Inspectorjoe

How could you possibly know that?

Copied from a PF WaterWorks press release: “In an industry where one anticipates surprise at new developments, I have heard astonished plumbers say this is not a trap- it is a drain. I want this in my home! Women, on the other hand, excitedly report that now I can show off my plumbing and I can fix it myself! I have to be thrilled with these reactions,â€

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I'm in fuel oil country and I've never seen one, but even gas residential package units just aren't used around here. The only time I'll see a gas package unit, would be a rooftop mounted one on a commercial building. A Google search shows that Thermo-Pride makes them. In very cold locales, I imagine that they'd be pretty prone to the fuel oil gelling, especially in the tiny line from the pump to the nozzle. Maybe that's why I've never seen one. Thermo-Pride package unit

Today, I had a four year old townhouse that had mold growth in the basement after construction was completed, but before the original buyer took possession. The builder had it remediated, apparently by spraying some kind of a white material on all of the I-joists and subfloor. It looks like they did a pretty sloppy job, as there are a lot of places it ran and dripped. I've seen a similar material sprayed in an attic once or twice, but it was limited to small areas. This covers all of the first floor, floor framing. There are two very small areas that look like mildew (one is pictured). Does this treatment look OK, or was it done half-@ssed? Should I recommend additional treatment of those dark spots? Am I being paranoid? Thanks in advance. Image Insert: 39.58 KB

I also left one in a house last week. It was a rental house. After using it, the buyers were blocking my path to my bag. "Don't set it down on the counter", I told myself. I set it down on the counter. I thought of it as I was driving away, but didn't have time to go back. I called the tenants and left a message, telling them exactly where I left it and asked that they call back. No call, and subsequent calls from me went unanswered. I've always been satisfied with the Wagner L606. It only "reads" to 3/4 inch, but that's the only downside I can think of when comparing it to the more expensive units. I've had two (left the first one in a house too), and the only problem has been the indicator needle popping out of the bezel after being dropped, but that's a relatively easy fix. Amazon.com no longer carries the analog L606, but I got a great buy on a digital MMC220, at $229. Tuesday, the price went to $249, but I think that's still a bit cheaper than the L606 was. Being digital, I won't have to worry about the needle popping out of the bezel, but I am going to miss saying to the buyer, "look, it's peggin' the meter!" Wagner MMC220

While I can't speak for Bill, I think we can be reasonably certain that he's never seen one of these, close up and personal: Download Attachment: Whatzat.jpg 53.4 KB

I clicked on the link and found something strange. I found that Mike must have been using my computer! Download Attachment: Screen.jpg 130.56 KB

"ELECTRIC-FURNACE-MAN: Last listed in 1979. " Electric Furnace Man (e-f-m) is still going strong. The company goes back to 1922 when it came out with the first home coal stoker. That's where the unusual name came from. They're still producing coal stoker boilers today. With the price of heating oil ($2.80 a gallon), I'm looking long and hard at them. Electric Furnace Man e-f-m coal stoker boiler

Thanks for the tip on the website. It's a treasure trove of info and detailed drawings. Speaking of not getting fixed, I inspected the same house (not this one), three times over the course of six years. It wasn't because the sales fell through - each time, it sold. So the the last two inspections I did on it, I had inspected it for the sellers when they bought it. All three times, I found the low brick facade on the West end to be separated from the wall structure about three inches at the top course. You could see behind it, and amazingly, not a single tie could be seen. I don't know what the heck was keeping the thing in place, especially considering the amount of corbeling under the bay window. Over those six years, lots of other improvements (mostly cosmetic) were made to the house. It boggles the mind how this was ignored. The picture doesn't show the true extent of the separation, since vinyl corner trim was added that partially blocks the gap. Image Insert: 190.33 KB Like probably everybody else, I see lots of screwed up brick work, but it's extremely unusual to see the sills flat like that. No, the contractor didn't intend for them to be flat like that. There were only four or five out of maybe ten that were flat. Not all of the others were sloped a full 15 degrees, but they were sloped. There were no signs of movement, no gaps and no caulk. The joints are nice and clean, so I doubt it was done by unskilled labor.

