sundance-communications.com Forums Telephone Services Cabling Telephones Systems Wiring Cabling Trailers/Mobile Homes

I've got a service call to do later this week for ndt @ 2 jacks in a mobile home. It will be a first for me. I've heard that a lot of things in mobile homes are not standard sizes - would the cabling/wallplates be standard? Also, if I have to cut into anything (walls or floor), what type of material might I run into - paneling and metal?

Anyone who has worked on these, if you have any caveats, tips or advice, I'd appreciate it. I've no idea on the make or year of the building, just that it is high enough off of the ground to walk under.

Jack

If it's that high off the ground that's one heck of a plus. The floors are insulated, once you drill through the flooring simply push the bit through, don't continue to drill you don't want to drill through something you shouldn't. I use long flags and push them through to pull my wire up or down. Typical trailer thin walls so no fishing, unless you're mighty good. All blocks should be standard. If it's a prewired double wide there will be a box somewhere in the middle where the wires will be pulled to and you'd need to splice them together usually on one end or the other and well hidden.

Ive done my share over the years and very few had any provisions for phone, like Bill said once you penetrate the floor stop drilling and push through the insulation and vapor barrier

I use a glow rod with some pull string on it to pull from inside and a gopher pole or the like to grab the string without having to crawl underneath

be sure you keep the wire off the ground as rodents like to chew on it

be careful when pulling your cable that it doesn't get chewed up by the tie downs

plan on using biskit jacks or flush mount with a surface box

Just picture a big Coke can on blocks. You don't even need a drill, an old screwdriver will do.

-Hal

Ive actually done just that when the battery died on the cordless and I wanted to get done and out

old screwdriver some back and forth and I'm through the particle board floor

I wasn't kidding either. I've done it too.

-Hal

Biscuit jacks at the baseboard are probably your safest option, picky homeowners or brand new homes probably will mean flush jacks. Either way I doubt you'll find it any more difficult to fish than a standard home.

Mobile homes tend to be wood stick frame construction. The interior partition walls can be quite thin, 2x2 or 2x3 or 2x4 framing. Look at a doorjamb to judge it. Walls can be 1/4" or 3/8" vinyl faced drywall, 1/8" wood paneling or regular 1/2" drywall.

The last factory fresh mobile I hooked up had mudrings with blank plates and emt stubs through the floor. The owner had specified locations when ordering.

On interior walls, try not to install a jack over the same joist cavity where there is an air vent from the furnace. Pushing a glo-rod through the insulation and the bag underneath isn't fun when you hit a duct right under your hole.

Between the frame rails the insulation bag will sag to allow room for ducts and plumbing. If you cut that bag for access you must repair it with suitable tape or you will be responsible for frozen pipes. Best just to poke a flag through and pull the wire though a tiny hole.

You can feel the floor joists at the frame and outside it. A standard cable stapler is all you should need to secure your wire to them.

One old mobile I worked on had what seemed to be heavy angle iron in the area of the bottom wall plate, at the end where the hitch would be. Usually all the steel is below the floor joists but this one gave me fits. It was going to be re-drywalled to make office space so a chopped hole at each stud got my wire over a few feet to a chunk of bottom plate where there was no steel.

Thanks for the replies everyone. I hadn't thought about phone not being integrated with ther trailer at time of construction, so I'll order a few biscuit jacks. Charles - great tip on patching up insulation - I hadn't thought about frozen pipes. Ditto Skip re: rodents.

Now, if it would STOP RAINING for a day or two while the HO is off, everything would be great!

Jack