mgbinspect

Not one word of what you typed matters in lawsuits like this one. The case will certainly be educational to follow. I sure hope that, in the end, whatever seems realistic and fair is what happens. It would be nice if fact gets separated from fiction and it doesn't become a matter of the best BSer wins.

Aww.. Robert, now even her great big beaming smile can't redeem her. Off the list she goes... [:-weepn]

My thinking was, in my delusional mind anyway, that possibly drywall acts a bit like a sponge, harmlessly absorbing moisture that would typically condensate on a glossy finish and then slowly giving it back through evaporation. Our bathrooms in our last home never experienced any noticeable condensation on flat painted drywall surfaces. The bathroom in question is pretty small and condensation happens pretty darn quickly. The fan needs to be checked out for sure. I'll do that. The cracked door is a good idea as well. And the shower head is definitely one of those atomizing units. That was a great point. I'm sure changing that out will help, although I like and will miss it.

The fan is brand new. My son-in-law replaced the motor and fan. It seems to roar and is heard outside, but you may have a point. I should check the real air flow. As a matter of fact, it is the very shower head you mention. That's a good suggestion. Thanks!

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The toughest decision is where to begin.

It turns out that the unit that I passed off, at a quick glance, as a circulation pump was actually a Sterilight UV water sterilizier, so WWI there is not circulation pump on the system, which lends no less clarity to all the racket this water heater makes.

OK, here's one for the brain-trust involving my own little pad. I bought this place as a rental, and when times got tough, I unloaded my bigger home and moved into this little 1040 SF pad. The old folks that lived here were "old school". They painted the bathrooms with gloss or semi-gloss paint. Every time you shower, in spite of a brand new vent fan that seems to push air pretty good, every surface in that bathroom gets dripping wet with condensation and in about three weeks mildew begins to pop up on the surface. I'm thinking I'll need to just yank the drywall and start over with flat paint so the drywall can take on and slowly give up the moisture, which is why it hasn't gotten done... Who has time for that? It's the old, "Cobbler's children have no shoes" deal. I know there may be some that disagree with flat paint in a bathroom, but my last house had flat paint in three bathrooms and the nine of us (five females, and you know they like scalding showers) never cause any condensation on the walls. We never had a millisecond of trouble with mildew, etc. So, any ideas short of a total gut of the bathroom?

I'll tell you that it really almost more sounds like an intermittent variable speed draft inducing blower. That's what it sounds like. The noise is heard most clearly outside at the exhaust pipe or when standing right in front of the unit. The whir is almost like the high pitch you hear in a diesel truck engine (faint though) and it's very variable - not consistent. I'm used to a draft inducing blower just coming on full blast. That's why I wondered if it was some new technology. It's altogether foreign to me. I've seen many of the Rinnai units, but none sounded like this one. It's peculiar - a lot going on at once in there. Nothing sounds abbrassive as if anything's being damaged. Beats me?

10... 10... 9.8... 9.7... 10... 10... [:-tophat]

Thanks for the heads up. Actually, I'm doing the inspection of this 6400 SF home, Click to Enlarge 78.55 KB because I inspected the house they sold (which was almost as big), and it actually inspected quite well - a few minor surprises, but well kept and no major issues. They seem like outsanding parents and the kids are equally well behaved, ranging in age from probably 5 - 14. With the exception of the septic system, history indicates the house will fare well. I WILL be sure to insert an appropriate note, as you suggest. Thank you, Bain, for looking out for me. Greatly appreciated, friend. Mike

(a typical tweet: "Workin' a little OT today! Tom had tacos and Screaming Hornet hot sauce last night.")

Nice! I hope that's the case.

I'm afraid I didn't shut it off, Jim. It was a curious looking affair, also unfamiliar to me - elongated and the pipe went right through the center of it (I'm used to seeing little pumps exactly like you see on boilers). In fact, it was overhead when I entered the crawlspace (black) and upon seeing it and making the assumption that it was probably a pump to maintain a preset temp for the hot water distribution system, I reached up and felt the pipe, but it really didn't even feel warm.

Thanks Richard! I just didn't know what to expect. I thought it entirely possible someone might just post, "Oh yeah, that's completely normal for this unit." One never knows until they ask... I don't believe the little unin on the opposite end of the home was by Rinnai, and can't even say for certain that it was a cirulating pump. It could have been a sensing unit. There were a lot of firsts on this beast of a home.

Well, that's kinda why I posted. I've seen a lot of Rannais, but I've never heard one carry on like this one did. It fired up with an intermittent whirring noise that whirs up and then falls down, cycling a few times like that and then the thing cuts off. Then it might do it again a few moments later in a slightly different pattern. Then, cut off altogether for twenty minutes. The house was vacant and no one was running the hot water. Pretty weird.

