Jeff Beck

From yesterday's inspection: Is this back flow valve located in the correct position? There is a battery powered back-up pump on top of the main sump pump but only the main is protected by the back flow valve. When the main pump is manually activated it drains the crock. When the main shuts off, the crock refills through the back-up pump. The picture doesn't show it but both pumps are submerged with ample room to spare when the crock is refilled through the back-up pump. Click to Enlarge 63.54 KB Or maybe the better question is shouldn't both pumps be located on the base of the crock and protected by a single back flow valve? Thanks in advance for your advice and help Jeff

Thanks Kurt, I've already told them to replace the pump and to add a back-up. In the last big rain they had almost 8" of water in their finished basement. None of the adjacent buildings flooded including the one to the north which is actually lower than theirs. I wasn't able to get an answer when I tried to speak with someone in the building department. Surprise...surprise! They have a plumber that recommended that the bottom of the sump crock be sealed which sounds like it may be a good idea. Do you know if any code requires a solid bottom to a sump crock? Just curious. Jeff

California and Armitage, I think it's 1700 N. Fransisco.

Does anyone know if the Chicago Plumbing Code requires that a sump pit have a solid bottom? My daughter and son-in-law's house was built around 2004 and has a sump pit with a 1/3 horse sump pump (with no back-up pump). The sides of the pit are concrete but the bottom is just stone. Their basement flooded in the last big rain storm and we couldn't figure out where the water came from until I started poking around in the sump pit and discovered that the base was just stone. My feeling is that all the moisture from the run-off bubbled up through the pit and overwhelmed the pump. Thanks for any advice! Jeff Beck Retired inspector and full time grand-pap

John, I think that's true to a certain extent but not always. The insurance guys that I've talked to about this pointed out that if the K&T has been disconnected but not removed and there is a subsequent fire that's not K&T related, and the adjuster/investigator sees the K&T, they may use that to deny the claim. This leads to subsequent reviews and possibly a lawsuit which is why they want to charge more if the K&T remains. Companies the size of Allstate and State Farm have people who do nothing but think up ways to avoid spending money on claims.

From what I hear from the insurance guys that I know, it depends on if you're already a client or applying for insurance . Most underwriters prefer that it be removed but some of the smaller companies will take having it disconnected and certified by an electrical contractor. One of my friends also told me that if it is just disconnected that the premiums will be higher. I'm not sure that makes sense but ultimately it's just all about the money anyway.

Recent inspection of a vintage house had some knob and tube wiring. I recommended that this be replaced because it was a Safety Hazard and would make getting homeowner's insurance difficult if not impossible. The seller who is a contractor and flipper has tried several times to convince the buyers that this isn't a problem. The more he tries the more concerned the buyers become. Today he called to say that he had an electrician inspect the knob and tube wiring. The electrician said the wiring was all right and the only reason to replace it was for aesthetics. I reviewed my pictures taken at the inspection and found this one. Click to Enlarge 60.01 KB On second look it does seem that the wiring has an insulator other than rag wrap. Am I wrong in recommending that it be replaced? Jeff Beck Foresight Inspection

Thanks Mike, I was hoping to get lucky and find someone who had seen something like this before. I was able to get to the site early today and have taken some pictures. Here are some establishing shots: Split face masonry chimney chase: Click to Enlarge 70.36 KB Lower portion of the chase: Click to Enlarge 87.61 KB Exposed lower portion of the chase: Click to Enlarge 80.44 KB The foundation for the house goes down another 24" below grade. Every masonry chimney chase that I've seen is supported by either wing walls or a bump out pocket in the foundation so that the load of the chimney is carried down to the spread footings. Occasionally, I'll see support walls that cut back to the foundation at a 45 degree angle. I have never seen anything like this before. As I said in my original post, the frost line in Chicago is 45". The base of this chase terminated well above the frost line. My concern is that there may not be enough of a base to carry the load of the chase and secondly because of the depth to counteract frost heave. This builder has taken numerous short cuts (as evidenced by the washed-out sewer line in a 3 year old house) so I am being overly suspicious of anything I find. I'd really appreciate any comments if this is suspect and if so where I might go to find a code reference (if one exists) or if I'm making a mountain out of a mole hill. Thanks, Jeff

