hausdok

A little information on high stakes exams:The difficulty of an exam does not make it a good exam. A good exam should test an individuals knowlege of the subject matter which is usually defined by a role delineation study of that profession. The difficultly of the questions that are written come from what is called an Angoff score or rating that each questions undergoes during review. Each question will be given an Angoff score and this denotes their level of difficulty based on the degree of knowledge that is being tested. Many "difficult" exams have poorly written questions, such as questions with double negative and unfeasible distractors. Most high stakes exams test recall knowledge and learned knowledge. Learned knowledge usually reflects and identifies a more advanced type exam. Once you have all of the questions the psychometricians will compile the data/Angoff score and produce a "cut score". The cut score is the score that is needed to pass the exam. This is how you manipulate the difficulty of the exam. Hi, Well, fortunately CAHPI has already done a very extensive role delineation study; the best I've ever seen regarding what we do. It would make an excellent matrix for a proper peer review process except that their idea of what constitutes a peer review is all dinked up and, from what I've been able to see, is pretty subjective. Like I said, maybe they'll come up with a better mousetrap. Might as well wish 'em luck and drive on. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Hi, Marc, that's exactly how the NHIE is structured. John, I think you'll find that having it controlled by your organization will mean it will end up getting watered down. As soon as someone high up in the organization fails it, it will be declared too difficult and then the knife will come out. According to the late Mel Chalfen, who I used to spend a lot of time talking to by phone, it happened to ASHI way back when they were new and first developed their own exam and had a peer review process. At least ASHI eventually came to recognize that for the exam to have credibility they needed to let the exam go. EBPHI does not administer the exam, neither does the state. It's administered by whichever independent exam contractor the state chooses. The test writing panel isn't association dependent either. You guys have already made your decision, so there's really no point in trying to convince just one or two folks on this board that this might not be a great idea. I wish you guys luck; maybe you'll be able to come up with a better mousetrap. I'm afraid though that you guys might have made your decision without knowing enough about how EBPHI works and how the NHIE is designed and administered. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Have you already completed the requirements in Washington State? When Florida passed it's law requiring licensing and they began putting together all of the specifics of the program there, Rhonda Myers down at DOL told me she'd had a lot of conversations with the powers that be there and that they were borrowing heavily from our system here. She said that it looked like reciprocity was probably going to be easy to grant inspectors coming here from there; so if you have already completed your training here you might be granted reciprocity there. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hee, hee, Somehow I expected Scott to be the first to respond to this one. John, I can't imagine that they're going to make gobs of money at this unless they can develop a test that gets taken country-wide. Given the attitudes I've seen displayed by Canadian inspectors toward anyone and anything not from whatever particular association they belong to, I think it's liable to end up relegated to BC alone, in which case CAHPI(BC) might find it to be an unwelcome drain on it's budget. I'm guessing that CAHPI no doubt would like to maintain ownership of it; in which case it would end up being vilified by everyone not associated with CAHPI the same way the old NHIE was vilified (and still is) when ASHI decided to give up ownership of the NHIE to EBPHI and EBPHI stepped off on it's own as an independent entity. Even though today they are no longer affiliated with each other, you still have folks from the other associations constantly caterwauling that it's an ASHI test. Some folks in other associations are so convinced of that they refuse to participate in the exam writing sessions - kind of like cutting off one's nose to spite one's face, I think. Do you think CAHPI(BC) will release it to CAHPI when they're done? If so, do you think that inspectors in other Canadian associations will accept it? How about the folks in the National Assessment Authority or whatever the folks promulgating the peer review process call themselves? Won't they see this as someone trespassing on something they think is their turf? It does kind of look like they are simply reinventing the wheel. The code rule questions in the NHIE are already written into Canadian and have been since 2011; that's why a group of Canadians gets invited to sit every session now. They were shown a lot of respect by the other participants and a lot of time was spent discussing how to reformulate questions so that they worked for both the US and Canada. When questions couldn't be formulated to work for both they were put into a special category for a Canadian version of the test only. I guess CAHPI(BC) is just looking for something to have bragging rights over. I bet this sparks another stink among Canadian inspectors that will make the contentiousness over the national peer review process look like a bed of roses. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

When I see 'em like that I like to use my best Bugs Bunny voice right in front of the client. "Ho boy, what a maroon!" ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Thanks for your responses. Jim, Thanks, I'd been remembering it as since the '60's. So much for the theory that my brain has yet to turn to putty. It wasn't recycled; it's definitely original to the home. My first glance at the thing told me it was commercial grade. I was just really surprised to see such a large commercial panel in such a small home. There were other quirky things about the home that told me the original owner might have been the builder or, perhaps, a Boeing engineer. He'd gone oversized (for this area) on the rafters and ceiling joists; used plywood for roof decking and sheathing instead of the ubiquitous 1x T & G; used a plank-and-beam floor with closer-than-normal beam and post spacing (As if he were bound and determined to have the most solid/quietest wood floor possible - which it seems to be), all copper plumbing in a neighborhood where everything else is galvanized steel, a hydronic heating system instead of forced hot air. To those of you in parts of the country where use of this stuff is standard, it would seem like a perfectly normal house but for this region it just screamed obsessive-compulsive original builder/owner. Kurt, I appreciate what you say about the split bakelite block - I've had those too. Actually, I've had panels where the block was split and was still being used - because they could do so, I suppose. The SOP doesn't prohibit us from pulling a block, it just doesn't require it. We can all of us exceed our SOP's when we feel it's necessary and are willing to do so - it's a judgment call and when we do it we have to be sure to use our common sense. We all have to make those calls sooner or later. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

