seattle home inspections: Greasy ducts and rat acne! - 09/01/08 09:16 AM
The title of this blog even grosses me out----and I am used to blogging about rats. I sort of lost all respect for rats when I had them in my barn in Cato, New York. I was trapping them, and one morning I found one part way out of a … (13 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Another Brick in the Wall. - 08/31/08 09:36 AM
Sooner or later all brick chimneys need to be tuck pointed----you know, where the mortar joints have to be repaired. This is especially true of older homes where the mortar itself might not have been very good, and where age and missing hats has taken their toll on the chimney … (14 comments)
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seattle home inspections: The post that wasn't a post. - 08/31/08 09:12 AM
Human beings are very ingenious; and, given a problem, a solution will be forthcoming----even if it makes a bigger problem requiring and even more ingenious solution.
Lots of times the solution might be to re-use something for one thing that has worn out its usefulness for something else. I … (31 comments)
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seattle home inspections: For Inspectors only!----no one else allowed:) - 08/28/08 06:47 PM
While most of the AR community may find this topic boring,
too technical,
unrelated to what AR is all about,
downright dangerous,
and/or "over-the-top,"----I want to do it anyway. It is primarily for all the Inspectors in the AR community. This is not one of those, "go-out-and-buy-some-test-equipment-and-try-this-at-home-type-blogs."
It has … (19 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Have a nice trip---better luck next fall! - 08/28/08 01:48 PM
At a recent inspection I was reminded of this incredible useless machine this guy named Del built. By cranking a handle, all kinds of different operations were affected. If you haven't seen this Youtube clip, it is well worth watching all the way through to the end, because he goes … (8 comments)
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seattle home inspections: You never know when Mold is going to bite you in the butt! - 08/26/08 03:10 PM
Bathrooms can be very wet and humid places.
Water splashed onto floors,
wet shower walls with closed curtains or glass enclosures,
wet towels hung to dry,
and boys with bad aim, can account for a lot of humidity in a bathroom. This is especially the case if there is no … (28 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Electric Utility vs. Home Owner----Tug o' War. - 08/26/08 09:29 AM
On a recent inspection I noticed a pronounced "raised" area where the electrical service bracket was attached to the roof.
It is very common to see these electrical service wires pulling the restraint brackets off the structure. These wires sometimes span long distances and can in themselves be … (13 comments)
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seattle home inspections: The "Three Little Pigs" and the brick house myth. - 08/25/08 09:28 AM
After my Epic earlier blog about how to put "highlights" in your pictures, I thought a shorter blog was in order.
Around these parts it is common to get rid of old concrete patios and sidewalks by breaking them up into chunks and building landscaping retaining walls … (14 comments)
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seattle home inspections: A "safe" place to ask those Electrical & Plumbing questions. - 08/24/08 10:38 AM
This is it. If you have any electrical and plumbing questions and you want some honest but perhaps "un-official," opinions as to what is going on----you may ask them here. Remember though, no opinions given here should be construed as "The Truth," "The Answer," or the "Best Solution." I do … (16 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Sparky's Plumbing - 08/24/08 10:11 AM
This is the group where anyone can post anything related to electrical and plumbing (anything deemed not related to electrical and plumbing will be summarily "electrocuted and/or drowned" and removed:). It is also the place where anyone can ask a question with the likelihood that one of the many "talented" … (6 comments)
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seattle home inspections: The roofer and the heating contractor haven't been speaking to each other for 10 years. - 08/19/08 07:56 AM
In the mid 70's, as homes became tighter and tighter to conserve energy, we started to devise mechanical means to bring fresh air into the home on a predictable basis to ensure air quality. There are many ways to achieve this, and I am not going to discuss all of … (7 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Are Townhouses an Olympic Sport yet? - 08/17/08 08:18 AM
Three, and even Four story townhouses are popping out of the ground like Magic Mushrooms all over Seattle. They represent special problems for the Home Inspector: from roofs too high to get on, to having to undergo extensive Olympic Training to make the many flights from bottom to top. Another HUGE … (17 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Is your Garbage Disposal "too-hot-to-handle?" - 08/16/08 10:22 PM
One of those "nit-picky" (gotta love that word) things Home Inspectors routinely call out, is the electrical connection to the disposal. This connection is "messed-up" more than any other single defect that I can think of in a kitchen. I think it is because so often it is an installation … (25 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Big Brother----is watching! - 08/08/08 12:59 PM
I think most inspectors are used to having someone look over their shoulder during the inspection. I know that in some areas the buyer isn't around until the end of the inspection, but in my area it is common for the buyer to be at the inspection the whole time. … (25 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Well? How well are your Wells? - 08/05/08 09:27 AM
Many homes have basement windows that are below finish grade. There should be "window-wells" around these windows that, besides creating a place for the windows to open into, keep the ground from impacting the wood trim and other window components. These window wells should be kept free of dirt, debris … (15 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Beware of Having Sex on Granite Countertops! - 07/31/08 10:46 PM
To paraphrase FDR, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." While not specifically voiced in relation to the topic of today's blog, it is a phrase that can be applied to anything in our lives that we fear. Fear can become so monstrous, that the thing we … (18 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Its time for amother contest! - 07/31/08 04:06 PM
After my last SUPER SUCESSFUL contest blog, "It is NO Contest," I have succumbed to the intense pressure (well maybe not) from fellow bloggers, Steve, Kara, Sean, Kevin, Kathy, and others----too numerous to list----to run another contest.
