Water is the most obvious and the biggest enemy to the floor of your mobile home. The floor needs to be repaired every now and then. Mobile home floor repair task is a bit laborious and time-consuming. Generally, professionals are hired for the same. But if you want to do it yourself this time, here is an article to support your efforts. Moreover, what else could compare to the satisfaction you get by maintaining and repairing your home on your own. Let's try it out.
In order to repair a mobile home floor, you need certain tools like hammers, chisels, screwdrivers, saws, and safety goggles. While working with such tools, your prime concern should be your safety. The safest way of self-protection here is to follow the tools' guidelines and work cautiously. Never forget to wear goggles. You may feel it an extra weight on your eyes, but it would protect you from splinters of wood or iron that may come flying into your eyes.
Mobile home floor repair takes place in two major steps - removal of the old floor boards, and installation of the new floor. Read on to know the details of each step.
Removal of Damaged or Old Floor: If you have installed any kind of floor covering or carpet on the floor, remove it. Mark down the lines that are square with the floor beams or support. The beams that support the floor boards are called joists. Set the saw to a bit deeper than the floor and saw out the damaged board. Make use of the lines you have put down as a guide. In this manner, you can saw out all the floor boards one by one. In case only a part of the floor is damaged and you do not intend to repair the entire house floor, then rip out only the damaged section and work on that part. For the floor along the wall, you would need to chip out the old boards. When the removal work is done, clean the joists thoroughly, especially the top portion. Ensure that the joists are flat. With cleaning, the removal step is accomplished.
Installation of New Floor: The floor boards are of two types, differing in the dimensions alone. One is a two by four and the other is a two by six. Your choice depends on the dimensions of the joists which you have installed in your home. The following description is based on two by six floor boards. The entire method is the same for each type.
The installation of the new floor starts with framing the two by six boards between the floor beams. Here, in this step, you need to apply the technique of floor board installation. Install the two by six boards in such a way that only half of the floor joist supports the edge of one two by six, and the other half is left to support the edge of another two by six floor board. Make sure that all the floor boards have their edges supported by the floor joists. Screw in the two by sixes and run through the ends at an angle so they go through the floor joists. By going on in this manner, you would easily complete the framing work. After the framing is over, clean the framework to remove any humps in the new floor. Make it a point to keep the thickness of the floor the same as, or at least near the same as, the thickness of the old floor. You can use shim stock on the new floor to bring it in level with the existing floor. You can make use of floor fillers to even up those areas which aren't flush. If you are not satisfied with the leveling of the boards, you can take out the boards and replace them. Ensure that all the two by sixes have been secured to the framework. Sweep away all the debris from the area. Now you can spread the carpet or the floor covering again. If you find the floor covering is too old or not good enough for the newly installed floor, this is the time you can plan to install a new carpet.
If you do floor repair yourself, you would not only save money but would always cherish the experience of doing something for the home you love so much.
