StevenT

I've seen electricians wire individual GFI's parallel on the same circuit. I agree it is a waste of a couple of dollars for the difference in price of the outlet, but is there anything wrong with it? Functionally speaking, it will work just fine.

Instead of using kerosene, why don't you suggest he use diesel fuel?

The majority of my EIFS inspections are bank/ins. co. ordered. It seems that some institutions are rejecting barrier systems. In case you don't know, 99.9% of residential installations are barrier systems. So, after the thrill of booking the job passes, the thought of, "here we go again," sets in, as I don my Angel of Death costume. When I first started, a client asked me "how did it do?" After I foolishly told her it was a barrier system, I asked to get paid. It was not a pretty scene. I even had one mortgage broker call me after I left his office with my check, and tell me he was stopping payment on the check. That changed when I told him to go ahead, I would let the bank know what had happened. His boss called me ten minutes later and told me to cash the check. My golden rule is that I do not discuss an inspection, except for brief summaries with clients at a regular home inspection, until I collect my check. I make no exceptions. I always get paid.

OK, so you are talking about the system. I agree, to make a blanket statement that Gable vents are ineffective does not sit well with me either. But, a particular gable vent system could be ineffective and may need enhancement. What about the house with a big open attic and gable vents, that has been converted to 3 separate rooms with heating, partitions, insulation and gypsum board covering the roof rafters?

Chad, are you questioning the statement condeming gable vents or the wording of the sentence. The way it is worded makes nonsense. The sentence as worded tells me nothing about the house. Were the gable vents sealed? Were they replaced with something else. Are they still there and something else has been added? Also sounds like the author was trying to sound very smart and use "big words" I would rather: The house was originally built with gable vents, they have been sealed and replaced with eave/ridge vents. If you were looking at a car for me to purchase, would you tell me... "When the car was built it had a carburator, but more efficient ways of supplying gasoline to the engine have been developed?"

I once knew a guy that used to use ... try to use "big" words when he spoke. There were two problems with his style. First was, he used the words wrong. Second was he was usually speaking to people that had no idea what the words meant. I used to laugh when I listened to him. I knew what he was trying to say, and knew that few others did. He reminded me of Mugs McGinnis from the Dead End Kids.

Oh! A curling iron... Hmmm [:-slaphap

Kurt, I'm not trying to say that EMT is bad, or NM is better. In NYC, EMT and BX have been the standard for quite a while. Yes, these days NM is accepted in certain residential. With both materials, a bad installation is bad. I also like a separate ground besides the conduit. I'm not thinking about inspecting it, which in a perfect world would bring to light anything disconnected. I'm thinking about installations that are not inspected, where simply during normal everyday use, with folks walking all over the stuff like it was a ladder, connections come loose and the ground is gone.

I agree with you Jim, EMT is kosher.

I agree with the EMT/3rd conductor, but I think it's use should be limited. I lost count of how many times I've seen EMT disconnected from it's connector/coupling. POOF! No more ground!

Guess #1- Small wash area for a ferret. #2- Drainable shelf to keep shampoo, etc

Someday I hope you build something beautiful with the cherry. When you do, please post a picture. I will be happy to know that it became something special.

Good morning guys, Bill, It might be improper storage that caused the fimish to fail. I would like to get past the "might be" and be sure. I will speak to the lab today and see what they can tell me. WJ, So far the only EIFS faults I've ever seen are installer faults, too. Last week I did three EIFS inspections. One was on a very... inexpensive home, the other two were on homes that are very high end properties. They all had the same faults. I have yet to see an installation that I can say was done "right." Joe, Thanks for the info. By the way, did you ever build that shower?

Hi Jim, I agree with your line of thinking. Who knows what they really did at the time of application. The finish looks sprayed on, so it is very possible that they thinned it out. I just wish there was a way to find out. I have a feeling that I may end up removing a section and sending it out to a lab to test. I think I am better off not mentioning the mfg. name... just to keep it "unbiased." Another reason that I agree with your theory, is that I think that if it froze, it might be flaking off and separating off the basecoat. I saw no adhesion problem. I think I will give the lab tomorrow and see what they suggest.

Hi Brad, I'm trying to track down weather reports. It's about 8 years old. I don't know if it's feasible yet. By the way, how are you feeling these days? How's the scar?