I had a four year old brick veneer fronted house today that had about four or five window sills that were either dead level or sloped very slightly back toward the house. There are no signs of moisture at the interior areas. Can I assume the only proper fix is to tear them out and relay/replace them with properly sloped bricks? I'd guess that to do that, the windows would have to be removed too. Joe Image Insert: 33.39 KB

I see from Les's post that he's too modest to give the true answer. Les has been a member of the Screen Actors Guild for many years. While he's mostly played bit parts, he did receive top 'billing' one time back in '86 when he had the good fortune to star opposite Lea Thompson. Image Insert: 19.1 KB All I can say is, Les was one lucky duck.

Matthew, is this what you're referring to? Image Insert: 49.5 KB

That match book is stunning in its simplicity and imagery. Unfortunately, time has shown the message below it to be all too wrong. We've allowed 'them' to leverage the despicable, but determinate attack that day into an ongoing and possibly irreversible destruction of the liberty that our forefathers fought and died for. And we're doing it all to ourselves. Our founding fathers would be turning over in their graves. This morning, on MSNBC, I watched the replay of NBC's coverage as it happened six years ago. It brought a tear to my eye more than once. I remember 9/11/2001 as if it were yesterday. I had only an afternoon inspection, so I was able to watch the TV coverage from the beginning. I watched in horror as each tower fell. I really didn't want to do the inspection. It took much longer than it otherwise would have because the buyer and I kept gravitating to the TV that the seller had on. I don't remember anyone saying anything - just watching. Here is the last photograph I ever took of the Twin Towers. Image Insert: 45.24 KB

This one from this morning didn't have a cap. Now that I think about it, it might have had a cap, but it could have fallen in. I wasn't about to get near enough to find out. [:-scared] Image Insert: 143.52 KB

Well said, Al! I applaud your continual, determined dedication to honesty and integrity. While I have your ear, I have a question. Actually, I asked it a few months back, but I'm figuring that you probably missed it. It's about a professional society that you apparently belong to. Image Insert: 15.7 KB The Society of Engineers and Code Compliant Independent Inspectors sure sounds like an organization that would have pretty high membership requirements. It must be great to be able to display their logo prominently on your website as you do. Why, I'd imagine that if a buyer was trying to find an inspector by comparing credentials, your membership in SECCII might just sway him to choose you. Just what are the membership requirements of SECCII? How many members does the society have? Are there continuing education requirements? I'm sorry to bother you with this. I tried to find the info on my own, but I just can't seem to find any trace of this organization, anywhere. Googling it brings up just two results, both of which go back to your website. I just can't understand it. Help me out, Al.

I encountered yet another leaking Amtrol Boilermate last week. This one is 4 years old. It seems to be a relatively common problem that I've encountered a number of times. The external leak at the bottom plate is typically coupled with a high surface temperature at the top of the tank, indicating that an internal leak may have saturated the insulation, allowing thermal convection. Some of this I know from personal experience, having owned two that have leaked in the same manner. Mine were branded New Yorker, but they were built by Amtrol. The first started leaking at about 10 months old. It was replaced under warranty, labor included. That replacement unit started leaking last year, when it was 9 years old. New Yorker replaced that one! They didn't cover the labor that time, but I gladly installed it myself. Kudos to New Yorker. So anyway, this is what I wrote in the report: "The water heater is leaking from where the boiler supply and return lines pass through at the bottom. Warm surface temperatures at the top of the water heater may indicate that the water heater is also leaking internally, between the inner tank and outer shell. The water heater should be fully evaluated by a qualified plumber who is familiar with this type of water heater and repaired or replaced as needed." The seller had a plumber look at it. He said he didn't see anything wrong, and maybe what I saw was from steam or condensation.[:-banghea I've searched online for information about this specific issue, but surprisingly found only some anecdotal stuff. Does anyone know of any published documentation about this? I normally don't get involved in buyer/seller disputes, but the buyer is a really nice guy and I've got WAY too much time on my hands this week. I'd like to help him out. Image Insert: 34.61 KB

