hausdok

Hi Kurt, It's lick 'n stick. I see that same cast stone all the time here. It would really look better with a piece of flashing at the horizontal transition, but I don't think the lack of one is going to make a difference. This stuff is like stucco - it's applied to a mud-wire lath base over paper and it's designed to drain. Even without the flashing, water simply runs past it and leaves the wall at the bottom as it's supposed to. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi All, Well, I think the subject has already been pretty well discussed. Call it asbestos if you've a mind to, or not; the decision is ultimately going to be a personal one. If I might, allow me to editorialize a little bit here. For some of you, WJ is the new guy on the board and I can sense that you resent it when he's critical of your writing or choice of words. Well, he may be a new face at TIJ, but many of us have known him for years on another message board and are accustomed to his style. If his critiques sting a little, give it some time; his style is very blunt and to the point and takes some getting used to. However, those of us he's scolded once or twice about our choice of words have, in the end, learned to write a little better because of it (I just know Bonnie is out there reading this and itching to dissect this paragraph. [:-scared]). Walter actually writes for a living. However, he didn't always, and I can guaranty you that somewhere in his past there was an editor sitting there chopping up his work, admonishing him for his choice of words, and forcing him to remember some of what he'd learned in school but had forgotten. If Walter had not listened to his editors and continued to make the same mistakes, he would have found himself out of a job. So, he had to force himself to learn those lessons. It's the pretty rare home inspector who began his or her adult life wanting to inspect homes. Before we backed into the home inspection business, for decades most of us did something else and many didn't realize when we got into this business that being good at what we do also means becoming a professional writer. When one writes professionally for a living, your work is expected to be professional. When WJ critiques your writings here, look past the initial feelings of embarrassment and resentment to the lesson being taught; it truly will help you become better at what you do. Kudos to all of you for maintaining your professionalism throughout this and so many other discussions here on TIJ. I think that one of the characteristics of a true professional is resiliency. A professional is able to absorb criticism of his or her work, analyze that criticism, take what's useful from it in order to get better at what he or she does, and moves on with life without taking the criticism personal and striking back just for the sake of striking back. I surf a lot of different HI boards (You'd be amazed at how many there actually are.), and I'm continually dismayed by the amount of enmity, and sometimes downright hatred, that I see spewed on some of them. Thankfully, we see very little of that here at TIJ because folks here manage to maintain their professionalism in spite of so many differences. It's gratifying, to me at least, that myself and the moderators only rarely have to exercise our delete keys. Thank you all. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi John, I didn't realize that Ron hadn't included the link in his post. I've fixed it. Scroll up to the original post in this thread and click the link to go to the online registration. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi, They brought all of that cable in through the back of the panel at the bottom and then they had to turn it, twice, to connect to breakers. That can make for a pretty confusing mess but it's not necessarily a bad thing. Sure, they're cool when they bring them all in from to the top and bottom in one straight shot and they're all nicely arranged , but not every electrician is an artist at his/her craft. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Nope, I got a copy too. They made mention of some other sites: BobVilla.com; doityourself.com; and homesupportforum.com, but not TIJ. That's okay, I was happy to be able to hook him up with some guys who could give him some good information. Martin says that he'll be doing a follow-up article soon, so if any of you guys have got photos and want to share your experiences, send them along. A subscription to Energy Design Update is $399 a year, Les. At those prices, they don't allow anyone but subscribers to link to their articles. Hmmm, $399 a year? Maybe I should be looking at this subscription fee thing. [:-eyebrow ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi Kurt, Well, you know that my strong suit isn't electricity, but, wouldn't they also be trying to protect against the faulty appliance? I've got a torchiere [sic] lamp in my office that was made in China and has got a short in it. When I turn the thing on I can actually hear it sputter as it's arcing. I would hope that the danged AFCI was meant to sense that and trip. Is it? ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, Yes, I actually put up a response this morning that expounded a little bit on that; but then I deleted it without posting it, because I've been down this road before and I, frankly, get tired of arguing about it. "Appears to be" is weaselspeak. Every police recruit, everywhere, is taught to use it in virtually every circumstance where the cop hasn't personally witnessed something himself - sometimes even when he/she has witnessed it. It's a way for the cop to say something when he's not absolutely certain, even make accusations, and still be able to back down and save face later on if he or she is wrong. Chris' example is a good one; another is: Greenish-brown vegetable matter containing twigs and seeds that "appears to be marijuana." Sure, Brian, they are TRAINED, but they don't use the words "appears to be" because their training tells them it's marijuana, they use the words "appears to be" to avoid embarrassment and repercussions if they are wrong and to give them an out later on. You'll find police documents rife with "appears to be," "alleged," and "claims to be"; those will be in everything from witness statements to police reports to evidence vouchers. A gold bracelet was never vouchered as "A 6-inch long 14k gold bracelet" it was always vouchered as: "One (1) bracelet, heavy yellow metal that "appears to be" gold, 6 inches in length, marked 14K on the clasp, taken from location ___ at the crime scene (See accompanying sketch), sealed in an evidence container and marked as evidence on the seal, Item#_/1220hrs/080810/moh. This one is actually easy to justify; if it's not real gold, one doesn't want to be accused of swapping out a real 14K bracelet for a fake one. However, home inspection is different. We're hired on the presumption that we are the experts. We're not thought of as the cop - we're thought of as the CSI; the go-to guys for information about a house. If we plan to punt an issue to another specialist, we're expected to know darn well what we're talking about and why we punt it, lest we hear later on that we're idiots. If you look at an electrical panel and aren't sure about an issue, or only have a vague idea about an issue, and then you punt it to an electrician, you can look pretty darned silly later on when the electrical guy says, "This is perfectly alright and here's why; that home inspector should have known that. Where the hell do those guys get their training anyway?" If I see what's in that photograph, my experience and training tells me that the likelihood of it containing asbestos is 100% and that's what I'd say as I told the clients to confirm it with lab testing and then follow the advice of the asbestos guy. I'm the family doctor, he's the brain surgeon. Just because he's the expert-expert doesn't mean I can just send any old thing I'm not sure about to him. I'm expected to know what I'm talking about before I waste his time. If you aren't sure, don't use "appears to be," that's just too weak. When I'm not 100% sure but I've convinced myself that I'm right, I say that something "most probably" is whatever I think. For instance, looking at a popcorn ceiling, I might say, "that material "most probably does contain asbestos." That's because I want the client to know that I'm convinced that it does, so they won't allow themselves to be swayed by a realtor who's just kicked into damage control mode and is trying to convince them that I've overstated the issue. "Appears to be" leaves open the possibility that you aren't sure of yourself and many sellers, trades and realtors will exploit that weakness. "Most probably is" and "most probably does" doesn't leave much doubt in the listener's mind that you think it is or does whatever you say. In this business you have to be assertive and there mustn't be any misinterpretation of what you're saying. Leave room for misinterpretation and you sow doubts about your credibility.. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi Alex, Check this out: https://www.inspectorsjournal.com/forum ... IC_ID=5301 OT - OF!!! M.

