Connecticut Home Inspection Blog

This Job is Tough

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Sun, 19 May 2013 05:04:15 -0700

Inspecting houses is dirty and tough business. On occasion one must slog through nasty, damp crawl spaces or traverse through an attic hotter than Hades while slashing through spider webs thicker than the Spanish moss draped on cypress trees. Some days it's raining in buckets or colder than the Artic tundra. Every once in a while you pull up to the house on a clear spring morning and you just can't help but smile.

Enjoy the day, whether it's hot cold or in between. We only get so many.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Can You See What I See?

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Wed, 15 May 2013 04:58:06 -0700

Homeowners are, as a rule, creative in their solutions to problems that crop up with their houses. one of the most common problem, and I speak from experience, is needing more space. Especially when you have growing children. Stuff just seems to accumulate. Plus there is the need at times for more area to spread everyone out. The solution for some is to build onto the house.

Additions from an inspection point of view can be at times entertaining in their construction techniques. On a recent home inspection, I entered the open garage at the front of the house and snapped this photo. Standing in the doorway, I could see several issues that led me to almost instantly conclude that;

One, the garage almost assuredly was not permitted and

two, if on the slim chance it had been, it certainly was never inspected.

Do you see the problems?

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Noxious Gas Alert!

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Sat, 11 May 2013 05:32:42 -0700

There are all sorts of potential hazards present in our homes. Subsequently industrious companies have invented warning devices. The most recognizable is probably the smoke detector. Fire warning devices are not extremely new, they have simply become inexpensive and above all else easy to install. I would attribute this in part to the improvement of micro electronic circuitry.

The new kid on the home hazard alert front is the carbon monoxide detector, first entering the market around 1993. The hazards of CO have been known for sometime, since the 1800s. Early detectors were quite cumbersome and refined to special applications. These first CO warning devices were used to protect workers in confined areas where the gas may be present.

Now CO detectors are not only common in many homes, but are required by law in some states (Connecticut is one of these states) to be installed during any new construction. Recently I found a homeowner who has apparently found a new use for the CO detector. While I'm very certain CO detectors are designed to detect only carbon monoxide gas, apparently this homeowner is thinking it can detect other noxious gases.

Perhaps it's time to lay off the beans.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Right In Your Face!

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Fri, 10 May 2013 05:03:59 -0700

Funny how the obvious isn't always so obvious. You know what I mean. You're plowing through the refrigerator, salivating for that last left over slice of pepperoni and anchovy pizza, and you can't find it any where! Arrrrrgh!

Your wife comes by, reaches around you, grabs the slice and says in that way that makes you feel even dumber,

"This what you're looking for?"

Sheepishly you reply,

"Um yea and this," grabbing the first thing in front of you in a desperate attempt to save face. You quickly close the refrigerator door with your pizza and ancient jar of capers in hand. You then get The Look.

Sometimes a similar scenario plays out in construction.

A common method of entering an attic is with a set of pull down attic stairs. I think the pull down stairway is a great invention. There when you need them, out of sight and out of the way when you don't. They are also installed incorrectly more often than not.

Recently as I was inspecting a set of pull down stairs, it looked like the installer of this attic stairway had a case of temporary blindness like happens when fishing in the refrigerator. Quite often the installation instructions are right there on the stairway. I know, I know, who reads those things.

On this particular stairway, the installation instructions and a warning were strategically placed on the framing. Exactly where the fasteners will be driven.

Yes that is a deck screw.

Where was this guy's wife?

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Karma Or Ignoring Your Home Inspector Can Bite You in The Ass

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Fri, 03 May 2013 04:40:47 -0700

There are many sayings, adages on how life will return to you what you put into it. You reap what you sow, what goes around, comes around are a few that come quickly to mind. The same can be said about houses. By taking care of and maintaining your home, you will reap the benefits of your conscientiousness when you sell.

I think it can be said that home maintenance begins during the home inspection. Many clients have said to me the report has been a help in knowing where to begin making repairs and performing usual maintenance. The main purpose of the inspection however is to identify defects or potential hazards to the buyers before purchase.

In my years of inspecting houses, I have come to learn what troubles one person, can hardly raise an eyebrow with another. Since I have seen this reaction hundreds and hundreds of times, I now try and impress on buyers, especially first timers, that the house they are buying today will one day be sold again...by them. That at this point in time the house still belongs to the seller and any defects uncovered are in essence the sellers.

Recently I pulled up to a house and had that Deja Vu feeling. As I began working my around the outside of the small ranch house, that feeling continued to get stronger.

"Boy," I said to myself, "that addition sure looks familiar. And so does that deck".

By the time I was inside the house, I was certain I had been in this house before.

When I had worked my way finally to the finished basement, I was remembering quite a bit about this house. I was later to learn I inspected it four years before. One of the concerns I recalled from the basement was asbestos on the ducts. And I was to find it was still there. In fact it was also exactly in the same spot on the furnace and water flue pipes.

The past and present photos are shown. They look exactly the same. I did inform my present clients of my Deja Vu. What I did not do, and gave this some thought, was use the photos or report from four years ago to the benefit of my present clients.

Interestingly, the sellers had done several recent, expensive upgrades, I was told in order to sell the house. There was a brand new roof, just days old, a new furnace and A/C compressor. And yet the asbestos remained. As I said earlier it is very hard to figure people. I usually don't try.

Karma, sometimes it's hurts.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Obviously Obscure

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 04:30:09 -0700

Every job or task has many subtleties. When you watch someone who is good at doing a particular thing, a great musician for example, they appear to play their instrument with ease. Nothing could be further from the truth, great talent also requires a great amount of work. Through repetition a task becomes second nature.

