John Kogel

Robert, I call it the flashing at the lower edge of the siding. Or the flashing above the foundation. Although you did ask for the technical term. And aren't you supposed to check that for slope with a marble? Just kidding. []

Thanks, Scott. I was feeling that is the case but not sure. I would read the E+O information to be sure. Pre-sale inspection reports are going to be distributed to interested parties, and the buyer will almost certainly get a copy. You can have a disclaimer in there that holds you the inspector harmless from any use by a third party, which is anyone other than the party that hired you. A disclaimer won't eliminate trouble but it helps to discourage sharks to some extent. If they didn't hire you and did not pay for the info, they have a weak case. However, all the complainant has to do is convince a judge that they relied on your info and that your info has caused them harm. So yes, they can sue you. Even if your report is accurate and faultless, they can sue you because they misinterpreted the info. That is the nature of this crazy biz.

Rob, I bet next time you do an old empty house like that, you'll do a little tour of the basement first. []

Thanks for that, impressive indeed.

It's an insurance issue here. No bolts, you pay more and still get nuthin back. []

That is very cool to think that the stones are laid up like brick with not much mortar between. It's funny they were embarassed about the stone and tried to hide it.

It's like an old ship down there, complete with a porthole. []

Must wax poeticly and translate with soft wear to present product easy, simple to America dollar, yes most satisfied.

Buy it for a summer place. Go South for the winter.

He is asking if the sewage ejector system is allowed to have a wet vent.I believe the wording in the installation manual might say that a separate vent is required for the sump, so that implies it should not have other fixtures attached to it. It is technically wrong because the vent is under stronger than normal suction when the pump is running. Click to Enlarge 30.72 KB The sump vent will be blowing air out when the toilet or other fixture drains into it. Then when the pump starts, air is sucked down the vent into the pit.

It is questionable, so I think that is how I would describe it in the report. No harm will come from it, as far as I can see.

The only thing I can come up with is that if there is a poor connection between galvanized steel and copper, then the copper will tarnish as if the zinc or steel was not there. How about a bare copper wire on the negative terminal of a battery, left hanging in salt water beside an aluminum boat? Would the copper be eaten up?

I could have used a drone camera last week. I made a risky climb to get a shot down a chimney that I knew dang well was bad. But the pic proves it, end of story. I had forgotten that the pole camera can take a shot from the ladder. My idea is a helium balloon on a reasonable length tether like a strong fishing rod. Get overviews of a chimney or a dormer roof from the ground. The balloon is about the size of a football and can carry a web cam. Mucho quicker than getting a drone out of its carrying case, IMO. It will cost $40 for the Helium or create hydrogen gas but that is a liability. The ballon will go flat in a week or so. So you need to pump the gas back into the bottle when you're done, and put it all away. I used the paint pole camera once last year and keep it handy. Haven't been accused of spying yet but it could happen. Don't want the flash to go off going up past the penthouse windows. []

I liken it to lichen or likin' it. []In Canada we deal with American Spellcheck because that's what everybody's PC comes with, while still adhering to The King's English spellings. It's a joke. That foil underbelly could trap moisture, but other than that possibility, it is all good.

Plumbing vents don't freeze here. The only 3" vent we ever see is on an old house with a cast iron stack. The old sink vents will be 2" copper or sometimes galvy. After about 1960, 2" ABS, or 1 1/2". Any smaller and the boot won't fit.

It sounds to me like there was a loose neutral connection. Have the repair guy check the output before they give it back. It should be fine the second time, but it is not too hard to test the output with a DMM before plugging it in. Nice job, BTW. What bugs me about disaster planning is the disasters don't seem to happen when you are prepared for them. []

I would buy the polyurethane that you add a hardener to. The table will look like it was dipped in plastic. Then put it away for the winter months. That will add years to its life.

I did not read that he said the insp did it wrong. He says the inspector "wrote it up". I was going to remain silent, being no expert on the NEC. In some cases a 30 amp breaker with #12/2 cable would be permitted on AC.

Nah, let the termites have their way with it. They work cheap. []

What Jim said, old saw with a couple of old chains and a box of round files. Practice a few cuss words before you start.. You could have pulled it over while it still had a trunk. I dropped quite a few trees that way with my GMC 1 ton, an old logging snatch block and 75 feet of cable. You tie the cable about 10 feet up the tree, clove hitch. Down through the block that is anchored really well to another tree, a big one. Then go around the back of the tree about 10 feet up. Then out to the truck. That truck had the 292 6 in it, a real tractor. After the hitch came off I wrapped a boom chain around the axle and pulled with that. []

If it's copper pipe, I advise them to keep it painted to look like plastic. [] Freezing should be no problem because the pipes should drain. Even so, some old timer thought they might freeze, so he built a box around his outdoor drainpipes and filled that with sawdust. Carpenter ants found that to be to their liking and raised 100 generations of ants there, no doubt. []

I am not an engineer and this is no substitute for an engineered design. The attachment could be simply a hole in the rafter with cable threaded thru it and secured back to itself with at least two cable clamps. The hole should be as close as possible to the outer edge, the sheathed side. If the wood is soft you may need to install brackets instead held with several thru-bolts. At the other end you could bolt the turnbuckle but it will pull sideways, unless you add a horseshoe-shaped strap like a yoke. Or use a short loop of cable and clamps to attach the turnbuckle. For cable strength, 'airline' cable, the type you might use on an electric winch, could be good, but it will cut in to the wood, unless you lined the hole with a piece of pipe. 'Strawline' is heavier but will not dig in. Too hard to work with. Cutting cable up in the attic with an angle cutter could start a fire up there. Cut the lengths and rig up the turnbuckles before you go up in the attic. Check ceiling edges before pulling the walls in. The walls might not want to move and you could splinter a rafter trying. In other words, don't even start if it doesn't give easy. Jacking the ridge with screwjacks would help. Conventional wood rafter ties can be installed. all you need is a small hole in one of the gable ends. Even a roof vent can be a big enough hole to bring 2X6's in. Wood is less likely to raise an eyebrow in the future and it's easier to work with. Jack up the ridge, nail in the ties, thru-bolt them or tie them to the rafters with plywood gussets on each side and lots of galvanized nails.

Inspectopedia website shows wafer Stab-Lok breakers. They are bad because Doofus could stab two into one slot. [] Those ones are bright and new. Counterfeits, maybe? Stablok Wafers are not sold up here in Canada.

"an unobstructed line-of-sight between a subject and object" is from Wikipedia. Good luck, Marc. You are outnumbered by a group of Cajun sparkies. []

It is a Napolean, a discontinued model maybe but not real old. The manuals are available from their website. The floor protection at the back should be at least 8" wide, per the manual for a similar model. Greyboy had it right. http://www.napoleonproducts.com/downloa ... 5-0762.pdf Floor protection is on page 10. Check out the cutaway pics of this stove. Firebrick and multiple heat shields around the sides and extra shielding on the back. That is not to say that you can't get the top red hot, but the sides and back will be cooler.