Capt. Dave Newman from Hernando County (FL) Fire Rescue sent in these pictures of an interesting residential structure. These types of structures are extremely popular in the numerous retirement communities throughout Florida. Discussion of this type of structure came up in some of the comments in the previous post, so it seems appropriate to follow up with this. If you haven’t guessed already, this is a double wide mobile home. Many people would not have expected that once they saw that it was a two story structure. Just like they have made advances (or set-backs for us) in the traditional building construction, the mobile home fabrication business is no different. Deceptive building construction can hurt us if we do not stay informed, simply another reason for us to get out and know our zone. So watch out for that trailer hitch on the 360, and report your findings on the radio.
22 thoughts on “Double Tall Double Wide”
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Looks modular to me. Who would think in Florida that someone would have a basement!
Another solid reminder for all us (including those of us on the promotion list or current officers) to let the members start the tasks and get around the building to see the whole picture. Thanks for the great web sharing forum!
They are finally living up to the name “mobile mansion”.
Actually these types of homes are well built, the wood materials never see the elements and are full dimensional lumber. I was a union carpenter in the Chicagoland area for 10 years prior to becoming a Firefighter and have worked on these types of buildings, I’ve set ranch and two story buildings I have to say I like them. If you have some of these buildings going up in your area go out and watch them “set†it is pretty cool and it only takes about 2-4 hours.
I have never seen a cantilever deck, is that a norm down south??
nice capt dave thanks for info in zone 11
I can only imagine that the cantilever deck is supported by I-Beams since they are also used the full length of the home. Would make it easy to weld them right up! As far as a norm, 1st one Ive seen.
Search the Bricelyn Street, Pittsburgh NIOSH report. This is not exactly the same magnitude. But the same idea none the less.
Again shows the importance of that 360 that you need to be making on arrival at everything. Many of our brothers have been lost due to not doing that.
Code for a cantilever deck or any type of cantilever is whatever is cantilevered out it has to be doubled back in, so meaning if the deck is 6 foot, the floor joist have to be 12 feet into the building. I hope that helped
This looks like a modular home as opposed to a trailer (think of it as a more sophisticated cousin, minus the 1990 IROC Camaro in the driveway). However, “modular” up north and “modular” down here in FL are two different things. For these retirement communities, they often use cheaper materials, smaller lumber, and the “houses” creak and move much like a trailer. In some of these in our first due, the rafters are little more than 2x2s or 2x3s (if you’re lucky) that don’t hold up well under fire conditions as we’ve had several fall in the bedroom on fire, so be careful with your donkey kicks 🙂
Maybe I’m just not looking closely enough (or I should really get into one of those building construction classes), but how can you tell from the outside that this is a modular home or mobile home?
First cantilever deck I’ve seen as well.
In the rebuilding of New Orleans, we are seeing much “modular-style” construction that is multi-storied. But I have never seen anything like this!
Just from the picture I would be more worried about the garage over the basement.
If in fact it is a modular home, these types of structures are well known for their huge void spaces that often run the entire length of the structure.
The voids are created from the pre-fabricated 1st floor and the ceiling of the “basement”. They occur from the area used during the fabrication process where the wires and plumbing are pre-run. These areas can be anywhere from 6″ to 12″ in height and as mentioned above, stretch the entire structure, front to back and side to side.
ok so you are telling me it is a 10′ maybe 12′ so it should be 20′ to 24′ in???? YAAAA OK tell me how that works out for yaaaa !! LOL
This is very normall in my area (Northern VA) Also houses with 2 floors in the front 3 in the rear.
You cant always spot modulars. But if you are in a new area and the house looks like a mirror image when looking at the 2/4 or B/D sides depending on what terminology you use it most likely is. Roof lines are always a good indicator too, adding a dog house gets pricey on a modular.
Just goes to show how important a good 360 is prior to making entry. Thanks Dave for the article. We are blessed to have you as a member of our department.
FTM-PTB
We seem to have an inordinate number of modular “farms” in my area. The quality ranges greatly, from the most minimal to very well built.
Also, on the modular subject, many I’ve seen (most) have sheetrock over plywood on the interior walls to facilitate trailering them to the site without ruining the paint. This becomes an issue if we have to “exit wall right”. Another reason to carry a substantial tool, not the Fisher Price closet hook.
It looks as if the lower floor is of ordinary construction based upon the block appearance. It is common for a contractor to place a modular on top of a basement like that. The deck is likely then supported by the I beams that run half the width of the structure and are bolted together when the two parts are connected. The only nice part about this is that we know that the floor actually has something more than a wooden I beam to it!
The garage is usually an upgrade and not a part of the modular. We can expect the usual lightweight construction.
Just to go along with this. I recently saw a memo about a structure that looks like a ranch from the front, but is in fact a two story. The problem is the only access to the basement is from a sliding back door at ground level. The basement stairs have been drywalled over to make it a multi dwelling house. Even doing a 360 wouldn’t make this obvious. Like everyone says get out and know your area.