In the process of inspecting a house, some defects, even to the untrained eye, are glaringly obvious. A bad roof seems to be the number one component spotted by most prospective home buyers. The roof is a strong focal point for buyers. So it was no surprise when I was told by the buyer the roof on a house I was to inspect looked bad.

When I arrived at the house and walked around the exterior, it was clear the shingles were long past their useful life. None the less, I still pulled out my ladder for a closer look at the covering. This particular house was older, built a little before the turn of the 19th century. 1890 to be exact. It was also a deja vu moment for me. It turned out I had inspected this same house, one of my very first, over 12 years before.

The roof was covered in asphalt shingles. Not the covering used in 1890 to be sure. Usually the original shingles would be cedar. Often on older houses I find the cedar still present, buried under numerous layers of asphalt shingles.

When I crested the edge of the roof and looked around. I could see the original shingles showing through here, there and every where. Or so I thought.

What I saw was slate. This was mind boggling. How does one nail through what is essentially stone. Slate roofs are and were very high end, expensive coverings. They are also extremely durable, said to last for 100 years or more. The maintenance and installation of slate is a speciality. Most roofing companies do not know how to repair slate. So I was not surpried that the slate had been abandoned for asphalt.

What was a huge surprise however is what I saw in the attic.

Cedar shingles! Unquestionably the original roof covering.

While this roof covering was obviously shot, the history of the roof had been obscured by time and more than a bit of the human hand.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Sometimes the Job Sucks, Other Times it Blows

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 05:13:36 -0700

We've all had them, done them, bad jobs. You might even find a song or three about crumby jobs. It's said they build character, one must "pay their dues" to get ahead. That may be true. Yet no matter how you phrase it, no matter how play it, it just sucks!

Take for example this furnace install. Bad work, work that is done without care or in this instance without regard for the safety of the occupants of the house is not just bad, it's criminal.

Now you might be looking at this furnace and asking, What exactly is wrong? I would absolutely expect most people, homeowners, not to know. Which is exactly why, the company, the people that you hire have been give a huge amount of trust to do the job correctly and safely.

The biggest problem with this install is that the system lacks return ducts. The air filter at the return plenum at the bottom of the unit is "filtering" air taken directly from the mechanical room, not the living space. You will also notice another heating system, a gas boiler, sticking into the picture at the right. Also present in this cozy little room are three gas fired water heaters. All four of these appliances are atmospherically vented, meaning that the gases from combustion vent naturally, without powered assistance.

When a furnace fires up, the burner warms up the heat exchanger, and then the blower inside the furnace, just behind that air filter, begins to spin pushing warm air into the house. A furnace fan, a blower, is designed to move a lot of air. Anyone who has felt the warm air blowing from a single supply duct will understand the force is strong. Now multiply that by 10 or more and you can understand the force of the air being pushed throughout the ducts in a forced air system.

What blows must also suck. In other words, you can not blow air into a closed space, the force of resistance will stop the flow. Therefore a return duct is necessary to create a recirculating system.

This is efficient. This is safe.

However placing the return in the same room with the furnace is strictly verboten. That same duct also can not be within 10 feet of any atmospherically vented appliance.

Why?

Because all that sucking the furnace fan does creates a huge vacuum in the room if so installed. It vacuums the air from the room. It also vacuums the combustion gases from the atmospherically vented appliances. Where do those combustion gases then end up? They are very efficiently distributed through out the living space through the supply ducts.

The picture of the top of one of the three water heaters near the furnace shows that severe back venting has been occurring, judging from the condition, for a very long time. Notice the melted plastic rings around the pipes.

While some jobs may be bad, when it comes to the job of a furnace, all the blowing and sucking must be done in a harmonious, and above all, safe equilibrium.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Not Paying Attention in Science Class Can Lead to This

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 05:47:15 -0700

I know, I know, not everyone loves science class. Or math class. Or social studies. Or school. I for one did look forward to science class. Ironically my least favorite class was English. Hated all that writing and sentence structure stuff.

I always found electricity fascinating and have found I have a knack for understanding wiring concepts. Don't get me wrong, I am not by any stretch an electrical engineer or even close to being an electrician. I just have an easy time with many of the concepts.

For example, the rudimentary lesson in science class on how a circuit works. The very label "circuit" should be a clue. Of course to a 10 year old kid's brain, especially one who hates language class, the clue is lost like a pebble on a beach. Electricity flows in a circle. When something is placed into the flow, like a light bulb, that thing responds. We have light!

One of the experiments in class was to place one piece of wire on both ends of the battery (This would probably be deemed to "dangerous" today). What occurs quite quickly is that the wire gets very hot. This is a short circuit. The simplified reason for this happening is the lack of a light bulb or any electrically driven device somewhere in the circuit. Like water running down a hill, placing a dyke (light bulb) into the torrent slows down the flow. The same is true with the flow of electricity. An unchecked flow of excited electrons (called low impedance) creates heat. When this happens in a house wire, the circuit breaker trips.

During a recent home inspection, while looking over the electric panel, I saw that several circuit breakers were tripped. This being a foreclosed property that had just been de-winterized, I reasoned the circuits had not been turned on. Flipping the first breaker on, it loudly BUZZZZZZED and clicked off, just like it should when there is a short circuit. This of course is a red flag

Later while inspecting the kitchen, I noticed the range hood was gone, the wiring left dangling like a twisted vine from the wall. Looking at the capped wires I saw that the person who was so safety conscious apparently wasn't cognizant of very basic electricity. The two circuit wires, the feed (black) and neutral or return (white) had been wire capped together. Like the wire on both ends of the battery, this creates a short circuit and explained the circuit breaker's response.

