dealing with county construction codes

[Vicki]

We live in AZ and need shade all around our triple wide 2000 Cavco. Our county code office refuses to issue a permit for anything other than metal to be attached to the house. If we want to build a pergola or wood porch, it has to be free standing and not attached to the house. They claim this is because the home is engineered and would need an engineering inspection and clearance for what we want. We cannot find an engineer in the entire state who will work with manufactured homes. Are we up against a brick wall; is this a common problem, or is our county prejudiced as we suspect. Do you have any idea where we could find an such an engineer?

[David Oxhandler]

Decks don't not need to be attached to the home. In most parts of the country it is generally not worth the expense of putting frost line footings underneath them. But even in warmer areas it is a good idea to keep decks and steps separate from the home by not attaching them and so avoiding all that aggravation, time and expense to meet the local code. You can build a free standing deck that will work as well, if not better than one that is fixed to to side of the home. See the article Adding on to your manufactured home

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