Mobile home leveling questions..

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knagjack
Posts: 6
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2020 10:49 pm

Hello hello, my names Tyler, me and my family moved into a 30xby80 double wide built in early 1990's a couple years ago.
On some exterior walls the floor seems to dip down quite a bit. As much as a 1/2'' to 3/4'' while the rest of the floor is just about level.. on some interior walls i have the same issue as well as where the two parts meet there is a hallway and the floor seems to dip towards the center...
So i have 4 beams that run long ways from front to back with. the beams start 40" from the outside edge on each side and seems to use long out riggers about every 80" to support the outside edges of home.. the middle of the home also uses outriggers from the two inside beams inward. so outriggers seem to be used to support the middle of home and the outside edges where it seems my problems are. we have an extra living room my wife desperately wants to remodel and thats where i first noticed how unlevel the floors are on the outside edges. I even opened up the area above insulation in the crawlspace to inspect wood and sub floor and they seem to be in great condition, no rot or cracks or anything but is definetly way unlevel. its a 5 bedroom 3 full bath mobile home and we def fillled it up with things as far as weight which when we get an outdoor building will relieve much of it.

There are tie downs going all the way down on each side. which look proper. as well a those 3 armed footing systems are installed in two different parts..

Since weve moved in here i had grading done, gutters installed and piped underground away from house to get the water out of the way. As well as a metal roof installed on top of the original layer of shingles.

double wide sits on the piers which are cinderblocks sitting on top of poured concrete with wood wedges that seem to be about rotted.. out side perimeter is the smaller cinderblocks for "permanent foundation" but the home doesnt use it for a bearing load whatsoever

i know it needs releveled since site drainage and grading were never done properly since we moved in but im not convinced releveling will fix all my issues and as of right now all my windows and doors open and close just fine and not really any cracks in sheet rock that i can see... any advice? i want to do this myself with a couple of jacks and a water level.
Actually about to go to lowes to get stuff to make one. Please give me wisdom!
Mark440
Posts: 279
Joined: Tue Feb 26, 2008 8:33 am
Location: Anna, Tx

There is a mobile home repair guide that is available through the store (I think!) that provides TONS of good advice and workable solutions. One of those is how to re-level that massive beast with a water level - either home made or store bought.

So...while you do have the concrete blocks under the beams - there are no rules against setting additional blocks around the perimeter. In fact, you probably have a stack on each side of your front door. That said - you will most likely find the culprit to be "time" - and time is not kind to particle board flooring. Even with zero weight from above - particle board will begin to sag between floor joists. I know of no solution other than rip it all out and replace with real 3/4" plywood.

FWIW - a water level is absolutely the best - and ONLY way to get a mobile home level from one end to the other. At 30 x 80, you should be able to get by with 50-60 feet of tubing.
Last edited by Mark440 on Mon Nov 30, 2020 5:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Opportunity has a shelf life.
Mark440
Posts: 279
Joined: Tue Feb 26, 2008 8:33 am
Location: Anna, Tx

I spoke too soon. In the store - there is a re-leveling kit listed - but the link to Amazon goes off to some goofy stuff that has nothing to do with re-leveling.

Take a sheet of paper on a clip board - and you are going to make a "map" of all the block stacks under your place. Once you have them mapped out, anchor the water level to a stack nearest the center of the home. Use the other end to measure how much the + and - is of each stack relevant to that center stack. Some will maybe be 1/4" higher, some lower. In any case, once you have that info - you can quickly see what needs to go up or down.

There are also videos on youtube with additional info.
Opportunity has a shelf life.
knagjack
Posts: 6
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2020 10:49 pm

Yea i plan on going through the crawl space and checking all the beams from the center, but when i do level out the beams im not sure the outer perimeter will be fixed. its weird how the outer perimeter of floors dip down towards the exterior the sub floor and joists seem in great and dry condition. its like the walls are shifting down but i only have a metal roof and one layer of shingles so i dont see any opportunity for it to be over weight. i feel like it must be the original out riggers are failing.
Mark440
Posts: 279
Joined: Tue Feb 26, 2008 8:33 am
Location: Anna, Tx

Verify that the floor joists are level at their ends. The outriggers offer a good amount of support, but it is the floor joists that actually support the weight of the walls - and the floor joists are set up in a cantilever. While the beams do provide primary support to the floor joists - the ends of each is cantilevered. What i don't know is how far a joist can be extended past the point of cantilever (the beam). I can't imagine all of the outriggers distorting and allowing the entire wall to sag.

The water level map will shed a lot of light on the culprit!
Opportunity has a shelf life.
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Greg
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Posts: 5696
Joined: Wed Feb 28, 2007 8:01 pm
Location: Weedsport, NY

The only way to know for sure is to start with the water level. I use soapstone and write the +/- reading on the frame next to the pier as well as on the paper.
Since you did not buy the home new you really don't know for sure what may have been inside next to a wall, Aquarium? Piano? You never know for sure.

Greg
"If I can't fix it, I can screw it up so bad no one else can either."
knagjack
Posts: 6
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2020 10:49 pm

I made up the water level and got underneath the home a few weeks ago before a bunch of rain and snow.
was over halfway done, i have 4 rows of ten block piers, and my level was giving different readings when i was well into it.

i propped up a bucket to one of center beams and checked it before i started stringing the tube along and i wasnt having a problem until i noticed i was getting different readings when i would raise or lower the end of my tube.

the water should go to the same spot regardless of how high i put the tube and it was fine when i first started so out of frustration i left the project until the weather is more agreeable.

sucks because i already used a paint marker all over the place and now im not so sure if the readings are correct. so more than likely gonna have to start all over.

i bought adjustable out riggers from oliver technologies i planned on trying out too
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Greg
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Posts: 5696
Joined: Wed Feb 28, 2007 8:01 pm
Location: Weedsport, NY

Once things are calmer Try it again. I used soapstone so it was not permanent. You could use caulk when you remark. Just go slow , take your time.

Greg
"If I can't fix it, I can screw it up so bad no one else can either."
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