Shake/Movement felt inside home

4drsahara · Sun Jul 03, 2011 3:49 pm

Hi,
i am a new mobile home owner, is it normal for my washing machine to shake the entire house? I have made sure my washing machine is level from but still tends to shake the house when it hits the spin cycle. it isn't a very violent shake but it will move the water is my fish tank around a little and it can definetly be felt anywhere in the home. I have also noticed that when someone is walking around at the opposite end of the home, i can slightly feel it. Are these normal feelings for a mobile home, or is it possible that my home is not sitting level?

thanks

Greg · Sun Jul 03, 2011 5:05 pm

Hi & welcome. Normal or unusual? I can't say it is normal, but it does happen more often than not, more so with a front loader.

You could check the piers and make sure the home is level. You could also add a pier directly under the washer, that may help also.

There are rubber vibration pads that go under the washer also. Mark sells them in the site store and I have seen them in some home centers also. They may help also.

Greg

4drsahara · Sun Jul 03, 2011 5:34 pm

Thanks for the reply, i have checked my piers and everything seems to be level and the straps are tight around them. I will try finding those pads or something similar to them and see if that helps at all. I may need to look at having professionals come out and check if the home is in fact level. i have taken a level to numerous spots around the house and it seems to be fine but yet i can still feel movement.

Greg · Sun Jul 03, 2011 7:54 pm

First let me tell you the ONLY way to get a true reading when (Re)leveling a home is with a water level. If a contractor tries to use anything else be very cautious.

You did check the piers and everything is tight. Also make sure that all of the piers are supporting weight, it is possible to have them shift and end up not supporting anything.

Greg

DaveyB · Sun Jul 03, 2011 10:37 pm

I recently had my home professionally leveled, and while it did eliminate the creaking floors, I still get the vibration from the top loading washing machine running right through the home on the spin cycle. Sometimes it is more noticeable than others, mainly when washing things like heavy towels and the load isn't properly balanced.

I am in the process of building a shed against the side of the home and I think that this will also be the new home for the washing machine and drier since they behave so badly!

JD · Mon Jul 04, 2011 2:29 pm

I have reduced washing machine vibrations by installing two adjustable steel piers with a 4x6 beam under the machine, tight up against the floor joists. Two sets of piers and two beams may work even better, but they would be pretty close together.

1987Commodore · Tue Jul 05, 2011 6:42 pm

I eliminated the vibration in mine by installing piers directly under the machines. Then I also installed a pier in between each of the existing ones, doubling the number of supports the setup crew used. I can't feel the washing machine in the floor at all. The floor does move a bit when someone walks through the room, but that's it.