How to Inspect Mobile Home Structures - part 2, Piers, Stabilizers, Tie-downs, Multi-wide connections

Mobile home structural inspection guide - part 2: piers & supports, wind ratings, tie downs, etc.
- Common mobile home structural defects: Piers, stabilizers and tie-down for mobile homes, trailers, double-wides, multi-wide connections
- Safety and building codes for mobile homes, double-wides, and trailers, also some campers
Questions & answers about inspecting the structual components of mobile homes, doublewides, trailers.
References

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How to Inspect Mobile Homes or Manufactured Housing for Structural Defects: special attention to tie-downs, hurricane and storm damage prevention, and special connections between sections of double-wide and multi-wide mobile homes.

MOBILE HOME PIERS - Mobile Home Pier Foundations

Ver.3.5 - 04/25/07, updated through 2012 - Steve Vermilye, New Paltz NY and Daniel Friedman, Poughkeepsie NY, Hudson Valley ASHI Chapter Seminar, Newburgh NY, January 4, 2000, NY Metro ASHI Fall 99 Seminar, Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza, White Plains NY, October 2, 1999.

slab preferred; assure good drainage away (risk undermined piers); (Floating or on frost footings ok)
missing or improper tie-downs against storm damage (Northridge disaster & in FL); tie-downs may be driven or screwed into ground; cables must be taut.
improper masonry piers-blocks on sides, stacked debris, removed chassis, water-undermined piers; footings/piers often not below frost line; reinforced floating slab may work ok;
piers at excessive intervals (more than 6-8 feet and/or closer than 3 ft. to the ends of the home)
piers missing at large sidewall openings (sliders) or at tip-outs or expanded units or under fireplaces.
masonry piers: properly-stacked blocks, hardwood or treated wood or concrete cap, shims; piers sit on 16"x16"x4" concrete pad, pre cast or poured in place, or 12" x 20" treated wood;
Piers less than 36" high can be single-stacked 8x8x16" block with the long 16" dimension perpendicular to the frame;
Piers 36" to 80" high and all corner piers of more than 3 blocks high shall be double-blocked with interlocking alternating courses and capped with 5x16x16 solid concrete block or equivalent;
Piers more than 80" high must be double blocked, alternating courses, laid in mortar and steel reinforcing rods set in block cells and cells filled with concrete.

NO more than 4" of wood in space between pier and frame; No more than 1" thick shims and must be tight;
Metal stands (jacks) on soil surface likely to shift/tip/settle; Steel piers should be on concrete soil pads/footings;
Settlement: may show up as hard-to-operate windows/doors;
Our photo (left) shows sloppy pier and shim installation, set on soft soil, tipping. It is important to take a look under a mobile home or trailer you're thinking of buying. Those hard-to-get-in spots often contain costly surprises.

STABILIZING SYSTEMS - Tie Downs for Mobile Homes

Our photo at left shows that although this trailer has been placed on a concrete slab foundation, it still rests on its wheels and on temporary jack stands. No piers, no tie-downs, no permanent support was provided.

DEFINITIONS:

Stabilizing Devices: all components of the anchoring & support systems
Support System: combination of footings, piers, caps, shims that support the home
Anchoring System: system to resist overturning and lateral movement
Anchoring Equipment: combination of straps, cables, turnbuckles, chains and tensioning devices.
Anchor: device secured in the ground (Screw or other)

This mobile home frame (photo at left) has been set on dry-laid concrete blocks, with plywood shims. But the blocks rest directly on soil. This is not a reliable support system and may not be permitted by local building codes. The tie-down cables are in place but we could not find that their free end was connected to anything.
Tie down materials for mobile homes, trailers, double-wides: cable, chain, strap and tensioning device;
Diagonal tie downs for mobile homes, or frame straps, at 45 deg. angle attach to main frame at one end and to ground at other to resist lateral movement; Ground anchor should be about at same angle as the strap;
Tie downs for mobile homes may be vertical;
Diagonal tie downs for double-wide units are required only at outside rails of each unit; Vertical straps or ground straps resist uplift and overturn, required only for hurricane or wind zones;
The number and placement of tie downs for mobile homes and trailers depends on the wind zone in which the home is located and the length of the structure. For example, a 65' trailer would need 2 to 3 vertical tie downs per side, or 4 to 6 tie downs per side if diagonal tie downs are used, depending on which wind zone it's in.
Connection requirements for mobile home and trailer tie downs: the mobile home tie down is connected to the steel I-beam at specific locations provided by the manufacturer; typically strap wraps around the I-beam.

