jon_ran

That was my first thought, but I have never seen one go from 0-100. Could it be a rheostat for speakers or lighting?

I don't expect them to hire half a dozen experts when I am done. I actually have not inspected a home with any solar system installed. I have the basic knowledge on how they work, but without hands on experience I would be opening myself up to liability if I included that in the inspection. There are just so many differences (pumps, actuators, controllers, etc.) that I could not, in the limited time during the inspection, verify are in proper working condition, adjustment, etc. I agree that we should all be providing the customer with the best product possible but this is not a general system installed on homes, at least not in my area. Every home has a furnace or boiler and water heater of some kind, most have air conditioners, many have wells and septics. While knowledge of a solar heating system would be good to have, it is just not a practical system in my area. There are some old solar collectors used for heating the home, but all that I have seen are so old that the "screen" is so darkened and yellowed from the sun that they are of little, if any, benefit.

looks like a timer

One type (solar panels) operate off the theory of thermo siphoning. As the water in the panel heats up, it rises (just like a hot air balloon does). This rising creates a slight negative pressure behind it and a slight positive pressure in front of it. In a closed system, as this should be, the pressure differences caused by the continually heating water creates a slow circulation of the water in the holding tank through the panel which heats the water in the holding tank. Another type would be a holding tank, painted flat black, exposed to the sun light. This does nothing fancy but does heat the water. Of course, neither work on very cloudy days or at night. In freezing temps, they should be protected from freezing somehow. As far as the inspection - look for leaks and the presence of a TPR on the holding tank, nothing more. Recommend that they contact a company that specializes in this equipment for specific details and operation. Disclaim that solar heating equipment is not part of the home inspection (that should already be in your SOP)

The schematic shows that that screw is for the sub feed. I would take that to mean another panel fed off of that panel. If that is the case, those connections are protected by the main buss fuses which may be too large to properly protect that circuit. Range should be fed through the busses at the bottom.

More than likely, the coil was not frozen but frosted. During your inspection, you noticed it in the defrost mode with the frost melting and dripping onto the pad. Both are normal and expected.

I believe that both lugs (screws) on either side of the fuse is protected by that fuse, but as Jim said, the schematic on the door should tell. A concern that I would have is that should one fuse be removed, the other leg of the circuit is still live. I always recommend that the disconnect for a circuit like that be replaced with a double buss fused disconnect instead of the individual fuses.

Yes they are allowed. If one of the following applies... 1. The panels are connected with a complete conductive path by solid metalic conduit to provide the ground. The metal conduit becomes the 4th conductor. 2. If the panels are not connected with conductive conduit, a grounding source should be provided separate of the grounding utilized by the first service panel. (ie. a detached garage with no conductive grounding paths back to the main service can utilize a grounding rod)

I commend you for "going the extra mile" to do the best job for your client. I have a ladder about that size, but don't have ladder racks on my truck so I can't haul it. I have been seriously looking at ladder racks and considering the rail mount tool boxes to store all of my inspection tools, but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. Right now , I am using a camper shell. (thread drift) You need to wedge the bottom into the foundation as Jim said. If you don't, you will have a hard time getting it up. After it is up, grab it as high with one hand and low with the other as you can and still be able to apply your strength through your arms to stabilize. Move it into position before extending it. Keep the entire ladder as close to verticle as you can as you move it, it is very hard to recover if you let it get too far out of verticle. DO NOT put the ladder on any uneven ground. A slight uneveness at the bottom becomes profound at the top and your center of ballance will shift the higher you get. Don't forget to fasten it off at the top, that is a long way to jump when the ladder falls not to mention what it will damage on the way down. Extend the ladder 3-5 rungs higher than the roof line so that you have something to grab and stabilize yourself as you enter/exit the roof. VERY IMPORTANT!!!!!!! Call your wife, mom, etc. prior to getting on the roof. Keep your phone with you and call them again when you are down. Make sure that they have the address of the home that you are at. I don't do this at every home but if it has a high roof the danger to you increases dramatically should something go wrong.

I am treating this as I treat any older home. I have always recommended that any outlet at the homes exterior, in the garage, in the bathroom and at the kitchen counter areas be GFCI protected. Now I still do the above, only I now recommend that all outlets in the garage and kitchen be GFCI protected as a measure of safety. This would not be a repair item on homes prior to your locality adopting the new NEC, but it is an improvement that improves safety. In reality, the dedicated outlet for the overhead door opener should not be a GFCI, but should be "downstream" of the GFCI protecting the other garage outlets. You should not have to drag out a ladder to reset the GFCI. There may be moisture/humidity issues causing your friends GFCI to trip. It could actually be an issue with his washer or dryer and not the GFCI itself. Newer appliances should not cause the GFCI to trip as older appliances did. Remember, the GFCI is a piece of mechanical equipment. They will only trip for so many times before they can not be reset and/or will not trip again and need to be replaced.

If the GFCI trips halfway through the operation of the overhead door, it will not shut the door. To do so would require electricity, which is not being supplied due to the GFCI being tripped. The occupant would simply have to reset the GFCI and continue as normal. If it can not be reset, pull the cord with the little t handle and open as if it did not have an opener. BTW, I always disconnect the door from the opener via the release and check for door operation without the assistance of the opener. Should the opener fail and the springs be weak, broken or out of adjustment it could be a safety concern.

