Scottpat

At an inspection this week I found an unusual service entrance and meter connection. I can't ever recall seeing one set up this way before. As for the panel it was unique as well. The owner was retired from the TVA, his wife said he was a hydroelectric engineer. Click to Enlarge 84.43 KB Click to Enlarge 55.93 KB Click to Enlarge 44.46 KB Click to Enlarge 62.86 KB Click to Enlarge 41.32 KB

Was the burner covered with scale? Did you hear any "popping" sounds from the tank? I'm with Mike, I bet the bottom of the tank has a thick layer of muck. At 12 years of age it is at the end of it's like and a good flushing may or may not help.

When I first started back in 1994 I felt that I needed to have a gas detector. I think I used it a dozen or so times, they tend to have many false positive alarms. I just don't see the need for one. My nose can smell pretty darn good and if I get a whiff of natural gas, I keep sniffing. I do use a liquid leak detector if the need arises. As for a CO detector; I have one and again I think it has been used a dozen or so times. If I do use a CO detector it will be for my own information and it will never make it in my report that I used one. CO is a funny gas that can appear and then disappear depending on the prevailing conditions. I don't think I would recommend getting either tester. I just don't see the need for them.

I agree with Jim, it looks like spray foam. It turns orange after a while.

I thought at first it was Hardi Trim, but it is white. All of the Hardi trim I have seen has had a tan color on the inside when it is cut. It is not Fypon, that is just like plastic. Heck I don't have a clue on this one. It is one of those I don't know days!

Have you seen Azek? It's hard & white, but I'm not sure I'd describe it as crystalline. http://www.azek.com/viewProduct.php?id=9 - Jim Katen, Oregon That was my first thought. I stopped by a supply store that stocks Azek and it is nothing like what I found on this home. Azek had very little texture to it on the cut ends. The stuff on this home had just about the density and texture of fine pumice.

I need some help and or information on a type of trim board I have never seen It has been used on a home that has Hardy plank siding on it. A critter, most likely a squirrel has been gnawing on sections of it. The inside of the board is a hard white almost crystalline material. I have no idea what it is. Any ideas?? Click to Enlarge 35.34 KB Click to Enlarge 43.04 KB

While mostly true, there are some exceptions out there. Ayrlett, for one, makes a black ABS AAV. http://www.ayrlett.com/aav/products.html Thanks Richard, I did not know about those! As I have said before, I learn something new almost every single day! Well so much for it being simple to say that the black ones are ones you don't use!

I know an AAV (Not the mechanical vent) should be installed 4"above the Wye or fixture drain on the line. The mechanical vents are not approved for residental use. They are only approved for trailers and manufactured homes and should not be in a stick built home. Mechanical vents are black and AAV's are white or tan.

That is the beauty of this job. We just need to find it and report it, but we don't have to try and understand why folks do the strangest things!

That's a good idea. Also if you have a Blog make it a new Blog page and link to it. I think I might even do this....

I know of an entire subdivision in Jackson MS that was built right after WWII all 2&3 bedrooms with 1 1/2 baths and all have wall mounted tanks. So I would say that they were used up till the late 1940's.

I report only what I find. If I find a 12 year old water heater, I'm going to report that it is at the end of its life and it could fail at anytime. Replacement should be done before it fails. As for advice on locks, cleaning gutters, etc., I don't add it to my report. If you want to add it to your report why not place it in a section that you label as "Things to do when you buy a home" this would keep it out of the main body of the report. You are telling everyone, not just this client.

That is Third Party language, I know Mississippi has it and Tennessee just added it this year to its law. I would say it is fairly common and if your state law does not have it, you should be working on getting it added. Problem is that it might not stop the lawsuit as third party lawsuits have been upheld in prior cases around the country. They circumvent it by saying that you were negligent. About the only thing in a license law that really helps an inspector from being name in a lawsuit is the time frame for an action or claim to be made. I was shown some data from an insurance company and those states that have a one year limit of liability have less lawsuits against home inspectors.

