hausdok

Hi Brian, It sounds like a drum trap. They're common in pre-50's homes here and still used in commercial applications a lot. Think about those round steel covers on restroom floors. Nasty to deal with when a drain gets clogged, but they will capture things like lost jewelry, rings and coins. Some of them around here are so old that the drain lines going into them are soldered lead. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Thanx! OT - OF!!! M.

Huh, That screen copy feature is the one thing I've seen in later windows versions that I wished I had. Kewl! Good to have you back Douglas. The Korean Konnection couldn't figure out why I was in the kitchen mixing up semtex and making detonators. Now I can toss that stuff. OT - OF!!! M. M.

Hi Rob, I see H climps or edge blocking intalled only occasionally here in the Seattle area and then only with thinner roof decking. For all practical purposes, unless a municipality zeros in on H clips and end blocking as an issue, and specifically mandates their use, the code requirement is that the panels be installed in accordance with their APA panel span rating, which means that H-clips and edge support or T & G panels aren't required until that maximum allowable span for the decking is exceeded - usually over 4ft. Since most trusses or rafters here are no more than 24in. o.c., that means almost never. As for spacing - sure, the 1/8in. edge spacing requirement is there and can be accomplished using a 10p nail. The reality though, is that once the home has been built, unless you have H clips present there is no way to know, unless you find a problem has developed, whether they builder even tried to maintain the 1/8in. edge spacing, since the panels will normally expand and close that gap before construction has been completed. Then too, I've never understood how placing a metal spacer between two pieces of plywood is supposed to maintain spacing. Doesn't placing the edges of the plywood tight to the spacers have the exact same effect as butting two sheets of plywood directly together at the edges? FWIW, yesterday's inspection was a good example of how to know for sure that no effort was made to maintain sufficient edge spacing. While walking the roof I found a ridge along a course of shingles at mid-span of about 3-4 adjacent trusses and pointed it out to my client. I theorized that the OSB decking was probably butted too tightly together and was being forced upward at the joints. Later on, when I examined conditions in the attic, I found that was indeed the case and was able to prove it beyond a doubt, because someone, probably the roofer, tried to 'adjust' the edges of the panels by stomping on them and striking them with a hammer to try and align the seams. This resulted in mashed edges and one sheet had clearly been stomped on between two joists and was splintered inward. Looking at that, I couldn't help but wonder what kind of an idiot, seeing those panels, wouldn't have taken a saw and kerfed the joint between adjacent sheets. Now, here is this home, 8 years years old with a 25 year architectural-grade roof, that, with good care, won't need a new cover for about another 16 years. The roof has never leaked and probably will never leak, despite this little 'ridge'. And, although this probably has marginally compromised the structural integrity of the roof plane, the practicality is that it'll easily handle any of the snow loads or winds we encounter here. I'm confident of that. So, what it means to a home buyer is that, unless they have the roof stripped off, the joints kerfed, the damaged panels replaced and a new cover installed, when/if they buy the house, they end up living with a defect that might bite them when they go to sell. Like a dented fender on a used car, this won't affect the performance of the home, but a potential buyer may use it for leverage. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Ya Know, If Douglas doesn't come back cuza you two yardbirds, I'm getting in my truck with a baseball bat and taking a trip to Arizona and Mississippi. OT - OF!!! M.

