The Manufactured Housing Forums

I purchased a 1999 Marshfield approximately 1.5 years ago and have had problems with one half of the double wide making very LOUD noises. It is very aggravating. I have asked several people what this could be from. I have been told that it is where the plumbing runs and that is why the noises appear from the running water. I do agree with this however the floors make the same noise starting from one end and runnng to the other when there is no water running (in the middle of the night etc.). Sometimes it sounds like someone is walking down the hall. I really would like to get this repaired somehow. Does anyone have any ideas? Also could this possibly be from the mobile home needing to be releveled? Or maybe a combination of both plumbing and releveling?

Thanks for your help

Hard call from here.... If the noise is occurring when there is no activity in the house (middle of the night) and when the water is not being used it is tough to figure how the plumbing could be making noise?

Is your air unit, furnace or washer or dryer on that side of the home... or anything that might cause vibration?

While You should NOT try to level your home by yourself. The operations involved in jacking and raising the home can be very dangerous and should be attempted only by experienced individuals. If you want to check to see if you home is out of level get the inexpensive Releveling Kit from Aberdeen Repair The kit includes complete step-by-step instructions and a waterline level. Use these instructions and the enclosed waterline level to determine whether or not your home is out of level.

Yes all plumbing--furnace--waterheater--central air and washer dryer are on that half of the home. Can you think of anything else this could be? The noises also happen when none of that is running or being used.

Thanks for your help--any ideas would be helpful..

Well.... I am grasping at straws here because, again, it is difficult to tell anything from this distance. If all those mechanical items that cause vibration seem to be off when the noise happens that leaves the water heater.

I would shut down the water heater. You will find a breaker in the inside electric panel (usually a double breaker). It is possible that the noise could be a result of the water heater getting hotter or cooler. Cooling and heating can cause expansion and contraction that might be responsible.

If you still hear the noise, leave the water heater off and one by one turn off the breakers for the air, heat, and laundry machines. It is possible that the air or heat have a fan that starts up, or continues to run even when there is no demand for hot or cool air.

Again if you think the sounds may be caused by settlement check the level of your home as recommended above. Have you looked under the home to see if there is anything unusual going on under there?

What type of sound is it?? Buzz?, Hummm, Pop ? Whats it sound like is happeneing ?

I have not looked under the home. I wouldn't even know what to look for so I will have to hire someone to try to figure out what the problem is.

It sometimes sounds like someone walking across the floor. The noise travels at times from one end to the other. I do hear it when the water is running from the dishwasher or letting the water out of the bathtub etc. So I am assuming the plumbing has something to do with the noises but it is also happening when the water is not running. This is very difficult to try to explain and I am sure for you also. I was hoping that someone else would have had the same problem and found a solution.

I have to add one more thing regarding the noise. When walking across the floor this is also happening with no water running.

Could be loose floor boards or a loose air/heat duct. Are the ducts in the floor? If so you need to get somone under there to see if the duct work is loose.. it may be loose enought to rattle when you walk across the floor and to make noise as it expands and contracts at night.

Thank you so much. I have taken your suggestions and really tried to listen to whats happening. Loose floorboards seems to be what I am coming up with. Will tightening the lags take care of that? The noises are more than just a little squeak.

In the early 1980's I had a mobile home repair service. At that time there were 10 MH factories with-in 20 miles of where we live and each was kicking out ten floors a day. There were so many new homes that the factories had to outsource the warranty service.

I dispatched a man and a truck to a dealership in Jacksonville FL. The sales manager was a VERY big man . The problem - as he walked prospects through our factory's homes the floors creaked and snapped and clunked. He did not have this problem with the competitors homes... Or any of the used homes taken in trade.... Only our factory's homes.

My service guy called me on the phone to report that the upgraded floor decking installed in the factory was never nailed down. Apparently the gun used to shoot the floor nails was defective that day. You could see the gun had been used as there were impact marks from the empty shots. But not a single fastener in any floor board.... You might need to just nail the floor boards down ??? ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE....

I have another question regarding a problem I am having with a toilet. The previous owners had caulked around the bottom of the toilet. I removed the caulk and about 6 months later I noticed a leak around the bottom of the toilet. We pulled the toilet up to replace the wax ring and noticed that the was ring had the entire front of the wax missing. We replaced the ring and toilet and noticed when sitting on the toilet it happened to be too high in the front. Well we let it be and a couple hours later the leak started again. In placing the level on the bowl we noticed that it is not level. We checked the floor around the toilet and the floor seems to be level. I also checked the other toilet in the house and it too is not level, and I have no leaks with that one. Could it be that the toilets were made wrong? Shouldn't they be level? Any suggestions?