Prefabricated home

A prefabricated home is a residential structure that is partially or completely built in a factory. The structure is then transported to its permanent site, where any work needed to make it livable is completed. Different types of prefabricated homes are defined by the method of their construction and the amount of their construction that occurs off-site. Many prefabricated homes are equal to or better than traditionally built homes in terms of durability and strength. They usually take less time to build and can be more energy efficient. Shortcomings include more up-front costs and challenges in delivering and completing the home.

Background

Prefabricated homes can trace their origins to 1908, when Sears, Roebuck & Company began selling home kits through its catalog. Prospective homeowners could pick out the home they wanted, place their order, and await its delivery by train. The home was not prebuilt in a factory, a hallmark of contemporary prefabricated homes. Instead, the homeowner received a kit complete with blueprints, instructions, and every brick, board, and nail needed to construct the home. At a time when many people still lived in areas without stores that carried large amounts of building supplies, this was a revolutionary approach. Many homes that started as orders from a Sears catalog remained standing into the twenty-first century.

In 1913, Henry Ford introduced the concept of building cars on a moving assembly line. This substantially shortened the amount of time it took to build cars and lowered the cost of production. In the years following World War II, when returning military personnel increased the demand for houses, companies turned to the assembly line concept to build the first manufactured mobile homes. By 1958, a home that could meet all local building codes for a permanent dwelling was designed. This early prefabricated home was built and delivered in two sections.

Over the next several decades, the technology used to design these homes improved so that by the end of the twentieth century, prefabricated homes evolved from basic mobile homes to homes made from two or four connected prebuilt units to more advanced designs that are nearly identical to traditionally built homes in appearance. This development was made possible in large part because of advances in computer technology, including computer-aided design (CAD) programs.

Overview

Prefabricated homes, or prefabs, are sometimes called modular homes, panel homes, or manufactured homes. All of these dwellings are prefabricated, but they have different characteristics. Each has its advantages and disadvantages.

Modular homes are generally built in box-like sections that are about 16 feet (4.9 meters) wide and no longer than the trailers that will transport them to their final site. These sections include one or more rooms, and a crane is used to place them on a foundation prepared by the contractor. The rooms are complete or nearly complete, with walls, floors, ceilings, and even fixtures such as built-in appliances, toilets and tubs, and lights. While some finishing work does have to occur on location, these homes are close to complete upon delivery and are ready to live in quickly.

Panel homes also are built in sections, but the sections are flat instead of box-like. Walls, floors, and other pieces are completed in the factory, stacked on trucks, and shipped to the site. As with modular homes, cranes put each piece in place. Since more construction is performed on-site, panel homes take longer to complete. However, the technique allows for more unique configurations than modular construction does. Some homes use a combination of modular and panel construction to allow greater versatility in design; for example, they may use modular construction for smaller rooms, such as bedrooms, but use panel construction to provide longer walls and larger rooms for living room/kitchen combinations.

Manufactured homes, sometimes called mobile homes, are completely built in factories and arrive on their own wheels. They are constructed with metal beams and walls and generally are parked with their wheels, sometimes hidden behind a metal cover known as skirting, in place. These homes are the least expensive; however, they are also the least sturdy. Mobile homes break down more quickly than other homes, and they tend to have multiple maintenance issues.

Prefabricated homes are built in large, climate-controlled rooms by crews who are assigned specific tasks. Each step passes through a quality-control check before the next step is completed. For example, after a framing crew builds the framework of a wall from wood or steel beams, someone will check to ensure that it is square, straight, and solid before wiring, plumbing, insulation, and surface materials are installed. As each section is finished, it is wrapped, labeled, and prepared for shipping.

The factory building techniques used to construct prefabricated homes provide a number of advantages over traditional homes, which are sometimes referred to as "stick-built" homes because each board, or "stick," is individually cut and placed. While a stick-built home takes an average of nine to twelve months to build, factory construction on a prefabricated home takes between three days and two weeks. It takes another one to four weeks on-site, depending on the complexity of the installation, for the builder to complete the project and make the home livable.

The fact that prefabricated homes are constructed indoors means that a home's parts are never exposed to weather. While weather can delay the delivery and/or installation, it is not a factor while the components are being manufactured. The components are inspected as they are built, which prevents delays caused by waiting for inspectors. The extensive quality control process means that prefabricated homes are often stronger and more resistant to extreme weather conditions than traditionally built homes.

Prefabricated homes can overcome some site challenges that make traditional homes difficult to build. For example, a site with a sharp incline can present a problem for a contractor who needs to move in men and machinery for many months, but it is far less of a problem when completed sections of the home are lowered into place with a crane.

Building a modular home can be less expensive because labor costs are reduced considerably. As a result, people can sometimes build bigger homes than they would be able to build through traditional stick-built methods. However, many of the costs of completing a modular home must be paid up front and generally are not included in a mortgage, which makes the initial out-of-pocket costs higher.

Bibliography

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