new single wide, cracks in ceiling,buckling vinyl floor

[helena]

I live in Montana and we've had a brand new Friendship 16x76 single wide for a few months. It's on a Magnum foundation system and concrete blocks. The last few weeks, we've had a lot of snow.

The other night, I heard a loud crack from the roof over the master bedroom (there was about a foot or so of snow on the roof at the time) and the next day, noticed a couple of hairline cracks along the ceiling on the side of the house the cracking sound came from. I also noticed that the vinyl floor in the kitchen and bathroom seem to be buckling slightly in some parts, not lying completely flat the way it was before.

Is this a major cause for concern, or a normal part of a new house "settling"?

[David Oxhandler]

Not really normal....

All structures settle and most of the time the majority of settlement occurs in the first year. Settlement that is violent enough that you hear a loud crack is not normal. A loud crack could be the sound of settlement but considering your floor is no longer flat the problem could very well be a cracked floor joist and/or a failed foundation support.

Take a look under the home to see if there is anything that looks different than it did before. Your home is brand new and so still under warranty. The problem could be a factory warranty problem or an installation problem .... either way you should be entitle to a full repair and restoration.

Contact your retailer, relate what happened and request a service call. Let them send out a factory authorized service rep to investigate the problem. Listen to what they say happened and what they plan to do to make corrections. Dont be afraid to insist that your floor and structure be restored to its original condition.

Come back here and let us know how things progress

[trmimo]

These are likely unrelated issues. Loose floor tile is very common in homes built during the cold months. It is probably not a structural issue, it is more likely that the tile was too cold when it was laid, or the roll of tile was allowed to sag somewhat before the tile was installed. Your retailer or Friendship will send someone out to relay it. Call your retailer and have your ceiling and roof looked at. Your ceiling cracks may or may not be connected to the noise you heard. The hairline cracks may have been there before but weren't noticed. These are common in new homes from transit stresses. I would suspect a broken roof truss before a floor joist in this case. And those are rare. It is pretty easy to tell if you have a broken truss because there will be a noticeably weak spot when walking on the roof. Settling is pretty rare while the ground is frozen, however frost heave is a possibility, which would be caused by too shallow of a footing and or too much moisture under the house.