A Northern Virginia Home Inspector's Perspective

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Home Inspector - Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - 3380-000723

ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS

2012 

Oftentimes HVAC units are put in the attic and the best practice when this is the case would be to include an auxiliary drip tray for air conditioning systems that is separately drained outdoors. An HVAC system in the basement or garage will typically have one condensate drainage system.  It can ...
04/29/2012
Hi friends!  Billy Jays here! I have something so special today, I think by the end of this commercial I might just be singing! Tell me, how often do you pull into that driveway or walk around the side of the house and look at a boring, empty, everyday chimney!? Well, can I guess? Everyday! Now t...
04/28/2012
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THIS BLOG IS ABSOLUTELY TONGUE IN CHEEK AND TO BE JUST A HAIR SARCASTIC.  JUST SO'S YOU KNOW'S... When installing attic fans, there are some things that are important.  Let's call these The Three Amigos. 1.  Thinking outside the box2.  Position3.  Consistency4.  Professionalism In order to improv...
04/25/2012
"The way to crush the bourgeois is to grind them between the millstones of taxation and inflation." Vladimir Illyich Ulyanov (AKA Nicholai Lenin) 1870 - 1924 First, we have to define a couple of words. The word bourgeois, for Lenin, was to help him define society into three players - the workers,...
04/23/2012
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One thing I often see are vents that birds have moved into.  It doesn't take much to prevent them! Vent covers now come with a bird guard. Most vent covers are flaps, either single or multiple.  Birds are adept at getting into either one. In a recent neighborhood of condos, only 8 years old, just...
04/22/2012
Sometimes the listing agent will show up toward the end of a home inspection to "see if there are any questions [the] can answer."  Can I translate that into people speak?  "Are there any problems I should know about now.  I want to gird my loins."  Sometimes the translation is:  "I am ready to a...
04/21/2012
30 Comments
Walking around this house I saw what looked like a little child growing on the side of it. The poor little fellow had so many birth defects I took pity. It makes me angry when it is obvious parents don't care enough when creating a new one. Eating and drinking properly, taking vitamin supplements...
04/20/2012
My daughter likes to play soccer in the back yard.  I ask her not to take shots against our fence as it is 14 years old and she is strong enough to break it. WELL, DOES SHE LISTEN? You know the answer.  One day last week the dog got out twice in the same day.  Different neighbors brought her home...
04/19/2012
All hail!  Spring begins the hail season.  Every year! Hail is a weather event that can cost us!  It costs homeowners some $1 billion annually in roof and siding claims. I recently had a "roofer" come to my house saying that I had hail damage on my roof - FROM A HAIL EVENT THAT HAD HAPPENED A YEA...
04/18/2012
On the "features" list of the house it said:  Laundry room conveniently moved from the garage. And it was true.  It had been moved.  Sure, it took up a portion of the basement family room. And had a second fridge added to the room. But never mind, the rest of the basement family room had been tur...
04/18/2012
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Jay Markanich

Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia
local_phone(703) 330-6388
smartphone(703) 585-7560
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An experienced home inspector's look at current home inspection events and conditions along with his useful recommendations.