I inspected an EIFS installation today, one that may end up going into litagation. The manufacturer claims that the system froze during installation. The homeowner claims that it was not applied during a freeze. After looking at it, I'm leaning towards finish coat failure. If it was basecoat failure, I think I would see the white of the EPS. Anyway, if it was not applied during a freeze, and it is not the basecoat, it has to be finish coat failure. Finish coat comes premixed, so it would have to be product failure. The owner tells me he did some investigation (he's an attorney), and that he was told that the company had some failure problems in the past. How would I find out if this is true? I doubt if they will tell me, and I'd like to find out if there were similar problems with the product. Although I can point out other installation errors that can not be denied, I don't see how I can stand up to the chemists, scientists, etc. that the company will come up with should I claim product failure. My feelings are that if it's not due to freezing and my client goes after the mfgr, they will attempt to prove that it was an installation error. If it is truly product failure, how would I prove it? Should I remove a section and send it to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory? I know that they specialize in EIFS testing. Do you think EIMA would help with this, or might they side with the mfgr? By the way, the mfgr. wants to coat the entire system with an elastrometric coating/paint. I saw a section that they did and it actually didn't look so bad. I do question the warranty they will give to that fix. Brad, please jump in. Image Insert: 64.43 KB

FWIW: 1. I never told a customer to replace an old drum trap, as long as the old drum trap was still working. 2. It's "castor" oil. A caster is a wheel. WJid="blue"> Maybe it was "caster" oil. The guy didn't want his wheels to squeek.

Walter, You reminded me of a true story that I would like to share. 3 hobos were walking down the street and came across a large brown steaming pile of something. The first hobo exclaimed, "hey, that looks like shit. The second hobo stepped forward, got his hands and knees, inhaled deeply and stated, "smells like shit. The third hobo moved up t o the mass, bent over and with his finger, swiped off a small sample, put it in his mouth and slowly savored the flavor. Finally he said, "This tastes like shit... it IS shit! " "It's a good thing we didn't step in it!"

Toro makes a dual gauge. Pressure and flow.

I lived on a sailboat for a while. Fresh water was precious. We used to lather up with salt water from the washdown, and then rinse off with fresh water.

Laticrete make a sealer that can be troweled on, and I forget the name of the company that makes a white rubber like goop, that come in a sausage pack and can also be troweled on. I've used them both and had good luck. Both of course were on concrete. There is also a "vinyl like" sheeting that can be used in place of lead. But for my money, I prefer lead (or copper pans). If you really want a quality job, use a technique called "pre-sloping." Pre sloping, is when you slope the concrete before installing the pan. This way, any water that seeps past the tile will drain towards the shower drain. A proper shower drain has weep holes at it's base, below the drain opening, below the tile. Any water that soaks into the base can drain out. If you install the pan flat and then use "mud" to slope the tiles, water will stay in the pan and you will end up with problems associated with moisture. This shower is in a hi-rise condo in Manhattan. Every time the shower ran, it leaked into the unit below. Notice no curb. Image Insert: 45.5 KB Now that it's open, you can see they used the wrong type of drain. In order to cover the clamp on the bottom of the drain, they leaded in a "cone." There are no weep holes, and look how deep it is until the water reaches the drain. In essence, they created created a "sink." Image Insert: 67.58 KB This is the new base, with a curb and the correct drain. Unfortunately, in this case, the pan was not pre-sloped. Image Insert: 56.4 KB Mudded, setting the drain height. Image Insert: 54.76 KB Tiling Image Insert: 59.22 KB Finished product. Image Insert: 28.87 KB

Hopefully the new owners will straighten out the place a bit. If not, it will only get worse. I feel bad for the folks that live there.

Hey Bob, Glad you could laugh. Every bathroom had a gas meter in it. Here's an even better one. Image Insert: 33.51 KB These are 2, mercantile/14 unit apartment buildings. The boiler in one has been abandoned and they piped the heat in from the boiler in the other building. Image Insert: 73.56 KB Finally, some of the fuse boxes are shot, so they installed pig tails with fuses. One circuit per dwelling. Image Insert: 88.55 KB

Uncle Bubba came and visited New York. Image Insert: 53.62 KB He also installed gas meters in 28 bathrooms... Image Insert: 28.79 KB And repaired some leaking tiles... Image Insert: 55.19 KB ... and when Uncle Bubba say "put out the garbage, he ani't kiddin'. Image Insert: 103.47 KB

WOW! Yes, it is an American. I was thinking early 60"s. I was only off twenty years... more than some boilers last. It still works just fine. Thanks.