Looks to me like someone hated science class as much as I hated English class.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Botched Surgery

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 04:43:07 -0700

No one likes going to the doctor. I bet doctor's don't even like seeing each other as patients. People like it even less when a surgery is a consequence of a visit to old Mr. Saw Bones. However there are some instances where the surgery is elective.

Elective. An absurdity meaning; I want to be strategically sliced like a fish on platter, so that I may look "better". Ah, vanity, it is a compelling and alluring force.

Comfort is another powerful desire that drives us. We seek comfort in many forms, food, family and yes even drugs. Our homes can be said to be our bastions of comfort. We invest great amounts of time and money into making our house as comfortable a place as possible.

Every house, at least here in Connecticut, must have one essential element, the very basic component of comfort, heat. The converse of heat of course is air conditioning. Since Connecticut is a heating climate, more so than a cooling one, many older homes were not built with A/C systems. With newer construction it is fairly standard. Having an installed central A/C system as compared to window units is a comfort boon. No lugging and installing those window rattlers up from the basement, instead you flip a switch and you're cool.

Since many older houses originally did not have central A/C systems, many homeowners have elected to install them in addition to their heating system. In house's with hydronic heat, a central A/C system requires an entire separate system. An air handling unit, compressor and duct work. A large job and a large expense to be sure.

Probably the most difficult part of retro fitting a central A/C system is installing the ducts. There will be cutting involved. Then follows the need to repair to those same areas after installation. In fact some of these areas may be required to be covered. For example the garage.

On a recent home inspection, during my exterior portion of the inspection I saw that this particular house had a central A/C system. Later when I entered the garage, I saw the ceiling cut open in several places, the duct work exposed. In one place the flex duct had been bent around the support beam and up into the gapping hole in the ceiling.

This installation is wrong on several counts. The sheet rock covered walls and ceiling in the garage are meant as a fire resistive barrier. They can not be permanently removed. Secondly flex ducts can not be exposed in a garage, period. Again this has to do with fire protection. Thirdly, and most important, the job shows an all around lack of care.

If a doctor botched a surgery, it would be quite noticeable. Too often when a contractor hacks a job, the homeowner is often none the wiser until the home inspection.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Document, Document, Document

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 06:00:50 -0700

That three word recitation might just be the home inspector's mantra. It can be said to be the real estate industry's as well. In this paperless, high tech world, the sheer ease of recording minutiae, and the seemingly unending demand for it, would appear to be burying us all in an unnavigable sea of information. I often marvel at the size of the client's folder the real estate agent often lugs about during the inspection. Yep, we live in a paperless society.

Really!?

During a recent inspection I found another form of documentation that I happen upon from time to time. It's an age old way a home inspector would document something has been "inspected". This little trick is still being done, from my observations, mostly by franchise and multi inspector outfits. What this simply entails is the inspector tagging a component with a business card. In the case of the multi-inspector or franchise companies usually without the inspectors name.

Stepping into the basement of this multi-family house, I soon noticed the tags on the heating and hot water appliances. Up to this point no one, the buyer his agent and myself were aware of a previous inspection. Some how this tiny detail, we all were shortly to learn, had failed to make it's way into the mountains of information that were a standard part of a house sale.

Hmmmmm. An interesting oversight.

Of the five electric panels I now was standing in front of, four were tagged. The buyer's agent remarked, "That's a bit obnoxious".

"Yes", I agreed, "It seems like overkill".

After opening and inspecting all the panels, four were found to have issues. One was completely mis-wired, a common defect for a sub panel.

During the inspection a few other electrical concerns cropped up. For example the main ground wire clamp had corroded and had come loose from the main water pipe, rendering the electrical system with out a ground. We were to now to learn, as the buyer's agent made yet another call, that "all" the electrical problems found during the first inspection had been repaired by an electrician.

I'd like to see those documents.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

The End of Flue Season

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 05:25:52 -0700

As the cold weather wanes with the lengthening days of spring, so does the need for heat. The click of the thermostat, the rumble of the boiler are sounds now being heard less frequently. Soon they will cease until the inevitable cool winds of autumn once more begin to gust. The harbinger of another winter.

While the heating system lies dormant, hibernating like a bear in a dark basement corner, the warmth of summer rendering it temporarily unnecessary, important components may unknowingly be suffering damage. Homeowners are, from my experience, usually good about maintaining their oil fired heating systems. Oil is, from my perspective, the dominant heating fuel in Connecticut.

With oil, not performing regular maintenance will predictably cause the system to have a breakdown. Therefore it behooves the homeowner to keep the system on a regular service schedule. Cleaning the boiler or furnace once a year involves removing soot from the unit. Oil produces a lot of soot. A good portion of the soot finds its way into the chimney, where it accumulates over time.

The chimney has to be one of the most neglected, yet critical components for the heating system. Perhaps its the rugged appearance of the brick that makes people believe its indestructible, not needing any care. Nothing could be further from the truth.

When inspecting a house with a brick chimney, which in Connecticut is about every one of them, an important part of my inspection is to examine not only the chimney, but the flue liner if at all possible. The most common hindrance to looking at the flue is a chimney cap. Generally a good thing to have on top of a chimney, especially when oil fired appliances are present.