Is it permissible to support a masonry chimney chase with a 24" poured concrete foundation that's attached to the house foundation with rebar? The location is Chicago and the frost line is 45". I don't have any pictures, a sewer contractor that's working on my daughter's house called me today and said that he had never seen anything like this before. There are no wing walls or a 45 degree wall that rests on the footing. The chase is approximately 24' high and 48" wide. Jeff

Thanks for all the replies, stainless it is. Mike, a special thank you for the article (and for all you do). The shoe maker's children title was meant as a joke, I haven't had time to get up on my own roof. Jeff

After spending the past several months climbing on customer's roofs. I finally got a chance to get up on my own where I see that both chimneys have cracked concrete caps. I vaguely remember some years back some talk about a caulk type product made specifically for repairing cracks in concrete chimney caps. Before I go back up with the hydrostatic I thought I'd check to see if there is anything better to seal with. Does anyone have a suggestion? Thanks! Jeff

Gunnar, As I recall the Illinois Association of Home Inspectors was formed to provide home inspectors with a voice in Springfield. While this is a very noble cause, no one told them that all our state's elected officials will only listen to Mike Madigan (well, sometimes to his daughter Lisa, the Attorney General). Everyone's needs are a little different so you have to decide what you are looking for when you pick a group. The decision criteria should focus on the Chapter as John has said. What you'll receive from the national association is nice, but the relationships that you form and the education you'll receive for the most part will come from the local chapters. The two local (well sort of) ASHI Chapters are NICASHI (Northern Illinois Chapter and The Great Lakes Chapter. NICASHI meets monthly and Great Lakes meets three times a year. When I was starting out I joined NICASHI and after a couple of years switched to Great Lakes. Of the Great Lakes three yearly meetings only one is held in the Chicago area (the other two are held in Michigan and Indiana). All are over a weekend. I thought the quality of the education was better and there was less of an attitude of "I wont' help you because you could be a competitor." I will say that I never looked at NACHI because of the reputation they had on the Inspector boards (especially Nick the Great). I was at a trade show earlier this year and met the local NACHI chapter president. He described their education program and I have to admit it sounded very impressive. He also seemed like a pretty good guy (i.e. not one who would have anything to do with the crap that Nick is known for pulling.) I'm in West Dundee if you'd like to talk give me a call. Jeff Beck Foresight Inspection Service LLC

Thanks Brandon and Marc. I never thought about the separation issue. I'm not sure if this municipality has a garage fire stop code but I can check. I was thinking more a long the lines of fumes entering the house from the garage. The flue does have a 2" clearance to the back wall. The storage unit on the right does not have the recommended clearance which I have already reported and it will be moved (supposedly) [].

I hate these things! I couldn't find the manufacturer's plate so I don't know the model number. After going through the majority of the installation instructions that are on-line I can't find anything that says don't do this. Same with Code Check The unit vents through an adjoining garage wall and appears to get its combustion air from the garage as well. See the picture that follows. What, if anything would you say about this? Click to Enlarge 51.8 KB Vent on left provides make-up air for the above unit. Click to Enlarge 38.4 KB

Yes Bill, it was mounted directly to a poured concrete foundation wall, below grade. Are you thinking condensation?

Yesterday's inspection. 100 amp panel, I couldn't find any evidence of moisture penetration around the panel or in the basement. Would you report on this amount of rust ? Click to Enlarge 117.31 KB

Slaps head and says, "Oh what a dummy am I!" [:-paperba I actually showed the client how to change the filter and it never occurred to me that was why the 90's were there. It's been a long day. Couldn't get access to the attic in that section so I don't know if it's a B-Vent. I measured the room and there is enough combustion air. This is a 75 year lake house with a view of the lake to die for, but I don't think the clients wanted to go that far. [] Jeff

Why would you do this? 2005 Ameristar furnace, 60,000 input btus, the flue goes through an unheated attic space into one of those fake brick (metal) chimney chases. I thought it might be to prevent condensation from draining back into the furnace. But the bends in the flue could slow down the draft to the point of cooling before it exits the chimney and actually cause more condensate to form. Click to Enlarge 78.8 KB Thanks, Jeff

