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Hi Chad, Ferry used to be interNACHI's lawyer but I think he was co-opted by the Cohen brothers. Now he spends his time going around the country giving paid seminars called Law and Disorder or something like that. The reason why I won't post the information until he puts up is I have my own doubts as to whether he'll follow through. I know without a doubt that the inspector in question has it. Ferry came on here no less than four times and reiterated his challenge and essentially called me a moron for believing the inspector's story; now lets see if he's a man of his word or just another blowhard wearing a suit. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi All, Well, I received a package in the mail this week from the inspector whose story inspired the O.P. The package contained the agreement. So, Mr. Ferry, are you ready to put up or shut up? I believe there is a question of $2000 that you promised to this fellow if he showed you proof. You can send it to me. Once I have it, I'll scan and post the documents here for everyone to read. Once you and everyone else is satisfied (and you've eaten a little crow), I'll foward the money to the inspector in question. Or, if you don't trust me for some reason, you can send it to someone else you would trust here to hold onto it and forward it once that proof has been posted and you are satisifed. Balls in your court, Ferry. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

See, I keep telling people about how voracious those damned Norway rats we have in Seattle are and nobody will believe me. There's your proof! Mike

Hi Caoimhín, That was a very interesting and informative album. Thanks for sharing. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, Floor to opening has to be no more than 44inches and the window well has to be at least 36-inches by 36-inches. If the window well is more than 44" deep, you need a ladder permanently affixed. Here are some sites. Some have the codes: http://www.wellcraftwells.com/ http://www.ehow.com/way_5344203_diy-bas ... wells.html http://www.bestchoiceegresswindows.com/ ... wwells.htm http://www.redi-exit.com/window-well-style-size.html http://www.wellcraftwells.com/pdf/5600_specs.pdf ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, I agree, it's far superior and more fireproof than some of the buckethead (pun intended) fabricated dams I see around recessed lights around here. In fact, now that I've seen it, I'll probably suggest something similar the next time someone asks me for a solution to sealing up those recessed lights. Recommend they wrap it with insulation and drive on. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Yesterday's house had an Oregon water heater heat pump interconnected to a conventional electric tank-type water heater. Model 220-12 Sn: B2181239 I'm pretty sure that the 2181 is the week and year because the manual on the wall had 381 in the publication number down in one corner. That typically means that's the third version of the manual from that year. The fuse had been pulled out of the controller so that it wouldn't operate and the one water line connecting it to the water heater was shut off but the other, which didn't have a shutoff valve, is still connected. I'm just curious about the product and the company. I googled it but didn't find anything on the first attempt. Obviously, it still shouldn't be hooked up to the water heater - can you imagine the bacteria probably developing in the water trapped in the coils of that thing? Bleaaaaccccch! ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, Expansion/contraction is an issue with FC products. They have to be absolutely dry when they are installed and so should the framing be. We have houses built here during the damp months where the siding looks pretty good. After the studs have dried out for a year the lumber tends to move around and we sometimes see walls that look just like that. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

