The Front Porch and the Roof

TJ decided from the very beginning that one of the first things he wanted to do was build a covered front porch.  The porch cover should help to keep the doorway and subfloor dry and considering the current state of the entry way, we’re going to need protection from the rain. I'm ALSO hoping with mats that it will help us keep dirt from coming in as easily on our feet.  It’s 16’x8’ and consists of 1”x6” decking and the framework is made of 2”x6” boards.  The posts are 4”x4” and sit on concrete footers, and the roof is corrugated tin.  They put 8” flashing under the drip rail in between it and the roof of the porch.  We haven’t built new stairs yet but the porch is beautiful!  We believe that minus the tools, the materials probably cost us around $1,200-$1,500.  TJ and Mark built this porch and cover in 3 days.  We still need to build the stairs but that can wait till we have more time.   

It really makes a huge difference to the appearance of the house.  We’d eventually like to replace the aluminum siding with plank siding.  I think that will completely change the look of the house, and with a good coordinating skirting, it might be hard to even tell that it’s a mobile home!

 

 

The next step was to seal the roof with an aluminum protectant.  This is a UV reflector and a sealer for any small cracks or pinholes. Hopefully it helps to reduce energy costs in the summer as well.  He used Roofers Choice Mobile Home Aluminum Coating.  This comes in a 5-gallon bucket and is only supposed to cover about 250 sq. ft., but TJ only used 1 bucket for the whole roof.  He will go back later and apply a 2^nd coat.  These cost about $57 per bucket.  He also used another roof tar-like sealant to seal around the vents for extra leak protection.  While he was out there he took a hose and blew out the debris in the drip rail.    

I believe we’ve done just about all we can do on the outside for now!  We’re officially ready for demo!