kurt

I'd go through the drill of telling them about asbestos, have a licensed etc., etc., because we're tools in the box of tricks. Personally, I'd paint it.

Never heard that before. Interesting, kinda makes sense. I thought it was a way to vent that sort of overhang; one doesn't have to be concerned with blocked soffit vents or any of that stuff.

"Knotty" as in strange, uncommon, challenging, or otherwise something nonstandard. We've figured out how to vent hips and valleys in complex rooflines, cavity wall in solid load bearing masonry, etc., etc.

Haven't seen those specifically, but we developed some similar products to solve knotty venting issues. They work great.

I'd say you're playing some lousy odds on a lot of tables. Why bother pinpointing anything?

Further proof that Chicago and Illinois are two separate entities. Few test and no one implements radon mitigation into new construction. I've never even heard of it. I called around to a few builder friends; they haven't heard about it either.

There was a long term study a few years back tracking kids that grew up with smokers. A large percentage of the kids developed asthma, pre-emphysema, or some other pulmonary problem normally associated with smoking. It's been shown over and over in a lot of studies. My own study indicates smokers tend to dismiss stuff like smoking studies. You a smoker? I don't believe radon is harmless; I think it's a hazard. But, I question a lot of the silliness related to it's being tied to real estate transactions.

You might want to look that one up again, although it also cuts across perfect political lines. Forbes, CNN, Fox, Cato....they all cite studies with no clear link, then segue into how it's a coverup for another Obama secret agenda to fund overseas abortions. American Cancer Society, Cardio-Pulmonary Medical professionals, EPA, WHO, CDC all cite second hand smoke as a clear and proven hazard, with a few proclamations of "indisputable fact". Who are you going to believe? When science goes political, it's over.

That, more or less, encapsulates a lot of what I think I'm trying to say. We got Federal law mandating safety mechanisms on garage door openers, we codify every last thing that has a ghost of a chance at causing someone to trip or fall, we have >1000 page documents devoted to making buildings safe with armies of AHJ's working enforcement, but mitigation systems....(?)....not required. That doesn't mean it's OK, because I don't know, but radon proclamations by the EPA have that smell of divisions that are desperate to spend their annual budget for fear of not getting more next year.

Modified ship's ladder. Alternating treads. Very cool.

Two interesting stories and observations. I've also been told by a dermatologist that some folks just need a single sunburn to put them in line for skin cancer. I was a licensed radon guy from (about) '87 to sometime in the early 90's. Originally, if we had an elevated level, we had to go back and set several more canisters over a period of time to chart points on a graph, but still with no controls on the test space. Canisters in a house set on cardboard boxes with silly cable ties chained around anything that might not be able to be moved.....science is grand. Lousy testing, lousy results, and from these we draw conclusions about radon. It's why I wonder. Not saying I'm comfortable with any exposure, but I wonder what it really means.

I would trust their opinion because they're oncologists, radiologists, allergists, medical researchers, and general practitioners. This is what they do. Seems reasonable to listen to them. I didn't say they don't care; they just indicate that it's one more thing in a broad spectrum of possibilities. I don't see or hear any particular push from the medical profession at large about radon. That's why I wonder. The international scientific community is still arguing about what it all means. If they don't know or have consensus, why do we? Not saying it's fine, just saying I wonder. Or, go with your gut. Science, schmience....they're just doctors and educated professionals. Why would they know any more than you or I do?

A benefit of union driven make work code promulgation....we don't have hardly any of that stuff. Lottsa iron and steel in everything around here; no NM, no CSST (well, almost none), copper, iron, sheet metal. We only approved PVC for DWV in the early 90's. Kinda stupid, maybe. All the stuff the industries make cheaper and lighter so the work can proceed faster and cheaper...... result in us having to develop complicated safety mechanisms to prevent disasters. What's better?

That's useful. Thanx.

I'm not sure what you're saying. I'm saying I don't know, but wonder how dangerous radon really is. You're saying.......(?)

Why not a cord and plug? Back to the UF..... That can't be right, can it? Rope stapled to a wall? I never see the stuff. Do folks see shit like that often?

Sounds like a lot of guys in the biz. Sorry to hear. What's silly is all the fuss over radon. For the cost of a couple tests and the dinking around that's already occurred, one could put in a mitigation system and forget about it. Inasmuch as the only folks I hear cranking about radon risks are the mopes charged with expending their budgetary allotment cranking about radon, I often wonder just how bad it really is. I don't know any medical professionals that seem to care a rats ass about radon, and I know a lot of uber uptight medical professionals concerned about everything......except radon.

Please know I'm just teasing. I know you're cool. CSST is one of those things I haven't formed much of an opinion on. I don't see it much. Am I missing something? Is it really bad stuff?

Texas manages to roll a lot of contradictions into just about everything. I've long thought the best option is secession. Let 'em go, eliminate all regulation, and let's see what happens. Maybe a previously unrecognized self-righting characteristic would emerge and we'd enter a new age of brilliance. Or not....

Boy, ain't that a big part of the job.....

I'd get a good sheet metal guy out there and simply have them spec out replacing the cap. They'll bring the ladder. I look at a >hundred screwed up metal crowns every year. Everyone just wraps them and they "oilcan" up and down creating ponds. You want a good sheet metal cap that's "broken" to pitch and drain. We get them fabricated at a CNC shop for about $250. Forget the inspection; just move to getting it right. Cheaper and easier. Also, >1/2 the guys getting up there to "fix" it are just going to goob it up with caulk. Caulk is not a fix.

People were much shorter back then.

Zabavno!

Work for someone else for a while. Seriously.

That's right. Conventional soap on a 1 1/2" pipe will back up from foam overload.