One can't get that inner cover off to get a look at the connections adequately without pulling the block. I understand the concern but I'd rather have it fail when I pull it than let the customer buy the home move in and then the first time he pulls it it breaks in his hand. At least this way he knows that it wasn't broken at the time of the inspection and if it had cracked or fallen apart I would have simply written it up as failed under testing. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Had one yesterday that I've never seen in a private residence in more than 16 years; a breaker-type panelboard with a pull-block main disconnect. It was kind of overkill. A tiny little 1600 square foot house. The grounded conductor between the home and the pole was a heavier-than-normal cable wrapped directly around the insulator, instead of being held with a clamp, the service entrance cables are 3/0 copper and the panelboard is rated for 200 amps. The cartridge fuses in the pull-block though are 125 amps - which I'm certain is more than enough capacity for this little home. I figured that the panel was commercial grade. 'm thinking that maybe this home's original builder/owner was an electrician of some sort - thus the overkill. Found every grounded conductor sharing a bus terminal screw with it's equipment grounding conductor. I know that's been prohibited by the NEC since the "60's" but this house was builtin 1960; so I have no idea whether it was a mistake on the part of the original electrician or it was at the time perfectly acceptable. I have to confess that after 52 years I'm having a hard time with the idea that doing so was somehow dangerous, regardless of the reasons for the rule. Click to Enlarge 40.75?KB Click to Enlarge 48.49?KB Click to Enlarge 33.19?KB Click to Enlarge 28.22?KB Click to Enlarge 97.13?KB Click to Enlarge 49.18?KB ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

According to an article in Daily Commercial News, a Canadian Construction Industry Publication, the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors of British Columbia has begun collaborating with the University of British Columbia to develop a more rigorous home inspectors proficiency exam. To read more, click here.

Hee, Hee, Looks like dust that got sucked into the wall from places unknown via air infiltration. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, Very early on when I'd got started in this gig nearly 17 years ago, I was in a new home and rolled a frig out from the wall so that I could inspect the ice maker valve and test the receptacle on the wall behind it. As I rolled it back into place, I realized that the hard plastic casters built into the unit had left two impressions of themselves in the new wood flooring. The builder when ballistic and was happy to take more cash from me for the repair than I'd made that day. Since then, I don't pull friges out from walls....period. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

You can see a water line around the perimeter on the block. They must have a pond under there in the rainy season. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

That's too bad, Thanks for that info. I have a LOT of microsoft engineers as clients. One of them is on the team that developed that thing. I'll be sure to pass along the feedback. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

OK, Never mind, I googled Windows RT. Now I get it. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi Jim, What is Windows RT? That new Surface commercial - the one that makes one think of a Stomp show - is kind of cool. I find myself actually stopping and turning to watch it whenever I hear the music that goes with it. Makes you want to buy one and join in with the show. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Yep, I see those all the time. One of the selling points that the salesmen like to make for these is that they extract the heat from everything, even the condensate; and I think this is the manufacturer's way of showing that to folks. As long as that condensate is inside the furnace and the drain system is functioning properly, and there isn't any leaking out of that plastic cover onto the electronics (Had one of those once), it's fine. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

wiki, I've just edited that link out of your post for the second time. Stick around and prove to us that you can make meaningful contributions to the discussions here. Comments that are really based on your knowledge and aren't cut and pasted from someone else's document or website. Once we believe you aren't a link dropper, we'll allow your link. Until then, the link won't be allowed and if you persist in returning to re-post it you'll find your profile locked. Ed.

Ooooooooo'K. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. I see the smiley though. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Yep, It's a glass reinforced asphaltic paper that's designed to be used as underlayment. Some roofers have been putting it down like a torchdown but without the heat and with asphalt cement. Mop coat, roll it in, finish covering the roof and then mop a layer of asphalt over the top and call it a day. Cheap roof made with materials not designed for that purpose. Another word for it -- jackleg. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

It's glass mat. I see it all the time. It's supposed to be used to isolate a single-ply membrane from stuff underneath but some roofers mop it to create a really cheap single-ply roof. Around here they never lap it that much - usually no more than about ten inches. According to Jorve Roofing, a big roofing company here, those last about 5 to 8 years before they're toast. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike P.S. You lost the bet. Waddu I get?

The bottom edge rusted out and then the deck got rotten. They used a metal-cutting blade to surgically remove the bottom couple of feet of rusted metal cover, replaced the rotten decking and then installed the asphalt shingles because they didn't know where to find matching replacement metal roofing sections. My best guess. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Topic split. We'd gotten off on a toolbelt tangent so I split that part off.

It should be amusing to watch the guy the first time he inspects a house with no alleyway access on a lot raised a couple of stories off the street with a three-switchback stair going up to the entry. Stopped wearing a tool belt about a month after I got into this gig after I'd brushed up against and marred some interior finishes in new homes. It not only upset the builder but it upset the client as well. I have a Veto Propak tool bag that I bring in and place near the entrance. I get what I want from the bag when I need it and return it to the bag when I don't. No need to haul a bunch of crap around all day. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi Ed, You might check out the date of that OP. That was seven months ago. I'd bed he's fixed it by now. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Did you ask for the Zinsco panel? I do. I've gotten a couple so far. Sent one to Douglas, the other I use for demonstrations in the class I teach over at North Seattle Community College - it has a nicely arc-scorched aluminum bus bar. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike