Insulating Older Home?

[kathryn]

I just bought a 1979 Magnolia mobile home that was originally delivered and assembled in three parts. If it weren't for the wheels and skirting, it would look like a very eccentric cabin. Although I swore early in life that I would never, never, never live in a trailer, I think it's sort of cute and I like it. And it's paid for.

Here's the issue: the short side, which contains the front door and living room, faces north, and the original owners had installed a wood stove there. They told me that they put the stove in that area because the winter wind blows from the north and the front half of the place was terribly cold all winter ('terribly' is relative, of course; we're talking about San Antonio).

This sounds to me like a problem that might have been solved with better insulation, but I know nothing about these homes. Is it possible to improve the insulation in this place without totally rebuilding it? Its value is about $12.95 so I don't want to get carried away with costs; on the other hand, I don't want to be miserable for lack of a minor investment.

Advice??

[rmurray]

FYI a 1979 Magnolia was a single section foldout house. when folded up for transit it was 12 wide by 60 or 65 ft. When unfolded it is about 30 x 60..The center portion looks longer then the sides..They were VERY popular with military because Uncle Sam would only pay to transport 1 section of a home..I takes very specialized equipment to fold the home back up safely..

Others will have to comment on the insulation problem..As I remember the long side walls were very thin 2 inches to help minimize the effort of lifting the whole wall from its folded position.

[David Oxhandler]

The best thing you can do to increase the energy efficiency of most older homes is to install an insulated roof over system, but that can be quiet costly.

The footage in these three video displays methods used by the U.S. Department of Energy's Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) for installing insulation in a mobile home roof, walls and floor.

Another often overlooked way to increase your home's efficiency is to install skirting. The top of the line would be concrete skirting but economy vinyl skirting is available at most mobile home parts stores

Texas offers Energy Incentives to home owners.

CPS Energy and San Antonio Water System offer a variety of programs and incentives for people who choose to go green!

Your heating/cooling system uses more than half of the energy in your home, so you can blame it for your high energy bill. A slight change in your heating and cooling habits can result in significant savings each month. See these Heating and Cooling Tips from your local power company.