Only that you also forgot long-winded and anal retentive. Seriously, I've think I've explained this before, but I'll do it again. In order for the descriptions contained in the drop-downs to string together into an actual narrative, and one that makes sense, lead-ins and drop-down comments had to be written a certain way. Naturally, because it writes the description narrative fashion - without bullets or icons - You have to be careful to examine all of your choices in the drop-downs before choosing one, and have to read your finished narrative and make any corrections needed, if you want the narrative to be correct. Still, even most of the drop-downs can now be easily re-written by the user with a simple right-click. However, the user needs to be careful to ensure that whatever lead-ins and drop-downs he or she writes will string together properly. That takes some effort and there is no way we can do it for you. You know how you want your report to sound, we don't. The boilerplate used to describe various deficiencies doesn't have every single deficiency one can think of. Those used are common in some areas and not so common in others. The value is in the ease with which you can customize the boilerplate, if necessary, to work in your own region. The boilerplate is written so that it describes the basic issue, where the issue is, why that issue is not a good thing for the home, what can be done about it and the provides a recommendation. The boilerplate is intentionally over-written in such a manner that whole meanings can be changed to fit several different, but similar, situations, by adding or deleting just a word or a few words from a parapgraph. This is so users who don't have good typing and composition skills don't have to do a lot of typing and can still turn out a decent report that wouldn't have earned them an F in a high school English class. No, the finished product may not earn them an A, but it will make sense to the reader and ensure that the inspector's report is complying with his Standard of Practice. What a user has to learn, if he or she intends to use the boilerplate without customizing it or changing it, is to carefully read what hits the page to ensure it is what he or she wants to say. One also has to learn basic computer keyboarding skills, such as how to highlight, delete, insert, cut, copy or paste a word or phrase. For those with good typing and English composition skills, who have their own way of describing a specific issue, and have issues specific to their own region, the value of the program is not so much in the boilerplate as it is in the way the program works and the ease with which it can be easily and quickly customized. Like 3-D, most users who are good writers and have good typing skills are going to want to re-write the boilerplate to suit their own style. The archive feature is very good for this, because one has the ability to archive up to 50 different boilerplated responses for each issue seen. That means you use your most commonly worded text for each issue as your default boilerplate, but you have the ability to make a couple of quick mouse clicks to reach your customized text and replace the boilerplate comment with it. My report time has varied, depending on whether I was writing on-site or at the office. When on-site, I am more willing to accept the boilerplate and make minimal changes. I do most of the input during the inspection as I move through the home and spend about 20 to 30 minutes at the end of the inspection finishing up input, printing and binding the report in a comb binder. If I were to customize the boilerplate for my own use, instead of using the generic text, I could probably be done within minutes. (One of these days, I hope we'll stop tweaking it, so I can customize the text for me.) Off-site, back at the office, I can have a report done start to finish in under 45 minutes if I use the boilerplate unaltered. Since I'm somewhat long-winded, anal-retentive and can type 80+ words a minute, I tend to alter the boilerplate and write something different on every inspection I do. Some are done in 1-1/2 hours, others 2 to 3, others 4 or more. It really depends on my mood and motivation. Again, I can't wait till I'm done tweaking all of the generic stuff, so I can sit down and write it the way I speak. You guys are ahead of the power-curve there, 'cuz you have the ability to do that now if you wish. (Mike B. will e-mail me and tell me that I have that ability too, by choosing an alternate, customized format, which is one of the features built into the program, but I'm just too lazy to do that. Okay, I hope this helps somewhat. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi Tom You forgot long-winded and anal retentive ROFLMAO [:-bigmouth] OT - OF!!! M.

Jeesh, And the guy just sent me an email the other day telling me what a sharp fellow you were. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi Guys, Thanks for the info. I reached the installer and he went over the history of this particular system with me. It was upgraded with new control system and new manifolds in 1998. They have upgraded all of these systems and haven't, to this date, had any failures of any of the pipe in this application. No, it is not oxygen barrier pipe. They said they weren't installing oxygen barrier pipe in 1993. Big outfit. They've done a lot of high-end homes around here. They're doing well and have sticking power. I reported this to the client. He's satisfied that we know as much as we can at this point. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Oh, okay Rob. I see. My mistake. I thought you'd simply typed it wrong. I suppose Douglas won't go ballistic over the code as long as it's not jumping around the screen on him. (Will you Douglas?) OT - OF!!! M.

