How to Inspect & Repair Mobile Home or Trailer Roofs

Mobile home roof inspection guide
- Lists & photographs of roofing defects found on the roofs of mobile homes, trailers, double-wides & static caravans
Questions & Answers about mobile home and trailer roof leaks, damage, diagnosis, & repair methods
References

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How to Inspect the Roofs of Mobile Homes for Defects: detailed procedures, defect lists, references to standards. This article describes common sources of leaks and other problems with roofs used on doublewides, caravans, mobile homes & trailers.

Guide to Trailer & Mobile Home ROOFING DEFECTS - Inspecting for Mobile Home Roofing Defects

Mobile home with bad roof (C) Daniel Friedman

Our photos above show leak-prone low-slope roofs on mobile homes. Behind the home at above right you can see that a steeper gabled roof has been added on that home - a roof less likely to be a source of chronic leaks.

Doublewide roof leak risk points (C) D Friedman S Vermilye

Ver.4.0 - 04/25/07, 08/15/2012 - 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. Our photo at page top shows inspector Steve Vermilye on a double-wide trailer roof shows areas of ponding and a history of tar patching - Ulster County New York.

Low slope mobile home roofs (above left) are at risk of leaks in part because of their slower drainage rate and due to sagging with age.

Our photo at left illustrates reliance on roofing mastic to seal a water heater vent that is itself partly blocked - a double hazard.

Our photo at left shows tar spills on the side of a mobile home whose roof was coated in attempts to stop leaking.

31% of mobile homes had roof problems; (C. R. survey)
Flat or near-flat roofs, may be covered with conventional shingles (slope too low)

Chimneys or plumbing vents "patched-over" so as to be blocked, and are frequently missing caps, a functional problem for the heater and a potential fire hazard.

Dents and ponding on mobile home roofs, and leaks at seams (patching with roof cement fixes leaks but corrodes metal)

Mobile home roofs with no roof eaves overhang (common design such as our photo at above left) contribute to frequent leaks in walls at windows or wall tops;
Shingled roofs on mobile homes usually have overhang (added?); flat roofs don't. Metal roof seams leak;

Our photo below shows six mobile home or doublewide home roofs that demonstrate a variety of materials and venting approaches. (Sorry for the big (C) mark.)

Mobile home roof covered with roll roofing (C) Daniel Friedman

Watch out: At ROOFING INSPECTION & REPAIR we provide a series of detailed articles about building roof selection, installation, inspection, troubleshooting and repair.

But an additional roof inspection limitation for mobile homes is that some home roofs are not constructed to tolerate foot traffic without damage or bending or sagging - don't walk on fragile roof surfaces.

Static caravan roof with several leak or heating concerns (C) D Friedman S Vermilye

Our photo at above left illustrates mineral granule coated roll roofing overlaid on a mobile home roof.

At above right is a roof detail presenting a high risk of leakage - this hole was found by Steve Vermilye while walking the roof shown at the top of this page. It would not have been evident even from a ladder-at-roof-edge inspection.

Our photo at left shows a low sloped no-eaves roof over a static caravan. In addition to a clue that roof spillage has annoyed people enterin and exiting at the home's doorway, notic that there are three roof penetrations, all with leak and safety and operating concerns: rus, flashing, tar-repairs, and missing chimney cap.

It is always best to inspect a roof from "up close" even if roof conditions mean the roof should not be walked-on. But if the roof is not directly accessible for any reason, every safe reasonable effort should be made to obtain view and inspection.

Structural Properties & Components of Mobile Home or Caravan Roofs

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1x lumber frame with aluminum covering, typical of campers and some older trailers or mobile homes
Wood-framed low to medium sloped roofs covered with metal, asphalt shingles, roll roofing
Roof structures with no overhang - extra leak risks at eaves and walls
Roof structures with soffit/eaves overhang
Interior roof / ceiling integral structured roofs
Roof insulation properties:
- Solid foam varying in thickness from 1"
- Fiberglass batts in wood framed roofs or add-on roofs on older units (watch out for inadequate under roof ventilation & ensuing condensation problems)

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about roof inspection, leaks, leak repairs in mobile homes, trailers, doublewides

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Questions & answers or comments about mobile home and trailer roof leaks, damage, diagnosis, & repair methods

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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

Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.

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.

Or choose the The Home Reference eBook for PCs, Macs, Kindle, iPad, iPhone, or Android Smart Phones. Special Offer: For a 5% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference eBook purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAEHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space.

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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