clayton: Pride in Our Work - 12/15/11 04:30 PM
Now that we are back doing some rehabing for our out-of-state investors I have become more critical about the condition of the rehabs I inspect.
When a rehab is complete it should look complete. Anyone that presents their work for sale (all of ours are rentals) should be proud to walk any prospective buyer through the property. I don't understand the lack of pride in the completed work.
The homes in these pictures all had offers and I was doing the Home Inspection for the prospective buyer.
The blue line isn't decorative, it is painters tape.
If your … (3 comments)
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clayton: Since the Holidays are Upon us - 12/14/11 04:50 PM
I truly mean this. The world is what we make it, and "This Year" at "This Time" we need to work very hard to make it the best.
Thanks to everyone who makes my experience on activerain a really good one.
Jack
Jack Gilleland
Home Inspection and Investor Services, Clayton
… (4 comments)
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clayton: Things you don't want to hear at an inspection. - 12/01/11 12:52 PM
There are a number of things you don't want to hear during an inspection. Some are said by the inspector, but others could be said by the homeowner, Real Estate Agent, or even client/buyer. Here are some of my favorites:
"We had an Electrician go through the whole house and there isn't any knob and tube wiring left."
"The roof is only 7 years old and they stripped it down to the rafters when they replaced it.
"We just had all the ducts and returns cleaned."
"You can get to everything real easy. We had a new … (11 comments)
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clayton: Things to Know About Your Home 6 - 11/10/10 10:30 PM
What are the things that you don't know about your home?
They are all the important things that you don't know are important until you need to know them. Now is that clear to everyone.
Did you ever notice cracks in you grout lines? If you did there is something going on that may be a problem. Grout is inflexible (like some people I know) and can crack if there is flex in the sub floor or even if there is too much glue or mortar under the tile. For this blog let's assume that there is exactly the right amount … (6 comments)
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clayton: Things to know about your home 4. - 11/03/10 08:14 PM
What are the things that you don't know about your home? They are all the important things that you don't know are important until you need to know them. Now is that clear to everyone.
I've talked about it and now we'll address it, the service panel. Also called main breaker panel, breaker panel, (and if you have fuses not breakers) fuse box, breaker box, or just fuses or breakers. I've heard them called a few other things when a breaker trips or a fuse blows in the middle of the night. They are usually gray, but I have … (13 comments)
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clayton: Who Is MERV and What Is He Doing Here - 10/05/10 08:33 PM
MERV is a number that is assigned to a furnace filter to help the consumer (and contractors) gauge what filter should be used for a specific environment. MERV stands for Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value and someday hopefully it will be printed on all filters. Although now an international industry standard, the rating/value is not required on all packaging. Developed in 1987 by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) to simplify the rating of filters, it is a minimum or worst case rating. An example would be a low cost filter with a 1 rating would filter 20% … (7 comments)
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clayton: Sports in Dayton - The Reds - 10/05/10 02:27 PM
The Reds Post-Season
The Reds are ready for their first post season game in an eon or so. Wednesday, October 6 at 5pm the Reds will take on Philadelphia in the first playoff game of this season.
Philadelphia, winners of the National League Eastern Division, finished their season with 97 wins and 65 losses 6 games ahead of second place Atlanta. Atlanta, by the way, got the wild card nod and plays San Francisco on Thursday. Cincinnati won their last game of the season while Philadelphia dropped theirs against Atlanta.
Cincinnati will start Volquez and Philadelphia will start Halladay making … (4 comments)
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clayton: Sports in Dayton - The Reds - 09/29/10 12:22 PM
Wow, Central Division Champions. The last time the Reds won the National League Central Division Championship was, hmmmm, 1995. This year they did it in style with a home run in the bottom of the 9th against Huston by J Bruce.
The season started out so-so, but after the break Cincy won and began a determined push toward post season play.
Team leaders contributed greatly to the run for the Division Title. J Votto is 2nd in the National League with a .325 batting average. He is also 3rd with 37 home runs. J Bruce, who hit the title winning homer … (3 comments)
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clayton: Sports in Dayton - Ohio State Buckeyes - 09/28/10 02:01 PM
Let's look at the results so far this year (bold is home team)
O S U - 45 Marshall - 7 Sept. 02
O S U - 36 Miami (FL) - 24 Sept. 11
O S U - 43 Ohio U - 7 Sept. 18
O S U - 72 Eastern Michigan - 20 Sept. 25
It has been a long time since OSU scored 72 points, but how do you tell the second and third string not to score.
This weekend we take our first road trip to Illinois for a noon (CT) kick off. This is also The Buckeyes first conference game … (5 comments)
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clayton: I Think That I Will Never See......... - 09/27/10 02:46 PM
Trees are one of my favorite things in nature. But there is no doubt that they can be terribly destructive when it comes to sewer lines and pipes in general.
Years ago, actually when I first started as an apprentice plumber, the line from your home to the sewer or septic system was probably made out of clay. This was in reality an excellent conveyance for waste because of its resistance to the elements. Unfortunately, it was also fragile (don't ask how many I've accidentally broken), the shifting of the soil and roots from trees were serious enemies. Cast Iron … (5 comments)
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clayton: Our Neighbors Kettering, Ohio - 08/15/10 12:28 PM
Kettering, Ohio is the largest suburb of Dayton and is probably one of the most well known. Named for the famous inventor and philanthropist Charles F. Kettering probably one of its most notable citizens.
The area now known as Kettering was first settled by John Patterson Sr. in 1798 and in 1841 became Van Buren Township. I wasn't till June of 1955 that Van Buren Township became Kettering, Ohio.
Employers in the area include: GE Money, Kettering Medical Center, Delphi Corp. (previously Delco), Wilmer Hale (the 22nd largest law firm in the US), Reynolds and Reynolds and lets not forget … (11 comments)
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clayton: Our Neighbors, Huber Heights, Ohio - 08/06/10 04:02 PM
Huber Heights
This photo is of a lock in the canal that was begun on July 21, 1825 from Lake Erie to the Ohio River. Here the canal passed through an area now called Huber Heights, Ohio. Huber Heights is one of the newest incorporated cities in Montgomery County. This lock is in Carriage Hill Metro Park, one of the 5 Metro Parks in the county.
Huber Heights was incorporated in 1981 and was formally known as Wayne Township. This is where a developer name Charles Huber had a dream of building a community of house (all brick) … (10 comments)
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