Stephen Lagueux Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 Ceiling tiles, you're damned if you lift them and you're damned if you don't Acoustical ceiling tiles will often be the material of choice in the basement. Relatively cheap and easy to install, the typical weekend warrior will chose to do it himself but will often hide or cause critical situations in the process. Some might say it's not within their scope of practice and that if you lift one you have to lift them all. Others will say that they don't touch them unless there are visible clues such water stains. Personally, I like to know what I'm dealing with so I'm in the camp that will lift one here and there to have a general idea of the structure above, rim joist insulation, wiring, plumbing etc. I will snap a few pictures and go on with the inspection. How far do you go to have a look at what's going on above? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry Simon Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 Always, without fail; lift a few here & there. I've found cash, guns, drugs, dirty magazines, plastic trays to catch leakage, thousands of rodent droppings, beer cans, you name it. Not to mention open electrical junction boxes, mold, framing problems, yadda yadda yadda. Uhmmm - why are you damned if you do lift them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Dirks Jr Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 I especially lift the ones that are under front stoops, deck ledgers, sliding door thresholds and all that high potential water intrusion or typical WDI infested areas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Lagueux Posted February 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 Uhmmm - why are you damned if you do lift them? Well, it's just a figure of speech. Some might argue that if you lift one here and there, you could still miss something and if you lifted one, you should've lifted all of them and by not doing so increases your liabilty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry Simon Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 Uhmmm - why are you damned if you do lift them? Well, it's just a figure of speech. Some might argue that if you lift one here and there, you could still miss something and if you lifted one, you should've lifted all of them and by not doing so increases your liabilty. I hear ya. Sounds like complete crap preached at a HI school. . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neal Lewis Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 Like John, I lift them in key areas. And, I say in the report I lifted a few but can't lift all them and that there could be stuff going on I couldn't see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 I always lift at least one. The more I find, the more I lift. Client is depending on you to find what there is to find. Marc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben H Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 Uhmmm - why are you damned if you do lift them? I always get that crap in my eyes as I fight to put it back down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 I hear ya. Sounds like complete crap preached at a HI school. . . Yep. No one is going to be punished for looking. We're supposed to look. At least, I thought we were. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Katen Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 Uhmmm - why are you damned if you do lift them? Well, it's just a figure of speech. Some might argue that if you lift one here and there, you could still miss something and if you lifted one, you should've lifted all of them and by not doing so increases your liabilty. Buncha crap. Missing problems increases your liability. If you lift them, you reduce the risk of missing problems. Refusing to lift them falls under the heading of attempting to cover your butt at the expense of your client's butt. My first rule of home inspections is, "cover your client's butt and yours will be covered automatically." Lift the tiles. The only reason not to is laziness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kibbel Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 You don't have to lift all tiles to see almost everything. Get on a stepladder so your head is above the entire ceiling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 Then, take a picture. Or a couple pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottpat Posted February 18, 2013 Report Share Posted February 18, 2013 I lift a few take a few pictures and move on. As others have said you will not be let down with what you find!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stubrooks Posted March 16, 2013 Report Share Posted March 16, 2013 I do it and use the camera when possible. I had one ceiling where there was not enough room above the tiles to get my head up there but the camera caught a bad plumbing connection. I hate putting them back in place. They seldom such fall back into place and I spend too much time trying to reset them without breaking them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kibbel Posted March 16, 2013 Report Share Posted March 16, 2013 I hate putting them back in place. They seldom such fall back into place and I spend too much time trying to reset them without breaking them. Rap on the metal grid with your knuckles. Most of the time the panels drop right in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.