SEPTIC TEMPLATE

[Terence McCann]

In PA, you should really be PSMA certified and strictly follow the PSMA guidelines for septic system inspections.

I'd like to read the PSMA guidelines Bill (just for my own knowledge). Is there a link where I can download these?

I don't inspect SS here as I have next to zero knowledge about them (and don't care to be a defendant).

[Robert Jones]

Here ya go Terry.

http://www.psma.net/

[Mark P]

Anything else you notice I'm doing wrong please let me know. I'm a newer inspector and appreciate all your help Joe.

That is the right attitude. Some guys come here, get all insulted, go away mad, and never learning anything. Stick around, read every post, ask questions and you'll learn alot.

[Mark P]

Robert Jones - you now have the most disturbing avatar ever. Please make it go away.

[Robert Jones]

Damn it Mark. As you wish!

[hausdok]

Joe,

I worked in the power generation industry as part of the operations dept performing DAILY inspections at power plants.

Than that's what you say. It's not fair to the client to allow the client to assume that the inspection experience you refer to is with residential construction when it is not.

Here in Washington State that would get you in trouble with the Department of Licensing. An inspector here with 10 years of experience as a roofer, 12 years experience as a remodeler and then 13 years experience as a custom builder with only the last five years as an inspectors is not allowed to advertise 40 years of experience. He's allowed to state on his website that he's had 10 years of experience as a roofer, 12 years experience as a remodeler, 13 years experience as a custom builder and 5 years experience as an inspector.

I'm guessing that you don't want folks to know you are new to the business because you don't think you'll get work from folks who know that. To a certain extent, that's going to be true; but you'd be surprised at the number of clients who will hire you with little experience in home inspections based simply on the fact that you were in an obviously technically challenging profession before now.

When you are new, you are liable to make mistakes. Hopefully, those won't be costly mistakes; but if you screw up and the client that had hired you because he or she thought you had a lot of experience, based on what was displayed on your site, finds out you were a rookie all along, you could find yourself the target of some pretty unpleasant publicity via word-of-mouth, Angie's List, or worse - a lawsuit.

The lot of the public already has a certain amount of distrust of home inspectors based on horror stories they've heard from friends or co-workers or what they're read or seen in the media (Think Mike Holmes' constant trashing of home inspectors.). Many of us have worked a lot of years to try and overcome that stigma and we are gradually seeing progress being made. Here, we openly embrace and help new inspectors who are willing to listen and who we perceive as being credible. I hope you'll be one of those.

Your credibility is the lynch pin that this business is built on; don't weaken it right out of the gate. Emphasize what you've done to learn the business and your commitment to continuing education.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[jdamato]

Thanks mike. Got your point. I'm going to have to go over my whole web page. I would rather not have to deal with issues like the ones you described.