Inspectorjoe

Ah, deformation of the rope. I never thought of that. Thanks.

With the exception of a smaller pulley maybe having more slippage, I don't understand how a larger one reduces losses to friction. The rope and pulley should be turning at the same speed, so there shouldn't be any friction there. The only appreciable friction would be at the shaft. I suppose a smaller pulley turning faster would generate more friction, but I can't see that making much of a difference. What am I missing?

How does a bigger pulley reduce friction?

I couldn't help but think of this thread during an inspection this morning. I got the inspection because of a ladder accident. The gentleman who had owned the house grew grapes on this trellis. He was on a stepladder, picking them, and was probably no more than a foot or two off the ground. See the open tee? There's a piece of rusted pipe in there. Instead of moving the ladder, the guy leaned out further than he should have and grabbed onto the pipe that used to be there. It snapped off, and he went headfirst into the patio slab. Dead, with a widow left behind because of a stupid shortcut on a ladder. Click to Enlarge 74.73 KB

I don't check, but if there happens to be a pressure gauge installed downstream of a pressure regulator and it reads over 80 PSI, I mention it and include a picture in the report.

Does that go for anything that's self-evident? How about a broken window or tile falling off the wall at a tub surround? They're certainly self-evident. I know the process is different in your area, but here, a buyer can't have an inspection done before they enter into an Agreement of Sale (and put down a hefty deposit). Everything goes into the report, self-evident or not. The buyer may need it in the report in order to negotiate.

No, John, it was complete. The pages were consecutively numbered.

Marc: In PA, home inspection is regulated, but there is no enforcement arm. Compliance is pretty much voluntary. It's a strange situation, but it's been that way since 2001. Violations would be covered under consumer protection laws, but I don't think that would apply here. The report doesn't come close to meeting the ASHI SOP (which was included in the report), but I don't know if ASHI has a mechanism for dealing with something like this. A big conundrum is, this inspector is a 'good guy'. This sounds strange, but in the 12 or so years I've known him, he's had the interest of the profession at heart, and has devoted countless volunteer hours to bettering it. That's why I was shocked when I saw the report. Richard: I've never been asked to do a report for the listing agency. If I were asked, I'd decline. I've done pre-listing inspections for buyers, but I don't like them. When I have one, I always ask the buyer in several different roundabout ways, "are you sure you want to do this?"

This morning I had a typical flipper: It looked all shiny and new, but was a disaster beneath the surface. An inspection report was lying on the counter. It was prepared not for the seller, but for the listing agency. The inspection was done two weeks ago, on February 19. That inspection took two hours, according to the report. I was there four hours. The report was horrendous. This is what was said about the garage roof (in its entirety): "The garage roof is beyond its expected useful life and although not currently leaking, will need replacement." Click to Enlarge 84.32 KB This cracked waste pipe is about five feet above the floor, right next to the exterior basement door. It's also cracked on the underside, so naturally, it leaked when water was run. It would be impossible to miss this. There was not a word about it in the report. Click to Enlarge 63.12 KB There is widespread, major termite damage, but not a word about it in the report. Click to Enlarge 70.05 KB Of course, being flipped, new ceramic floors were just installed. In addition to new ceramic being installed over floor framing that had unrepaired termite damage, it was also installed over framing that's shown a history of major movement. The section of basement below this area has finished ceilings, so there's no way to know why there is so much sag. Certainly, it was idiotic to install ceramic without finding out what's going on. There's not a word about this in the report. Click to Enlarge 41.09 KB Needless to say, the tile installation job was crap. The framing under the tub is undersized. The floor crackles when walking on it there. It's uneven enough to be a minor trip hazard, and some of the grout is already failing. Click to Enlarge 35.69 KB Click to Enlarge 39.7 KB This is the top of the main stairs. You'd think a buyer would notice it and realize the implication, but maybe not. There's not a word about it in the report. Click to Enlarge 30.17 KB The chimney was partially rebuilt some time in the past. The house was built in 1930, but the chimney brick looks like it's from the 60's or 70's. The top four sections of liner are OK, but below them, the liner is either very deteriorated, or it transitions to the original unlined brick (it was somewhat hard to see).The top three or four courses of brick were so loose, they could be easily pulled apart by hand. The chimney was mentioned in the report. A photo of the chimney part of the report is below. Click to Enlarge 97.23 KB Click to Enlarge 43.87 KB Download Attachment: Copy of 1 317.jpg 197.84 KB These are just a few of the bigger things. There are literally dozens of things that I'll be putting in my report that are absent in the pre-listing report. This has me shocked and angry. I'm shocked because I know the inspector. I'm sure many of you here have met him, or know of him. I'm shocked to see the caliber of his report. I'm angry because he's an ASHI Certified Inspector (as am I), and frankly, I feel that he?s cheapening my credentials. I'm used to flippers pushing off crap like I saw today, but it turns my stomach to see a fellow ASHI member facilitate it. I'm also angry, because if the young woman buying this house had relied on the pre-inspection report, she'd have been in a world of hurt down the road. I did an inspection for her parents about eight years ago and they recommended to her that she hire me to do an independent inspection. Thank goodness for caring parents. I really don't know why this is bugging me so much. That report is really no concern of mine. Maybe I'm just too naive or idealistic. I do feel a bit better after my rant. Now on to the report. It's going to be a long night.

