Common Mobile Home Repairs: What Every Mobile Home Owner Needs To Know

Let’s look at some typical repairs you will most likely undertake during your mobile home stay.

Mobile Home Skirting Repair

What is it?

Mobile home skirting is a series of panels that cover the space between the home and the ground or foundation. It is strongly recommended that every mobile home owner ensure their skirting is in good condition or install skirting if their home doesn’t have it.

Why repair it:

• Provides insulation
• Protects your home
• Makes your home more appealing
• Needed for financing
• No skirting or damaged skirting is illegal in some states

Common problems?

• Rusty or corroded plates
• Broking track
• Holes and dents

What do you need?

• Hammer
• Level
• Measuring tape
• Tin snips
• Caulk
• Utility knife
• Snaplock punch tool
• Vinyl or other material skirting kit.

Step by step fix up

To fix dents, cracks, or holes:

1. Catalog all the affected areas and identify your type of skirting.
2. Buy the necessary amount of tin snips, vinyl or relevant material.
3. Patch up areas and smooth over with caulk. Paint to finish.

To replace panels:

1. Before you do anything you need to take the measuring tape and note the dimensions of the space where your skirting will go.
2. Buy the amount of skirting you need. It usually comes in kits, which is unfortunate if you only want to replace one panel.
3. If needed, cut the skirting down to size.
4. According to the kit instructions remove the relevant panel and replace it with brand new skirting.

Mobile Home Roof Repair

What is it?

The most common types of materials that mobile home roofs are made of are aluminum, asphalt shingles, or rubber. Each has their own list of pros and cons. A home might also have a flat or pitched roof. Pitched roofs usually have better durability and water drainage than flat roofs.

Why repair it:

• Prevent water damage to your roof or walls
• Stop leaks
• Eliminate risk of roof collapse

Common problems?

• Water leaks or damage
• Physical damage from storm winds or hail
• Poor insulation or heat reflection
• Wear and tear (brown spots, peeling)
• Missing nails or screws

What do you need?

• Ladder
• Measuring tape
• Asphalt shingles/Roof-over membrane (preferably PTO)/Roof-over paint (Kool seal is highly recommended)
• Gloves
• Hard hat
• Hammer
• Paint brush, roller, rolling tray
• Nails or roof screws
• Screwdriver

Step by step fix up

1. Climb on your roof and identify the problems.
2. Buy the necessary materials:
   • If shingles are missing you will need to replace them.
   • Aluminium sheets for an aluminum roof with holes.
   • Peel-and-seal tape can be bought to fix rubber roofs easily.
   • It is a great option to buy a roof-over paint or membrane to finish off the job.
3. Safety first! Put on your hardhat and gloves before climbing up.
4. Fix the relevant issue:
   • Replace missing nails.
   • Replace damaged or missing aluminum plates or asphalt shingles. Or patch, putty and smooth down holes.
   • Apply roof-over paint or membrane for optimal results.

Mobile Home Door Repair

What is it?

As you can imagine, if every manufacturer made their doors according to whatever size and dimensions they felt like, things would be a mess. Luckily there is an industry standard which the overwhelming number of manufacturers keep to. This means replacing a door should be as easy as buying a new one and fastening it in place. Doors are usually made to meet the minimum standards and don’t offer much in the way of security or good looks.

Why repair it:

• Home security.
• Weather resistance.

Common problems?

• Bending and cracking due to mobile home movement.
• Not very secure.
• Doesn’t provide insulation from outside.
• Loose hinges.
• Uneven movement.

What do you need?

• A new door (if the door is damaged)
• New hinges (if damaged)
• Hammer
• Screws (should come with new door)
• Electric drill
• Measuring tape

Step by step fix up

1. If your door hinges are loose, the fix is as easy as tightening them with the screwdriver.
2. In the case where hinges are damaged, it could be as simple as unscrewing them, removing them from the doors, and screwing in the new hinges.
3. When screw holes are damaged, remove everything, fill them with caulk or putty, let dry and refasten the door.
4. Your door should be a standard size but make sure you buy the right door by taking the dimensions beforehand.

Mobile Home Window Repair

What is it?

Just like with mobile home doors, mobile home windows are usually constructed with standard sizes in mind but they will vary more than doors as there is no official “industry standard”. Replacing the whole window frame is a much harder process than simply replacing the window glass so we hope you only need to do the latter. We will provide a link to an article on how to replace a window frame below.

Common problems?

1. Broken window
2. Damaged window frame

What do you need?

For window glass replacement:

• Putty knife
• Wide slot screwdriver
• Pliers
• Razor knife
• Caulk
• New glass
• Lacquer thinner

For window frame replacement:

• All the above items
• Sealant
• Electric drill
• New window frame

Step by step fix up

1. First, make sure the screen is out of the way if present.
2. Remove the glazing beads by working the putty knife between them and the frame all along its length.
3. Remove the window carefully. If it’s stuck, use the razor to free it from the glazing caulk.
4. Scrape off the extra caulk from the frame with the putty knife and screwdriver and smooth of the surface by removing any residue.
5. Smear an uninterrupted ⅛” thick strip of caulk on the frame without any gaps.
6. Put the new glass in place but do not press on the center! It could break and injure you badly.
7. Slip in the glazing beads, longer sides first.

Here is the guide to replace a mobile home window frame.

Mobile Home Floor Repair

What is it?

