The Demise of a Home

Things have been humming around here on the homestead. The crew has been working for the last two weeks to tear down that old trailer and I thought I would share some photos documenting the process. 

It still astounds me to imagine anyone living in this trailer. Keep in mind someone actually lived in this just a couple of years ago. Mind blowing.  I often wonder what it looked like when it was brand new. Was this the dream retirement home for an older couple? Maybe a starter home for a new family? How did it come to fall into this condition? I hail from Philadelphia where we have houses older than our country. This house was built maybe in the late 1970's or early 1980's. To me a home should stand for 100 years or more before it falls into serious disrepair. In a way it is sad to see it only as a "disposable" home and to be counting the days until it is just a distant memory. 


Anyway, I have been taking photos each day the sun is still up when I arrive home. It is exciting to wonder how much will be gone each day and then see the progress. Seeing the roof gone made it all real as the view from the bottom of the drive changed drastically. No longer is that eyesore the first thing I notice pulling in. So here are some photos so you can see the progress (or the demise depending on your perspective) of the demolition process for a mobile home far past its prime. 

Here is how the trailer looked when I first arrived. 

Here is another angle. You can see the
skirting is coming loose. 

I am very pleased by how tidy the workers have been. They have bagged up all the trash, burned the wood that has all the black mold on it, and separated out the aluminum to be recycled. 

Work started on the inside. Workers gutted the walls
and removed all the wiring and insulation.

All the paneling, carpet, plastics, etc. were ripped out
first before they began on the exterior and roof.

We have had some rain the last couple of days before the holiday weekend, so the workers haven't been back this past week, but based on their progress I think they will be finished this coming week. Indiegogo is about to release the funds from my campaign and as soon as they post I will call the Well Man to come work his magic.

Then the outside of the trailer was "peeled" like a giant banana.

Is it weird that I got excited seeing it looking like this?

I was able to finish burning the pile of boxes I unpacked when the things were moved up out of the trailer and into the storage barn.Much remains to be gone through, however it has been so damn hot that just isn't happening right now. Rumor has it we have a cold front moving in this week, so maybe I can get some more done. I just have to keep at it when I can. Slow and steady wins the race, right? 

Rain soaked insulation from the floor is
all that is left to bag and take to the dump.

One section of the 70' of trailer is finished.
Once it is all done, it will be hauled away.

Keep in mind, the water could have been installed regardless of this trailer, however having to go around it added additional feet to the amount of pipe to lay and trench that would need to be dug. Besides, it was time to get it hauled off. 

So there you have it. An update on the progress here! I hope you all had a safe July 4th (if you are in the States) and a great weekend!