Hi, I moved into a condo complex in February. It's got vinyl siding. Standing outside, one can see that all of the double-paned windows are slightly concave. Every sunny morning, I watch shiny circles with a focused pair of criss-crossing arcs in the center walk down the sides of the building directly across from my windows. One morning I got up, walked over there and put my hand in that sunny spot. It was hot - too hot to hold my hand there for more than about 15 seconds. I'd bet that the exact same configuration situated closer to the equator where the sun is higher in the sky would absolutely ruin that siding on the very first day. Seeing that, it's easy to understand how at just the right angle reflected light from windows can melt vinyl siding. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

What's going to be more interesting is trying to keep track of which town adopts the entire thing and which decide to adopt it piece meal. We can take solace out here, I suppose, from the fact that most of them will probably remain one code cycle behind and won't adopt any of this until the next version of the code. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

There's a schematic inside the panel that has an arrow pointing to that bonding screw hole and the words "Bond When Required." What more do you need than that? It's the manufacturer's own instructions. Was the screw in the panel? I find thems sitting there occasionally and point them out to the client. I'd put them in, except for then the moron that left it out won't learn his lesson. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Call it as you see it. What possible reason could there be for not calling it the "A word?" Because you're not a licensed asbestos guy? That's not logical. Using that logic, you shouldn't call out anything about the exterior, the roof, the framing, the foundation, the crawlspace, the attic, the insulation, the HVAC, the plumbing, the interior, the electrical, etc, because you aren't one of those specialists. Tell the client that you believe that the insulation that you are seeing most probably contains asbestos fiber and recommend that they confirm that through testing. It costs about $35 - $40 around here to get a sample of that stuff tested. Tell them that if it turns out to be asbestos to consult an asbestos abatement specialist about which options - removal or encapsulation - will work best in this circumstance and what that's going to cost them to accomplish. Once you've done that, step away. If it turns out not to be asbestos and someone squawks, point out to them that that they could have avoided the whole issue by being proactive and having had it tested and a report handy before the inspection. I might even offer to pay the $35 test fee, since it would have been my report that prompted it, but that's as far as I would have gone and I certainly wouldn't have felt guilty about having called it out. I think that telling folks that it's okay as long as you don't get it in your lungs is pretty pointless. It's already in your lungs, and their lungs, and my lungs, and Jim's lungs, and Kurt's lungs, and you kid's lungs, and will be in your grandkids lungs, and.... It's in the air all around you and has been for decades. I just identify it as an asbestos containing material and then I leave it up to them to confirm it and get an asbestos abatement guy to tell them what to do about it. Once they're armed with the asbestos guys' assessment, they can do whatever they want. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, I'm with Kurt and Jim. It won't happen right away, but it does happen. Every once in a while I'll get into an attic and find a black spot of rot fungus developed around the point of a nail or two. On the roof, these are invariably not sealed. It seems like it takes a number of years for the seepage to reach the backside of the deck. One can only imagine what the deck looks like around that nail under the underlayment. I'm not sure what's best to use. These manufacturers aren't all formulating their sealants from the same substances. Some of the vinyl jack vents that are installed are probably not compatible with petroleum-based sealants, and maybe not with the acids used in silicone-based sealants. I've never really explored it. I see what looks like silicone that's been used on these which has split all the time, but other stuff that also looks like silicone is doing fine. Sometimes I see the black goop doing fine after many years; sometimes it's all split after only a few. I suspect that the safest stuff to use will be a water-based sealant like one uses on an APP membrane, but I don't know for certain that's the case. If a nail isn't sealed, it's prudent to call it out, but I only state a compatible sealant and let them figure it out. When I see the sealant, I don't know whether it's plastic, asphalt, petroleum, or silicone based and I don't care. It's sealed, it's not cracked, it's working at the time of the inspection. That's what I care about. I'm not a chemist. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

That roofer's version of a kickout flashing. He's using them to prevent the water from overshooting the ends of the gutters. Image Insert: 18.82 KB

You better be there, Les; you're the one that's supposed to be bringing the bus load of .....! ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! M.

It might pay where you and he are. Out here, I see a pool about every 3-4 years. Why add the additional liability if one doesn't have to? Sigh, gotta get up and lift the open the air conditioner a little more. OT - OF!!! M.

Yep, Western Red Cedar Lumber Association and the Shake & Shingle Bureau are two different animals. OT - OF!!! M.

Why lose the job? Just get with a pool contractor, find out how much he or she will charge for a pool inspection and then, every time you get a call about a pool, guote them the fee plus the pool guy's fee and tell them to tell you what days they prefer to have the inspection done. Then call your pool guy and coordinate a joint inspection on one of those days, call the client back, give the client the date and lock it in. Tell the client to bring two checks - one for you and one for the sub. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

You can walk on cedar. You just have to watch where you put your feet. Looking at the underside of a cedar roof can be deceptive as hell. The tannin leeches out of the cedar and turns black in the attic. If one didn't realize that and know what it was, one might write it up as deficient, moldy or rotten and be completely wrong. They're best viewed from outside on the surface where you can find the pressure-washing damage, see the improperly laced flashings, worn ridges, etc.. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi John, You should be able to walk on them without difficulty; just don't even try if they're wet. You shouldn't see felts in the attic. Rift-sawn shingles are consistent in thickness and have smooth edges. When they're installed correctly without felt of any kind they don't leak. Notice the emphasis on the word correctly. Properly maintained, I don't see why they wouldn't last as long as cedar but since I don't see them here I'm no authority on the subject. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