We are sorry to say that mobile home floors are sometimes made of extremely cheap materials. Often, this is hidden by carpet or some other form of covering. You should always try and find out what kind of floor your mobile home has to know what risk of damage it runs. Wooden floors are the most common. A huge step in the right direction is replacing wood fiber board to water resistant plywood.

Common problems?

• Holes caused by impact damage
• Bent floorboards
• Water damage
• Unlevel floor – Could be due to your home’s foundation. We recommend that you have it inspected by a professional contractor.

Here’s a guide if you’re interested to know how to replace mobile home floor

What do you need?

• New plywood boards or linoleum.
• Flat screwdrivers
• Plywood glue
• Nails
• Circular saw
• Hammer

Step by step fix up

1. First of all, you need to determine the reason for the damage.
   • Remove the carpet (if any). Be careful so that you don’t extend the damage if you are not replacing the entire floor.
   • Water damage from pipes or wall/roof leaks is common. Fix these sources first.
2. Identify the areas that need to be fixed. Take note of how many boards will need to be replaced.
3. If the problem is bent floorboards, simply remove and replace them.
4. Cut out a square area of the plywood around the damage or hole.
5. Insert the new plywood and nail or glue it into place.
6. Alternatively, you can overlay the entire floor. Linoleum is an excellent and popular choice. The raised floor should not be a problem.

Mobile Home Bathroom Repair

What is it?

Because of the nature of the materials that are used in mobile homes, they are generally much more vulnerable to water damage. This means the bathroom is a danger area that should regularly be expected. It is behind most mobile home electrical problems once the water makes its way to the wiring. Faucets, bathtubs, and basins can also get damaged with time.

Common problems?

• Electrical water damage.
• General water damage.
• Bathtub or basin cracks.
• Irreparable shower pan or bathtub (should only be replaced by professional).
• Leaky faucets.

What do you need?

• Bathroom epoxy repair kit
• New faucets
• Putty
• Screwdriver

Step by step fix up

1. Obviously, the first step is to turn off the water and not use it again during the repair process. Also properly dry the working area.
2. The epoxy kit should have proper instructions. It’s relatively simple. You just smear the solution and let it dry for 20 or so minutes.
3. Unscrew whichever faucet needs to be replaced. Clear the area of any putty residue and fungus or whatever else is there.
4. Add the new putty, fix the new faucet in place, and screw it into place.
5. Hook back up the water and turn it back on.

Mobile Home Electrical Repairs

What is it?

Manufactured homes have varying degrees of electrical wiring quality. It is one of the areas where mobile home owners most commonly pick up problems. It can also be a leading cause of fires in a mobile home. Many electrical problems are a symptom of water damage. So it’s important to keep an eye on your plumbing. Another common cause of problems is DIY jobs performed by untrained people.

Due to the dangerous nature of working with electricity, we don’t advise anyone to partake in any repairs except for replacing worn out or water damaged outlets.

Common problems?

• Regular light bulb burnout.
• Sparks or arcing.
• Flickering lights.
• Blown fuses and circuits.
• Shorting appliances.

What do you need?

• Rubber gloves
• Screwdrivers
• Outlets (if replacing outlets)

Step by step fix up

1. Use the trip switches of each room or area of the home to narrow down the problem to a specific outlet or appliance by switching items on, using them, and seeing what trips the safety.
2. If the outlet is not working due to water damage you will need to look at the plumbing first.
3. Switch off all power to the home before attempting any repair work.
4. Once the area is dry and workable you can unscrew the outlet or switch. Here is a great guide that takes you through the following steps in-depth.
   1. Take note of which wires are connected where.
   2. Loosen the wire screws and pull them out.
   3. Fasten them to the correct locations on the new outlet.
   4. Put the outlet in place and fasten it to the wall with screws.

Mobile Home Plumbing Repairs

What is it?

Once again, as something that is hidden, who knows if your manufacturer has tried to cut costs or skimp on labor time. Pipes in mobile homes are also at greater risk of strain from when the home is being moved or from how mobile homes tend to bend and “settle” over time. The symptoms from leaky pipes will become apparent and should be treated very quickly before spreading and becoming worse.

Sometimes getting to the cause of the problem might mean that you would need to go through a wall, a less than ideal prospect. For most plumbing we recommend professionals. Although fixes, where the plumbing is exposed (under basins, faucets, or outside), are usually simple enough.

Common problems?

• Leaky connections
• Cracked pipes
• Frozen pipes during colder times

What do you need?

• Various wrenches, preferably adjustable ones
• Epoxy
• Replacement pipes (if necessary)
• Waterproof tape
• Couplings/Joint couplings
• A ruler or measuring tape

Step by step fix up

1. Turn off the water supply and let the pipes run dry.
2. Identify the pipes that need to be repaired or replaced.
3. If it’s as simple as a crack, just make sure the area is completely dry and apply the epoxy. Allow it to dry for 20 minutes before wiping off residue and finishing with waterproof tape.
4. If the pipes need to be replaced, identify whether you will need couplings or just pipes. Take measurements and make sure you buy the right replacements.
5. When removing and replacing tape, a handy tip is to tape the inner screw threads and screw the other pipe or coupling over it to make it more watertight.

This great guide shows you how to switch off water and solve low water pressure.

Truth be told, we could write a complete article on each type of repair as well as its various sub categories. We hope this has given you enough information to get a head start. Remember, never be afraid or ashamed to call a professional. Many problems can get exaggerated over time if not properly attended to. Don’t take chances with something as precious as your home!