Hi, It is around here (Seattle). Sometimes they have a combination heatlamp/exhaust fan, but that's about it. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi Charles, I think you need to go into your computer files and rename your second picture and remove the space between F (2) if you want that photo to display. Did you take pictures looking up from underneath and were there signs of leakage and efflorescence there? Are you sure that's meant to be an adhered tile roof and that is tile adhesive and not a sand bed beneath the a paver surface? I've seen a few rootop paver decks here. They are usually designed with a heavy modbit membrane, followed by a layer of 2 inch styrofoam as a protective buffer, followed by a layer of either washed stone or sand and finally a layer of pavers. They weigh a lot. Looked at one on a 15 story condo building one time that had a leak and was opened up for repair with construction barriers around the area they were repairing. The gravel barrier was about 6 inches thick before one even reached the styrofoam. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

RobC I've edited your post. A reminder. Douglas doesn't permit emoticons of any sort on his forum. Editor

Hi Guys, Nope, not old. Built in 1993. FWIW, what I could see of the install - boiler, controls, manifolds - looked great, pressures were within correct range and everything was dry. In fact, as it turned out, the homeowner is kind of a fussy fellow who likes everything just so and things were pretty well maintained. I'm just wondering whether the PB could be a sleeping adder, since it's sandwiched between two layers of 3/4-inch thick plywood decking and there will be no way to ever get to it without significant demo. Was hoping that one or more of you may have knowledge of any issues with In-Floor brand systems. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi Folks, Just did a very nice home with an In-Floor brand hydronic heating system. No issues found with the system but it is plumbed with polybutylene and has manifolds that look like they're also made from PB. Okay, I'm very, very familiar with the issues reqarding PM used in potable water systems, but I'm not familiar with any known issues with PB used for radiant heating systems - in particular In-Floor. Since that house just about wore me out today, I'm too tired to spend a couple of hours digging on the net to investigate this issue to ensure there are no known issues with In-Floor brand systems, and I'm hoping you guys can make me real smart real quick. Okay, turning into sponge mode. What have you got? ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, They could be asphalt. We still have a lot of roofs here that were shingled with interlocking diamond-shaped asphalt shingles and have the appearance of a French tile roof. They have been readily available around here for more than a quarter of a century, but the matting is extremely thick and durable and most I inspect are still holding up really well in spite of their age with little loss of granular covering, lifting, curling or cracking. I can't tell if those are the same product from the photo either. Nice Italianate, why not post pictures of the whole cotton-pickin house for us old house buffs? ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, Jeff asked: I use it on every job. Actually, my wife Yung does, because she does the interior while I'm doing the foundation, exterior, roof, electro-mechanicals, crawlspaces and/or basements. She scans the exterior walls and floor at the perimeter. The walls of tub/shower surrounds, floors in bath, around toilets, in front of dishwashers and kitchen sinks. Floors around sliding doors to patios. Corners of windows. Stains. Anytime she gets a reading, she'll confirm it in pin mode. Once she's finished the interior, I'll pause what I'm doing and she'll walk me through her list and I'll confirm all of her moisture findings and record them if they seem to be valid and not caused by metal, foil, concrete or wires and I can relate them to a cause and effect. In the report, we report that we'd located moisture at such and such location using a moisture meter, that there was or was not visual evidence of moisture, any contributing factors present, and recommend further investigation and correction as necessary by the appropriate contractor. Both Yung and I have had many dozens of finds that might have gone unnoticed when relying simply on sight and smell and we've rarely been wrong about there being active moisture present. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Reuters, Mar 4, 2004: The State Police in Illinois report massive traffic jams from all points of the compass as home inspectors from all over the U.S. head to Chicago to get into the lucrative commercial inspection trade. Chicago police report one local home inspector was forced to flee across the lake to Canada in a vintage canoe with hords of angry local Chicago inspectors in pursuit in rowboats.