By now I would expect that it is apparent that in order to inspect the flue, the inspector must ascend to the roof. Home buyer's, from my experience, seem to believe ascending the roof is simply to examine the shingles. That often, this inspection does not necessarily have to be done from the roof at all. This would be partially true, the shingles can be examined from a ladder at the edge of the roof. However, one can not look down a chimney flue from the same vantage point.

Recently peering down a chimney flue, I found an all to common condition when an oil fired system is present, badly deteriorated flue tiles. The soot in combination with water creates a corrosive mixture that over time eats away at the tiles and mortar joints. This liner had at least one large hole along with several large cracks.

In this particular instance, another concern was found at the base of the chimney, the lack of a clean out. The house is over 50 years old. It is very likely soot and debris have been filling up the bottom of the flue unchecked for that entire time. Incrementally creeping closer to the boiler breech in the chimney. Eventually, I have seen this numerous times, the soot will block the vent, causing the unit to send combustion gases into the home instead of out through the chimney. If that isn't enough, a flue liner in this condition can also cause a blockage to occur, as a large piece may finally fall from the damaged liner.

Warning signs of carbon monoxide poising include flue like symptoms. Unfortunately there are usually no warning signs of a bad chimney flue.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Life Cycles

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 04:31:39 -0700

Our lives, life itself, is in many ways closely related to circles. We have a circle of friends. If you are frantic, you could be said to be running in circles. We are fond of saying, what goes around, comes around. A situation where the solutions lead one back to the original problem is said to be a vicious circle. The passing of one person and the birth of another is said to be the circle of life. The change of seasons. Around and around we go...

Our homes go through the same cycling. They are built, age and then go back to where they began. Homeowners by living in the house and through maintenance are prolonging the life of the structure. It is a constant battle that catches many new homeowner's unaware. They do however get schooled quick.

The enemy of every house, the ultimate recycler, is water. Here in Connecticut water comes in many forms, rain, sleet, freezing rain, hail and snow. Sometimes all in a few hours. Snow and ice can be the hardest on a house. Even at this time of year I find snow blanketing some of a roof. Always on the shaded parts, the sunny side clear. The protected side melts slowly, reliant more on air temperature than the sun.

Pulling up to a house recently, I saw that the roof was still covered in a layer of snow. Most of the areas where I had come through on this morning were now mostly snow free. I was at the moment in the foot hills of Eastern Connecticut, between a ridge of mountains. Winter releases its grip a little slower up here.

As I began walking the outside of the house, approaching the front entry on the white ranch house, a tan stain in the corner drew my attention. The stain began at the porch roof, running the entire corner, in some places reaching several feet down along the clapboards. The low pitched porch roof above was covered in snow now melting in the warming morning air. Setting my ladder against the house, the roof covering was peeking through the receding edge of pack, like a slow motion wave on a beach.

I was somewhat pleased to see it was rubber, newer EPDM. A good choice for the location. The problem I find with EPDM is that it is often installed incorrectly. The snow would prevent any assessment of the installation. The stain was fairly definitive, but I would need to gather a few more pieces of evidence to be certain.

Testing the stain with a moisture meter found the wood wet to almost saturated. An active leak. The next step was to check inside. The interior wall showed no signs of water and tested dry. The corresponding space below in the crawl space finished the story.

The rim and box joists were water damaged, but not wet. Repairs had been made, new pressure treated wood was present. The stained wood was fairly solid, in fair condition. Obviously the leak in the corner has been a long and on going problem.

While repairs had been made, the cycle of water continues to work on the house. Water is a patient, tenacious adversary, working with all the time in the world.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

A Well Marked Trail

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 04:37:37 -0700

The highways and byways, the arteries of travel and commerce. They are essential to our lives, as I was so harshly remind this winter after being snow bound for just three days. Even the creature's of forest use paths to get from point A to point B. After all when an easy way is found, it makes perfect sense to use it.

In the course of inspecting homes, it is not unusual to happen across a well worn creature path, in for example the attic. What we see in the photo is a dark trail along this electrical conduit that runs through this attic. It seems it was the perfect path for the mice to cross over the framing with minimal effort. Along the way one could see exits to openings that lead down into the house. I would imagine the metal also would make a good conduit to transmit the sound of them skittering across the attic on the pipe. The sound of which would undoubtedly drive the cat bonkers.

FYI, the dark stain is a combination of different body excretions from those furry little critters, EEEEEEWWW!

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Building Blocks

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 04:33:21 -0700

Kids building blocks. Dumping them onto the floor, they would evoked thoughts of huge sky scrapers or a medieval castle with a moat and a draw bridge. Whether they were the old fashioned wooden blocks or the more modern plastic LEGO type, building blocks let you build whatever your mind could imagine. Some kids grow up and still get to play with blocks on an adult sized scale.

In the world of residential construction a relatively new method of building houses is modular construction. Modules or blocks if you will, are placed together on a building site after being constructed in a factory. Sears is considered by many to be the first modular home builder, having sold approximately 500,000 pre-fabricated kit houses between 1910 and 1940. The first true modular homes began appearing in the early 1950s in answer to a high housing demand from veterans.

In many ways factory constructed homes have an advantage over site built. For instance, a house built in a factory is constructed by the same work force, not transients. Often there is better quality control and the entire house is built out of the weather. The assembling of the modules however is where things can go awry.

As a home inspector, I have seen many modular houses. Many are fine houses that most people are not aware are factory built. Occasionally I find one with assembly issues. During one week recently, I inspected two modular houses. Both cape cod style, both very close in age. One had some trouble coming together.

