Jim Katen

Thanks, Joe, and welcome to TIJ. I'll confess that my suretest sits in my bag almost exclusively these days. Soooo, I'll ask you (and any other regular Suretest users), how often do you find bootleg grounds? (White wires connected to grounding wires in the receptacle box.) During the couple of month period that I used the Suretest, I never found any. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I'd like to hear more about this. Could you describe the "many" defects that a 3-prong tester would not find and that a Suretest would? - Jim Katen, Oregon

Why would they've had an inspection from their lawyer? - Jim Katen, Oregon

Paradoxically, I think that's true pretty much everywhere in the U.S. - Jim

"Y'all" is a southern term (dialect). Just wondering how it got to Canada. Paul Burrell I'm guessing that Ron White videos have something to do with it. - Jim Katen, Oregon

In addition to Mike & Richard's explanations, reversed polarity can leave certain appliances exposed to voltage spikes and surges even when they're turned off. I tell people that electrical safety comes in layers. When you've got a circuit with reversed polarity, one of those layers is gone. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I think those are cable tv wires. - Jim Katen, Oregon

It's a good idea and it's required by every manufacturer I've ever heard of. I'm not sure if the UPC specifies its exact placement like the IRC does though. Have you looked in 1211.5? - Jim Katen, Oregon

If you're going to call out missing paste, the only NEC reference will be 110.3(B). It's the one that says the panel has to be installed in accordance with its listing and labeling instructions. Panel manufacturers used to require the paste on aluminum connections. I'm not so sure that they still do. It certainly isn't mentioned on the label that's stuck to the panel, though it might be buried in the UL listing. Like the others, I've never seen a problem due to its omission. My personal opinion is that it's a "best practice" but not a big deal if missing. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I just tried my Fluke on a GFCI. When I tripped the circuit, the indicator light on the Fluke went out. These are cool toys, but I wouldn't trust one in a critical situation. For those who're interested, here's an explanation of how they work: http://www.ecmweb.com/mag/electric_know ... e_voltage/ - Jim Katen, Oregon

It sounds like a storage room. If so, it doesn't need any receptacles to comply with 210.52. Of course, you could put receptacles there. Remember that the NEC is exclusively concerned with safety. It's not a design manual. As a home inspector, you might elect to simply inform your customer that the basement storage room isn't equipped with any receptacles. Just because the NEC doesn't require something, that doesn't mean that you can't comment on it anyway. - Jim Katen, Oregon

The four-foot-at-a-time-replacement thing is actually from the BIA tech notes. It's their recommended fix for installing through-wall flashing retroactively. Unfortunately, you've got more than just missing through-wall flashing. There're issues around windows as well. Also, as your latest picture shows, they've got blobs of mortar touching the Tyvek. (Another no-no.) Also, we're hearing about sealer again. Oy! It's like a guy who is facing triple bypass surgery who asks his doctor if he can't solve the problem by eating some oats. They're good for his heart, aren't they? If you don't already have one, get a lawyer. No, wait, get two. Mean ones with sharp teeth. Tell them to convince this builder that he has to strip off every brick and start over, while your inspector documents the entire job. - Jim Katen, Oregon

Are you asking whether or not each of these appliances is supposed to be on a 20-amp circuit? (The answer is easy. No.) Or are you asking if a dishwasher and a disposer, when sharing a circuit, are supposed to be on a 20-amp circuit? (The answer is complicated. Before I spend time figuring it out, I want to make sure you care.) - Jim Katen, Oregon

I think Cecil does a fine job of explaining this one at Cecil's Storehouse of Human Knowledge. http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_389.html - Jim Katen, Oregon

My understanding is that, at one time, long ago, the female had a little nub. When the male prong was inserted into the female slot, it contacted the female nub in such a way as to make for a strong, durable connection. Nowadays, however, the nub is not to be found and, so, the male prong hardly ever contacts it. Instead, the female relies on continuous and unrelenting pressure to keep the male in its place. The design of the male prong is, therefore, largely vestigial. - Jim Katen, Oregon

