chrisprickett

I'm a bag guy too. I hate stuff hanging from my belt- always makes my pants droop.

I cannot live without my GPS!

I swear I read that totally different at 5:30 this morning! My bad!

??? Not my experience at all. With the exception of some much older ( and worn out) jobs, the tread, nose and riser are all covered. Its usually not done in one piece, but it ends up looking that way.

Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner! That's been my experience almost every time.

Jeff, It's commonly done out here when there's a monolithic pour. You'll likley see some hairline cracking, but it's not s a structural isse.

Jim, I have a vague recollection of black box theatre. I do have many memories of partying in the labrynth of catacombs that ran under the SUNY complex. Those were the days!

Not to mention the incompatible pipe hangers...

Oh crap Katen- I'm a SUNY Purchase guy too...sort of. I spent a lot of time there from '83-'89. Took a handful of acting classes, played a ton of Ultimate Frisbee, and have way too many sorrid "artsy-chick" stories. (the things we did on, and under, the Henry Moore)You don't know Mike Farnum, do you?

I once found about 200 early 20th century milk bottles (which I collect) buried in a cavity under the stairs of a home I was remodeling. The homeowners gave me two. I suppose I should be grateful...

The concrete forms a pocket around the wood, which traps moisture, which certainly can cause the wood to deteriorate.

Properly glued and clamped, I've never had a bisquit fail. You need to BRUSH the glue n the bisquit and in the slots. Most just squirt the glue in. Done right, and its like a weld. The wood will break before the joint. Plus...that dude in the video looks like a tool.

I needed a bigger monitor for the work I'm doing. I found these smokin' deals. On Tigerdirect, it's $199 plus shipping. I went with the Amazon deal. They have it for $218, but will knock off $30 if you apply for an Amazon credit card. It cam out to $205, including shipping! For the money, Acer is a great brand. http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications ... =KNC-GOOGL http://www.amazon.com/Acer-AL2216Wbd-22 ... B000HAR8UI

I use a shop vac. My ducting goes up 9' thru an interior wall and over 15' thru a first floor ceiling. Theres no way to get to it. I carefully feed the 12' vac hose (no attachements) from both ends. Works like a charm.

I am now knee deep in the REO (bank owned) market. I did 5 BPO (broker price opinion) visits, just yesterday. Former homeowners, vandals, thieves, etc, are doing many interesting things to these houses. I see fixures AND outlets removed, gas ranges taken with no regard to the formerly attached piping, and even water heaters stolen. The banks just can't keep up! I'm not sure what the solution is, as it relates to inspectors, but I think you really need to start coming up with something. Its only going to get worse. Safety, as well as liability, are at stake. It won't be long before there will be some real-life examples hitting the the press. For you association guys, it might be time to rattle the cages of your keepers and come to some consensus, before some ignorant inspector gets hurt.

Can I interest you in a nice home?[:-bigmout We get more Cubs/Bears fans at our games than the home team!

I did join the BBB, and you're dead right. I paid extra (double stupid) to be able to put the "BBB Online" logo on my website. Got me nuttin' but a complaint that was filed for an inspection that was performed 3 years AFTER I sold my company. Different inspector, different company name. I only discovered it when I Googled my name. When I called them they didn't have a freakin' clue, but did ask if I wanted to be a member again! A letter from my attorney got it erased.

The other problem with power vents is that they can cause gas appliance flues (that pass through the attic) to backdraft from depressurization, which can present a CO problem. http://healthandenergy.com/carbon_monoxide.htm 7. Leaks in the wrong parts of the house: wind blowing against a house creates high pressure on the windward side and low pressure on the lee. So, even a leaky house can become seriously depressurized if the predominate leaks are on the downwind side. These leaks could be intentional. Fresh-air inlets for a fireplace or furnace our even a dryer exhaust can allow wind to pull air from the house. And any house can become depressurized if there's a window open on the downwind side. Leaks at the wall-ceiling junction are also likely to encourage depressurization, since they help the house to act like a good chimney. This effect is more pronounced in a multi-story house, simply because it's taller. Likewise, open windows on the second story (and particularly downwind) may further increase depressurization. Gary Nelson also noticed an interesting phenomenon in three Minnesota houses he's investigated. All three were fitted with power attic ventilators in attempts to solve moisture problems in the insulation. According to Nelson, the moisture was coming from the house through holes in the ceiling, so exhausting air from the attic only increased leakage rates. Not surprisingly, increasing the leakage rate increased depressurization, and all three houses had backdrafting problems.

14 inspectors made the ripoff report in 4 years? I would have thought it would be much higher! That's 3.5 a year nationally, or .07 per state.

We've been struggling with hi 60's- low 70's all winter. Had to wear my long shorts last week, but I manage.

I know, I watched it. Most of it looked very good, I should have added that in my original post. I'm just seeing a plethora of power vents being added in these parts and homeowners wondering why their utility bills are higher after the install. Too many__________ (inspectors, contractors, homeowners...fill in the blank) think if a little ventilation is good, then a lot is better.

That's part of the equation. When you get a sec, read the whole thing.

I'd read this before recommending power ventilation. http://www.fsec.ucf.edu/en/publications ... GP-171-00/ It ain't always a good thing, especially in slab on grade homes.

Jodi, You could also write up that the panel is contaminated. It looks to me like somebody oversprayed it with either paint or drywall texture.

I used to live a few blocks north of there- 97th & Park. 6th floor walk up that should have been condemned long ago.