Home Inspection Wenatchee, Chelan and Quincy- Whole House Ventilation - 04/30/11 06:39 PM
Home Inspection Wenatchee, Chelan and Quincy- Whole House Ventilation
As a home inspector I see my job not only to report deficiencies observed at the home but also to help guide the potential buyer or owner with information relating to the home and its function.
Most new homes will come equipped with a called whole house ventilation system to help deal with excessive moisture and environmental pollutants.
The newer energy code and building techniques are creating very tight envelopes within the home. In doing so we now must mechanically control the air exchanges to provide for a healthy indoor environment. The motto … (4 comments)

Wenatchee Home Inspections- Up on the roof tops. - 04/27/11 09:39 PM
Wenatchee Home Inspections- Up on the roof tops.
One of the joys of Home inspections is getting a view from up on the roof. Here was a picture I took about a month ago after a new dusting.

This is saddle rock a popular hike in the area.

 Sunset in the Okanogan, not on a roof but on a mountain.
Wenatchee Home Inspections- Up on the roof tops.
NCW Home Inspections, LLC  is located in Wenatchee Washington serving Chelan County, Douglas County, Okanogan County and Grant County Washington.                                      
NCW Home Inspections LLC-509-670-9572
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Home Inspection in Wenatchee, Chelan and Okanogan- Structural Pest Inspection - 04/27/11 08:03 PM
Home Inspection in Wenatchee, Chelan and Okanogan- Structural Pest Inspection
Structural pest inspections in the State of Washington are called- Complete wood destroying organism inspections.

What is that?
The State of Washington defines this as an inspection to determine evidence of infestation, damage, or conditions conducive for WDO's (wood destroying insects or organisms) with regards to the transfer, exchange or refinancing of any structure in Washington State.
Conducive conditions, what is that?  
It is a condition that may lead to or enhance infestation of wood destroying organisms or insects (termites, moisture ants, carpenter ants, rot, and beetles).  
Many … (0 comments)

Home Inspections- Wenatchee, Chelan and Douglas County- Do you Smell that Smell (Meth Labs)? - 04/24/11 03:14 PM
Home Inspections- Wenatchee, Chelan and Douglas County- Do you Smell that Smell (Meth Labs)?
Clandestine labs can Smell!!!
    
This is in response to a very interesting phone call I received concerning a home that may be used as a meth lab.
I spend 15+ years training with one of the Northwest best instructors in the field of Hazardous Material response and remediation, David Kummerlowe of CADRE, Inc.  Dave trains industrial HazMat teams as well as Fire and Police department personnel.  He is one of the most knowledge people in the area involving clandestine drug labs.




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Wenatchee and Chelan Home Inspection- Problem with PEX Fittings - 04/13/11 02:18 PM
Wenatchee and Chelan Home Inspection- Problem with PEX Fittings
This blog came from a conversation with Steve Smith, King of the House Inc , about reported issues and a class action lawsuit with certain PEX fittings.  (See my blog on PEX   Wenatchee and East Wenatchee Home Inspections- Per-P(l)EX-ing situation)
The fittings in question are from Uponor and Zurn. (Links to lawsuits - Uponor   Zurn)
The fittings that are having issues are made from brass. These brass fittings are subject to premature failing because of stress corrosion cracking.  The fittings at issue were installed from the early to the late 1990's.
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Wenatchee, Chelan and Okanogan Home Inspection- "Too hot to handle" - 04/12/11 12:50 PM
Wenatchee, Chelan and Okanogan Home Inspection- "Too hot to handle"
This is a response from reading a blog post by Reuben Saltzman - "Radon in Granite Countertops: Don't Worry. "

In my past life I worked in Cancer Research/Biotechnology field. In that profession I was part of one of Seattle earliest industrial Hazardous Material/Emergency Response teams.
I trained for many years with the local Emergency Response, Fire Department and HazMat teams. One of my primary responsibilities was to perform risk assessment associated with radiological, chemical and biological hazards (good training for observation skills of a home inspector).
One thing I … (11 comments)

Wenatchee, Chelan and Okanogan Home Inspection- Raindrops keep falling on my head. - 04/11/11 03:30 PM
Wenatchee, Chelan and Okanogan Home Inspection- Raindrops keep falling on my head.
One of the major components a home and property inspector evaluates is the roof covering and structure. Many times the issues may be subtle. Such as exposed fasteners or a poor flashing. A minor leak can be more damaging over time than a major leak.
Maybe the issues will be obvious!
            
Here we have what is referred to as alligatoring- This is a characteristic that happens to asphalt as it ages and is exposed to oxidation and UV.

The roof is the first line of defense … (4 comments)

Chelan and East Wenatchee Home Inspection- Bid on Anobiid - 04/10/11 01:14 PM
Chelan and East Wenatchee Home Inspection- Bid on Anobiid
Here on the eastern flank of the Cascade Mountains we do not see this little marauder much. It is most common in the coastal areas of the state.

This little beetle (Adult Anobiid beetles range from 2 to 5 mm long and are reddish to chocolate brown in color) need a moisture content of 13% to 20% to survive. It has been called the deathwatch beetle and false powder-post beetle. They leave a little shot-gun type of exit holes as they emerge.
I just had a home that had this little … (9 comments)

Wenatchee home Inspections in Chelan county- A spark of an Idea - 04/08/11 07:03 PM
Wenatchee home Inspections in Chelan county- A spark of an Idea

It may be the most "taken for granted" thing in our lives. That is electricity. Can you imagine our lives without it? No TV, no microwave, NO COMPUTER, no Washing Machine and yes no I-Phones/smart-phones.
Electricity is the one of the main components of the Industrial revolution.

Electricity was known for centuries. The ancient Greeks, in about the 6 th century B.C., discovered that friction between fur and other substances, such as amber, caused the amber to attract smaller particles and caused a spark to move between the … (2 comments)

Wenatchee, Chelan and Douglas county Home Inspection- Training Wheels - 04/08/11 03:17 PM
Wenatchee, Chelan and Douglas county Home Inspection- Training Wheels
As a Wenatchee, Chelan and Douglas county Home and Structural pest inspector in the state of Washington I need to maintain so many hours of training per year to be in compliance of my licenses.
For SPI (structural pest inspections) license training requirements are;
• Must earn 40 WSDA-approved recertification credits every five years
• Maximum of 15 approved credits towards official record each calendar year
 For Washington State Home Inspection License training requirements are;
 • complete 24 clock hours of approved home inspector education since you last renewed
Now these are … (0 comments)

Wenatchee, Chelan and Douglas county Home Inspection- Me and my Woody - 04/03/11 02:07 AM
Wenatchee, Chelan and Douglas county Home Inspection- Me and my Woody
Well my family and I had a nice little vacation down in Southern California (till the return when we got caught in the Alaska Airline mess, that's another story).
We spent several days in Disneyland and California Adventure. At the California Adventure my wife won one of the arcade games which had a payout of a "Woody". Woody now became my little partner in crime as we made our way through the parks.

I had Woody in a pouch of my vest as we walked around waving to everyone. … (5 comments)