Brandon Chew

Home builder stocks (chart XHB) have been outperforming the broad market since mid-January. Previously they were tanking well ahead of the broad market and led it downward. It's too soon to tell if the final bottom in the builders has been reached but for now the good news is that it hasn't been getting worse and is starting to show signs of life. FWIW, stock prices generally lead the economy.

Very common around here. Going back to the 70s.

Domestic Engineer ... isn't that just a fancy name for housewife? Great info in this thread guys. tx.

You'll be seeing this more and more in the future. One day they'll be banned in the IRC, just like drum traps. Grinding up your food and throwing it down the drain to get rid of it is no longer a good idea. Neither is piping your building sewer directly into a stream, or connecting your storm water and sanitary sewer systems together. Each of those at one time was considered "state of the art" technology. As our wastewater treatment system infrastructure ages and reaches capacity, the federal funding that flowed so freely for that infrastructure in the 70's and 80's has dried up, and the public's demands for clean water force ever tightening regulation, communities are being forced to bear ever increasing costs to build and maintain their wastewater treatment systems. People don't want their sewer bills to increase and one way that communities can hold those increases down is to reduce the volume and strength of stuff that gets sent down the drain. There's no compelling public health reason to flush household food waste down the drain and there are readily available alternatives to doing it. It's done as a matter of convenience. The days of the carefree flush are gradually coming to an end.

Alright... I tried to keep my explanation simple, but I should have known better at TIJ where inquiring minds want to know! The one handed typist has reached his limit for now. Stay tuned for a post that discusses the finer points of tensile and shear stress, force vectors and bending moments, hardness and brittleness, root diameter, screw head shape and length of threads along the shaft, and cascading failure. BTW, I agree with Jim that my biggest concern is that there's a good chance at least one of the drywall screws was damaged during installation, but the head is still there and it looks ok. My other concern is with drywall screws that do not snug everything together -- from the head through the hanging rail and drywall and into the stud. Meanwhile, can someone post some kitchen wall cabinet installation instructions that specify drywall screws. My bet is you'll find either #8 or #10 wood screws, panhead screws, or cabinet screws. I leave with this parting thought. There's a reason why there is a market for cabinet screws.

Thanks Richard. I'm planning to install one of those when I remodel our master bathroom... a project that is now pushed back some 6-12 months []

I think your concern is valid. State your concern and let common sense prevail. At the link: Tyvek Install Instructions

All three lights lit should mean that you have current flowing between: hot and neutral neutral and ground hot and ground all at the same time. Here is some good info on three-light testers which may shed some light [] on the subject: Interpreting 3-Prong Outlet Testers Download Attachment: Three_Light_Electric_Tester.pdf 250.24 KB For Jim & Bob, see figure 3 in the pdf.

Lots. I used to write them up frequently but I'm getting a bit more forgiving. There's bigger fish to fry. If someone can give me a good reason to start writing them again, I'll go for it. How about this. Drywall screws are designed to hold the weight of sheets of drywall, and they are strongest when the force is applied on them in the same direction as the shaft of the screw. They are pretty weak screws. I've snapped the heads off of them when trying to drive them into tight grained wood. Use drywall screws to hang upper cabinets and you have a situation where: -- Weight can be substantially greater than sheets of drywall -- Substantially fewer screws are used than when you hang a sheet of drywall -- The weight is being applied to the screws in their weakest direction, perpendicular to the shaft Now, six year old Johnny is thirsty and wants a drink. The glasses are in an upper cabinet that is stacked full of dishes. He hops up to sit on the kitchen counter, opens the door on the cabinet, and then grabs on to the bottom shelf to pull himself up so he can reach the glass on a higher shelf....

Ditto that!!!! Huge liability ($$$) on you if you screw it up. For guidelines, they should contact the local office of the NY State DEC (there are some nice folks in Avon) or a company that does residential oil tank removals.

Tough call. That code cite that Tom provided was changed in the 2006 IRC. They replaced that single sentence with a whole paragraph that first defers to the manufacturers installation instructions. Then it says if the install instructions do not specify the location and minimum size of the opening, the code spells it out for you. Then it says the opening can be closed with a door or a panel. In the old code or the new code, the key word is "access" without any other modifiers such as "readily". IRC section 202 has the following definitions: ACCESSIBLE. Signifies access that requires the removal of an access panel or similar removable obstruction. ACCESSIBLE, READILY. Signifies access without the necessity for removing a panel or similar obstruction. While I would carefully cut caulk around an attic access hatch, or through paint or wallpaper to open an electrical panel, I don't think I would do so on a whirlpool tub without having permission from the owner.

