We built the below cabin a little over 1.5 years ago and when it was finished I used hardware mesh to enclose the bottom of the insulated floor. Now that we are moving in I want to enclose the bottom of the cabin for next winter. My plan was to cover the exposed ground under the cabin with heavy plastic, cover the plastic with pea gravel, and enclose the bottom of the cabin. I was thinking of using treated plywood and painting it a nice color... but is there any composite I could use that wouldn't be as affected by the ground contact? Like aluminum, plastic, etc? After placing the skirting I was also going to add ridgid foam insulation to the back of all of the skirting and add a few vents... as well as access doors. Any advice?
(http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/8458/cabin014medium.jpg)
Thanks!
What about concrete board..Duroc, it's called down here. Moisture will not harm it, finishes nice with just some paint, or you can put on a finish layer pretty easy. My guess is you could make it blend right into the cabin (a gem, I might add) without a lot of work, and it can even not look like concrete when you are done.. Tin or plastic just don't seem to fit in n the bottom of this.
Thanks for the heads up! I have used cement board before but didn't even think of using it in this scenario. I will check out the different kinds next time I am at the hardware store.
I also checked out mobile home skirting and it just didn't seem like it would look good and cost a lot of money. I am glad this option is out there.
As long as it is the type that can stand immersion in water, some are only water resistant, not waterproof.
Homemade durock, tack up lath wire and parge it with 2 or 3 coats of mortar?
The thing to watch out for is that this wall is not below frost depth... if there is frost heaving the soil, and if the skirt wall is strong enough to support the building, then the skirt could lift the building in a freeze.