Ceiling material

[Ostracon]

Hi all,

I've been lurking off and on for a while now, but this is my first new thread.

We've been looking at getting a newer mobile home (the one we're in was a 'dufer' as we needed a place to live in a hurry). I've been looking on various MH specific sites as well as real estate sites. One of the specifications they list is hard panel, soft panel or drywall ceilings.

Since drywall is obvious, my question is to the difference between hard and soft panel. Just from what I have seen posted on these sites, I suspect that 'hard panel' is the 4' wide fiber panel that is held up with rosettes in the center and battens at the edges (like the one we're in now), and 'soft panel' is the 16"(?) wide panels with the plastic strips connecting them together.

I'm speculating this because some agents put "hard panel" when the ceiling panels are the narrower ones with the strips. Just from some of the homes I've checked out, and the discrepancies I've caught with the listings (in some cases it's as if the realtor didn't even see the home before they listed it ) I haven't been able to lock down a definition.

What say ye?

Thanks in advance!

[Greg]

My guess- and that's all it is would be that "Soft" Is the the fiber type board, not sure how common they are in newer homes. I would think that "Hard" & Drywall would be the same thing, different name.

Greg

[Ostracon]

Thanks for the reply Greg. Sorry I didn't reply earlier as we have been in negotiations on another home. :fingers crossed:

It's hard to say what their terminology is because I've found listings that say drywall also. I suspect the online listing form they fill out has check boxes or 'radio buttons' and is open to interpretation (and influenced by experience level, or lack thereof) of the agent filling out the form.

The MH we're in now (1964 Bendix 10x47 with a small tipout) has the 4' panels with rosettes 24"OC, made of brown fiber, which is about 1/2" thick. I've only lived in one MH with the plastic strips mannnyyy years ago, and it was briefly, without a cause to open it up to see how it's made. What is the usual material that those panels are made of?

The reason we're in the market for a newer one is we just can't justify putting any money into this one other than cosmetic stuff (paint, light fixtures, outlets, etc) because it would turn into a money pit that we would never be able to get a return on. This home needs a lot of work even before updates like windows, rubber roof, etc, starting with rip out of the ceiling panels to fix the roof trusses (sagging over 3" in the livingroom). Might as well pile up the money in the street and set it afire.

And at the end of it all, it's still a '64 that can't be moved to another park should this one be shut down as ordinance doesn't allow set up of MHs older than 1976 in a park (on private land only). While I don't expect this to happen to our current park, several parks in the area have been bought out by developers looking for cheap land inside the urban growth boundary. Although it was done mostly during the peak of the housing boom and the crash has for the most part put a stop to that (along with new legislation protecting park residents with recourse), it is something to consider.

It has provided us with a place to start over after the economic crash (and me losing my job after a disabling work injury) and we were able to get into it with an owner-carry that is transferable. We will sell it for the balance of the loan (under $4K) and it's in better shape now than when we moved in (although still needs some updating). We want to pay-it-forward and help somebody else get re-established.