Tie downs for mobile homes, trailers, double-wides are usually expected to be placed and connected according to details provided in the mobile home installation manual (have you ever seen one?). If you know your mobile home or trailer model name and perhaps serial number, you may be able to contact the mobile home manufacturer to ask for an installation manual.

Links to more detailed mobile home or trailer tie-down installation specifications, methods, and advice can be found at Structural Advice.

MULTI-WIDE CONNECTIONS - Multi-Wide Mobile Home unit connections:

lag screws or through bolts at adjacent mate beams, especially important if the manufacturer has support columns under only half of the home;
hinged roof connections require that king posts be site-installed and metal uplift straps secured to the mate lien wall and roof assembly once the hinged roof is up;

[ See DRAWINGS from the NYS book]

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about piers & tiedowns in mobile homes, trailers, doublewides

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Technical Reviewers & References

Related Topics, found near the top of this page suggest articles closely related to this one.

[1] Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee Program, U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development, web search 1/5/2012, original source: portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/public_indian_housing/ih/homeownership/184 - Quoting:
The Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee Program is a home mortgage specifically designed for American Indian and Alaska Native families, Alaska Villages, Tribes, or Tribally Designated Housing Entities. Section 184 loans can be used, both on and off native lands, for new construction, rehabilitation, purchase of an existing home, or refinance.
Also see Freddie Mac & Fannie Mae
[2] Native American Housing Loan Guarantee Program HUD Section 184 Loans At A Glance, FannieMae, web search 1/5/12, original source: efanniemae.com/sf/mortgageproducts/pdf/section184aag.pdf
[3] Mobile Home Inspections - Daniel Friedman & Steven T. Vermilye
[4] Trailer vs Mobile Home vs Modular vs Panelized Construction an explanation of terms and how to identify these structures.
[5] "Modular Home Construction, special defects and inspection methods" Dan Friedman, NY Metro ASHI Seminar, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, White Plains NY, October 4, 1996
[6] MOBILE HOME INSPECTIONS
[7] Trailer vs Mobile Home vs Modular vs Panelized Construction an explanation of terms and how to identify these structures.
[8] "Modular Home Construction, special defects and inspection methods" Dan Friedman, NY Metro ASHI Seminar, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, White Plains NY, October 4, 1996
[9] New York State: "Manufactured Homes: an installation guide for the code enforcement official," undated. [Div. of Code Enforcement & Admin. - 518-474-4073, George E. Clark, Jr., Director] - this is a guide tool, not an enforcement code or standard.
[10] HUD State Administrative Agency (for 36 states) (NY: 518-474-4073) - for complaints
[11] Manufactured Housing Institute, 2101 Wilson Blvd. Ste. 610, Arlington VA 22201 703-558-0400 www.mfghome.org
[12] NYMHA, 35 Commerce Ave., Albany NY 12206-2015 518-435-9859 800-721-HOME (they want the Star Program to provide for separate assessment of manufactured homes)
[13] Consumer Reports: www.consumerreports.org - special report 2/98
[14] Mobile Home Inspection Checklist, Florida, Town of Lady Lake Building Department
[15] Thanks to home inspector Peter Bennett for eagle-eye editing assistance regarding spelling at this web article series. Little Silver, NJ 07739 Office 732-758-9887 Fax 732-758-8993 Cell 732-245-9817 afullhouseinspectionco@gmail.com
[16] Wikipedia provided background information about some topics discussed at this website provided this citation is also found in the same article along with a " retrieved on" date. NOTE: because Wikipedia entries are fluid and can be amended in real time, we cite the retrieval date of Wikipedia citations and we do not assert that the information found there is necessarily authoritative. - Entry on Mobile Homes, original source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_home#Regulation, retrieved 8/14/2012

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

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The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 25th Ed., 2012, is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume. Special Offer: For a 10% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference Book purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space. InspectAPedia.com editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author.

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Building inspection education & report writing systems from Carson, Dunlop & Associates Ltd

Crawl Space Moisture Control, U.S. Department of Energy
Domestic Building Surveys, Andrew R. Williams, Kindle book, Amazon.com
Defects and Deterioration in Buildings: A Practical Guide to the Science and Technology of Material Failure, Barry Richardson, Spon Press; 2d Ed (2001), ISBN-10: 041925210X, ISBN-13: 978-0419252108. Quoting:
A professional reference designed to assist surveyors, engineers, architects and contractors in diagnosing existing problems and avoiding them in new buildings. Fully revised and updated, this edition, in new clearer format, covers developments in building defects, and problems such as sick building syndrome. Well liked for its mixture of theory and practice the new edition will complement Hinks and Cook's student textbook on defects at the practitioner level.
Moisture Control in Buildings, U.S. Department of Energy
Moisture Control in Walls, U.S. Department of Energy
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