Bain

Good question. I found something similar just last week. The panel was installed on the exterior wall of an 8" x 16" CMU building. I assumed condensation was forming on the neutral lug because the hots were better "insulated" by the plastic. Click to Enlarge 55.13 KB Click to Enlarge 64.98 KB

You are dead on, unsurprisingly. I read the other part of this thread that was split or deleted earlier, and my first thought was that the furnace was UNDERsized, not grossly oversized. The only thing I would add is that the ductwork should be checked. There may not be enough supply runs and, as you said, the return trunks may not be large enough. There could be other issues that need addressing, as well. But like Rob said, the schmuck who advised you to replace the entire system might be a little lacking in integrity.

I don't want to paint with strokes that are too broad. There's a structural engineering group here that's excellent, but there are also some hacks. I think the engineers who are on top of their games when it comes to residential are autodidacts who learn codes and best practices post-college to supplement their wider knowledge base. I have a friend who's a mechanical engineer. He designs cranes and it's fascinating how much thought and planning goes into the minutest of details. But when his dog chewed through his backdoor? He called me to show him how to hang the replacement door.

John, Do you explain that in the report, or verbally? Here's what I found on a quick Google search: Can trusses be modified at the jobsite? NO, unless approved in advance. Superior Truss is legally responsible for the engineering integrity of the light gauge steel truss system. Only Superior Truss can authorize field repairs in writing in advance. The required modifications or repairs are required to be documented by engineered, stamped truss modification drawings designed specifically for the modification or repair. If modifications or repairs are completed without approved stamped truss modification drawings, all truss warranties and support will be null and void and the party making such modifications or repairs will take full legal responsibility for the structural performance of the roof system. A fair question, and also a deserved one. I realize it sounds namby-pamby to say it depends on the circumstances, the age of the house, and how long the stairs have been in place, but it’s the truth. I verbally explain that someone has done something inane and it needs to be repaired. As for the report, though, I normally write something like, “The lower chords of two roof trusses were completely severed to accommodate the attic staircase. I didn’t observe any adverse consequences, but structural trusses aren’t permitted to be cut or altered in any way. It would be prudent to have an experienced carpenter reinforce the affected truss-chords to mitigate this condition.â€

It's a personal choice, but if the house hasn't displayed any adverse reaction to a DIY alteration, it seems silly to me to have a client spend four hundred bucks on an engineer who may or may not have a clue about what he's looking at. Every case is different, but if a couple of chords were cut for access into an attic, I'm happy to explain to someone how some galvanized hangers and maybe some perpendicular blocking can make certain the assembly maintains stasis. Whenever I have a client who's an engineer, I make a point of--politely--asking how much they know about building codes, framing, and foundational issues. Civil engineers by far are the most knowledgable. But the ones who are comfortable in their own skin freely admit they pretty much know nothing about residential construction.

Though often misunderstood, subtlety and subtext make life interesting. I'm sure plenty of folks saw my post in Chad's birthday thread and thought, "Man, this Bain guy must hate this Fabry guy's guts . . . "

Ben, The term "dirt leg" is quite common around here for reasons I'm unaware of, so I understand why you used it. But . . . as the others have already said, "sediment trap" is more appropriate.

I replaced a trap on one of my sinks this afternoon, and finally--after a year of looking at PVC--got around to installing a three-dollar trim piece near the wall. The cylindrical escutcheon plate . . . why do you think they call it a "box pattern" when it's round? Because it "boxes in" the couplings? Click to Enlarge 41.07 KB

That settles it: I'm moving to Alabama to sell de-icing equipment. Well . . . look who decided he didn't want to try nice, after all. The photo's slightly out of focus, and I can't appreciate anything about the white gizmo. Can you tell us anything about it, Phillip?