Click to Enlarge 32.32 KB Got a question about this Rinnai Continuum 2902. I think I know the answer myself, but I want to make certain that my assumption is correct. I've seen plenty of Rannai on-demand water heaters, but I noticed while outside near the exhaust that the unit runs often and rather oddly. It fires sporadically and whirs during operation and then abruptly shuts down again. I noticed a pump on the hot distribution line at the opposite end of the home in the crawlspace. So, I gathering that all this commotion is by design and keeps the water in the distribution system to a preset temp? I had a hard time deciding, based upon the way the thing so abruptly would fire up and shut down, whether is was doing what it's supposed to do, or had a problem. Anyone familiar with this unit?

Neal's right. Hi-power LEDs triumps all else. Mine has a 4 LED light source and illuminates a stop sign at night from about 3/8 of a mile away. Marc Aren't the LED lights a rather tight beam? (I haven't owned one so I honestly don't know). The nice thing about the million candle and over lights is that they turn an entire quadrant of a crawlspace from night to day. But, they can't be used for more than maybe thirty minutes total without a recharge. I've owned rechargeable 1 million candle watt lights and your right they don't last. I turned this thing on tonight and it lights the entire street. I've never witnessed anything this bright. That's what sold me on this light compared to other rechargeable million candle watt lights. It claims 1 hour run time on a fully charged battery. Ryobi claims it 2,800 lumens. Then I must have one. You simply can't have too much light in a crawlspace. Thanks for the heads up.

Neal's right. Hi-power LEDs triumps all else. Mine has a 4 LED light source and illuminates a stop sign at night from about 3/8 of a mile away. Marc Aren't the LED lights a rather tight beam? (I haven't owned one so I honestly don't know). The nice thing about the million candle and over lights is that they turn an entire quadrant of a crawlspace from night to day. But, they can't be used for more than maybe thirty minutes total without a recharge.

Click to Enlarge 132.11 KB Anyone have real world experience with this system? The reason I ask, is that my client is moving in with his ELEVEN physically challenged children adopted from all over the world - a family of THIRTEEN - admirable. I cautioned him strongly that he'll probably burn this system out in no time flat, along with the drain field which is rated for four. The drain field has almost twice the number of lines typically required per bedroom. Hence the treatment system, I suspect. Either the soil did not perc well, or the standards required in this county are particularly tough. But, when I think about it all, I wonder if the treatment system may not actually be a saving grace. That is, if they understand the need to significantly step up any normal maintenance on the treatment system, it may not be as bad as I think. Regardless, I've told him to find a company that installs these systems, and tell them what it's about to experience on a daily basis to hear from a specialist what to expect. I also told him that he'll need to go as green as possible on water usage, and explain to his children about such rules as, "If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown flush it down." So, if you are familiar with this system or a similar system, drop a note if it's insightful. As always, Thanks in advance for all responses. PS. When told the buyer all of my concerns about the septic system, he smirked and basically said, "Well, if we blow it out in three or four years and have to sink ten grand into it, I'm OK with that." He knows what he's getting into and apparently has the means. So, I'd just like to know what guys familiar with this system may add to what I've already told him and intend to include in the report. This is the same home with the phantom generators.

Wow! That's certainly the best slang for it so far - pretty much a home run. [:-thumbu]

The force is single moment. The resulting momentary flex and twist, which will vary with the material, is the result of torsion. Does a torsion bar on vehicle cover pretty well all of the foces you're dealing with? (I noticed after posting that Kevin had already mentioned "torsional", but discounted it. Actually, torsion, by definition, does seem to best describe all of the forces and variables, though. Since the axis is not fixed, the torsion will be momentary and tough to calculate.)

Nice! Black & Decker makes some pretty decent rechargeable Million candle power lights like yours for a whopping $20.00 +/ I started using 1 Million candle power plus lights in crawlspaces about three or four years ago, and to be without one now is like being blind. It's cool to pan the crawlspace once you're in and see see most of the termite tubes, cracks and stains before you ever begin crawling. After the initial scan, I rely on a strap on head light and only fire up the big boy when needed to preserve the battery. Most of the termite guys here are still using mags, and I couldn't imagine doing a termite inspection without a million candle plus light.

Yes, an added step does seem prudent.

When you boil this whole gig down to its simplest, other than such things like describing systems and their maintenance, folks really want to know the answers to three basic questions: 1. What HAS happened? 2. What IS happening? 3. What CAN happen?