ceiling cracks

[Guest]

Hi this is my first post.I have a Fleetwood home
we bought new in 2001.Every thing was fixed shortly after moving in the plumbing had to be tightened under the house for bathtubs
and a leaking skylight.i now have a problem with cracks on ceiling
and water stains on ceiling.this seems to be on one half of home where they are joined together. a mobile home repair company came out and checked roof shingles,and went under house to checked to see if it settled .he said the house was out of level about a quarter of an inch.when a water leak showed on ceiling in back part of house,there was a loud crashing sound that came from that part of house.the repair guy said the problem is vunder the roof.he said to find problem he would remove a few rows of shingles and cut away plywood to check for what's causing problem.any replies to this will be appreciated
Edward

[Yanita]

Hi,

Welcome to the site.

Your home being out of level can/will cause leaks, but honestly that does not seem to be that far out of level.

The loud crash sound has me concerned. Since you have not mentioned interior damage other than water stains and cracks I am wondering if the sound you heard is possibly a roof truss that has snapped/cracked/twisted.

There are several here that can advise much better than myself. I am sure JD will read this thread, he is one of our pro's here, although there are others that can assist as well.

Stay tuned, opinions are soon to be forth coming!

Have a great day!

~Yanita~

[JD]

Hi

There are many double-wides with cathedral ceilings that were built with no ventilation at the ridge of eave. While this will work for some homes, I have seen many where the rafter will get a dry rot where it meets the marriage beam. This is from the collection of vapors between the ceiling and roof sheathing.

This does not mean that this is your problem. Having an experienced mobile home person open up the sheathing near the ridge would be a good start. Sometimes you can tell the rafter has come loose if it hangs lower than the rest of the rafters. You can get up there with a step ladder and give it a push. If it moves, it is loose.

Hope this helps.

JD

[Guest]

Thank you very much for your help!
The repair man did mention putting in
a ridge vent after he gets into the roof.
We are going to have him open it to
see what coul be causing the problem.
my home owners will pay for interior repairs,
but not the cutting into the roof.they do not
pay for structural problems.
Edward

[scottman]

Would it make more sense for him to come up thru the ceiling? In otherwords, make an attic "access" panel in case you need to go up there again? I don't know how much room you have but I THINK its better than cutting the plywood on your roof.

Don't lose sleep over ceiling cracks. It is normal in double-wides. I have at least 4. Two more big ones were patched by the installers because it happened in transit. I believe it is a fact-of-life because the ceilings are made all in 1 long piece, then put on the walls later in the factory. A stick-built home has separate ceilings in each room, so I guess it is more flexible (but less "travel-worthy"). My 2c w

[Yanita]

Hi,

Would not dismiss ceiling cracks so quickly. I too own a double wide, and it is crack free in the ceiling areas and walls. As the original poster stated, these cracks come with water stains...not something to ignore.

JMO,

~Yanita~