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lake whatcom home inspector: Home Inspection: Clarity of Language and Documentation - 07/27/11 01:51 PM
In a tough real estate market, like we have now, tensions run high. Agents work hard to put together deals. Most agents do not have a problem with an issue, cited on a home inspection report, as long as it is valid and put in reasonable perspective. However, building houses is complicated and there are many safety guidelines that the properly trained home inspector looks for that might go "unseen" by someone who is not familiar with the job and requirements.
For that reason, when certain not so obvious problems are noted at an inspection, it can save later bickering if the inspector provides … (6 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Paint Them Up -- Oaxacan Art - 07/10/11 06:20 PM
Below is a shot of the "unfinished" works from one of the most respected of the woodcarvers in Mexico. This work is all handmade. We watched one of the champion woodcarvers working away on his projects. It was amazing to watch these animals take shape. It started with some fellows doing the "rough" carving. Then they hand the rough carving to the master who finishes all of the projects.
Then, once they are finished, they go inside to be handpainted by the crew. Oaxaca is home to some of the most famous and successful artists in all of Mexico.
… (5 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Destruction Major -- Anobiid Beetles - 04/16/11 12:04 AM
Here in the Pacific Northwest, of the wood destroying insects, I would say that the one that really gets my attention is the anobiid beetle. The anobiid is a wood-boring beetle that works in the soft lumber under our homes. They thrive in a moisture content of 13 to 18% and can re-infest, generation after generation, for a hundred or more years. Eventually, they will vacate the premises when all of the nutrition in the wood has been depleted. But, practically speaking, the best way to get rid of them is with a pest control treatment -- typically borates -- and eliminating the conducive … (4 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Willie and Lobo -- Jazz Alley (Seattle) Monday April 18, 2011 - 04/15/11 05:49 PM
Willie and Lobo, a musical duo, was introduced to my wife and I about a year ago by one of our favorite restaurateurs, Carol Shank at the Rhododendron in Bow, south of Chuckanut Drive.
Carol had this interesting music playing. It reminded us of the Gipsy Kings, but it was different and all instrumental. The duo was known as Willie and Lobo and they had, for years, played in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
We had wanted to see them at some point so, a month back, I was pleased to get an Email that they would be playing on April 18 at … (2 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Seamless Aluminum Gutter Leaks - 04/02/11 09:59 AM
In life nothing is perfect, I think we know that. But, in a wet climate such as we have here in the Pacific Northwest, aluminum seamless gutters are typically what the home inspector will suggest for a home that has no gutters or one that requires new gutters.
The term seamless sounds good. Instead of those plastic or old metal gutters where sections are spliced one to another, the gutters are "seamless". No seams, no leaks. That is kind of true, but not in real life. There will be ends on the gutters and they have a mastic applied, at that … (4 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Bellingham's Snow -- Yucky - 02/24/11 05:55 PM
First, if I am going to have snow I want it over the Christmas and New Year's holidays. That way it is less likely to screw up one's business. I do not much hanker to do home inspections where the realtor, the clients and me, the inspector, are looking out at the snow piling up -- each person wondering whether or not he or she will get home that night or if we will all be stuck in the vacant house. I was in a mountain area the other day, and we were all wondering.
Obviously, based on the level of snow … (10 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Finding The Pleasant Spot - 12/02/10 04:23 PM
I have always found it interesting how people can, even in big city situations, find their own private and pleasant spot. A couple years back, when in Italy, I was standing on a hill and looked down on the city of Verona.
This is a very pretty city, about anywhere you venture, but I enjoyed how the one residence had that green and well-tended, be it tiny, backyard. It wasn't very big but, it seems like it would sure be a pleasant spot with a great view on a nice day.
… (3 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Bellingham Home Inspector (King of the House) Knob and Tube Wiring - 12/01/10 03:20 PM
I find many homes in Bellingham and Whatcom County that have old knob and tube wiring. That is common across the USA and Canada. Whenever this type of wiring is found, there are always any number of questions from clients -- How old is it?; Is it dangerous?; What do I do about it?; Do I need to do anything about it?
With some help from the Charles Buell photo gallery of wiring, along with many of my own photos and archival photos, I put together this video slide show for my clients. Anyone who is curious about the history of … (10 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: My Personal Proxy Error: Blocked Access - 08/22/10 04:40 PM
Sometimes nature gets in the way of your best intentions. I want to tell you about my own, personal, proxy error, just the other day. I was at an inspection and, due to another house nearby and ladder safety issues, I really wanted to get a better look at one area of the house where I could not get up on the roof. There was a chain link fence behind the house. But I did not see that as an obstacle to viewing the upper roof at that corner with binoculars. I could walk around the block and come out in … (8 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Washington State Moss-backs (King of the House Home Inspection) - 04/18/10 01:28 PM
On a home that has any age on it, here in the northwest, it is not uncommon to find significant moss growth on the roof. We really are moss-backs. The rainfall and wet environment leads to moss on driveways or sidewalks, where the surface can become too slick to safely walk. Or, more often than not, the inspector will find it on roofs and wood decks. The moss will lead to wood decay and it impedes drainage and greatly shortens the lifespan of most roofing materials. I would like to say that the roof below is among the worst specimens I have seen … (4 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Cat In The Toilet And Other Tails - 03/27/10 11:31 AM
We home inspectors are processing a huge amount of information as we pass through a house. Distractions can lead to the inspector forgetting something or making a mistake. While most inspectors use a checklist of some type, part of the job is intuitive and there is lots of data to record and any number of curve balls might be thrown at us along the way. Sellers who bring the wild kids along and, while the inspector concentrates, various underage family members tinker with things --- like the burners on the range -- can be a real risk as well.
