Tom Raymond

I was just under a deck like that last week, to assess how rotted the wall is beneath it. I didn't think a thing of it until I saw this. Click to Enlarge 86.04 KB Click to Enlarge 49.09 KB Water ran out of the drip cap when I squeezed it. Click to Enlarge 60.02 KB

I was half expecting snapping turtles.[:-dev3]

Ok, but every one I see is this fooked up. Nobody knows how to set them, so the trailer guys do it. The trailer guys have no idea how to do anything but trailers, so everything is wrong. I should have taken a pic of the site, it was a pig sty. The building is junk too, an amalgamation of cheap trucked in and placed by maroons.

I was out to look at a brand new, just placed modular this morning to estimate installing a door and window into the basement. The monkeys that placed the boxes couldn't figure out what to do with a nail fin window and a prehung door. I declined the project, because I didn't want anything to do with this mess. The camera angles exaggerate the problems but they are nearly as bad as they look. Click to Enlarge 34.87 KB These openings are out of plumb, out of square, and out to lunch. The plans clearly indicate the rough opening sizes but the foundation crew apparently can't read. The window opening is an inch too narrow and ten inches too tall, the door opening is nine inches too wide and over two feet too tall. Given how far they missed these by, it's a wonder they got the box size right. They must have forgotten the vibrator the day of the pour, I've never seen so many voids in one wall, ever. Click to Enlarge 51.45 KB There are 4 of these columns, and everyone of them was as poorly placed as this one. They're as far from plumb as they are from center. The floor looks nice and flat, doesn't it. At least there's lots of adjustment left. Click to Enlarge 47.44 KB Nice footings too. What do you suppose those funny straps are for? This is the norm for these things around here. Crappy prep, and crappy placement equals a crappy building. If I where the AHJ there'd be no CO on this one.

Woodpeckers aren't terribly smart. There is one that frequents my parent's house that likes to bang on the meter can.

The 56" guard height and the 30" deck height that triggers it are in violation of maximum fence height ordinances in every town in my vicinity. When codes become onerous people stop applying for permits.

It's way over wound. The norm is one full turn for each foot of height, plus a quarter turn to keep tension on the cables when the door is open. That's gotta be closer to 3 or 4 turns per foot. In that condition it is exerting lateral forces on the three bearings and the drums that the hardware was not designed to withstand, and it's obviously shortening the service life of the spring. If there is an opener connected it is being over worked as well, with potential to damage the gear kit and drive chain. I'd expect a service call and new spring to start at about $200, but it could be lots more. Someone has been 'fixing' things they don't understand.

See what happens when the good ones leave [:-monkeyd

He's certainly young enough to be able to do this gig after he does 20 with the utility. Lets hope he's smart enough to do something a little more fun. [] Best of luck, wherever your path takes you.

I can't decide what's scarier: that someone though that was salable, or that someone bought it.

A ton of oak will last you a lifetime with that little toy stove.

Then the furnace runs home to her mother and blames herself because she's fat. Meanwhile, the water heater goes out and buys a Harley, gets a tattoo, and cavorts with women half his age. It's sad, really.[:-dev3]

At some time in the past, the copper was exposed to an airborne corrosive chemical. That's about all that you can say. Some one was making meth in the garage.

I'd advise allowing the piano to dry for several weeks before removing it. Pianos are heavy, wet pianos are fooking heavy.

Funny, I have the before picture... Click to Enlarge 20.26 KB

She's obviously lived there long enough to know where all the receptacles are... Kelly, check every receptacle in every room for a GFCI and press the reset button on every one you find. Check the panel for a breaker with a reset button it and push that as well. If it still doesn't work, then follow Marc's advice.

More importantly, why are you rebuilding a cooling system when you're already several weeks into the heating season? The really bad thing that will happen is that R22 won't be available for the next service interval. Your investing money in components that may not be serviceable in the very near future. It's kinda like putting a new transmission in a 1978 Chevette. It'll work, but it's not the best investment.

You waded that far through that? Your a better man than I. I got to the 4th response and my head hurt.

I am hoping to but I need to run the cash flow past the boss. I attended this program 2 years ago and it was subsidized through one of my suppliers at the day job. I need to make a few calls and see if they're doing that again. I need 12 hours by May, and it would really be nice if the majority of it was quality. I can pick up the last few hours at the ASHI Chapter meetings. I was surprised you weren't at Dave's (Turnkey) conference in Niagara Falls. The training wasn't up to this caliber, but it was way better than anything else offered locally. What are you doing for CEUs?

In case the rest of the NY HIs haven't heard, Building Performance Contractor's Association is sponsoring 5 Building Science Workshops with Dr Joe Lstiburek in Syracuse, Albany, Terrytown, Melville, and Batavia. Go to http://home-performance.org/ for details. It's a little spendy for 8 CEUs, but the Dr Joe show is money well spent.

No one else mentioned it so I will, I think you have a case of ridge rot and it's condensation running down those panel joints and not rain water. The standard ridge vent was probably an attempt to fix it. Go to buildingscience.com and search out 'ridge rot'. Dr. Joe has a decent fix for it on there somewhere, but it ain't gonna be cheap.

The double barrel arrestors are cool though []

That's nowhere near as fun as your other approach.

Lemme get this straight; you had a mitigation system installed based on the results of a short term radon test and are panicking because the levels have only decreased by 1/3 in a 48 hour period right? Are you aware the levels could vary that much over that period without a mitigation system? My advice would be to go ahead with the purchase, assuming this is the only stumbling block, and contract a long term study after you've moved in. With data from six or eight months of monitoring your radon tech should be able to determine if the mitigation system you have is adequate, or even necessary. If you do need mitigation you will have the data to design an appropriate system.

If it's optional it isn't enforceable. If both parties agree to it, it's no longer optional. Your re-inspection should have it's own agreement, or at a minimum be an addendum to the original. This guy needs limits if you choose not to fire him.