John Kogel

It looks like he nicked those Al wires as well in the process of stripping off the insulation. This makes matters even worse, creates a hot spot which has been weakened. You probably saw the double taps above the bus, that's another major bad.

Hey John. Another quiz. Can those conductors be different guages? Like a #12 and a #14 on a 15 amp breaker?

You can recommend that they keep the pump pit clear and buy a backup for security. The pumps are cheap. Backing onto a river sounds like there can be high water at times. [] I also inform people that alarms are available. They nod, "Yeah, good idea" and that thought goes to the back burner. [] Click to Enlarge 64.15 KB Click to Enlarge 74.92 KB This house was on a ridge nowhere near a river. I suggested the builders may have hit a spring when they dug this pit for an oil furnace. This was in July and the pit was full. After my clients upgrade the electric and install a heat pump, they could just fill this hole in and quit trying to pump the earth dry. That's what I would do.

What Bill said. And Marc. They brought 2 blacks and a white in, but one of the blacks is capped with a wire nut. The big breaker is only feeding one bus bar, so they added a jumper to the other side. 120 volts. We can't see the sizes of the breakers. What are they? I see a large green grounding wire going to the grounding bus. If that is properly grounded, then I don't see anything inherently unsafe there, except that it's a confusing mess. That loose device in the bottom of the panel should be removed. Ok, that's a job for an electrician. []

Usually cold winter air does not carry much moisture, but maybe under certain conditions, it's possible, like a fine mist blowing in. No doubt the roof sheathing is cold enough to cause condensation of moisture from the attic air. I would look for leakage from the living space such as around the hatch or potlights, ceiling fixtures, etc. That air carries moisture which can condense on the cold sheathing. There are general rules, but a lot of variables. It's not an exact science.

I vote with Jim and Mike. Missing insulation fits the pattern better than bad paint. It could be dirt or soot from scented candles with a bit of condensation in the cooler surface where the insulation isn't done right. The lines are too straight for a sloppy painter. []

That's just a bit of pitch. A lot of pitch can be pretty impressive. We see this in the older places, 100% old growth Df. This pic from last week, looks like drops have been falling on the new insulation. Click to Enlarge 52.11 KB The soffits were sealed up with stucco on these old houses. They probably should have cut new soffit vents before adding the insulation.

The rough guide - nails should go minimum 3/4" into or through the sheathing. So if it's 5/8" decking or less, you should see the nail ends in the attic. That's just from one of the manufacturer's info, IIRC.

I think Rick nailed it, it's an old appliance of some kind used for fill. Now the question is, what was in that freezer? [?]

Would you call out that double-tap? That wouldn't be allowed in my area.

Ladder's too heavy? Pull the top section off, leave it in the truck. I use a Jaws, I like the knuckle joint better than LG, plus it is lighter, I think. Minus the top, it's only about 20 lbs and reaches about 13-14 feet. For 2 storey I rely on a proper extension ladder, 28 '. Telesteps for indoors, attics and an occasional balcony.

Where I live, the onus is on a WETT inspector, wood energy tech, to inspect and declare a wood burning unit safe to use. I call for chimney sweeping and an inspection by the WETT inspector. Then my verbal info is just that, my verbal opinion. Check all around the base at the back of the metal firebox. That is where the rain water collects. Certain models crack right up the back. Also the vent tubes as Mike mentioned. I check for a chimney cap installed, good if it is, but a 20+ yr old heatalator fireplace with no chimney cap will be rusted. Check the damper, it is often just a small round disc, rusted. If they want to go with a gas conversion, that is usually no sweat. They should drop in a metal chimney liner straight to the gas unit. Sometimes, the old heat tubes need to be cut out of the way for the new liner.

Yes it looks like something that should have been smashed with a hammer. []

I saw a thread on these somewhere. (So this is based on hearsay). It was a bad batch of castings, just call for "repair" or rather, replacement is the only repair.[]

Amen to that. Firemen have ladder safety training we can all learn from.Inspectors only need to get up and down once, they are in a rush most of the time, and they tend to bring short ladders where a tall one would be safer. As a home owner, you can take the time to prep the area and make it safe. A safety rope is a must. Build a scaffold if necessary. We used to use metal straps up under the shingles and attached to the sheathing with screws. Then we'd wrap the lower ends of the straps around a 2X4. Sometimes we'd leave the straps there when done, tucked away for next time. I have scared myself enough with the ladder-on-the-roof drill. I now bring a 28' extension ladder, (stretches to 25') for 2-storey jobs. If I'm climbing off at the top, I'll hook it to the gutter with a bungy. That makes getting back on way safer, and it's quick. I've found the long ladder to be actually faster. Edit:Vise-grips? Wow, that's a good one, Jim!