I promise no "misspeled" anagrams this time in this much easier contest.
Prizes?
Kathy … (51 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Home Inspections Save Marriages! - 07/30/08 08:58 AM
Steve?
(Any resemblance or similarity to Bellingham Steve are purely coincidental)
StaEEEveeeee?
What?
I know I was mad at you last week for running over the cat, but I have a favor to ask.
What?
Well, I realize this is the first time it has happened in our "new house"---but could … (21 comments)
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seattle home inspections: It just didn't quite pan out AGAIN. - 07/29/08 08:57 AM
In my Don Quixote blog the other day I talked about his amazing, rare, and small (but worthwhile) Victory.
Today I want to discuss another issue at the windmill that deserves a blog all to itself (and unfortunately makes his victory all the more hollow).
The Laundry.
… (11 comments)
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seattle home inspections: YOU make the call-----"safe" or "out"? (to lunch) - 07/23/08 10:48 AM
The building codes are pretty clear about required clearances from finish grade to untreated wood materials such as siding. It is VERY common to see concrete flat-work like sidewalks and driveways poured over the top of wood siding---and other types of siding for that matter. (Even installation instructions for cement-board … (17 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Snakes in Real Estate - 07/05/08 03:05 PM
I love crawl spaces.
Tons of great stuff gets found in crawl spaces----ideal for blog fodder.
On a recent inspection of a very large crawl space there was one area (actually several) that I could not squeeze myself into, but I could see that there was some sort … (28 comments)
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seattle home inspections: “I’ve got a basketball jones!”----and I am a soccer player! - 06/28/08 04:12 PM
Some of the people my age have enough brain cells left to remember the old Cheech and Chong skit about "Basketball Jones." You just never know when you are going to get a basketball jones. But, when you do, why not go up in the attic, cut away some of … (8 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Conneticusaurus Rex - 05/31/08 10:56 PM
My granddaughter, Molly, LOVES dinosaurs. She reads about dinosaurs, she draws dinosaurs and she even sleeps with dinosaurs. She probably even eats dinosaurs (cookies).
It reminds me of when I was about eight years old, my cousins and I found dinosaur bones out in the woods … (7 comments)
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seattle home inspections: This guy cracks me up! - 05/11/08 10:41 AM
My buddy Steve, King-of-the-House Smith got so hectic with inspections last week that he made up his mind to take some well deserved time off from inspecting. He decided that because he had nothing better to do, that he would make the hour and half drive down to my house … (17 comments)
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seattle home inspections: More Favorite Plumbing Repairs - 01/28/08 08:32 AM
To continue with yesterday's theme of inventive repairs, the QUINTESSENTIAL do-it-your-selfer, is another plumbing repair. It seems that many people are willing to take on plumbing repairs. (One would think that given the inherent dangers of Electricity that there would be fewer instances of "inventive wiring", but it seems to … (4 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Frustrated Home Inspector! - 01/25/08 08:57 AM
One of the things that frustrate home inspectors is comments like: "That is the way everyone is doing it," or "It has been like that for years----what is the problem?" Unfortunately, as home inspectors, we don't usually get to say: "I know its wrong, but since your builder says it … (5 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Handrail Safety - 01/16/08 08:29 AM
Stairs with more than four risers require a handrail. There are a lot of requirements that the handrail must meet to be considered safe and meet code requirements. Some general requirements (without getting into the exceptions to the rules) include:
1. There has to be a handrail on at … (1 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Let sleeping dogs lie. - 01/03/08 06:51 PM
Vermiculite insulation is one of those materials commonly found in the home that can contain Asbestos----depending on where it was mined. While the only way to know for sure is to have it tested, that is no longer the "current recommendation." This insulation has about a 50/50 chance of having … (3 comments)
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seattle home inspections: When is a goal not a goal? - 01/03/08 04:21 PM
Setting goals for the New Year is very common----unfortunately for this old soccer player my best goal is the goal itself. To see that ball fly into the net past a bemused and befuddled goal keeper is the ultimate! Sometimes the simpler the goal---the more gratifying the goal. Most of … (1 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Cleaning furnace air intake screens - 01/01/08 11:19 AM
To continue with the vent cleaning theme, there is another item that needs to be maintained. This screened opening is an air "intake" as opposed to "vent" however. Many homes with combustion type heating systems have air intakes to provide combustion/dilution air either directly to the furnace or to the … (4 comments)
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seattle home inspections: Plugged dryer vent caps---fire safety hazard. - 12/31/07 11:46 AM
I am amazed at how often I see plugged dryer vents. The lint/dust that plugs these vents represents a significant fire hazard and should be maintained free of debris. This is something that the homeowner/handyman can do. Everyone's use of dryers and the types of clothing they dry is different, … (1 comments)
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seattle home inspections: When do you NOT need an inspection? - 12/31/07 10:44 AM
When do you NOT need an inspection? Well, inspections are always a good idea even when the conditions are as obvious as this interior door being used as an exterior door. Not all problems are this obvious. Sometimes obvious issues (even hilarious issues) can be a distraction leading to missing other … (9 comments)
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