hausdok

Hi, Well, lets keep in mind that they said that it was correctly built for, what was it, 1980. There probably weren't a whole lot of folks criticizing how decks were built back in those days or real rules to build 'em by. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi, My memory is fuzzy on this, but I remember that a few years ago there was a big stink down Phoenix way because they were going through a draught and people weren't allowed to water their lawns. Seems that as the ground in AZ, which is mostly expansive clays, was drying out, all sorts of pretty severe structural problems were showing up all over the place that had never shown up in years during which there were rains and there was plenty of water for watering the lawns. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

I'm thinking built in sitz bath to soak da roids. Nyuk, Nyuk OT - OF!!! M.

Ahem, https://www.inspectorsjournal.com/forum ... IC_ID=4609 Searching before asking can save a lot of time. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

The collapse of a deck at a Narragansett residence sent at least 50 people plummeting 15 feet to the ground Saturday night during a party. Around 11:40 p.m. Narragansett Police responded to 37 Sakonnet Blvd. in Narragansett's Eastward Look neighborhood to find a second-story L-shaped deck had caved-in, crushing a mini-van and injuring dozens. To read more click here. Source: The Good 5 Cent Cigar - Student Newspaper at the University of Rhode Island. Thanks to Prof. Frank Woeste, Virginia Tech University, for tipping TIJ off to this article. For those interested, Prof. Woeste's next two day course for inspectors is Repair Design for New and Existing Wood Trusses and it will be held at VTU in Blacksburg, VA on October 15-17, 2008. For details and registration, visit www.cpe.vt.edu/sdww/

Hi, Thanks guys, but you give me too much credit; TIJ is the sum of its working parts and those parts include every one of the pros who hang out here and are willing to share their expertise and insight with the rest of us. Without those folks, this would just be another gossip forum where home inspectors would spend their time browbeating each other over inconsequential stuff about who's inspecton association is better than the others. Here's a new update - I don't have time to add this to the chart right now but I will this evening. I just got off the phone with Nordyne. Nordyne has been in the furnace business for a long time but really didn't get into the residential end until the mid 1990's when they began manufacturing furnaces for residential and bought the exclusive rights to a bunch of well-known brand names to market their products under. According to Nordyne's tech services folks, their date code is the fourth through sixth digit of the serial number and it's the year followed by the month; so, if you see: L1D070104741 (An actual Westinghouse furnace serial number I had yesterday), you are seeing a furnace that was manufactured in January of 2007. This process is used to decode all of their products. Nordyne is manufacturing and selling furnaces under the following names: Broan (manufactured housing only) Frigidaire Gibson Grandaire Intertherm (manufactured housing only) Kelvinator Maytag Medallion (manufactured housing only) Miller (manufactured housing only) Newtone Philco Tappan Westinghouse I'm glad you're digging it. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Good things can happen when home inspectors choose to use their free time productively and work together instead of hanging out on the net talking about how their association is better than the next guy's. To read more click here.

Hi, OK, thanks to Susan Cole, Customer Service Manager at Enterprise Fawcett, you have your answer - that furnace was manufactured in September of 1999. I've added the Enterprise Fawcett data to our furnace age decoder chart and replaced the copy in the library with this most current version. Anyone that wants to download that chart can get it here. Any additional questions should be directed to Ms. Cole at: Susan Cole Susan Cole Customer Service Manager Enterprise Fawcett Crosley Atlantic 73 Lorne Street Sackville, NB E4L 4A2 Canada 506-536-1160 ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi All, Well, I've updated the chart again today with the addition of Enterprise Fawcett products. These are kind of specialized products that you're most liable to see in the Canadian Maritimes and in the northeast where the use of coal and oil for cooking as well as heating is popular. Here's the updated chart: To download the newly revised chart, click here