Hmmm, You know George, I think you're right. I did a short stint as a heavy equipment mechanic for a factory one time and every one of those LP burning forklift and towmotor engines had a similar regulator. We had 'em on our propane tank in upstate Noo Yawk when I was a kid too. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, Just to expound a little bit on the K & T in insulation aspect of this thread - in the large majority of old home inspections I do here, K & T is literally buried in the blown-in cellulose. On 3 occasions in 8 years, I've found jury-rigged splices onto K & T, that were done by do-it-yourselfers, where the splice had heated to the point of scorching the surrounding cellulose insulation. I have never found an instance where the original, properly-soldered and taped splices caused the same issue. It's an eye opener when you find that paper insulation scorched, but at the same time it gives one a lot of confidence that the borate used to treat the cells is doing what it is designed to do - prevent all of that mulched newsprint from igniting. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi Norm, I'm ready when you are. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi Robert, When you see those situations, are you also looking at how drainage is configured at the sides of the driveway? That's a lot of movement. My first thought when I saw it was that perhaps drainage around the driveway is poor and the ground beneath gets overly saturated so it heaves more. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

No, I'm not. But I'll leave it at that. You can't make someone's business decisions for them. OT - OF!!! M.

Hi Marvin, Everyone that gets into this business is different, so there is no set blueprint. Some folks have a lot of acquired learning and don't need to do a whole lot of learning to pick the business up - others have very little acquired learning that relates to this field and they have a harder time. Since I don't know, your background or your capabilities, I'll assume you know nothing about construction or the home inspection business, other than some ad that you read in a magazine for a correspondence school, and I'll couch my comments at that level. No, you don't have to belong to any association or graduate from any school to take the NHIE. However, if you take it cold and don't have well-rounded experience with construction, electrical systems, heating systems, plumbing and some life/safety issues you probably have a high probability of failing it, in which case you'll then be out the cost of the test. However, that might be money well spent, since it will help you to figure out what areas you are weak in. Taking the NHIE and passing it will not make you a good home inspector nor even a competent one. It only means that you've passed a test of 'basic' knowledge. You still have to develop your ability to 'read' a house, become familiar with the most commonly seen issues facing home inspectors and develop your report writing and interpersonal skills. Some of us, myself included, will tell you that the ability to clearly and concisely report what you see is at least, if not more, important than the ability to do the physical part of an inspection. Don't focus on the course yet and stop focusing on the cost of a course. The cost of the best course out there will certainly be worth it, if you learn enough to not miss an issue on your first inspection that could get you sued and wipe out your livelihood. You're investing in your future, Guy. You can't put a finite price on that. Go to one of the local AII, ASHI or CREIA meetings (Not sure if they have a strong NACHI or NAHI presence in your area or not) and talk to inspectors face-to-face and start to get a feel for the business. Most professional association chapters will let you attend several chapter meetings before they expect you to join, so you'll be able to gain a lot of insight into the business before you spend a lot of money on a course. If, after you've attended a few meetings, talked to some inspectors and maybe gone on one or two ride-alongs, you still want to do it, then take a decent course like Carson-Dunlop's or attend one of the better resident type schools and then go find the best mentor that you can and do your best imitation of a sponge for a few months. If you can find a mentor, try to get him or her, after you've accompanied them on a set number of inspections, allow you to do the inspection of one system of the house at a time under their supervision and 'present' those findings to the client and try to increase the amount you are inspecting every time, until the point where you can do it on your own and your mentor has complete confidence in you. At that point, you'll be where you need to be to go out on your own and be able to stay out of trouble. Good luck in your quest. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike

Hi, I always do the panel before I do any outlet testing, so I get to check conductor sizes for the various parts of the home vs. what size breaker they are connected to vs. which circuit the panel says that they are. From there, I never pull an outlet cover unless there is a high voltage drop reading or a false ground reading that can't be explained. Even then, I only pull the cover on the outlet with the FG or the cover from the outlet farthest from the panel - not all of them. I can't see going beyond that. If all of the GL circuits are 14ga in the panel, and the kitchen/appliance/bath are 12ga, I'm going to presume that's what is at each of the outlets. There are some folks in the business who don't pull panel covers - either because they feel that doing so is doing an 'invasive' inspection, because they say it is 'unsafe' or because they say they aren't allowed to by their state's code. From my point of view, there's no point in these folks even purchasing a SureTest because, even though they know what the circuits 'should' be, there is no way to know what the circuitry probably is. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike