palmettoinspect

Thanks Marc. I might add that the home was built in 1988 and I didn't see and weep holes.

Sorry to interrupt the game but please chime in when possible. Thanks, Kiel

I’m not very experienced with stucco systems and rarely inspect them so I have a few questions and would like some opinions about this hardcoat stucco system. Please correct me if I’m wrong, it appears to be typical 2-3 coat hardcoat system over fiberboard. It has plant-ons added at front corners and around front windows. No visible metal lath. The only thing visible from the attic was the fiberboard. There are vertical expansion joints and hairline cracks in various spot. No kickout flashing at roof and wall junction. My questions are: 1. Is it ok to but the stucco directly to the window brick mold? 2. Is drip flashing required to protect the brickmold? 3. Is it ok/typical to put hardcoat stucco over fiberboard? Any other issues or concerns with the pictures are appreciated. Click to Enlarge 34.06 KB Click to Enlarge 92.24 KB Click to Enlarge 50.21 KB Click to Enlarge 55.52 KB Click to Enlarge 70.91 KB

Thanks guys! I wanted to call it some kinda v crimp metal roof. Looks like 5v just with 2vs. HAHA.

Here's a shot of the underside. It looks like tin/galvanized. It’s been recoated and the seams have been covered with peel and stick flashing. Click to Enlarge 85.7 KB

I inspected a farm house built in 1890 in Johns Island SC yesterday. The home owner claims this is the original roof covering (which I don’t doubt). I’m wondering what the exact name of the roof material is, if there is a correct name, or what I should call it. Thanks, Kiel Click to Enlarge 83.2 KB

It's vinyl window with metal drip flashing, then wood brickmold with vinyl "J" channel.

Are you sure its paint and not stain. Hardiplank says not to use stain on there products. Are you sure its hardiplank and not a hardboard product?

2006 Beazer home the windows had metal drip flashing above the vinyl windows with wood trim above the metal drip flashing. No leaks just seamed kind of odd. Checked house next door it was the same way. What do ya'll think about it? Click to Enlarge 36.47 KB

[:-bonc01][:-bonc01][:-bonc01] That made my day. Ben, If you like that you should read his book. http://makeitright.ca/Holmes_Products/p ... cts_id=479

Yeah looks like a grow op. If you had a Mike Holmes flash light you could tell. http://makeitright.ca/Holmes_Products/p ... ts_id=1344

Thanks guys. Always alot of help.

I don't think a moisture barrier or house wrap was required until 2006 in the IRC. I can't look it up right now, but for some reason 2006 is standing out as the year. Thanks Scott. Looking forward to hear what you have to say.

I’ve got a question. Was house wrap or a moisture barrier required behind vinyl siding on a house built in 1998? I understand the importance for a moisture barrier behind vinyl siding because of the number of joints and that vinyl siding is not a moisture proof exterior siding. I’ve read the current installation standard from the Vinyl Siding Institute as well as many post on the TJI. The only information I could come up with omitting a moisture barrier is from this article. http://inspectapedia.com/BestPractices/ ... g_Wrap.htm I don’t believe this house falls under any of these categories. I will definitely include in the report the importance of a moisture barrier behind vinyl siding but don’t want to raise any red flags that don’t need to be raised if this was a common practice in 1998. I only found wet OSB wall sheathing around the chimney where there was some loose trim and siding. One of the garage windows was not trimmed and I could see some black plastic around the window. Other than that there were no signs of moisture intrusion or a moisture barrier. Any help is appreciated.

I'll let you know how it actually preforms and lasts this week after some inspections. I was also worried about the weight and it's not bad at all. It is bulky though.

Neal's right. Hi-power LEDs triumps all else. Mine has a 4 LED light source and illuminates a stop sign at night from about 3/8 of a mile away. Marc Aren't the LED lights a rather tight beam? (I haven't owned one so I honestly don't know). The nice thing about the million candle and over lights is that they turn an entire quadrant of a crawlspace from night to day. But, they can't be used for more than maybe thirty minutes total without a recharge. I've owned rechargeable 1 million candle watt lights and your right they don't last. I turned this thing on tonight and it lights the entire street. I've never witnessed anything this bright. That's what sold me on this light compared to other rechargeable million candle watt lights. It claims 1 hour run time on a fully charged battery. Ryobi claims it 2,800 lumens.

I picked up this new light from Ryobi. IT'S BRIGHT!!!! It's a xenon bulb like you would find in high end automobiles. It's pretty light weight also. I plan to use it in crawlspaces and maybe attics. I would love to find a small light with a xenon bulb. http://www.ryobitools.com/catalog/power_tools/lifestyle/P716

Roof leak at an inspection today. Click to Enlarge 6.08 KB Click to Enlarge 24.68 KB

Extech I-5. Resolution is 80X80. Bottom of the line but it's working. I found it used on ebay here in SC drove and picked it up for $1200. Figured why not? I could probably resell it for what I paid if not more. Looking into some more formal training before I step into a more expensive camera.

"Does this make you a solid proponent of IR? Was the investment worth it? Marc" I think it's a very useful tool. Honestly unless I took my moisture meter out and scanned under EVERY window there is no way I would have found the leak in the first picture under the window. There was no evidence of a leak other then the thermal scan. Luckily it was raining that day and day before. Even scanning the wall with my MMS in scan mode I didn't locate the moisture. I had to use the pins . I would recommend one to everyone if you can afford it. I still have plenty of learning to do but am glad I made the purchase. "Did you also take regular JPGs to overlay with the IR images?" I don't know how to do that yet. I don't think my software program is capable of overlaying the IR pictures over a regular jpeg image. I usually take a picture on my digital camera and circle the wet areas in red and include the IR image with it. The resolution on my camera does suck. I will be saving for a much better more expensive camera that is capable. "Will the software not make larger JPG images?" You can zoom in on the image in the software program but I'm not sure the software will make the image larger. Might be how I saved the image and loaded it here. The software prints out a really nice PDF report and the pictures are a decent size on the report. "What carpet was wet, and where was wet carpet located that you could not have found it? Maybe it's too early...:)" Sorry left out a few key words there. I'll explain it better. The master bathroom had a really weird tile seat that sloped into a cast iron tub. I had a pretty good feeling it was going to leak so I ran the water for about 15 minutes. The tub backs up to the master bedroom and that is where I found the wet carpet. I scanned the carpet non evasively with the MMS and it registered dry. Then hooked up the pins poked the carpet and confirmed the moisture.

Found my first leaks with my IR camera today. The shower was leaking at the tile seat. Camera picked up the wet carpet and I confirmed the leak with my moisture meter. No other signs of leaks noted. Then found a leaking window. No moisture stains under the window or other signs of leaks. Check out the pictures. Click to Enlarge 9.59 KB Click to Enlarge 5.76 KB

As Greg said the plastic fittings have the highest failure rate. What kind of fittings do the water lines have? If they are plastic I recommend replacement to my clients. I have PB with copper fittings in my own home and have never had a leak. In Charleston I see a lot of homes with PB water lines and everyone that I have seen with plastic fittings either have leaks or signs of repair.

That's what I thought too but you can see the satellite cables to the right of the dish. Guess it could be though. Have you seen one like this before?

This was a metal cap installed between two townhomes built in 2007. It's not a roof vent. The only thing I can think is a cap for a firewall wall or something??? Click to Enlarge 73.74 KB

Kurt and David, what kind of training have you participated in to learn thermograph? I just picked up a IR camera and so far found some roof leaks with my own home confirmed with the MMS. I would like to start offering IR with my inspection just want to make sure I know what I'm doing.