Darren

I see the foundation wall was poured this way. Was it a possible shear wall bump-out and they continued the stud walls up the same way?

Try this: http://hisearch.org/hvac.aspx

It allows a sanitary tee on it's side? - Jim Katen, Oregon I was responding to Chads reply of 'one trap to an arm'.

That set-up is allowed here in New Jersey under the National Standard Plumbing Code.

Regarding Chads set-up. New Jersey requires the buyers info (address) be on the pre-inspection contract.

The attached spells it out clearly for New Jersey. Note- Sussex county is the upper most part of the state and has the state landmark known as 'High Point'. Download Attachment: b_07-3.pdf 29.23 KB

Check out my blog on Active rain http://activerain.com/blogsview/1414206 ... in-garages

Missylrn, Call me at 973-252-1160; I'm in Succasunna. I'll be more than happy to talk to you about this.

Ahhh, from the town of 'Brotherly Love'

There is supposed to be a 'flat' work surface at the A/C unit for repairs, maintenance plus, how's the tech gonna get there?

Most installation guides will state 'Termination is required to be 12 inches above anticipated snow level'. Your gonna have to find out what the anticipated snow level is in your area (I would think upwards of 16 inches or so) but you may be surprised. Here in NJ, "officially" it's 6 inches.

Well, for the first time in a long time I saw a sink drain with 2 traps. This sink was on the 2nd floor bath. Click to Enlarge 38.04 KB Lo and behold, I went to the first floor sink and no trap at all. Click to Enlarge 40.55 KB My question is which sink did he install first?

That looks like a 'toe-kick' heater thats usually mounted under a kitchen cabinet or bath vanity. It's along the same design as a fan coil unit. There is probably a little fan that blows the hot air out. I'm looking for a used one so I can put it in my basement too.

The other concern is once you have a pull down stair installed, the attic becomes a more easily place to store stuff. How do we know the trusses were manufactured to store items. Last year my buddy had a debate with a homeowner about this topic. He e-mailed the SCBA and here's their response. Download Attachment: structual.pdf 72.27 KB

Charlie, How many times have you been doing an inspection and you're talking to your client about a problem you found and you hear the seller chime in "My inspector never told me about that!" Do you want to be THAT inspector? Do you want to spend money later on to fix something or hire someone to say it's cut but it's OK. Tell them the manufacture and current codes prohibit modification to trusses without a design by the manufacture or engineer. Detect- Evaluated- Direct. Inform the buyer of everything, then it's up to them to decide the next move.

If the water heater is old enough that a sediment trap was not in the code, I'd tell my client it's time to change the water heater. ('[]')

Several questions need to be answered: Does the town/city enforce the IRC/IBC? What type of dwelling are we looking at? There is a big difference between a townhouse, condo or apartments. The definition of a townhouse is- A single family dwelling unit constructed in a group of three or more attached units in which each unit extends from foundation to roof and with open space on at least two sides. In New Jersey, a townhouse NOT MORE than 3-stories in height is constructed according to the IRC; more than 3-stories or less than 2 sides open, than it's like a condo and it's constructed according to the IBC. If it's a true 'Townhouse' and it's built to the IRC, than the following would apply- Each townhouse shall be considered a separate building and shall be separated by fire-resistance-rated wall assemblies meeting the requirements of section R302 for exterior walls. The fire resistance-rated wall or assembly separating the townhouses shall BE CONTINUOUS from foundation to the underside of the roof sheathing, deck or slab. The fire-resistance rating shall extend the full length of the wall or assembly, including wall extensions through and separating the enclosed accessory structures. It goes on to talk about needing a parapet or installing a fire-rating 4 feet each side of the separation wall. If this dwelling is built to the IBC, there are many, many variations on separation. I read somewhere (here or IN) where someone stating they were looking at a townhouse that had part of another living space under it; it wasn't a townhouse if there is a living space under it. You need to know what your looking at before you can determine what's right or wrong.

Also, the fire rated assembly needs a fire-rated parapet or the underside of the roof deck needs to be fire-rated. See 'Dwelling Unit Separation" in your IRC.

I agree with Richard; I shoot the registers just to confirm warm/cool air is present. Your going to get different temps at different locations anyway; I'm just checking to make sure the ducts are connected or the dampers are open.

That's another subject altogether. We have many apartments that were converted to condos and some condo/townhouse developments that were built with FPE. Of course I recommend my client have the panel replaced, but when I show them the meter room and see 30 other main disconnects with FPE on them, I really don;t know if replacing one will really help.

The 'settlement' was sealed. How much did each 'claim' get paid?

The only time I call out a furnace (or A/C) as being (possibly) undersized is if the basement has been finished and the furnace hasn't.

I was asked to give a deposition for the plaintiffs attorney. About 3 months later I called the attorney for some info and he told me the suit was settled out of court and the settlement was 'sealed'. No further info available.

In NJ, if ALL heating systems are 90%, insulating the basement is exempt.

Erby, I strongly believe you need to call Mike Holmes in; I can tell by the photo this is a a 'grow-op' and you probably missed all the other signs ('[:-yuck]')