Hip waders??? Let me guess - for inspecting mill races? Bill, I'm lucky (unlucky?) if 1 in 10 houses I do has a crawlspace. I don't do nearly enough old buildings. I do get some surprises now and then. A few weeks ago I did a house in Bethlehem in what was once the village of Altonah. The MLS said the house was built in 1930. It turned out to be an 18th century log structure with the second floor and attic added in 1930. It had the most acrid, putrid smell in the crawlspace and basement. It even came through my respirator a bit, and that stops just about all smells. Sorry for the thread drift Phillip. Now back to the tools ........

Two clamp-on halogen lights, each with a 25' extension cord. These are for basements that don't have enough light fixtures, uh, I mean luminaires. For basements that are dark because of burned out or missing bulbs, I keep several compact 150 watt halogen bulbs in my carry-around bag (for some reason, this always seems to impress the buyers). An emergency D cell flashlight with brand new batteries. I've haven't needed it in seven years, but it makes me feel good having it there. An assortment of spare fuses. Way back during one of my tag alongs, I watched an inspector blow a fuse as he removed the deadfront. I've never needed them and I rarely see fuse panels any more Spare camera, multi-driver, three prong tester, circuit sniffer, thermometer, etc. Spare instrument/tester batteries My crawlspace bag. Luckily crawlspaces are fairly rare around here, so it stays in the truck for most inspections My homemade ladder strap thing device. A big towel for cleaning up messes

Scrolling down the page, I noticed that some previous Teleseminars are available through podcasts. Maybe this one will made available too. http://www.barebonesbiz.com/teleconference_series.html

Is it that you haven't clicked on one of those kind of links, or cleared your internet surfing history? [:-dev3]

Mike, I also have a clause prohibiting third party use of the report, but with the sellers routinely being given a copy, I'm sure it gets ignored a lot, without me even knowing it. The listing agent who asked has been in business a long time, and really ought to have known better than to ask. Still, in that one instance, I really didn't care if the seller showed it to the other buyer to show why the first buyer backed out. Like I said, I'm sure it happens a lot anyway. I don't doubt that I really should enforce the third party use clause in the contract when I'm aware it's going to be violated, instead of just letting it slide. In a little over 1,900 inspections, that's the first time that happened. Call me Sargent Schultz! [:-paperba

Wow, this is a timely thread. Earlier this week, I did an inspection on a 4 year old house. Other than having more safety issues than are normally found in a 4 year old house, the only potentially significant concern was some rafter problems. The cuts at the ridge board were very sloppy with large gaps, some cracks in the rafters at these areas and opposing rafters offset way too much. All things that shouldn't have been too hard to correct. The next day, I get an email from the listing agent, asking for a copy of the report. In Pennsylvania, the seller is entitled to a copy. The law (Senate Bill 1032) states: "The seller shall have the right, upon request, to receive without charge a copy of a home inspection report from the person for whom it was prepared." I don't know why she asked me for it, since the request is normally made to the buyer's agent, but I didn't have a problem calling the buyer for permission to do it, and then sending the access codes to the listing agent. As I was speaking to the buyer, he informed me that "the house is a disaster" and he's backing out of the deal. The house wasn't a disaster by any stretch of the imagination, but if the buyer feels that it is, I'm not going to argue with him. There might be other issues, with the report being just an 'out' for him. Fast forward to yesterday when I get another email from the listing agent, copied below, with my replies in italics. > Thanks for forwarding the report for 157 W*****. The > seller is addressing many of the "concerns" in the report. > This buyer, the F****'s, however have apparently decided > there were too many problems. The seller is very > concerned that the concerns were presented in a way that > alarmed them there were major problems. Many of the > safety items are for things that likely were not required > when the home was built. Most safety issues are covered under building codes. While home inspectors are not code inspectors, we do use codes as guidance. It is virtually impossible to know which version of which code a particular municipality was using when a particular house was constructed. For instance, the lack of returns on the railings is in the 2003 International Residential Code (section 311.5.6.2), but goes back to at least the 1997 Uniform Building Code (section 1003.3.3.3.6). Other safety issues are not covered under building codes, but are required by the manufacturer. An example of this is the installation of range anti-tip brackets. Others are simply common sense, such as recommending the installation of carbon monoxide detectors in a house that has combustion appliances and/or an attached garage . I would be remiss if I didn’t include all known safety issues in the report, regardless of whether they were “requiredâ€