That brings up a good point. If you label the house a grow-op around here, you just de-valued the place by about 100G.I describe what's there - "I saw some fluorescent lights hanging in the attic.""The previous tenants left some herbs hanging from the rafters". Stuff like that. Then I will be on the lookout for damage, too, but still haven't used the G word.

It needs a new stack, but that means a new thimble (roof jack) and that means fix the hole in the spring. [] This 8" pipe made a big puddle on the floor today, but it was a big rain , too. [] Click to Enlarge 55.18 KB

The only thought I can add to this: Tie it up to a rafter first.The pipe, I mean. [] Before you cut it. [] If you take an angle grinder up there, bring a spark shield, cardboard at least. And a jug of water.

Thanks, Brandon. No restrictions that I know of. BTW, I'd rather see that flex duct than the alternative - white accordion pipe flopped out on the attic floor. [:0]

I didn't use the moisture meter in the attic. . I agree, John. The pics you posted show soaking wet sheathing. The first order would be to dry it up, I think. Then clean up, insulate, seal the hatch and I would definitely call for venting those fans outside. Some people generate much more moisture just by the way they operate their heaters and fans. Like the others have said, no two houses are the same. Hatch leaks are pretty common, but some attics aren't affected. It could be just life styles. A couple of leaky fan pics to illustrate. The 60 year old attic was probably fine until they stuck that vent pipe up there. Click to Enlarge 66 KB Click to Enlarge 67.63 KB

I believe that truckload found a home in Canada. Some has been found just north of Blaine in Surrey and the Fraser Valley. Also in the Toronto area. I think it could have been traced back to a major retailer, but the paperwork was all tainted and had to be destroyed! [:-spin]

Thanks for pointing this out, Greg. The steel frame carries the weight of the manufactured home and is generally narrower than the home. Notice that in the OP's pic, the steel frame is resting directly on the foundation wall, so that spreads the weight and, as everybody has said, there should be no problem with those beam pockets. In cases where the frame is narrower, I think the transverse beams under the frame carry much more of the weight than they would in typical home construction, where the walls of the home rest directly on the foundation walls. I dug up a couple of pictures that show this. The OSB walls of the basement are more for skirting than support. One pic shows the end of an I-beam resting on the plate, not very well supported. I think most of the load was on 3 8X8 wooden beams with central steel jackposts. About a 50 ft double-wide. Click to Enlarge 44.71 KB Click to Enlarge 67.65 KB

I have seen this set-up only a few times, here's the right way yo install exterior steps: The bottom of the stringers shall rest on a landing. It is recommended that this landing be concrete. The bottom of the stringers shall then be notched over a treated 2x4 sleeper which shall be attached to the landing or the stringers could be notched so they would lock in behind the concrete landing itself. Either way effectively locks the stringers in place so they cannot move. I could add one thing - treat the cut end. There has to be an angled cut at the bottom end and that is where the moisture can wick up into the core. If the stringers touch dirt, in my climate, they will be wet more than half the year. I call that out as a future repair, if they're not already showing soft spots. I call them "machine marks", made that up muself. Happy Holidays to all. [:-party][][:-party]

Tear it all out and build a roof over the walk! [:-hspin]

Hello Darren. To answer your question, I would say yes, you should be concerned about a possible lack of grounding. The 240 volt circuit may not need a neutral, but it still needs a ground lead going to the equipment. They may have grounded everything with that one green wire, but that is something that should be checked. Concern #2, already mentioned but to clarify: One of the reds is marked with black tape. We suspect the reds and the neutral are being used as a multi wire 120 v circuit (just a guess). If so, they really should be joined with a tie-bar for safety. The reason is if someone is working on the circuit while one of those breakers is left on by mistake, he/she could get zapped. Right, Marc? []