ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS
2016
27
Comments
Before the client arrived and I went into the house, I thought what a rat hole!That is a hole big enough for rats to get in!Well, fortunately there were no rats in the house.But there was mouse evidence everywhere!Small rodents can get into the house via a hole or gap only 1/4" in size!And they a...
03/30/2016
How to change the classic linen closet into a shower.Sure, we see that every day! We have a storage room, with a powder room attached that services a finished family room. A linen closet used to be the back wall of the powder room.So, why not create a new "bedroom" from the storage room, and pu...
03/28/2016
For sure, this wiring would not be approved by a Boy Scout getting a merit badge.There are more than 100 merit badges that a Boy Scout can earn. One of them is called "Electricity." This is one of the requirements to get the Electricity Merit Badge. The requirements take up two whole pages: ...
03/25/2016
15
Comments
It took some effort, but I found this.A furnace room was newly finished, with improper framing, wiring, and they tapped a GFI in the nearby bathroom to create the circuit for the lights and receptacles in this new room. Really professional.To give a word to the work, it was a MESS.A new sort of ...
03/23/2016
4
Comments
Looking up I noticed a light fixture just hanging around, barely.I'm not sure what happened here - rot? Squirrel damage? But repairs, or "repairs," were done by someone. And not very well.The electrical box, which used to be attached properly to the soffit, no longer is.It's just hanging aroun...
03/22/2016
8
Comments
The feature list said, "New attic fan." But...Darn if I could find it.I'm pretty sure I know where it is supposed to be.Everything is ready.But those wires are not safely ready to be used.In fact, gee, aren't they touching? Shouldn't those wires have a nut on top of each to keep them from touch...
03/21/2016
12
Comments
When I got downstairs the corner of the basement sure smelled musty.It had been finished with wood paneling long ago. That paneling had been painted more than once.Going over to the corner I got a good whiff and it sure smelled funny.REMEMBER - YOUR NOSE IS YOUR BEST MOLD DETECTOR.It is also the...
03/20/2016
Smoothing mortar onto a damaged concrete stair is NOT a repair.And I see it all the time. It will not work.It will not last.It will not stay smooth and solid.It will crack.It will chip.It will look worse than it did before the "repair."Why do people do it?Because they do not read the instruction...
03/18/2016
In this new construction I found that these windows are Energy Star inferior, by any measure.This is a beautiful, zillion $ house, with the builder claiming Energy Star all over it. I noticed that I could feel the sun through a bedroom window. The day was not particularly warm, in the 60s. But ...
03/17/2016
In certain installations CSST gas tubing must be properly protected.CSST gas tubing, or Corrugated Stainless Steel Tubing, is a flexible tubing for the conveyance of gas from a manifold inside the house to the various appliance that require gas.The manufacturer of the tubing, Gastite, Inc., has v...
03/16/2016
Rainmaker
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Jay Markanich
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