I was taught to run a layer of shingles parallel to the rake edge before applying the shingle courses. It protrudes out 1" beyond the 1x2 trim or the rake metal. I've done it this way on every roof I ever installed. It helps to keep the edge straight as you go up and the slight increase in thickness helps to direct water back onto the roof rather than out over the rake edge. This way, you don't get as much water flowing down the roof within the last foot of the edge. If I use rake metal, it goes over the felt. I've never used ice & water shield on a rake edge. - Jim Katen, Oregon Jim - I'll buy that, for running one strip parallel to the rake. Installing an extra layer perpendicular to the rake, and only at the rake, seems goofy. During a tear off, would the roofer cut the shingles near the rake so that they would remain? That seems silly. If he did that, how would he install the underlayment in this area? If he did a complete tear-off and those are new shingles, it seems like a lot more work to run it perpendicular vs running a starter strip parallel to the rake like you described. Just thinking out loud....

Welcome Dennis. How about coming over to this thread: Shingles at the rake and giving us your thoughts about proper installation details at the rake edge...drip edge flashings, extra layers of shingles and the direction they run, etc.

Tough to nail it down without being there or more info (about foundation detail, attachment of the brick ledge, wall assembly components). One possible cause is that the veneer on the wall that is around the corner is insufficiently supported and tied to the wall. It's dropped enough to shear through the running bond that ties it to the wall that faces the camera, and the gap has opened as the veneer is pulling away from the wall. More likely (as Rob posted) is that the brick was laid in the summer when it was hot, and the cracks formed in the winter when the veneer shrunk (or vice versa). Look for proper detailing of expansion joints or the lack thereof. Visit http://www.bia.org and consult their technotes for more info.

I couldn't say for certain what is going on without being there. The green at the joints of the valve body and the copper pipe look they are from flux. The green on the packing nut and valve stem looks like it is from a leak. The yellowish/white stuff on the valve body looks like it is from pinhole leaks in the valve body. Perhaps the valve body casting is poor quality or you have aggressive water chemistry or maybe some of both.

Umbrella stand. [] Held chains for adjusting something down below. Dampers on a duct?

It's wrong. I put it in my report. The client can decide how big of a deal to make of it. "2006 IRC M1501.1 Outdoor discharge. The air removed by every mechanical exhaust system shall be discharged to the outdoors. Air shall not be exhausted into an attic, soffit, ridge vent or crawl space." Similar language is at M1507.2 which applies specifically to bathrooms and toilet rooms.

I've seen it done both ways. I don't find either method recommended in the NRCA Roofing Manual and I haven't met a roofer yet whose opinion I trust enough to ask "why". Maybe they haven't heard of drip edge flashing?

I'll take "rising damp with minerals leaching from the slab" for $500, Alex.

Well now you know why I had so many questions about that "pier" when "all the others were in perfect condition". For a pier, it didn't look right. If they converted a wood-burning masonry chimney to use with a gas water heater & furnace, I hope you were able to get a good look inside at the flue or vent, or if not, you should recommend a Level 2 inspection and review of the vent system by a CSIA certified sweep. Very often this kind of conversion is done without proper modification of the chimney flue for the new gas equipment. The cooler exhaust temperature from the gas appliances causes condensation inside the flue. The condensation has nitric and sulfuric acid in it that turns masonry to mush and eats through metal.

If you're serious, start with Bonnie's book - it can't be beat wrt those topics! Yep. It's also cheap and easy (to understand). If Spitzer had used that approach, he'd still be Governor!

Ha, ha, ha, ow ... ha, ha, ha, ow! I haven't laughed that hard since my accident! Chad - agree with the others. Can't see how that could be right. If the attic is vented, the insulation below the vented space is what counts toward meeting the required (or recommended) R value.

Les, I do an inspection for the buyer. The seller decides to sue his roofer and wants to use my report as evidence, does not retain me, but I am called to court by subpoena to testify... am I a party to the action? Isn't the defendant's lawyer going to object every time I'm asked to render an opinion beyond clarifying something I wrote in my report? If the plaintiff really wants to use my report to bolster his case, isn't he better served by retaining me as a litigation consultant to come and do an inspection and write a report for him, and then calling me as an expert? I'm not challenging you by asking these questions. I'm just trying to understand how it works from someone who's been there. Brandon

FYI- I've seen some roofs where the roofer applies an extra layer of shingles at the rakes. Could this have been the case here? The tip about counting nails in the attic is a good one and can be used to confirm other observations about number of layers present. Nails are supposed to penetrate at least 3/4" into the roof deck. If the deck is sheathing they should come all the way through.

Personally, I wouldn't run from a house with a bad roof, but that's me. As for appearing in court, I assume it would be due to the seller going after his roofer? I'd tell them if they wanted to use me as anything but a fact witness, they'd have to retain me as a litigation consultant/expert witness. As a fact witness, all I can testify to is things like: Yes I did an inspection for Joe Buyer on such and such date. Yes that is my report. Read things from your report into the record. Etc. If they want you to say anything more than what is in your report, or give your opinion about anything in your report, you are moving away from fact witness and into expert testimony. As such, you should be retained and compensated as one. If you are not ready for this, then advising them to go with someone else is a good move.