Brad Manor

He has a small firm, 3 or 4 lawyers. He, himself concentrates heavily on FSBO and has a close relationship with the outfit I deal with. Other than my dealings with him, I don't know too much about his business. -Brad

They give my cards to people listing their homes - I get a few pre listing jobs, but more often the purchers calls me. When someone makes an offer to purchase, the FSBO office as well as the lawyer doing the offer have my cards on hand. This relationship has worked out well, they have linked to me via their website as well as asking me to write for a magazine they publish. I also speak at their FSBO seminars to explain the importance of a home inspection to "do it yourself" home selling. I love FSBO!!!!! -Brad

I'm just coming to the end of my first "official" year in business. I felt that marketing to realtors would be the wrong path for me to take in the beginning. The temptation of dealing with the "wrong type" of realtor would be too strong to a hungry neophyte. I was afraid by dealing with every 'zoid out there, I would be laying a bad foundation for the rest of my career. I did, however, market myself to the big FSBO outfit in my area as well as some mortgage providers and a real estate lawyer. I've been fortunate to get lots of business frome these guys. The end result: I may have missed out on a fair amount of business, but I'm still in business (and growing nicely, thank you very much!!!) and I didn't have to sell my soul. I love what I do, I sleep well at night, and I plan to do this for a long time! -Brad

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Fumento, Welcome to the forum. In all my time visiting this site, this is the first time I've borne witness to name calling. While I'm sure everyone here respects your right to an opinion, "nut case" and "hack for hire" are emotional arguments rather than rational ones. Provide me with objective opinions, and I'm happy to listen. -Brad

segue = to transition from 1 topic to another segway = those neat 2 wheeled thingies -Brad

Happy Birthday, Kurt!

So, umm...... How was the practice? []

I agree, Kurt. One of the things I learned studying environmental science in university (other than how much beer the human body could hold) was that there can be valid arguments and papers put forth both supporting and countering most any topic. Concerning radon (as with global warming) all we know for sure is that we need to learn more before we can make a definitive claim. -Brad

Careful what you say Les, I'm an eager rookie and only a half hour away from you! You may wake up one morning to find my ugly mug at your doorstep!

Kurt, Try Jstor. They are an archiving company with offices at almost every major university in the world. This seems like the kind of thing they would have - my sister works at their University of Michigan office. I think that the website is jstor.org and you should be able to set up a trial account. -Brad

My two cents as a rookie: Home Inspectors should concentrate on inspecting homes. I think that people feeling our profession must merge with another makes it look as though we don't provide a complete service, which we do. -Brad

The Ontario provincial gov't is considering following suit.

Good question, and one I had posed to a plumber friend of mine not long ago. He was a bit miffed. A little digging around on line led me to the patent summary of the "hush valve". It states : For sanitary considerations, ballcock assemblies must be provided with a means for preventing the reverse flow of water from the toilet water reservoir into the water supply line. Typically, a vacuum break is provided within the ballcock valve to prevent water from flowing from the hush tube into the water supply line when a subatmospheric pressure exists in the supply line. Although such vacuum break systems operate satisfactorily, it is desirable to provide additional safeguards to prevent water backflow. Looks like it's time to reconsider this "quiet wonder". -Brad

I installed those in my own house about a year ago, they're great. The weight of the water on the little metal strip closes the valve, water level is adjusted with the little knob. They are a lot quiter as they fill too. -Brad

Randy, Not sure if this helps or not: I worked at a carpet and tile place through university (and about 5 years after). When we did granite slab counters, our rule of thumb was max span 24" and mach cantilever 12". I have that in print somewhere, if I can find it I'll post it. -Brad Manor

There sure is: https://www.inspectorsjournal.com/forum ... 0years.jpg

Steve, Check out the Ontario Association of Home Inspectors (OAHI). Their site is oahi.com Brad Manor Manor Home Inspection Inc - Windsor, ON

Randy, My wife and I use Skype at least a few hours per week. Her entire family and most of her friends are back in Europe. We use Skype exclusively for overseas chats - always the video style. Sometimes though, the connection is terrible (not complaining though, it's free), most of the time it's ok. I'm excited to try sightspeed, it would be nice for the calls to be clear - now if I could just learn their language I'd be set!!!! -Brad

Denis, Prices on building materials vary from region to region, and they also tend to fluctuate quite a bit (at least from what I gather here in my area). ps: thanks for the pictures, I spent a little time this summer in Romania (my wife is Romanian), looking at both new construction techniques as well as existing buildings. Your photos brought back lots of great memories!

HAHAHA, thank you!!! And Happy Holidays to everyone! -Brad

I came across this short video this morning. It shows what happens if a TPR valve doesn't work. http://www.metacafe.com/watch/261949/un ... _explodes/

Just curious......... What kind of money do you guys lay out for advertising?? I'm fairly new in business so I expect to have to pay up to get myself known, but I'm afraid of getting in over my head.

I'm fairly new and wanted to get my name out. I had air fresheners made with my logo on one side and contact info on the other. I gave them to EVERYONE, especially the used car lots and detail shops. Seems to be working.

min 6" - max 12" - at least here in ontario anyway