Hanging pictures in a mobile home requires more than just tapping in a picture hanger. Mobile home walls come in at only 1/4- to 3/8-inch thick; older mobile homes feature vinyl-coated walls and newer homes are outfitted with 3/8-inch drywall. In contrast, stick-built homes have a minimum of 1/2-inch drywall. Thin drywall and vinyl coated walls hold little weight, making installation via a stud or use of a wall anchor necessary when hanging pictures in a mobile home.
Step 1
Position a center-finding stud finder in the area where you want to hang the picture and slide it along the wall until it beeps. Mark this point with a pencil at the height you want to hang the picture. Mobile home studs are narrower than those in stick-built homes, as small as 1-inch by 2-inch. A center-finding stud finder enables you to pinpoint the exact center of each stud, ensuring stability for your picture and minimizing damage to walls.
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Step 2
Stand back from the wall. Determine if the stud placement works with your desired picture location. If not, mark the wall where want the upper edge of the picture frame to sit.
Step 3
Measure from the upper edge of the picture frame down to the hanging hardware on the back. If the frame features a wire, pull the wire taut towards the top of the frame and measure the distance from this point to the upper edge of the picture. Write this down.
Step 4
Measure down from the mark on the wall the distance between the frame edge and the hanging hardware on the back. Mark this point with a pencil and erase the mark above it.
Step 5
Read the wall anchor packaging and note the pilot hole size recommended by the manufacturer if you're not hanging the picture directly on a stud. Outfit your drill with this size bit, or a bit that corresponds with the screw you're using to secure the picture to a stud, and drill a pilot hole into the wall. Remember, mobile home walls are thin; drill slowly so as not to damage anything behind the wall.
Step 6
Squeeze the prongs at end of the wall anchor together and push it through the pilot hole. The clips expand once they reach the other side of the wall. Some varieties may require that you screw the anchor in rather than push it. Follow manufacturer directions.
Step 7
Secure the screw to the wall directly into the stud or into the wall anchor, leaving the head jutting out a small amount.
Step 8
Hang the picture frame on your mobile home wall, sliding the picture frame hanger over the screw head. Adjust the frame until it's level.
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