I did, indeed, bust the double-tap and also--ummm, very professionally, mind you--cover the lens with a finger and crane my neck like a damn idiot to see if any light fixtures illuminated. They didn't. That's why I asked you guys what the thing was. I was fairly certain it was a photo-electric sensor, but I didn't want to find out down the road that it was some sort of nuclear device or stun-system for teenagers who broke curfew.

You're mistaken. Check out the link.

High praise. Thank you. Lots of manufacturers have the model codes listed on their web sites. You can typically go to SPECIFICATIONS, then NOMENCLATURE and see what every number or letter means. Click the link below to check out a similar label to the one in your original post. http://www.goodmanmfg.com/Portals/0/pdf/SS/SS-GSC13.pdf

The number you aren't considering is the "1." Lately, Janitrol and Goodman are putting the SEER rating in the model number. What you're looking at is a 13 SEER, 3 ton unit.

You were typing while I was. None of the other townhouses had similar gizmos on the disconnect enclosures. I wonder if my unit was supplying power to a faux streetlight or something.

That occurred to me, too. I just didn't know. We've had threads before that discuss how surge protectors are (wrongly, but typically )double-tapped into the SE lugs, so that's how I made the connection. I did, of course, hold my finger over the lens/sighthole to see if anything energized, but without any luck.

No, you were right. I don't care about any of this.

. . . on the lower/left, exterior of the enclosure? My first though was a day/night sensor, but there wasn't anything obvious that it would have controlled. Click to Enlarge 46.22 KB Click to Enlarge 56.06 KB

No it doesn't. And it's a bad thing. You're simply wrong . . . .

First of all, that's 20% oversized, not 25%. - Jim Katen, Oregon It depends upon how you interpret the figgers. 25% of 80,000 is 20,000, so the 100,000 BTU unit would be 25% too large.

HOW TO PROPERLY DERATE A GAS FURNACE: Click to Enlarge 55.14 KB Click to Enlarge 51.95 KB (Kurt, I'm not trying to hijack your thread.)

That is true, you can de-rate a furnace however you'd have to get the blessing from the manufacture (also the client would forever be suspect and blame you for the latest invasion of slab ants and Aunt Betty's lumbago because you de-rated their furnace). Maybe three times, I've found furnaces that had bolts screwed into one of the burners to lower the BTU output.

I've read in HVAC trade publications that something like 50% of all furnaces are oversized. Having a 100K BTU in place rather than an 80K BTU really isn't that big of a deal. And . . . if you look at sizing calculators, you have to factor in glazing, insulation, and a whole bunch of other variables. There's no way we can do that during the course of an inspection. If the furnace were a 200K rather than an 80K, I'd agree that you screwed up. But you didn't. Mgbinspect, this thread isn't about the SOPs. I responded the way I did because I know that Kurt, like myself, busts his ass for his clients so he can separate himself from other HIs who don't. We've had this discussion ad nauseum when it comes to walking roofs and similar issues, and don't need to have it again. I wasn't knocking anyone else. I was just responding to Kurt.

Terry's questions are good ones. Outrageous examples aside, you can't really gauge whether the furnace is oversized without counting the supply and return runs, and checking their diameters. I don't hide behind SOPs, but including everything I know about HVAC systems would add an hour or two to every gig, which most folks don't expect and certainly don't want to pay for.

Since you asked, there's an easy rule for the who/whom thing. Replace who/whom with he/him, and see which one sounds right. For any of you who(m)? don't mind....... He doesn't mind . . . Him doesn't mind. The sentence should contain "who." I know what you mean. I'm the king of dangling participles when I'm in a hurry. I sometimes go back and read one of my own posts and think, "Ughhh . . ." There's a certain gentleman who contributes to this forum who sometimes corrects those particular mistakes for me. He(who) sometimes corrects . . . Him(whom) sometimes corrects.

Ummm, perhaps . . . if you don't include the KY Wildcats in your calculations. When this thread was initiated, I was tempted to ask why we were talking about college athletics on a HI board, but figured no one would realize I was joking.