There are situations that … (32 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Bellingham Home Inspector (King of the House) -- Bow-Edison - 03/09/10 07:26 AM
This weekend, my wife and I drove down to the Bow-Edison area of Skagit county. From Bellingham, the most scenic route and a very direct route is to go through Fairhaven and then take Chuckanut Drive. I have lived in this area all my life and this is a place where you might say time has stood still. The changes in scenery are minimal compared to what I remember from my years visiting my relatives in Bow-Edison in the 1960's and even the late 50's.
On the the way to Edison, in a field just past the Rhoddy Restaurant, we saw … (1 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: What Seller's Agents Need To Tell Their Clients - 03/06/10 10:42 AM
A few years ago, I used to do a clock-hours credit presentation on home inspection. It was a simple course, designed to teach realtors the basics as to what a home inspector is looking for. This was approved by the state real estate division and was presented under the auspices of Bellingham Technical College.
I have printed below the final slide from that presentation: Things a realtor can do to facilitate a smooth home inspection. This is a point that cannot be "preached" too often. At almost every home inspection that I perform, there is some part of the home that … (8 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Half Right, Completely Wrong - 02/16/10 02:57 PM
Below was one of those instances where a job was done half right, however the bottom line is that it was done one hundred percent wrong. This is a receptacle that is only a few feet away from the kitchen sink in an older house. At some point, someone involved realized that, for added safety, a GFCI protected receptacle should be installed near the sink.
Result: The receptacle over there at the left is GFCI protected. However, the one sharing the same plastic cover at the right is not. According to Washington State Law a home inspector must recommend an upgrade … (8 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Half-Right/Half-Wrong - 01/15/10 02:46 PM
Often, when doing a re-inspection, the home inspector finds that the contractor only "half- read" the report so the contractor only got the repair "half-right." This photo would be an example. The copper pipe at the left is the drain from a TPR valve on a water heater.
Using basic guidelines (IRC codes) as a reference, this tubing should end within six inches of the ground. Even using more lenient guidelines, it should end within eighteen inches of the ground -- not even close here. When I cited the problem originally -- the tubing went straight out with no bend … (6 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Carpenter Ant Damage - 12/14/09 08:53 PM
Today I had to take the state structural pest inspector's test. I last did that five years ago but my time was now. We call it renewal time.
One of the most common insects in this region is the carpenter ant. I went down with a friend and we were talking about carpenter ant infestations and the shavings that the species leaves. One note here -- they do not eat the wood, they live in it.
Below is one of the best photos I have, in my collection, of major carpenter ant activity at a bank owned property. The WSDA views … (14 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Maintaining Trees and Roofs - 12/11/09 11:24 PM
In my northwest corner of the country, we have both evergreen trees and deciduous trees. People like the look of their trees. We are noted for our great lush green forests.
These trees can be a problem when they grow up over the roof. Sometimes limbs come off and crash through roofs or gutters come down. However, the most common problem is simpler than that -- the trees lead to a buildup of organic debris on the roof and that debris keeps the roof from shedding water. When a roof cannot shed water, the likelihood of leaks increases. The photo below … (10 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Rot In The Pacific Northwest (King of the House) -- Bellingham Home Inspections - 11/25/09 09:16 AM
In the wet Pacific Northwest, it is essential that roofers put metal flashings or even a shingle over the various rafter tails or fascia that extend out from the house -- typically at the ends of the gutters. When that simple step is neglected, it ends up that, inevitably, there will be deterioration and rot in those areas of the home
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That photo above is an excellent example of the problem. Despite that, some folks do not learn. The photo below is a newer addition at the same house. I guess that people do not know what to be careful … (8 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: Bellingham Home Inspector (King of the House) -- Unsafe Closet Lighting - 11/08/09 09:26 AM
Bare light bulbs in closets are a safety hazard. I know of that first hand. You see that bulb there -- assume that the socket is not loose -- well people do things like use closet bulbs as hangers. I know that one firsthand. My dear departed dad (yes Heather that was great grandpa Lee) once hung his baseball cap on a similar bulb in his closet. Now you can forgive him, he was about 95 years of age at the time. This condition of the bare bulb is common around Bellingham and Whatcom county -- probably everywhere there are older houses.
Anyway, this … (7 comments)
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lake whatcom home inspector: A Thousand Words of Warning - 07/30/09 11:08 PM
I was taught back before I had any gray hair and when I went to home inspector school that using those concrete blocks, with the channels in them, for piers was a bad idea if the channels were placed horizontally. That is the wrong way to go about it. You know, like this.
The channels should go up and down. I see blocks used the wrong way in homes some of the time, but they are used the wrong way in manufactured homes nearly all of the time. Honestly, I think that such installation is the "norm" in the manufactured … (13 comments)
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Steven L. Smith, Bellingham, Wa. Home Inspector
Bellingham,
WA
More about me…
King of the House Home Inspection, Inc
Address: Bellingham, Ferndale, Lynden, Blaine, Sumas, Nooksack, Lake Whatcom, Lake Samish, Anacortes, Mount Vernon, Whatcom County, Bellingham, WA, 98225
Office Phone: (360) 676-6908
Cell Phone: (360) 319-0038
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