Hi, I just called Enterprise Fawcett to ask. They'll look up the number and will be emailing me with some information. They told me that they might not be able to provide really accurate info. Apparently, there was a very large fire in their building at one time that destroyed a lot of their records. The lady promised to send me what she could. When I get that, I'll post it here and if she gives me information that we can use, I'll add it to the furnace decoder chart in the documents section. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, It's exactly what I said it was. I know, 'cuz I see the stuff all the time. It's roughly 1/40th of an inch thick. They usually lay down some mastic, roll this stuff out into the mastic and swab on a thin layer of mastic and call it a day. Like I said, one of the most reputable roofing companies around here says that it'll last 7 years if they're real lucky. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi, Yeah, I'd suspect some kind of truss uplift-like issue. I see that all the time near interior walls but almost never along the ceiling near exterior walls. If they reset them and spackle they're liable to come back unless they remove the fasteners, spackle the holes and forget about it. OT - OF!!! M.

Ah, Chad Fabry, a picture of grace. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi, I've looked for but never been able to find a kitchen prohibition. Maybe I was lookin' in the wrong place? OT - OF!!! M.

IRC says it can't be anyplace used for storage and a light must be installed. E3305.4 Location of clear spaces. Required working space shall not be designated for storage. Panelboards and overcurrent protection devices shall not be located in clothes closets or bathrooms. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi All, Thanks to Bill Kibbel, we've been able to add the Reznor HVAC equipment date codes to the Furnace Age Decoder Chart. To download the newly revised chart, click here Thanks Bill!! ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, It's a glass mat isolation membrane that's being used as a cover. The cheap SOB's way of putting on a low-pitch cover and even when new with a fresh coating of asphalt is a piece of crap that has an expected service life (according to Jorve roofing) of about 7 years, tops. It'll probably be worn out before the ink on your report is dry. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

John R. Nash of Property Inspections Inc., Plum, PA, passed away on September 5th from complications due to pancreatic cancer. Mr Nash was 62. To read more click here.

Yeah, I've seen a few; most all involved multi-million dollar strip-offs and re-dos of EIFS clad high rises and a couple were high-end private homes. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi, Yeah, Robert Thomas used to be here but I believe that he's moved his operation to Florida. Randy, what kind of inspection are you looking for? You talk about "testing EIFS using invasive methods," but one doesn't do invasive inspections of EIFS unless one has the permission of the homeowner and one is trying to diagnose a problem, in which case the way to do "invasive" inspection of it is to go into the lamina from the backside by opening up an inner wall and cutting a test square out of the lamina. It's also possible to probe it from the surface using a special probe connected to a moisture meter, but that punctures the face of the lamina. If you're looking for someone representing themselves as a true EIFS expert, contact Dan Gerpheide at Tri-State Consulting Inc. in Bellevue. The number I have for them is 425-603-9400, email: dangerpheide@arcada.net. If that number or email address aren't current, look him up on the Northwest Wall and Ceiling Bureau's site at http://www.nwcb.org . ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, It looks like either the finish coat was mixed wrong or, if it was, the applicator didn't stir the mix enough after opening the can. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi, There should have been a weep screed between the upper and lower levels to allow the water moving down behind that stucco to escape. Instead, it's building up behind the veneer and moving into the interior. There's no way to fix that short of ripping off a couple of feet of stucco, detailing it properly, and then patching the stucco. The stucco guy screwed up. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

That's exactly why I asked the question above. I couldn't find the prohibition or a requirement for drains anywhere. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, Jim has it right. Look at the photo and the way those breakers are sagging. The loose connection to the buses makes them arc and overheat and that melts down the breaker casings. It doesn't happen with every single one but it happens with enough of them that they've earned a reputation with electricians as being a piece of crap. I used to live right across the street from a big electrical contractor. A couple of years ago when I'd talked to them about Zinsco panels, they told me that they'd recently replaced over 80 of them in a condo complex and that a "significant number" of them had problems. The guy didn't quantify exactly what that "significant number" was but it was clear that he and his guys consider them crappy panels. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

M is the month of December - December 1997. OT - OF!!! M.