Like Jesse said, odds are only one head will be going off. There can be a problem with supply adequacy when a system is supplied by a well. I've seen a few sprinklered rural houses that had a 500-1,000 gallon storage tanks along with booster pumps in the basement. Years ago I worked in a fully sprinklered downtown department store. The roughly 50,000 sf building was a hodgepodge of different buildings and additions cobbled together. Throw in lots of false ceilings and you have a place that you don't ever want to have a fire really get going. There were hundreds of sprinkler heads throughout the building. The main coming in from the street was 8" and the pressure was around 140 PSI. There were a few fire hoses as part of the system. The store went out of business, leaving me unemployed. I jumped at the chance when the bank that took the building over asked if I was interested in being a caretaker, making sure the heat was on, the snow shoveled etc. I invoiced the bank monthly for my hours. One frigid winter night I got a call from the alarm monitoring company telling me that the water flow alarm was activated. I hustled over to find water flowing out the back door like a stream was running though the building. I thought to myself, 'I'm about to find out just how good my liability insurance is'. I found the boiler was out (I never got a call that the cold alarm had activated), and a 1" sprinkler pipe above the rear vestibule had frozen and broken. What a friggin' mess. Shortly after I got the water turned off a few strangers arrived. One was a bank executive. I didn't know him and he had no idea who I was. It turned out that the guy at the bank that contracted me had been let go, and his boss didn't know of our arrangement. The other guys turned out be with the company that the new bank exec had contracted to oversee the building several weeks before. You can't imagine the feeling of relief I felt as I handed my keys over and walked out the door, leaving any liability behind. I ate my final invoice. I sure dodged a bullet that night.

Joe I don't why my actions are detrimental. I can't see all of the heat exchanger in a furnace. Does that mean I shouldn't look at the furnace at all? No. I should inspect as much as I can. Jesse: You do tell the buyer that you didn't see, and therefore didn't inspect all of the heat exchanger, don't you? I hope you do. Then why not do the same for the sprinkler system? You wrote: No, I do not usually recommend an expert for a sprinkler system. I'll try to find the shutoffs, and make sure the water is on to the system. I'll check to see if there are heads on a wet system in an area that might freeze(that's bad). There's more to inspecting a residential system than you mentioned. Unless you left some of your routine out, you're only doing a partial inspection. While I wouldn't do that, it's OK as long as the buyer is fully informed (and it's in the report) that the system wasn't fully inspected. Not doing that can give the buyer a false sense of security and leave you on the hook. You also wrote: In commercial, industrial, and large multi-family buildings, they'll be required to actively test the system regularly. That assumes, of course, that the AHJ is paying attention. Single family, and small multi-family, systems that run on basic residential water service, are generally not policed. That's the stuff you see tapped off the regular water service entrance. I think that's exactly why the buyer should be advised to have a pro do a full inspection on the system. Odds are, it hasn't been inspected in quite a while (if ever) and it won't be done regularly in the future.