Mobile Home Appliances

Manufactured home appliances

Mobile home appliances are generally the same as those used in site built homes and instructions for their care and repair are included with the owners manuals.

The exception is the range hood. Particularly in older homes the range hood used in mobile homes is much thinner that standard house range hoods. Before you take one out to replace it, measure carefully and make sure you have the properly sized replacement.

As always, when replacing water-using appliances, check very thoroughly for any water leaks. Use care in removing the original equipment to avoid spilling water unnecessarily.

Dishwasher drain and supply lines are often installed in a way that makes this hard to do. Get a couple of flat pans and place them under the dishwasher while removing it. It can be helpful to wrap a cloth around the ends of the pipes to slow any water leak. The drain hose holds a surprising amount of water.

A major annoyance is when a dishwasher is installed with supply and drain lines run through the legs of the dishwasher. Because of the countertop, there may not be room to lift the dishwasher enough to get the lines free which leaves the challenge of removing the lines before extracting the dishwasher. Do not pull the dishwasher out without checking for this situation. It may also be easier to disconnect the supply line from the shutoff valve and pull the whole piece out with the dishwasher. If the line gets crimped due to rough removal, it will have to be replaced.

Be careful of flooring as well. Appliances have a nasty habit of sticking to flooring or scraping it up when the feet get beneath the vinyl or linoleum. It is a good idea to lift the front before pulling it out.

Especially with the thin materials used in manufactured homes, a major linoleum replacement can be needed after a very brief bit of inattention when pulling out the appliance. The front feet are usually threaded screws so turning them counter-clockwise can provide the space necessary to lift the appliance and even fit some rags under the feet to protect the floor.

{ 4 comments… read them below }
Lagan
I am looking for Tappen stove top parts, 1984. cream colored for my manufactured home. the size is not standard so must try to find parts. do you know of a place in southern california I can locate parts?
Paul
I don’t, but maybe someone reading this does. Suggestions are welcome.

Moss Bliss
I am renting an older trailer with a Columbus (brand) electric range and oven. I’ve never seen one like this, the (conventional, not microwave) oven is mounted OVER the range. One of the range burners is not connected (missing the connector, but the element is there) and the thermostat in the oven is totally out (turn the oven on, it runs at higher temperatures than my oven thermometer can read). Any idea what I can do about these? I don’t even see replacement units like this.
Paul
You might check with MHParts.com and see if they show anything like this. If not, give them a call and ask them.