Crawling through a scuttle hole into the attic of one of these modular cape houses, I began looking about the space. Squat walking in the direction of the gable end, something caught my attention. A large, vertical gray, blue line smack in the middle of the end wall. As I drew closer, the line it turned out was a large gap in the house framing. What I was seeing was the vinyl siding showing through the opening. This is the point at which the two modules should be joined. The gap extended through the entire seam, meaning the wall, floor and ridge.

At some points, the gap was as wide as three inches. At others it was less than an inch. As I said I have seen many modular homes over the years and I have never seen gaps, at least very large gaps between the modules.

The video below is a tour of the canyon if you will.

My advice to the buyer was to contact the manufacturer of the home for guidance on repairs. This house is an engineered product, therefore I feel any repair plan should come from the company that built the house. For those of you who may not know, in most instances the manufacturing information is below the kitchen sink.

When we are children, a miscalculation with our blocks is no reason for alarm. As adults when the blocks don't fit right, it can mean it's time to get out some of the other big boy toys to fix the problem.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Is This Guy Out in Space?

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 05:33:54 -0700

In the world of real estate, every now and again, one gets to view a wacky idea a person finds for fixing or installing a common house hold item. These "fixes" or "installs" as a rule involve one or more of the following, in liberal, never minimal quantities;

Duct tape, caulk and or spray foam.

The other morning while near the peak of the roof on a condo I was inspecting, I stopped in my tracks, and said right out loud,

"You have got to be kidding me".

I was dumbfounded by the, yes I will say it, the stupidity of what this person had done.

For the installation of the satellite dish antennae seen in the back ground, the installer needed a way into the attic for the dishes wires. Apparently drilling, not one but two holes through the roof seemed like a good solution for this space antennae technician. The job was finished of with one of the obligatory materials from the trilogy of the unhandy, silicone caulk.

The funny thing here is this NASA drop out failed to see the already large hole in the roof right in front of him. The ridge vent. Seems to me snaking the wires under the vent opening would have been a better solution than drilling two holes through the roof.

But that's just me.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

A Return Trip

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 04:30:10 -0700

A return trip to a previous destination can either be a want to go or a have to go. With home inspections it is usually a want. The customer has asked the inspector to return to the house to check on repairs made by the seller based on the inspector's report. Once in a while a special situation comes the inspector's way.

Several months back I was contacted by a condominium management company that was interested in my inspecting work done on one of the complexes they maintain. The reason for their contacting my company was that I had inspected a unit in the complex a year or two previous. My report had been viewed by the condo association President and the owner of the management company during that time. They both thought the report was well detailed. Presently they needed someone to inspect and document some chimney work in the same complex. There was a strong suspicion the work had not been performed as specified in the proposal.

The complex consists of three separate buildings, with a total of 24 units. There are 13 chimney chases 11 of which contain two metal chimney vents, two that are single vents. Each chase was to be outfitted with a new stainless steel cap. Each vent with new caps and storm collars. Additionally, flashing details were to be added below the chase cap edges that would allow for the future installation of vinyl siding.

After waiting several months to inspect the work due to bad weather (the roofs are quite steep), a good day finally arrived. Viewing the first chimney, it was immediately clear the work was not done to spec. In fact the work might best be described as appalling. This repair project was not inexpensive. Stainless steel is very costly. Apparently the labor was not in line with the material quality.

The new and expensive chase caps had been fastened through the top! The screws were gobbed over with silicone caulk. I found holes where the installer missed the wood below and had to try again. The holes were filled with caulk.

Other issues were;

The new vent caps are the wrong type for the pipe.
The caps are not fasten. Some were tilted from the wind. Just a matter of time before they blow off.
Gaps between the vent caps and chase openings.
Sealant inconsistently applied.
Damage to some of the new caps from installation.
Specified flashing details missing.
Storm collars reused.

Thirteen chimney chases with new and very costly components, not one could be said to have been installed correctly.

My guess is the company that did the work will not be asked to return to the job site. They may however be asked to go some where else.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Making Lemonade

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 04:15:15 -0800

Problems will invariable arise along the road of life. How we resolve issues that crop up along our way is a testament to and formation of our character. There is an old saying that goes, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Or you could squirt them on your fish at dinner. Seriously, the ability to solve complex problems is what separates humans from the beasts. The method of resolution can at times be remarkably creative.

In newer house construction engineered wood framing products are often more commonly used than traditional dimensional lumber. For instance, there are certainly many advantages to using preassembled and sized floor trusses. The pieces are delivered to the job site ready to be set into place atop the foundation without and measuring and cutting.

During a recent inspection of a year old house, I was informed upon arrival of an oddity that was quite troubling to the buyer. The item or actually the lack of this particular component was a stairway for the basement. I was shown to a hatch in the floor inside a closet under the main stairway. This is the exact location one would expect to find a full set of stairs into the basement. Instead a step ladder had been placed against the foundation wall to allow for descent into the basement.

Once in the basement, something else strange about this house became apparent. The height of the "ceiling" was not quite six feet. Looking around I noticed the windows were partially covered by the floor framing.

Another bit of strangeness.

Normally the framing would be above the windows.

Looking closer I could see the engineered floor joists had been hung from the sill board instead of being place on top. This explained the reduced ceiling height in the basement and the lack of a stairway. The placement of the floor framing also seemed to explain some other things about the house. For example the mechanical's being located in a room between the kitchen and garage and the half bath being where the basement stairs should have been.

My theory on the low headroom in the basement is that the engineered floor joists were ordered and or mistakenly made too short. Incorrectly sized joists would have created a big problem for the builder requiring some creative thinking. It would also explain the location of the half bath and mechanical's.

