Renovateing a burn victim.

[Greg]

I am in the process of purchasing a 5 year old 14x75 MH for back taxes. The only problem is that the master bedroom and bath were burned out. We have determined that it wasn't due to an electrical short (smoking and sleeping do not mix). The trailer is completely drywalled and the drywall contained the fire so there wasn't any strucural damage, the paper backing on the insulation wasn't even scorched. I plan on gutting and redrywalling the master bed and bath and new floor. The rest of the trailer has smoke damage and the drywall is the type that has a vinyl laminate. Is there any way to remove the laminate and "mud" the seems to repaint, or will a good coat of "KILZ II" cover the laminate and smoke stains well enough. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Greg

[Mark Bower]

Removing the vinyl covering on the sheetrock would be about impossible. Your best just to cover it. Apply a good coat of primer that's recommended for wallpaper is your best bet. The seems could also be taped and mudded. Then texture applied.

Mark
https://ssl.xpr.com/mfdhousing/mfdcart/ ... de=&sesid=

[Greg]

Mark,
I really appreciate the advice, and I want to say that this site and forum are wonderful. Keep up the good work. As for the walls, we plan to move the house a few years down the road so I think I'll wait until I have it on it's permanent site before removing the strips and mudding the seams. I'm ordering your book, it sounds like an essential tool for any MH owner.
Thanks again,
Greg

[Bill]

We just finished a total remodel inside our 1993 Dutch doublewide, which included removing the strips and mudding the seams. I understand your wanting to wait until it's moved before doing this, but if your home is built like ours, it may not be an issue. In addition to the gazillion staples in the drywall, it's also glued to every stud which would make cracking unlikely. I think scrubbing the vinyl clean and then using the KILZ on it soulds like a good plan.

Smoking in bed....... simply brilliant. Hopefully this person has not and will not reproduce.

Sounds like you got an AWESOME deal on the home! Good luck with it!!