Probably a squirrel.

Now they have remote devices installed on the outside of the home to read those meters.

Not to be too critical, but I just read this again and something jumped out at me.[:-jump] This was actually a recommendation and a disclaimer of something that limited my ability to inspect the area(s) affected by the moisture. 1. The deficiency should be repaired by a competent roofing contractor because the roof leaks, not because there may be hidden damage. 2. I was disclaiming the fact that due to the presence moisture in this area, there may be damage to other items not related to the roofing structure such as; wall studs, top plate, sole plate, insulation, sub floor, floor joists, rim joist, and sill plate.

Alright, now your just picking on me and have hurt my feelings.[:-bigeyes[:-wiltel][:-weepn] Keep it up and I just might take my ball and go home[:-paperba

Using a XXXXX moisture meter, evidence of moisture was found in the wall below the valley over the front bedroom. During the inspection of the roof and soffits/eaves and/or attic in this area, I discovered XXXXXXX that could be the source of the leak. This should be repaired by a competant roofing contractor. There is a risk of hidden damage to the structure in this area. OR Using a XXXXX moisture meter, evidence of moisture was found in the wall below the valley over the front bedroom. Some of the possibilities of the cause of this moisture include: a roof leak, ice damming and improperly installed insulation and or vapor barrier. During the inspection of the roof and attic in this area, I did not notice anything that was indicative of a leak. but the presence of moisture is un-deniable. I recommend that this be evaluated further to determine the source of the moisture. Such evaluation may need to be destructive to the interior finishing, but the cause needs to be discovered and remedied. There is a risk of hidden damage to the structure in this area.

I would say that they are not allowed because it violates the gas-proofing. Should gas spill or a vehicle be left running in the garage, there would be nothing keeping it out of the home.

Gotta get your crack somehow. Why should we expect them to get a job and earn the money to support their drug habit?

Does the UL listing of a panel supercede what the NEC says? I have seen some panels that state that you can have X # 14 conductors or X # 12 conductors under one terminal, but they have to be conductors of the same size. I agree that it is not a good practice and I have seen overheated wires bunched together under one terminal so I recommend separating them, but if the UL approves it in the panel in question and no issues are found due to the multiple taps, the electrician will often say that there is not an issue. BTW... Even if the panel is listed as aproving the multiple taps, the conductors should still be checked to see if they are loose. I don't check to ensure that the lug is tightened to the required torque, just wiggle the conductor to ensure good connection. I often find loose conductors when they are bunched up.

I also have the WDI license with a different company name than my home inspection company. I post the report to my web site and always keep the WDI form as a separate document than the home inspection report. If I have to provide a hard copy of the report, I will print it off and attach it behind the home inspection, but the pages are not numbered in sequential order of the inspection report (begins over again at page 1), it is not listed in the table of contents of the home inspection report and the company name on the WDI report is the pest company name while the name on the HI report is the HI company.

Some manufacturers allow it, as other have said. But to get the highest efficiency, the unit must pull air from the outside. Otherwise you are pulling "conditioned" air from the home and blowing it outside, which then causes unconditioned air to be pulled in around windows, doors, outlet boxes, etc.

I don't know what your beef is, but for the record... I did not state that I warn of environmental hazards in every home that I inspect. I did not state that I think that rockwool contains asbestos. I did not state that I report the presence of lead in any portion of the water supply system from soldered joints. However.... When I find vermiculite insulation, I feel obgligated to state that there is a possibility of it containing asbestos. When I find the old corrugated insulation wrap on boilers, pipes and insulated flues that I KNOW is asbestos, I feel obligated state there there is a high probability that it contains asbestos. When I find the white fabric looking wrap on heating ducts that I suspect is asbestos, I feel obligated to make the buyer aware that it may contain asbestos. If I find transite roofing material, siding or panels used for soffits, I let the buyer know that it may contain asbestos. When I find lead piping in the water supply system, I feel obligated to report it. If I find mold anywhere in the home, ductwork, attic, crawl or basement I feel obligated to report it. The presence of asbestos in a home is not a problem. Friable asbestos in a home is a problem. Ever heard of mesothelioma or asbestosis and any lawsuits associated with asbestos exposure? As far as the lead in old faucets goes, no. I do not report it any more than I report LBP. The realtor is required by law to give the buyer a lead pamphlet on older homes. I will try to help the buyer identify areas that mey be exposed lead, but without testing I can not specifically say that any paint, solder contains lead no more than I can say that insulation contains asbestos.

I don't know what most inspectors know. I am not an expert on everything but I do have a lot of general knowledge about many things. Note that I did not say that if there is vermiculite that asbestos will be present, just that there is a higher likely hood for it to be in vermiculite than fiberglass, rockwool and bubble gum. If you want to know for sure, you gotta have it tested. I state what I know and make recommendation for repair, improvements, further evaluation, testing, etc. as needed.

Without more pics or a broader view, it is hard to tell. 1st thought would be settlement, but you said that was not the case, plus I see no offset in the mortar joints. 2nd thought would be failed brick ties, but if this were the case (with this kind of cracking) it would probably fell off of the home by now. Are the cracks evenly spaced or do they widen at the top or bottom? Any cracking around the corner?

I would call it "Time to replace the valve." The white stuff is probably a limed over leak. If you were to scrape that stuff off, I can almost guarantee you it will leak.