The slick ones are usually wall tiles. They're not intended for use on floors. Not only are they slick, they're not very strong either. I have no reference. Try the ASTM site. - Jim Katen, Oregon

That roofing job is an abomination. Strip it off down to the plywood and start over. It cannot be repaired. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I don't understand. If there were no voltage on either wire, there would have been no arcing. So there must have been voltage on one of them. Did you test them with a multi-meter or just one of those stinking, lying, SOB volt sticks? I doubt that the ceiling box is grounded, at least not intentionally. Wiring systems from that era weren't grounded. No one would have gone to the trouble to ground a ceiling box anyway, even in later years. The mesh strap is probably something else. Perhaps some kind of plaster attachement method? Have you tried using a multi-meter to read the voltage between a known power outlet and the box once it's been isolated from its wires? If so, what was the voltage? Why don't you think it was simply a hot-to-neutral short across the box? Was the switch loop really romex or just k&t in loom? It can look like romex. - Jim Katen, Oregon

The top of the detail is cropped out. What does the arrow at top say? - Jim Katen Download Attachment: Parp Wall Detail.jpg 52.08 KB

Great picture. It's a good one to show people when they question the need to cap open knockouts. Try to spring it on them just as they're taking a bite of food. I think it's there in an attempt to comply with 240.22, the section that says not to fuse neutrals. As I see the picture, you've got a very old three-pole fused disconnect switch. It's feeding a 120/240 volt circuit -- most likely a range. The middle (white) wire is the neutral in that circuit and it's not allowed to be fused. So someone stuck the section of copper tubing in there so that there wouldn't be a risk of the fuse blowing and leaving an open neutral. The problem is that the next homeowner may not understand this. He might just look at this and think that it's wrong then stick a fuse back in there. I'd say that this disconnect would be better off if someone disconnected the neutral wires from the lugs and jumpered across them. I'd also check the fuse sizes against the range's (or whatever it is) requirements. - Jim Katen, Oregon

And while we're talking about it, if you're taking a picture while you're up there, never step backwards to gain a better field of view. - Jim Katen, Oregon

The nice thing about a 10:12 roof is that it's pretty easy to see most of it from the ground with binoculars or from the edge with a ladder. However, you can't see squat from the ground on a 4:12 roof, plus you'd have to be drunk or addle-brained to fall off one. I say, make the judgement call one roof at a time with your first priority being personal safety. What a crock of . . . (Oops. Can I say that here?) Every day brings different limitations to the inspection. Not walking a roof in June because you couldn't walk it in January is nonsensical. Snow might be piled up against a foundation wall in January. Are you not going to look at it in June? Carpenter ants aren't active in January. Are you going to ignore them if you see them in June? Just go out there each day and do the best job you can. Don't waste brain time dreaming up rationalizations for not doing the job. Hey, I'm about that size and I'm been going onto roofs every day for 13 years now. Every so often, however, I see one and say, "nope, not that roof under these conditions." Listen to everyone's advice and find your own comfort zone. One other thing, and it might sound stupid. If I have a choice, I climb on and off the roof at a location where there's earth or vegetation directly below me -- not concrete. I'm most likely to fall while getting on or off the ladder. - Jim Katen, Oregon

The IRC and CABO before it have prohibited PVC supply piping inside or underneath a house lo these many years. And Donald, Lincoln never said that quotation. It was written by William Boetcker, a preacher, in 1916. - Jim Katen, Oregon

How's that work on hardwood floors? Seems like it'd be mighty slippery. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I see this almost every day of the week. How do they normally do it in your area? I can't help you with the IRC. Oregon doesn't use it for plumbing. But I think that the rules are the same. A toilet is 3 fixture units, a tub/shower is 2 and a sink is 1. For the two bathrooms, you've got a total of 12 fixture units. At 1/4 inch per foot, your 3" pipe can handle 35 fixture units in the horizontal run and 48 in the vertical run. If you've only got 1/8 inch per foot, then you multiply the horizontal quantity by .8. Unless the pipe is at less than 1/8 inch per foot, I don't see a problem. - Jim Katen, Oregon