The builder made one super sized pitcher of lemonade.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Hearth and Home

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 04:19:30 -0800

A room lit by nothing except the warm, dancing glow of a fire during a frigid winter's night. The shadows wave like frenzied dancer's on the walls. The occasional loud snap and crackle as the logs are ravenously consumed by the flames. Is it any wonder a fireplace is a feature many home buyer's seek. For my first house search, it was on my list, all though I didn't get one.

Fireplaces are quite common in the cold winter climate of Connecticut. A good many houses here even have more than one. The some what modern brick fireplace has replaced the stone used for hundreds of years. Many older Connecticut homes have stone fireplaces. There is a certain charm and character to stone that brick can not replicate. Consequently there are a few homeowner's who change their fireplace front to stone.

When this kind of upgrade is done, the fireplace isn't rebuilt, instead a veneer of stone is placed over the brick. The new stone skin does of course fatten the front of the fireplace slightly. This thickening of the skin can have an effect on the hearth, the shelf in front of the fireplace.

The purpose of the hearth is basically to create a fire resistant area in front of the fireplace. The crackling and popping logs that lend to the ambiance of the fire, may at times let fly a hot ember out of the safe enclosure of the fireplace. Unnoticed down between two floor boards, the hot coal can smolder for hours before finally bursting into flames.

Since the hearth's purpose is important to keeping the house safe, its design is well defined by building codes. Depending on the size of the fireplace, either less than 6 square feet or greater, the hearth must extend 16 or 20 inches from the front of the fireplace respectively. Further it must also extend a defined distance to the side, either 8 or 12 inches dependent again on the over all size of the fireplace opening. Undoubtedly the most common violation of the hearth distance I find as a home inspector are wood or pellet stove inserts. When a wood stove is set into the fire place, the hearth distance must also be extended accordingly. In my experience this almost never happens.

Going back to the stone veneer, I recently found a rather unique installation. The newer stone fireplace looked majestic against the wall in the vacant room. It drew your eye right in. It was also apparent the fireplace projected from the wall into the room. This was some thick skin.

Getting up close, it became clear while the skin was thick, the hearth was not. Measuring I found the hearth extended from the fireplace front just 13 inches. The new stone projected from the wall almost 6 inches. That's 19 inches, still a bit short, but clearly the new veneer had significantly reduced the required hearth distance. Apparently the "mason" had simply left the original hearth in place and built around it. Interestingly there was second fireplace in this house in an addition behind the living room with the stone fireplace. This second fireplace had clearly been built by the same "mason". Needless to say, that fireplace had the same design issues.

While a fire place is a sought after feature in a house, the importance of the hearth should not be forgotten.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Distilling The Problem

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 05:19:31 -0800

When a problem manifests itself, it can be misleading to its actual cause. Often what appears to be the solution is nothing more than a band aid on gapping wound. I see this kind of response often while inspecting houses. The best example in recent years is mold. Testing and remediation is often the reaction to visible mold in a house, while the actual cause (water) is never found or addressed.

Other times a homeowner happens upon a problem and takes up the task of repair. Strapping on a tool belt and squarely affixing their thinking cap, the intrepid handy homeowner sets out to tackle the big ugly gorilla which has taken up residence in their house. What he lacks in skill and knowledge is made up for in ambition and creativity. A dangerous combination to be sure.

While fighting and plodding my way through a basement not long ago, that resembled more jungle than the bowels of a house, I pushed my way through the underbrush (loads of junk) to a suspicion corner under the stairs. I was searching the foundation wall for the tell tale copper tubing of an underground oil tank snaking its way into the basement. As the beam of the flashlight scanned the wall like a search light in the midnight sky, an oddity fell into the circle of light.

I pulled my light back to direct it on what had now become my target of interest, the oil tank lines temporarily forgotten. It took my mind a moment to assimilate what my eyes we seeing.

Rube Goldberg would be proud.

Apparently the wall has a leak. Since it was and had been raining very hard for hours, the leak was leaking. This allowed me to see the homeowner's solution in action.

The source of the water was through a pipe, actually an electrical conduit sent through the foundation wall. Water was steadily dribbling out the penetration, but instead of falling to the floor and puddling, it was entering a funnel secured to the wall with twine. At the funnel's end was a tube. It had been secured with a hose clamp. A nice detail. The tube was sent to a perimeter drainage system just a few feet away. To me it looked like some sort of back woods still.

This homeowner had distilled the problem and had found a solution.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

The Mother of All Inventors?

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 05:33:58 -0800

There is no question in my mind, the average homeowner is at a minimum, resourceful and inventive. Humans have had to be so inclined in order to survive for millennia. After all Home Depot or the mom and pop hardware store wasn't around back in the age when the pharaohs reigned. It can, I believe, then be concluded that the skill sets some homeowners possess are inherited through a type of Darwinian natural selection.

Another feat we humans may be accomplishing from our technologies through the ages is to pollute the same genetic natural selection process. You might say there is algae in some of the gene pool. This could explain some of the things I find...

Or perhaps not.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Hard to Bear

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 05:13:16 -0800

Houses are built from the ground up. Be hard to do it any other way. At least until someone comes up with a levitation device. It follows then that the foundation is the first part of the house to be constructed. The word foundation means a base or strong support. A house's foundation must be strong, sturdy, for it must support the entire building that will be set upon it.

When inspecting a house, I customarily start from the top, working down. Directly opposite of the sequence of construction. I didn't always go in a counter construct direction. At some point I changed my routine from the inspection school method of, basement - first - attic - last. This has served me well for the "puzzle pieces" can be found and then logically assembled.

Clues of issues that exist are usually waiting to be found...if one is attuned and looking. And sometimes there is no clue at all until confronted with the problem square in the face. During two recent inspections I experienced this dichotomy.

The first inspection was on an older house, about 90 years. I would describe it as a modified back woods cabin. The house had been clearly added onto and updated over the years. Entering and simultaneously scanning an unfurnished and no longer occupied end bedroom, a slope in the floor was immediately apparent. Looking closer, a distinct linear peak could be detected running end to end through the width of the room. It all made sense to me, but I would have to wait until I went into the basement to reveal the precise cause.

Examining the exposed floor framing from the basement, the reason for the floor hump was revealed. Apparently this was a joint where the original house was joined to the addition. Really not an uncommon condition because the joint is where the original foundational support was located. Over time some settling occurs, with the joint, due to the extra support, remaining the most relatively rigid point thus producing the hump.

In this instance the reason for the hump was a bit more than just settling. It was due to jacking and shimming. The new beam created by joining the old and new does not sit over the concrete block pier. The solution was to slide several wood boards between the beam and column, creating a kind of diving board like support. I fairly certain with time the hump will diminish as the wood pieces slowly bow.

Less than a week by later I was met a similar type of structural problem. This time on new construction. Ironically the new homeowners had not considered having a home inspection. As the closing date was nearing, they decided it may be prudent to have a professional look the house over.

New construction inspections are generally routine, with mostly minor issues cropping up. Occasionally a whopper will rear its ugly head. This new house, unlike the older cabin, had an portended issue.

Nearing the end of an otherwise uneventful inspection, moving along examining the foundation, I came to the point where the main structural beam is set into the wall. The pocket was at a corner. The beam had been set off the end of the wall. The concrete at the corner edge was cracked and missing. Just one of the three sections of the glulam beam was bearing onto the wall. The solution was to (what else), shim the beam with wood pieces. Since a third of the beam was being held up by the as yet unapproved air support, a 2 x 4 was placed under that portion. The board had then been tacked to the wall with a few powder driven nails.

While staring at this beam, I pointedly asked the builder's rep who was hovering close by, "Has this "repair" been approved by the building inspector?"

The answer was, "Yes."

This statement was later proved to be false. An independent engineer has been hired to formulate a solution. The closing has been postponed until a satisfactory resolution is reached.

While the anxiety for both potential new homeowners may be trying, the stress on both structures in time could be too hard bear.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Taking a Peak

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 05:06:03 -0800

When approaching a house for the first time, one will first take notice of the general appearance of the dwelling. The landscaping or lack of is what often initially draws the eye. Followed by the siding, trim and color scheme. Next perhaps a cursory glance to the windows. Finally the eye will be enticed briefly towards the roof, note how it plays off the rest of the house and move on. The entire assessment happens in just seconds.

When one lives in the house, the accounting becomes part of our perceptual background. Routine draws more of ones attention else where. Not unlike the houses that flash past the windshield on the daily commute. They are barely perceived. That is not to say a change will not be detected. Our minds while seemingly on autopilot, can and do recognize alterations in our daily surroundings. Subtle or slow changes however may go unobserved.

The roof over any house I assume draws little attention. This may be attributed to the mere fact it is out of our normal line of sight. We rarely look up. Further, since the roof is high, it is as a rule hard to see. Defects can be difficult, even impossible to observe from down on terra firma. While routine can make us inured to changes in our surroundings, it can on the other hand heighten awareness in repetitive tasks.

While inspecting a one story house recently, I noticed newer, architectural style shingles on the roof. A nice feature for the prospective new homeowner. As I walked the perimeter I happened upon some broken shingles laying next to the foundation. Looking up at the roof, I could not see a sign of where these pieces may have been. I reasoned they could be forgotten scraps from the newer roof.

In the back yard I found another piece of shingle. Again I could see anything that indicated the piece had come from the new roof. I was perplexed. I walked further back and looked again. It was then I noticed the roof peak didn't look quite right. When in close this subtlety was obscured.

Ascending the roof, the source of the broken shingles became quickly and readily apparent. The roof peaks had never been finished. The shingles I found had been peeled up by the wind along the uncapped peaks and broken off. Looking about the complex, other close by roofs clearly had finished peaks and with ridge vents installed.

Traversing the roof, I found every peak lacking a finishing row of shingles and no ridge vents. At the edge of one gable, the "roofers" had failed to trim off the excess part of the shingles. The abominable quality of the workmanship was astounding.

While going about our daily routines, it can be easy to miss a subtle abnormality. A peek with a fresh set of eyes can be an awakening experience.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

New Conductivity Concept

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 04:48:10 -0800

As elementary school children we learn in science class the basic electrical principals of conductors and insulators. The strands of wire used in class show this concept in practice. The copper wire conductor is wrapped in a plastic insulator. The same is found in our homes, conductive wires wrapped in an insulating material of either cloth or plastic.

As adults we understand this fundamental electrical law. We know that sticking a fork into an outlet will give us a electrified wallop we won't soon forget.

If that fork is metal. A plastic fork will yield not the tiniest slap.

Another fundamental, but confusing and in my experience not well understood electrical principal is grounding.

Grounding is mostly thought of as a safety component of an electrical system. Most people I meet while inspecting homes believe that an electrical ground will prevent them from being "zapped". The fact is grounding will minimize the voltage to a sting, not eliminate it. Put simply, this is because electricity takes all paths. A solid and properly sized ground connection provides the path of least resistance for errant voltage. Meaning it dissipates a good deal of any wayward current within the system. Additionally grounding stabilizes line to ground voltage and limits voltage during abnormal surges such as lightning or accidental contact with higher voltage lines.

For the home inspector, checking the electrical grounding is a basic part of inspecting the electric system of the dwelling. One of the most common ground connections is made to the water supply pipe on public water systems. The copper pipe makes an ideal ground connection point. Other common means of system grounding are metal rods driven into the earth. The rods can be outside or inside the house. Another type of residential system ground is the Ufer. A Ufer is a metal rod, often the rebar encased in the concrete of the foundation.

While inspecting the electrical system of a relatively new (about 20 years) condominium recently, I found a curious ground connection. The ground wiring appears to be the original connection made when the system was installed. I followed the single wire from the panel box to locate the connection point in order to confirm that a good connection exists. I found the wire clamped to a copper water pipe up in the floor joists near the panel.

Because I usually check the electric panel last, I knew this connection was a problem. The issue wasn't with the clamp or the wire, it was with the pipe itself.

As I had mentioned earlier, on publicly connected water systems, the main water pipe is often used as a ground connection. You will not see a system ground connection on a house with well water. The reason being the pipe coming from the well is plastic. What is becoming more and more common in modern construction is the use of plastic water pipes. Not just inside, but also outside to bring the water into the house.

Thie water supply for this house is brought in by a plastic pipe.

Unless this plastic pipe possesses an until now unknown conductivity, the electrical system in this house is not, nor likely has ever been grounded.

The following short video follows the ground connection from the panel to the water supply pipe through the foundation wall.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Hidden, But Functional?

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 05:13:07 -0800

One of the more interesting things I find about inspecting homes is how something will jump out at me. When I say "something" I mean a problem or clue. To me it is obvious. Yet my experience has shown, what is glaringly apparent to me is like looking at the night sky and asking someone if they see a super nova among the millions of twinkling stars. The fact that such issues are not easily identifiable or clear to home buyers homeowners is why I have a job.

There are literally hundreds of common components in a house. And a few that are not so common. One of these is a radon mitigation system.

Connecticut is a radon state, meaning the gas is found throughout the state in the air and also in the ground water. Home inspectors, including myself, regularly perform radon tests as part of a standard home inspection. A radon test is in addition to the inspection and must be requested by the buyer. If a test result shows the average radon levels in the home are at or above 4.0 pico Curries per Liter of air (pCi/L), a mitigation system is recommended.

A radon mitigation system is a really simple contraption. It consists of a length of PVC pipe and an inline fan. The only other component is a manometer. The pipe is plumbed into the basement floor slab, run out the side of the house and above roof. The fan is placed usually where the pipe exits the wall. Inside the house, placed in plain sight is the manometer.

The manometer is another simple device that serves an important purpose. It reads the suction in the pipe. The liquid inside the tube is a bright color, often blue or red. This is so that it can be easily read. If the liquid in the tube is level , it indicates the system is not functioning. Simple.

Inspecting a house recently that had a radon mitigation system installed, I found or I should say couldn't find the system in the basement. The reason being was the basement had been finished. A finished basement is a great addition, but in my experience people want to cover up all the "ugly" components. Things like the plumbing cleanout, the main water shut off, the electric panel and in this instance the radon mitigation system.

I saw an access panel and after unscrewing the cover I found the radon mitigation system. The person who installed the cover had attempted to strategically place the hole in front of the manometer. They did a fair job because after so maneuvering I was able to read the manometer. The liquid was level.

While level is good when building, it is not desirable to see on a radon mitigation system's manometer. The system is not functioning. How long it has been in this state is anyone's guess. The current homeowner, who had the basement finished, would have no way of knowing unless they opened the panel to take a look. Another thing I have learned, homeowners do not often go to the trouble of unscrewing access panels to check on their home's equipment.

This another case of form trumps function with the system not functioning.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Learn more about our Infrared Thermal Imaging & Diagnostics services.

Learn more about our home energy audits, the Home Energy Tune uP®.

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

Aluminum Foils

James Quarello Connecticut Home Inspector (JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC) — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 05:05:28 -0800

Aluminum is the third most abundant element on earth. This may also explain its prevalence in our daily lives. Aluminum is really a wonder material. It's light weight, strong and very conductive. It is and was used in many components of our homes. A few uses for aluminum turned out to be not only miserable failures, they caused destruction and harm. The best example I can think of is aluminum branch circuit wiring. Other uses were not so potentially fatal or destructive.

Climbing through an attic not long ago, scanning around with my flashlight, the beam was unexpectedly strongly reflected. An unusually occurrence for sure. I then saw the distinctive shine of aluminum foil. The wall to my left was a gleaming expanse of foil.

Seeing aluminum foil filling an entire wall is not that strange, especially in an older house. A foil type backing was used on fiberglass insulation for years. It may still be, but I haven't see any.

This particular insulation was different. Behind the foil was a thin layer of paper and then nothing except the wall. I believe the concept was to reflect heat. Radiant barriers are still common today and in most instances when I find them, used incorrectly. Their purpose is to reflect heat from the sun that would otherwise warm the attic. They work well in southern climates and are almost useless in colder zones.

The video shows the foil in more detail.

Money that would be spent on a radiant barrier in a Connecticut house, would be much better utilized on insulation and air sealing. Proven energy saving techniques for this climate zone.

I informed the home buyer of the presence of the aluminum foil, recommending removal and replacement with actual insulation.

Perhaps he can recycle the foil to use in the kitchen.

James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

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