John Kogel

Oh well, you needed another project to add to the list. Now don't forget to post pics of the repair. Have you picked out the new pipe? Will it match the decor? Lucky it was your basement, and good thing you were home to catch it. Now what about the rest of the copper? [] What about the really old copper? Is it still OK? I'm sure you have filters on your well water, so is there something that can be improved there? Questions, all these questions.

The first evidence I saw in this crawl was a pile of frass under the front door. Then I noticed 3 or 4 strips of frass corresponding neatly with the floor joists. There was frass on the insulation batt when I pulled it aside. They appeared to be in the subfloor and were pushing frass out along the joists. The flooring wasn't wet or rotten, but they probably started nesting under the rotten door sill and spread from there. Click to Enlarge 53.28 KB Click to Enlarge 77.41 KB Click to Enlarge 47.6 KB

If the main nest is in the house, it is a big deal. But often, the nest in the house is a satellite nest, with a few incubating eggs and some workers and food scroungers. They don't eat wood. They will hunt for soft, rotting wood or styrofoam in dark places to start new nests. If the house has a history of leaks, there's a better chance of a big nest, because a bit of rot will get them started. I found a nest once inside a bundle of dry beveled cedar siding. It had been left laying in the dirt in an old barn. The two outer planks were usable and the rest were Swiss cheese. A good pest control guy will search for the main nest, and it may be out in a rotten log or stump in the backyard.

He meant the Baron Metrik-Dampier Effect there, Marc. []

It might be a sauerkraut dispenser, but I don't think it is. [] We need a closeup of the label there, Robert.

Probably a greenhorn that's never worked in the rain. There are overexposed shingles in all the pics. I would be nervous about that roof. I think it should all be replaced, actually.

That pipe could have gone out thru the shed roof. He just didn't want to buy the hardware to do it right. Now he wants to sell it. Nail him. []

Here's a Canadian Federal Pioneer Stab-lok panel I found in the back of a cupboard. As you can see, the breakers are nice and snug after about 30 years without a cover. The original panel cover showed up in a nearby closet. It is amazing how nonchalant people and rodents can be around deadly voltages. Click to Enlarge 55.81 KB Click to Enlarge 46.68 KB Click to Enlarge 33.9 KB

Well, it isn't spelled out in our SOP. In fact, we have a disclaimer that copies ASHI pretty closely, not expected to identify blah blah. But if I see an asbestos product, or suspected asbestos, wrapped around a heating duct, for example, I think I would be lax not to point it out. But of course, I am no expert, and I should call it suspected asbestos at least in the written report. We are expected to identify the attic insulation, but not expected to move it, same as you guys.

Why don't people use Google to learn about this stuff? The info is readily available. It is standard practice to cover vermiculite with fiberglass batts. This keeps it out of harm's way. Testing positive for asbestos says not much about your vermiculite. Some bags of vermiculite had no asbestos, some bags had some, but typically less than 5%, or even less than 1% asbestos. Some labs will always say "less than 1% asbestos was found", even if they found none. Study up on the various products in your old house that have higher concentrations of asbestos, such as the plaster, the pipe insulation, the floor tiles and the black glue under the floor covers. I see asbestos blankets rolled up and stuffed around ductwork in the basement. 60 years and nobody's bothered to question it. I will usually look under a few fiberglass batts in an old attic, but it is not a standard HI requirement to look for things that aren't readily accessible. Occasionally, an informed client will ask me to look for vermiculite or asbestos. That is being proactive. They're almost disappointed to hear all they get is rockwool. []

Thanks, Marc. You are correct in that the one breaker with the short lead will always snap off first. It is a design flaw. I found that interesting. Nice rebuttal, Richard. Now, go back to your corners. []

Les isn't sure, remembers something about melting plastic, Mark recalls taking pictures, those other guys are pretty silent. My guess is a few brain cells were destroyed at the plastic plant that day. []

150 amps would be my pick. Don't you hate that when they won't just stick a label on it?

Stinky water, maybe? The water heater can cook up some ugly smells, and with both taps running, you can get a blast of it sometimes. I'd recommend an AAV anyway. That is CYA and they won't bother to install one unless the drain traps clog up a lot.

I have similar drain caps but with the round holes. They work ok if you go out and sweep them off 2 - 3 times a month. I prefer that to watching crap go into my drain system. My deck is fiberglass on plywood, 22 years old and good like new. Some local boat builder did a few decks like this and I've inspected a couple of others, all watertight. I am bragging about my deck, yes. But the drains are a drag and to take Kurt's idea, how about some overflow scuppers? For when you're in Maui for 2 months? []

Pic 2 looks like the crack was poorly patched once and cracked again. We could use some wider shots of that area. I'm no brick expert. !00 years ago in this area, the foundation is often just a trench filled with hand-mixed concrete and rubble. Maybe they threw in some scrap steel, maybe not. So I would be careful not to write off a chance of foundation movement.

Marc, up here, a normal plumber wouldn't go near a septic tank. A septic tank contractor will pump the tank and then do his inspection of the tank and field. They now have licensing for that here and there is a fair bit of liability.

I disclaim the septic system and recommend having it pumped and inspected. I try to be accurate as to whether the lot has a septic system. It should be in the listing info, but I've seen errors there a few times. If the house is on a sewer system, there's no mention of septic. Now I'm thinking an abandoned tank could be trouble, but that is way beyond the scope of a home inspection in my area. If the lid is visible, which is rare, I will point it out "This looks like the lid to the septic tank". That's not inspection, and I don't call flushing a few toilets a septic inspection. I know there are inspectors who will add dye and so on. I suspect the septic tanks where kids are drowning have plastic lids above ground. It sounds like there are a lot of defective or improperly latched lids. If it is accessible and a known hazard, then it may well be a home inspector's responsibility. This judge thinks it is, apparently.

What Bill said. There's a solid walkway all around the house and no gutters. That green algae grows anywhere the sun never hits up here in the rainforest. If you never wash your car, it will grow on that too.

You got more out of that than I did. I started to lose concentration at around the second sentence, so I missed the part about the cow. The history of mold, now that would be interesting to hear. []

The story says the lid was defective. It flipped open when a firefighter rested his foot on it. It was visible, in other words, and apparently it is not that unusual for kids to drown in septic tanks in that area.

I'd recommend a motion detector on that switch for hands free operation. [] At least it's on the left - eat with the right, wipe with the left, eh?

Magnet. I see mostly steel roofing, even when it's coated to look like Al. I brought my extension magnet up to check this roof, but you could tell from a distance it's not copper. Click to Enlarge 78.25?KB Click to Enlarge 38.32?KB I picked up some views of real copper roofs about a month ago. The BC government bldgs, what we call the Parliament Bldgs, and the old Empress Hotel, Victoria, BC. The domes are definitely copper. I don't know about the large green roofs in the backyard of the Empress. They could be steel coated to look like tarnished copper. Click to Enlarge 47.3?KB Click to Enlarge 36.38?KB Click to Enlarge 40.61?KB

I use the cheapo Nikon Coolpix, because you can drop them and they survive well, and use rechargeable AA's. I'm sure the upper end Nikon is a top notch camera.

I'm developing an allergy to the humor on this site. It's making coffee spurt out thru my nostrils. []