paul burrell

I did not hear about the Montana deck collapse. How bad was it. Paul B.

Mark, If it is new construction it is most likely OK I have not seen the old discontinued pipe in quite awhile. I would not be concerned about it. Paul B.

This is polybutlyene known as "big blue". It is used in my area quite a lot. Old poly was 150 psi from street service entrance that failed on a large scale and is not used anymore. The pressure rating has been raised to 180 psi and I have seen 220 psi, both are acceptable. If you can see enough of the pipe there is a pressure rating on it. 150 psi NO good: 180 plus psi OK. Poly plumbing lines both from street and branch lines in home are a blue heron in my area. Some sellers have to discount price of home to sell with poly system. Same thing for Louisiana Pacific hard board siding. Paul B.

I watched the program but the segment on bad builders was not metioned?

Inspected a condo located in a high rise. The main aervice entrance disconnect cabinet was located in lower parking garage inside wall. Water was leaking down wall both behind and inside service cabinet. By the look of the corrosion it appeared to have been a long term problem. It is amazing to me how complacent the building management and maintenance can be to over look a problem like this. Paul B.

Feeble excuse of a policy and anyone that goes for it probably are not playing with a full deck.

The gray flex gas line is a recalled item approximately 4 years past +-. I have a flyer on the recall that I received at ASHI meeting. The gray flex tends to break and leak at fittings. There is still a lot of it out there and I call it to be replaced with stainless steel flex or yellow up graded flex. I do not see gray flex on newer homes anymore. Paul B.

Yes I have observed same thing. Different subcontractors do not perform same quality workmanship. It is common to have several different subs on same job. The Builders rep or the Builder are not supervising the subs properly. This is one reason but I am sure there are others. Paul B.

Did a home inspection awhile back. A month later a different client called me to inspect the same house. I informed Him up front that I had recently inspected the home and was familiar with it's condition. He said he would call me back but but never did, don't know why. I had much rather disclose my position up front to the client and let Him/Her make up their own mind regarding previous inspection than wind up with a problem anytime. Who needs it. We all know that the only one that wins in a lawsuit is the Lawyer. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Just my humble opinion which sometimes may not be worth much. Paul B.

Did a job a while back that the TPR exit pipe was terminating 7 feet from ground over the center of basement exit door. [:-headach There were several other issues with the home also. When I returned for a compliance inspection the seller was very ticked off and giving me a bad time. I finally had to tell Him to leave me to my work or I would have to leave. After He left I asked my client what he thought of the problem I was having with the seller and he said that I was very RUDE? I have always said the good Lord protects idiots and drunks. Paul B.

Sounds like the installer cut some corners. It is my impression that joint tape should be bedded in dry wall mud and a skim coat applied after that. The open seams are not proper. However I guess they are better than nothing. I would have written it up as improper fire wall installation. Just my 2 cents which sometimes is not worth much. When I give my kids advice they start coughing and their eyes glaze over. They have a college education so how could I know anything[:-graduat[:-bigmout. Paul B.

I am a State Certified Real Estate Appraiser "INACTIVE". I found when I was in the business that Mortgage Brokers have their own mentality. I worked for one that told me that they go by the golden rule. That being He who has the gold makes the rules. Meaning that you go by their rules or you don't eat. Paul B. PS: Notice that I mentioned no names.

WD-40 is the best thing since corn bread, black eyed peas and ham hocks.[^] Thanks for the reminder. I think I am through hitting the floor with my mag light to get it to come on. Paul B.

My Mag Light does the same also won't turn on at times I just bang it on the floor and continue on. Got tired of returning to store.[:-dunce]

George it is about convenience. Why wait on a Realtor to show up late and open the home. Also most of my jobs the Realtors prefer I have lock box access for their convenience. Sometimes they do not even show up it is just me and my buyer which is the way it should be. Paul B.

TPR valves are a big safety item and should be tested especially if they are old and corroded and will not open. However if one is opened and will not re seat it is also defective and should be replaced. I will not open one unless I am alone or get the owners permission. The owner knows anything that proves defective when tested is the inspectors fault, just because the TPR is 10 years old and corroded has nothing to do with it. Not to test the TPR is a disservice to my clien't. However one must be cautious and do a lot of CYA. Just my opinion. Paul B.

Thanks a lot for help. Obviously electricity is not my strong suit. Paul B.

Did an electric water heater with dual 4500 watt elements. Shouldn't the feed 220 volts from the main panel be a #8 wire. This one had a # 10. I have not been able to locate it in the 2003 IRC code book.

I have in the past crashed my computer several times until I learned the hard way. (IIABDFI). "If it aint broke don't fix it".

This post reminds me of years past when my Son and his buddies decided to clobber their school principals mailbox. When I found out I made my son go with me to the principals house, fess up to Her and install a new mailbox. You have never seen such a hang dog young boy. He complained his buddies would not help and I told him His buddies were the responsibility of their father and he was my responsibility and He was to fix the box regardless. He did. Years later after he was out of school and making his way in life with his family I asked Him one day if he had destroyed any mailboxes lately. He kinda smiled and said no, no Daddy and I am not going to. He grew up to be a fine upstanding citizen and family Man. Paul B.

Not very big maybe 10'x 20' PWB

Makes sense, add posts. This Company builds hundreds and hundreds of homes in this area yearly. And is known for this type building practices. Shoddy. If I write this up he will say show me the code section. All I can tell him there is no code for shoddy building practices. PWB

Did a new home today. The deck was well built with anchor bolts and joist hangers. The bolts were installed in I Joist webbing which was used for band sills on house. Seems like a sistered 2x6 inside to hold bolts would be better than only OSB webing. Did not look secure in the long run to me. Flashing was also installed. Whadda ya think, PWB

Check this out! In this article, real estate Columnist Blanche Evans gives some advice to a homeowner who got burned by an inspector involved in a pay-for-play relationship between a real estate office and an inspector. Click here for the whole story.

Send me your email address I will send you my agreement for what it is worth. Paul B.