Friday's inspection, $1.35M, 4 year old McMansion. I realize that I'm not an architect or a structural engineer but I can usually figure things out but this beats me. Why would you build in something like this? Click to Enlarge 80.61 KB It doesn't seem to serve any purpose and had to cost more to side than covering it over. Does anyone have an explanation? Jeff

Richard, This is off the wall but it may apply. A couple of years ago I saw something very similar. The carpenters rehabbing a house installed vinyl sheet goods with the usual mastic and it bubbled. It turns out the vinyl was designed to be installed without mastic (or any type of adhesive). I think the sheet goods were made by Tarkett. In some areas the vinyl wouldn't stick in other areas the mastic lumped into bubbles similar to what you photographed. Made me think of this after seeing that high style bath sink. Might have been the same interior decorator.[:-paperba Jeff

I'm about a half an hour east of DeKalb and about 15 minutes from the epicenter. At a few minutes before 4 this morning I thought that either the roof had come off or our deck had collapsed under snow weight. The quake lasted for only about 3-4 seconds but it was enough to wake up everyone in the house and scare the crap out of our chocolate lab. I think tonight I'm going to make another donation to those poor folks in Haiti! Jeff

Thanks for the quick response Bill. Sorry I haven't answered sooner but it's been busy. Saying the boiler is on its last legs may be a bit much, the boiler is just part of the problem. Here's the background. As I said in my OP the property is a 128 year old farm house with several additions. The buyers are a young couple that recently moved from Brooklyn NY, this will be their first house. The boiler was originally set on a pile of uneven CMU blocks and not properly supported. The cabinet was racked badly. I couldn't tell the cause but the top flange on the burner compartment panel was completely rusted out. There were also rust perforations in other parts of the cabinet. In general the entire installation looked as though it had not been installed in an workmanlike manner. The seller volunteered that there has been more than one service call on the boiler for back drafting and other problems (but wouldn't elaborate). While I was working in the mechanical room the boiler cycled on and off about every 5 to 6 minutes. The hot water heater was in the same area and was back drafting badly. [:-bigeyes I didn't have my monoxizer with me so I didn't hang around to see how much carbon monoxide was being spilled. The system had two zones controlled by T-stats that were both on the first floor, about 20 feet from one another. All but one sleeping room was on the 2nd floor. Some of the 2nd floor rooms didn't have radiators and one had the radiator in a closet. There were about 6 portable electric heaters stored in one of the rooms. That spooked the buyers. The buyers felt that there was a good possibility that the heating system would not adequately warm the 2nd floor and that the boiler wasn't as efficient as they would have liked. I didn't tell them that the boiler was on its last legs but I did agree that there were several areas with the overall heating system that could be problematic. On a side note, I got the impression that these kids (and I say that respectfully) were more interested in the size of the property (it was over an acre, with several out buildings including a very nice detached garage) than they were in owning a vintage home. It's not my job to tell them that they should buy one house over another, but after spending almost 5 hours with them I was concerned that in 5 or 6 months time that they would not be very happy with their purchase.

I don't see hot water boiler systems very often. This was in a 128 year old farm house. It's a Dunkirk Category I boiler, Series PWB8, Model PWB8, Serial 469000238. Its ANSI cert is 1989 and has an input of 245000 BTU's per hour. I can't find my book to date this baby and it looks like it's on its last legs. Can anyone give me date of manufacture? Thanks!

That was my thinking when I posted this originally. The panels are side by side so if one can be accessed they both can. I would expect that a competent electrician would see the adjacent panel, the connecting conduit and have the sense to pull the cover on the adjacent panel. BUT, if someone got hurt I'd feel like crap. I called this out for correction, didn't site any codes (it's a residential inspection) and basically said that the main breaker is supposed to shut off ALL electrical service to the panel but with the wires passing through there still would be an energized circuit. There were enough other electrical problems with this property that a sparky is going to spend some quality time in the basement in front of these panels and elsewhere in the building. Thanks Mike, Jim, Jim and Richard! Never a dull moment, huh?

No Jim, I knew about the place coming in and charged accordingly. I spent almost 6 hours there and may have to go back later today. I'm a little over half way done with the report and I'm on page 52 But that's why we get "the BIG bucks" LOL