a question. Along with all the great work, did I miss an eating area? I’d like to enlarge my kitchen space but will have to sacrifice in order to keep the eating area. I might see if a storage bench along the wall works and a table up to that with a few chairs around. Mine’s a 77 and looks it’s age. I, on the other hand am 78 but look much younger. Hah! Keep up the good work and let us know how you are doing.
Hi,
Really nice job….beautiful.
You mention that your floors are saturated from the rain you’ve had? It is very possible that the unit has sunk some and water is puddling under your home. The ground is saturated and not being directed away from your home as it should be.You may need to have the unit lifted and re-supported with solid ground matter so that the water will run away from your home on all sides.If you are on concrete,that can settle as well.You are in a older park after all.
Awesome redo’s love those older places with character. Great job and great ideas. Thank you for sharing
What a lovely job you did! Congratulations! Hope to do the same thing you did someday.