I was in Saltillo on a commercial inspection about two weeks ago. It is about 3 hours from me. You should contact Ed Neelly, he sits on the State Board and is a home inspector in Tupelo. Might be a good source for a ride-a-long. And then again that is kind of close to his market so you might need to go down over to the Oxford area to find a person. Thanks for the complement on my website. It is by no means a fancy site, it is a homemade product that screams do-it-yourself. But, it does pull up rather well organically in the search engines and I guess that is all that really matters.

Folks, it is not the job or the purpose of any licensing agency to intervene in a civil lawsuit. This is why we have the court system. Hopefully the inspector has E&O that will help cover the cost of his defense and hopefully they will file a counter suit to reclaim the cost of that defense.

Boy that critter does take a while to download. I made a sandwich and just about finished it before it downloaded. If it gets to court my bet is that it won't get very far. I don't think he offered any engineering advice in the report.

Hi Chuck, The NHIE should be a fairly easy exam for an experianced inspector who has been around for a year or longer, I think Richard has been around a little bit longer and has done a few inspections. I think you will find the exam a little harder simply because you have not done any inspections. Remember the exam is testing you on what is correct and not what you did as a builder. Mississippi has one of the lowest passing ratios and this is due to the low pre-license education requirement of 60 hours. States Like LA have double the hour requirement and also require X number of inspections with an experienced inspector. LA has one of the higher pass rates in the country. Right now the national pass ratio average is around 68%, this is in line with other high stakes licensing examinations. I would try to find a local inspector who will allow you to ride with them on a few inspections. Ask them questions and watch what they do. As for E&O, I would look at Business Risk Partners, OREP, ALLEN Insurance and FRIEA. Most offer GL as well as E&O. What part of MS are you in.

It is flat sawn solid hickory. It is sitting on 15lb builders paper on top of plywood on wooden joist. The water table of the lake or groundwater is really not an issue as the homes are both sitting on solid limestone, Igneous and granite well above the lake.

The "R" factor comes from the depth or thickness of the material as well as what it is made from. At 4' and if it is a blown-in type you will have greater than an R12 factor.

Thanks for the replies... The two flooring contractors said that hickory needs to be in a consistent low humidity environment and not in a home that is closed up or near water, like the a lake that both homes are sitting on. They told me that it will cup about six to eight weeks after it was sanded flat. I agree with the stand alone dehumidifiers and this is what I recommended as a possible solution to their problem. It seems like a local designer loves the look of hickory and he did both homes.

Take it from a guy that's been part of a 12 VDC circuit- an automotive battery can light you up pretty darn good. Next time you're all sweaty put your forearms on the positive and negative. It's invigorating. I did that on my sons car not long ago and I wet myself![:-monkeyd

I have always relied on a simple phrase and it is :I don't know! But I will do some research and get back with you.. It works every time and folks really do appreciate it when you say it and don't try and BS your way out.

I have two homes with wood floors that are made from hickory. They are both cupping. One home is on conventional foundation and the other is a walk-out basement. Both are bone dry! Both are on lake front lots. Both homes are also weekend or vacation type homes. Both homes have their thermostats set at 80f in the summer and 60f in the winter when their owners are not in them. I do not know much about hickory other than it is a very hard wood and it is all around my part of the country. I have done some research and have discovered that hickory is also a very porous wood and absorbs moisture easily. My theory is that the floors are cupping from being closed up and that they are so close to a lake that increases the humidity. The wood then absorbs the moisture and cups..... I have also been told by two flooring contractors that they would not even consider putting hickory in a lake front home. Any ideas??

That is called a "high/low" combustion air or make-up air system. The room was too small for proper make-up air so this was installed to provide "outside" air to the room. Yes, the attic is considered to be "outside" air as it is not in the conditioned part of the home. Without some photos, it is hard to say if it was installed properly. Based on your description it sounds like it is OK. But, this depends on the amount of combustion air that is needed and this is based on the total BTU's of each unit and the cubic footage of the room. The 6" pipes might be enough, but 8" are more common as they do provide about 30% more make-up air. Do you know the BTU's??