Erby

Trifling leads to education!

Direct expression leaves little doubt. Beating around the bush leaves lots of doubt. I think most of us prefer direct expression, even when it's "loud overbearing insistence". Makes us think about the way we're thinking.

Yup!

I no longer think I'd spend the extra .40 cents a foot.

How deep is deep. There's a reason there's a difference between UF and submersible wire. I think I'd spend the extra .40 a foot.

If one even happened at all!

Because I have three thermometers inside the house so I can see the temperature in that box from my bed, my TV chair, and my kitchen table chair. Each one needs their own sensor. [:-monkeyd[:-monkeyd[:-monkeyd

I'm with Neal. Temperature sensors.

Do you always ride a 4 wheeler to your inspections?

Finally dropped it to many times. What are y'all using now?

I don't care if they ever fix them, Jim. I'm an educator, not an enforcer. I recommend. They choose. That's why it says "repair/replace as you and he agree would be best " And yes, as Kurt said, stairs can be fixed.

The advice doesn't come cheap, for a reason. The education and training those structural engineers have wasn't cheap or easy to get. Spend the bucks. You won't regret it AND when you're ready to sell, you'll have the engineering documents to back up your claim that it's a sturdy structure. How much is your time and peace of mind worth? How much time do YOU already have invested in it and all you've got is a couple of hand drawings and cheap advice from a bunch of guys on the internet that have never even seen a picture of the place you want to put this structure?

Best include some lateral bracing. Metal roof if you plan on being there a long time.

Neither of the staircases are safe as: 1. Riser heights are different outside the normal range 2. Treads are too narrow at the inside of the corners 3. Handrails, while securely mounted, aren't continuous 4. Inadequate head clearance at the basement stairs They are a trip and fall hazard. Consult a stairway guy and repair/replace as you and he agree would be best for your family and guests safety. Your family, your guests, your insurance, your choice. For more information, follow the link below: https://www.inspectorsjournal.com/forum ... SCREEN.pdf

I'd think it might be the plastic tube from the AC Condensate Drain Pump shoved through an available opening in the brick.

Dang, that's an efficient use of space, Kurt! Until it comes time to replace it but by then the kitchen will need renovation / updating anyway. Time for new counter tops!

I agree with Jerry. Common in the 50's and 60's, maybe even into the 70's.

Been there - done that! Now it is: "No optical sensors were installed on the garage door opener system to automatically open the door if the beam were interrupted. They weren't required until 1993. For safety, I recommend an upgrade to the garage door opener system by installing a new opener with the optical sensors, as it is my understanding that you can't just add optical sensors to an older opener."

Ah, yeah, sometimes we get eaten. I wondered why they even bothered with an inspection. Click to Enlarge 66.08 KB Trampoline floors. Click to Enlarge 52.79 KB

We're all salesmen, selling a service. Some of us have the ability to charge what we're worth. Some of us don't. Each of us do what we're happy with. Since I quit being the cheap guy, many years ago, I do fewer inspections, get better clients and houses to inspect, and make more money. I charge for the value I bring to the transaction. It helps that I enjoy the hell out of all of it except the report writing, and I make that as simple as possible. Thank you HomeGauge for that part.

I know a guy who still does handwritten reports. Says his clients love it. Fact is, they'll love whatever snake oil you sell them. It's junk. Run it through a spell checker and a grammar checker. Looks very similar to the reports lots of the software produces, a lot quicker than "many hours". Really, an appendix for each of the photos? Spend some money on software. It'll do the same thing a lot quicker. Do you want to be a computer programmer guy or a home inspector guy. Time is money and I'd bet you're not even charging close to what you should be for the "many hours" writing one report. But then, if you want to be a computer programmer guy...

I'd bet not, Steven. The OLD stone foundations around here don't need columns installed. My guess would be the framing stops right at the exterior of the window and that doesn't leave enough width for a double wythe of stone. More likely wood frame construction with columns and a stone veneer.

Read all the above, then replace it with metal ductwork.

Cost - benefit analysis. If I was going to live there a long time, I'd replace the expansion valve. If I was going to sell in a year or two, I'd replace.

Had one once where the seller INSISTED it was only a couple of years old. Serial number told me 8 years. I asked him if it was possible the installer put in a used unit. He said, "No, damn it. And I have the paperwork to prove it." Went and got the paperwork and said, "Damn, eight years sure go by fast!" Perhaps he ended up with a used unit that really was installed in 06. But, the serial numbers don't lie and Nordyne can answer definitively. I think it would be unusual for a unit to sit on a shelf in a dealer store for 4 or 5 years. A year or two, maybe.