well that sucks!! [:-weepn]so you are telling me i have to remove shingles, plywood and possibly ridge beam if rotted?...i wasnt planning on a complete re-roof at this time, rather i wanted to remove drywall off the cathedral ceilings and add ventilation and treat the rotted wood from underneath. and since there are 3 rooms with cathedral ceilings living room, dining room, bedroom, im just trying to contain it or keep it from spreading.(if possible) i dont have the funds to do everything at this point,just looking at my options. Your roof is rotting and you have no way to know how far incipient rot spore has spread. You can kill the existing spore and make the framing non-viable by drilling and inserting Impel rods in every single framing member throughout the entire roof and sister the severely rot-damaged ones with new lumber (which will also need to have Impel rods installed) and fix the ventilation, but your roof will not have the strength it was designed to have and you'll have to advise any buyers in a seller's disclosure form that the framing in the roof is a bunch of rotting sistered wood that's been treated with a fungicide. That's liable to scare a bunch of folks off. Do it once; do it right the first time. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, This is a new one on me. How do they effectively ventilate cathedral ceilings done with conventional rafters and not scissor trusses in California if they don't use a ridge vent and eave vents? Do they stick a pot vent on either side of the ridge in every single rafter bay? I've driven through California a few times and I've never noticed that having been done on any houses. We have rules for seismic bracing here too and I've never seen where the use of ridge vents is said to weaken the roof diaphram. Does it really weaken it enough to be a concern? References please. Is this some kind of La-La Land specific rule - like the one that says fiberglass insulation has been proven to cause Cancer in California but nowhere else? ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike Nope it is national... CBC refers to ASCE/SEI 7-05 "Minimum design loads for buildings and other structures" 12.10 Diaphragms, Chords, and Collectors. 12.10.1 Diaphragm Design. Diaphragms shall be designed for both the shear and bending stresses resulting from design forces, at diaphragm discontinuities, such as openings and reentrant corners, the design shall ensure that the dissipation or transfer of edge (chord) forces combined with other forces in the diaphragm is within shear and tension capacity of the diaphragm. Thats fine but where in there does it say that a ridge vent can't be used and that a ridge vent weakens the diaphragm to the point where it can't do what it is supposed to do? Where is the residential code reference? ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, This is a new one on me. How do they effectively ventilate cathedral ceilings done with conventional rafters and not scissor trusses in California if they don't use a ridge vent and eave vents? Do they stick a pot vent on either side of the ridge in every single rafter bay? I've driven through California a few times and I've never noticed that having been done on any houses. We have rules for seismic bracing here too and I've never seen where the use of ridge vents is said to weaken the roof diaphram. Does it really weaken it enough to be a concern? References please. Is this some kind of La-La Land specific rule - like the one that says fiberglass insulation has been proven to cause Cancer in California but nowhere else? ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, Your rafters and roof deck are rotten. Now you know why proper ventilation is important. Get a competent contractor out there to strip the roof, replace the rotting components, treat what's left with a borate based fungicide, redeck it - this time with proper ventilation - and then reroof it. Do not try to shortcut the process or you'll be doing it again in a few years. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

The purchasing habits of home buyers is evolving. 10 years ago most didn't touch the internet before buying, today over 80% do. Today's Home Inspectors not only has to have a website, they need a website that ranks well with the search engines. If your not familiar with Search Engine Optimization you may want to "Googl"e it and find some tutorials. A little work on your part can make the difference between your site being on page 1 or page 5. Internet search websites are also getting more refined and are able to provide local information based on your search request. Companies such as Google and Yahoo allow businesses to provide information to enhance local searches. Google allows you to build a profile (including a coupon if desired) at no charge. Here is an example if you type in "your town, your state" and "home inspector" in the Google search bar you will get the following results: Arrow 1 shows you the organic search return which is Pacific Crest Inspections. Arrow 2 is the local result and Pacific Crest Inspection also shows up because we signed up and filled out Google profile. If you click on the Directions and more tab you get this result. In essence Google (and other local search sites) are giving your business another website just for signing up. Some local search sites purchase the data from third party database providers that source the information for the printed yellow pages directories. There are three primary database providers of local listing information: InfoUSA, Localeze/Amacai, and Acxiom, all of which provide the various search engines, directories, and vertical sites with local listing data. Each has its own process for validating business listings. You may have a listing based on your phone number (and your phone company providing the information) but its good to see if the listing is accurate and in the correct area. The great thing it is easy to get local web presence by investing a few hours in front of your computer. Here is a list and web addresses of local listing providers. The big dog is Google as most people prefer it as a search site. But you don't want to stop at Google as having listings on a number of sites boosts your overall search ranking and enhances your web presence. Google Local Yahoo Local InfoUSA Localeze Acxiom Yellowpages.com SuperPages.com YellowBook.com DexKnows.com There are companies that will assist you with developing local listings for a fee. Most of the time they will do things that you can do yourself and I don't recommend them. If you have questions feel free to contact me at Rick@Paccrestinspections.com. Rick Bunzel is the principle inspector with Pacific Crest Inspections. In the recent past he has chaired the marketing and PR committees for a national home inspection organization. Locally, he chairs the North Puget Sound Board of Realtor’s Communications Committee and is a Firefighter/ EMT with the Mt. Erie Fire Department.