It's just over five more weeks to Watts Radiant's first ever radiant heating systems seminar tailored specifically to the needs of home inspectors. The seminar is going to be held at Watts' training facility in Springfield, Missouri on September 12th and 13th, and Watts' Radiant wants to know from inspectors about any specific aspects of radiant heating systems that inspectors find particularly difficult to understand. According to Ron Miller at Warm U., Watts' radiant heating training facility, "We at Watts Radiant are confident that the inspectors who attend this course will learn a lot. However, this being the first course of it's kind tailored to the home inspection profession, it's especially important to Watts Radiant that we get it right, and that our course focuses on what inspectors need the most. Not being home inspectors ourselves, we need inspectors to tell us where their knowledge of radiant systems is the weakest. We want to know what difficulties with inspecting these systems inspectors have encountered the most, so that we can specifically address those issues in our course. It's important to us that when they leave this course these inspectors have the knowledge and confidence to competently inspect any electric or hydronic radiant heating system, and that they leave as the best trained radiant heating systems inspectors in the home inspection profession." There are still slots available for this first class. The cost of the seminar is normally $125, but Watt's Radiant is waiving that fee for this first class of 20 inspectors and will pick up the tab for all meals and lodging and will provide inspectors transportation to and from the airport. Inspectors are only responsible for their transportation to and from Springfield. Miller asks that inspectors email him directly with those topics they'd most like to see included in the seminar and says that inspectors who have specific questions about the seminar or particulars of travel to and from Springfield are welcome to call him at 417-447-8055 or email him directly. Miller also pointed out that there are some inspectors from the Kansas City and St. Louis vicinities who are planning to drive to Springfield and are willing to share the ride and split travel costs; those interested in this should contact Miller directly. Inspectors can also register online by clicking here.

Rising damp. OT - OF!!! M.

Or, you could've just written something like, "I don't know what that little two-prong recessed male plug in the bathroom is. Never seen anything like it." WJ Yeah, I saw some kind of old thingy a couple of weeks ago. I think it was part of an old 50's era intercom or something like that. The client, a lawyer, asked me what it was. My reply, "Beats le Hell out of me; I've never seen one of those in 11 years at this gig. Ask the homeowner if he or she knows what it is. If they do, let me know so I'll know next time." He chuckled. Whatever it was, it was dead, had nothing to do with the way the house was functioning, and it wasn't worth wasting time speculating over - there are too many other things to look at and worry about when inspecting. Clients expect knowledgeable - not encyclopedic. OT - OF!!! M.

Well, At the risk of being accused of fabricating bullshift, I'll step in. I think John is overstating the issue, but he's right, moss can do some harm to stone and masonry. Fungi uses an acid - oxalic acid - to digest its food; we do too, but I think our bodies use hydrochloric acid. Oxalic acid is powerful stuff and it can etch concrete; it's what you'd use on concrete or roof shingles if you wanted to age the surface rapidly so that repairs will blend in. That's a stone foundation. There are types of moss and algae that actually eat limestone and will soften mortar. Don't believe me? - just google it. I learned this at your old gig, Walter; it was an article or a Q & A that I read years ago in Old House Journal about the reasons that moss isn't good for masonry. I see moss and algae damage all the time. I routinely find chimneys that are free of fungi on the sunny sides and then there will be moss or algae growing on the mortar on the north side. Scrape the mortar on the sunny side with a pick and it's in good shape. Pull a little bit of that moss off on the north side and scratch the mortar with a pick and it's soft, crumbling. discolored and more porous. The crowns on old chimneys are the worst because they're mostly old lime-based mortar as opposed to the new crowns that are mostly concrete. They'll be covered with moss and when I pull a chunk of the moss away it will bring the surface with it and wherever it sits on that old lime-based mortar the mortar will have turned brown and gotten really soft. So, yeah, I believe that John is correct in his assertion that moss isn't good for that wall, but I don't agree that it's holding water against the wall; it's just growing on the areas that are moist from rising damp and is using it's digestive process to try and eat the surface. When the source of the water goes away, the moss will die, become dormant and stop trying to eat. This is where I agree with Walter - "Tell the folks to find the source of the water, and make sure the water doesn't keep the foundation wet," because that moisture will freeze and damage the wall. I'd be looking hard at drainage and scratching around down there to see if there were a damp course in that stone masonry wall (Kind of doubt it, though.). The middle picture doesn't look like rising damp, it looks like water is running down the side of the house onto the foundation. It's narrow at the top and flares out; which is what you'd expect that water to do once it drains onto a porous surface. Are there eaves on this house or is it a typical New England cape without eaves and overflowing gutters? ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Yes, PVC is an approved venting material. He didn't say they couldn't use PVC in a chimney; only metal flue materials. OT - OF!!! M.