That's SOP around here. I don't think I've ever seen an addition added where they did remove the shingles.

It could easily be reduced by 2 or 3 pages just by eliminating the words "We observed".

When I contract for a professional service, I don't don't try to haggle over the fee. If I feel the fee is too high, I find someone who meets my needs who is more reasonable. I consider myself a professional. My fee for a given inspection is not open to haggling.

I've seen a corner radiator only one time. Corner radiator That warming rack radiator is incredible. It's amazing how few layers of paint are on it.

Maybe some in this biz target only the percentage of folks that aren't looking for a bargain. What would the decision to target a non-bargain hunting clientele have to do with whether or not to post prices on your site? You're saying those who won't call to find out pricing are the ones looking for a bargain?

My point seems to have been missed. A percentage of people searching on the internet won't make a call to find out pricing. You are writing off that potential business. Neal, I see you give an average price. That would be enough for me to call to discuss specifics. Gary, to be frank, if I was in your area shopping on the internet for a home inspection, the lack of any inkling of what you might charge would have me moving on to the next site. There is no way I'd make a phone call to find out what I feel could be provided to me on the site. I may be part of a minority, but I'm sure I'm not alone. Did you guys read that article and the comments that followed it? It's really eye-opening.

I know many if not most here insist that it's better to not list your prices in order to force a call. I'm sure they feel that their success rate in converting calls to booked inspections validates their view, but I wonder how much business they miss out on, simply because people like me cross them off their list without contacting them. Personally, I hate to be sold anything. In fact, I don't allow it. If I'm shopping online for a service, price is just one of the variables that I'll use to compare different providers. A site that didn't at least provide a range or ballpark figures would be dropped down at least a notch or two in my comparison. I MIGHT call for pricing. If I did call and ask, but was given a sales pitch instead of a direct answer, that would be the end of the call. My prices are on my way-outdated, neglected, corrupted, soon to be replaced site. I'll also have the prices on my new site, but the link to the price list will first open on a page dedicated to outlining my price vs value. As of yet, I'm clueless as to how I want to go about that. Here's an article on putting prices on your web site. The comments that follow are more interesting and informative than the article itself. http://smallbiztrends.com/2011/12/afrai ... icing.html

Goofygothic.

I'm not specifically looking for a Fiberglas ladder, but the shortest Aluminum three piece one I can find is 36'. I've always used aluminum ladders during my inspection career, going back tho the extension ladder I used until I switched from a pickup to a mini van in 2003. You just have to not be stupid when you're around overhead power lines. The weight isn't a huge factor. I'm close to 300 pounds myself. At least until I get older, I can deal with a 75 pound ladder. I wouldn't be using it every day.

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I could probably do better than the $250 difference, which I got from Grainger's site. Their price for it is $680. I'm not concerned about price so much as useability. I don't want to buy it to find it's a real pain in the neck to use. Even if it is a bear to use, I'm guessing it still has to be easier than my 55 pound Little Giant Model 26.

D6228-3

This spring I'm buying a new minivan for work and had been planning on putting a roof rack on it to carry a 28' ladder. Browsing online, I discovered that Werner makes a three section Fiberglas 28' 1A, that stores at 11' instead of 14'. A (probably crazy) idea popped into my head. If I remove the passenger seat, I can carry the ladder inside the van, instead of on the roof. I've never seen a three section ladder, let alone used one. It's 20 pounds heavier (75 lbs.) than the equivalent two section ladder, but I can deal with that. It also costs about $250 more, but that's not really a factor. I'm wondering if three section ladders are a lot more cumbersome to use than the same size two section. Anybody have any experience with them?

For today's Facebook page Picture of the Day, I just used a photo of a cistern that was opened to the basement. So far, people are stumped as to what it is. http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid= ... =1&theater

Is there a basement? A doorway could be cut to make it into a useable room. I see that done all the time. If it had to stay as it is, I'd probably recommend pumping out the water, drying it out completely (somehow), and securing the lid so a kid couldn't possibly get it off.

I attended a social media marketing seminar presented by a Constant Contact representative. It was very informative, and the rep really didn't push Constant Contact. Possibly the best thing I picked up was this Constant Contact site containing social media tutorials. I need to go beyond utilizing only Facebook. It looks like this is going to help me (or push me) to do it. I thought I'd share it. http://www.socialquickstarter.com/