Good time to look at this: http://www.virtualwall.org/iStates.htm

Yeah, I'm glad nobody was hurt. You might want to re-think placing a panel cover on a bed. If you were in my home and the Korean Konnection saw you toss an electrical panel on top of the clean bed linen I can guaranty you you'd be sprinting down the street with her close behind swinging wildly with that cleaver she uses to divide up the cabbage heads for the kimchi she makes. Come to think of it; I'd pay to see that. Hey Randy, can you come over to my place for a little bit; I've got a task for you? Hee, hee. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

It's interesting to see that. I've seen a lot of rusted/spalling lintels here but almost never that kind of serious movement. I guess it's tied to the radical differences in our average winter temperatures. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi Phillip, I can't tell you exactly. I know that those specs have changed at least once in the 14+ years that I've been at this gig but I think the commercial height requirement has always been for the past 14 years 36-inches on stairs and 42-inches at perimeter of decks and balconies. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Because, again I'm speaking for this area, gable end vents don't work well unless the cover is cedar shingles, shake or one-by planking - all of which are fairly drafty. There are lots of houses built with gable end vents here from the 60's, 70's and early 80's that were built with with plywood decks that have have had severe problems due to having just gable end vents. Many builders still haven't figured it out though; and they routinely build new homes with eave vents, upper vents near the ridge and then, like idiots, they cut in gable end vents. They look at it as a belt-and-suspenders approach but they fail to understand why/how it doesn't work. Lstiburek has tried to show how to moisture proof and vent buildings in various parts of the country. His methods work to a certain extent, but if we really wanted to eliminate ventilation issues we'd have as many methods as there are regional issues that affect ventilation and then we'd have no consistency whatsoever. Of course, if we really, really trained our builders and gave them a good grounding in building science, so that they could understand how this stuff is supposed to work, maybe the non-consistency of builders figuring out their own areas and designing stuff to work in their areas, instead of begin slave to a code that was written by someone thousands of miles removed, would be the perfect solution. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

The issue with hips is that the commons on the perpendicular slopes at each corner of the hip roof all dead end on the hip rafters and there is no clear path for air to flow from the eaves to a ridge vent at the upper roof. The hip vent opens the ends of those rafter bays so that air can flow from from the eaves to the hip ridges. Think of the hip vents as a continuation of the ridge vent down the hips. The same thing that makes the ridge vent work makes the hip vent work - wind hits the dam, is diverted up and across the hip and bernoulli's principle takes over and starts sucking air up under both slopes. Jimmy, I don't have any experience in Mass. but good attic ventilation is absolutely critical here. There's a lot of spore in the air here. If it gets into an attic and mixes with moisture trapped on the underside of a roof, and the roof deck is plywood or OSB, the roof is going to inevitably rot. Plank decks rot here too; just much slower. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Well, they'll get really good air circulation around that one alright. At least it wasn't a car jack. Found another house with a car jack under it earlier this week. What is it with people and these old Renault car jacks? Is using a Renault jack some kind of fashion statement? ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

How old is it and what's its historical significance - other than being the butt-ugliest house on the eastern seaboard? OT - OF!!! M.

I dunno. What did you think it was? OT - OF!!! M.

I'd want to see a spec sheet on it to know whether it was SBS or APP compatible. It looks like pickup truck bed liner spray. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Yep, Abatron They've been using it at Colonial Williamsburg for years and when the repair is done right you can't detect it. Gouge out the rot, drill 1/8-inch holes in the punky stuff, inject wood hardener into it, let it set up, trowel in Woodepox, let semi-harden, form with a surform file and/or knife, let fully cure then rasp, file and sand to shape and then prime and paint. 10,000 years from now some archaeologist will find that formed piece of Woodepox and puzzle over it for days wondering what the hell it is. http://www.abatron.com ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!! Mike

I think it is a gateway to hell. I just saw the realtor's photo. brrrrrrrr! ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike