Bellingham WA Home Inspector's Blog -- King of the House Home Inspection

Follow me
By
Home Inspector - King of the House Home Inspection, Inc. - Home Inspector Lic #207
Steven L. Smith, King of the House Home Inspection, is a licensed and working home inspector and lead instructor of home inspection at Bellingham Technical College. Smith was a two-term member of the WA state licensing board and is adjunct faculty for Washington State University and the Washington State Department of Agriculture. ASHI certified inspector. The information in this blog is designed to appeal to residents of the Pacific Northwest.

ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS

2008 

A week or so back, I announced that home inspection training would begin at Bellingham Technical College on March 31. This is an adjustment to that schedule.  Instead, the program will be conducted in Bellingham beginning two weeks later starting on April 14, 2008. This was done as a matter of co...
03/31/2008
I have been busy the last few days between work and writing a second meme. However, I am never too busy to occasionally take a walk. While we had snow on Saturday, today has been a mixed bag. We went from sunshine and warm temperatures -- lawn mowing weather, to rain. Now it looks pretty nice aga...
03/31/2008
A hosebibb, such as the outside faucet shown below, has a number of vulnerabilities. First, let's talk about freezing. This is not a frost-free installation. In the winter, water would stay in the pipe not only below ground but in all of the exposed pipe that is above ground. If, in fact, the fau...
03/27/2008
The photo above is a commonly seen issue for the home inspector. At least I know that is true in the Pacific Northwest. What you see there is the post at a deck. It is buried in the soil. The problem is our old nemesis known as wood to earth contact. Fact: Wood to earth contact will eventually l...
03/27/2008
0 Comments
The deck below is the final blog related to an earlier post about tall trees near homes and how that impacts roofs and decks. The wood at this deck, at the time of the inspection, was still in satisfactory condition. At least, based on what a person could see under the debris, that was the case. ...
03/27/2008
Earlier today I posted a blog dealing with large trees near homes. In that, I described that a primary consideration for the home inspector is the amount of organic debris such a tree will drop onto the roof. Most homes I see have low-sloped or sloped roofs. When roofs that are designed to shed w...
03/27/2008
Actually, the tree in the photo above does not support the home. It is a few feet to the south of the house but you would not know it from the photo. This tree presents a few potential problems. Some of those I will address in this blog and other problems I will post in addiitional  blogs today....
03/27/2008
  Sometimes I wonder how so many people live their lives with electric baseboard heaters without catching something on fire. I will admit it, personally, that it can be easy to do something dumb with a baseboard. Years ago I was working at a rental property I own and left the premises. In so doin...
03/25/2008
0 Comments
Yesterday I wrote about mobile homes and the fact they really do need to have a vapor barrier underneath them. Mobile homes, especially the older ones, were noted for poor windows. This had to do with leaks and also it involved missing thermal breaks in the old metal windows. Charlie Buell says h...
03/24/2008
Things will be changing in Washington State, now that a home inspector licensing law has been passed and signed by the Governor. The way it will all come out, ultimately, is going to be determined to a large degree by the home inspector licensing board. At this point, while generally established...
03/23/2008
Rainmaker
1,248,786

Steven L. Smith

Bellingham WA Home Inspector
local_phone(360) 319-0038
smartphone(360) 319-0038
Contact The Author
Steven L. Smith, King of the House Home Inspection, provides information for real estate buyers, sellers and real estate industry professionals. Blog posts emphasize issues commonly found in Bellingham, WA and Whatcom County. Smith is Washington State Licensed Home Inspector #207, a state licensed structural pest inspector, ASHI certified inspector #252760 and one of the most experienced inspectors in the northwest corner of the Pacific Northwest. Steven L. Smith is lead instructor of home inspection at Bellingham Technical College and teaches classes for Washington State University and the Washington State Department of Agriculture. Steve was a two-term member of the state licensing board.