Have a nice day! www.omaha-home-inspection.com … (3 comments)
home inspector omaha: Why is the Control Board on the Furnace Going Bad 3x's?
- 12/18/17 06:27 AM
Rather than continuing to replace the control board over and over and over again, shouldn't someone eventually question why it keeps going bad and try to resolve that??? Check out our website for more issues we run across on our home inspections: www.omaha-home-inspection.com … (2 comments)
home inspector omaha: Happy Carbon Monoxide Everyone! Sleep well...
- 01/01/17 10:20 AM
This house in Omaha, NE had a 6 month old furnace and water heater. The only 2 sources of carbon monoxide in the home. During my home inspection, my CO detector hit 20 ppm when I was running the furnace. I recalibrated my detector and went back into the house. It then registered 29 ppm. At this point, I shut off the furnace and aired the house out. I contacted the homeowner who was a professional flipper and informed him of the carbon monoxide. 2 months go by and my client suspects something isn't right and wants me to perform a re-inspect … (4 comments)
home inspector omaha: Insulation Missing In Attic of New Construction
- 12/02/15 11:54 PM
The Buyer had their final walk through with the Builder last week. They went through a stringent checklist and had some minor issues to address before closing. The paint touchups and cleaning were being done when I performed the home inspection on this Beautiful High End Custom Ranch House in Papillion, NE. The house checked out awesome! The builder did a phenominal job with high grade custom upgrades. When I finished, I added one more slightly important item to their checklist...insulate the attic. (I'm going to assume the Builder was aware already and that the insulation contractor had it on his schedule … (0 comments)
home inspector omaha: Drywall Tape "Forgotten" in New Construction...Omaha, NE
- 02/07/15 04:06 AM
The home inspection was going really well until I looked closer into the corners and saw small vertical cracks. It turned out that every inner corner throughout the entire home had vertical cracks, except 3. There was no drywall tape up the corners of the walls. To properly correct this "mistake", every corner will need to be sanded down, tape installed, re-mud, sand, & re-paint so all of the walls match. When a Buyer is purchasing a brand new home and paying market value for it, their expectations are high. If you were in their shoes, how would you respond to … (1 comments)
home inspector omaha: Omaha Home Inspection: Anti-Tip Bracket Missing on Oven
- 02/25/11 03:23 AM
The manufacturers make anti-tip brackets for a reason. If a curous child opens up the oven door and stands on it, there is a chance that the oven can tip over onto them. We've all seen ovens that were loose and others that were jammed so tightly into the countertop opening that even a 300 lb adult wouldn't tip it over. They'd break the door off the hinges first;-) Where I see ovens loose and not secured down are where the homeowner has recently replaced the flooring...most times with Pergo flooring. I see this a lot also when houses are flipped … (0 comments)
home inspector omaha: Home Inspection Omaha: Water heater flue pipe installation not safe
- 02/23/11 01:11 AM
I ran across this improperly installed water heater B-vent flue stack 2 days ago on a commerial inspection in north Omaha. The B-vent was touching the deck and was venting out only 5' high...instead of above the roof line. And no, there was no power vent on it.
For more home inspection related photos, please go to www.omaha-home-inspection.com. … (4 comments)
home inspector omaha: Home Inspections Omaha: 5 Business Days to Complete Home Inspection...Are You Kidding Me?!
- 02/14/11 11:27 PM
It's mid-February and we've went from -10 degrees with windchills of -20 to -30 last week to hitting the 60's this week. That surge in warm weather has turned the switch 'ON' in the Omaha real estate market. I started Monday booking every time slot for the rest of the week! It's a great feeling compared to the slow winter we just rolled out of. When the busy season comes upon us, it never ceases to amaze me the # of agents that shoot themselves and their Buyer clients in the foot. They pull out their standard contracts and make the … (38 comments)
home inspector omaha: Omaha Home Inspection: Potential carbon monoxide poisoning on high-efficiency furnaces
- 01/28/11 04:45 AM
Below are 2 pictures taken from a home in Blair, Nebraska. The high-efficiency furnace had 2 areas of active leaks. During testing, they weren't leaking CO gas, but active condensate was leaking out in both places. If you have a high-efficiency furnace, please check around the exhaust fan and all of the connections on the PVC exhaust line for any leaks. These can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning. For more info, please go to our website: www.omaha-home-inspection.com.
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home inspector omaha: Home Warranty vs Home Inspection
- 01/03/11 05:21 AM
Home warranties are an insurance coverage on a home for a set amount of time. Some home warranties cover the listing, some only go into effect for the Buyer after closing, others cover both the listing and after closing. Most home warranties provide coverage for 1 year. The homeowner can chose to extend the coverage at the end of the year. Each home warranty will list out what items of the home will be covered and which will be excluded. Home inspections are a snapshot of the condition of the property on the day of the inspection. Their purpose is … (0 comments)
home inspector omaha: Home Inspection Omaha: Window in Shower Surround
- 12/13/10 01:45 AM
It's very common to find a window in the surround of the tub/shower in older homes. As a safety issue, I will point the window out if it's not tempered glass. The reason is somebody can accidentally put their elbow through it and have large pieces of glass on them. If the glass is replaced with tempered glass and it's accidentally broke, the glass breaks in to tiny pieces just like your car's windshield minimizing harm to someone. Most investors that flip properties forget to change out the old window. For more home inspection tips, go to: www.Omaha-Home-Inspection.com.
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home inspector omaha: Omaha Home Inspection: Mice Move Into Electrical Panel Box
- 12/11/10 07:59 AM
There was an opening in the side of this sub-box that screamed "move-in ready" to some mice in a Herman, Nebraska home. At this point in my career I've lost count how many dead mice I've found fried in panel boxes. Eventually, they start to smell;-) www.Omaha-Home-Inspection.com for more fun pics taken from real inspections.
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home inspector omaha: Omaha Home Inspection: Rolled Insulation Forgotten At Eaves
- 12/09/10 04:23 PM
Below is a prime example of what wind can do along the eave of a home when the Builder doesn't install batt insulation along the eaves. This home is a high-end custom built home in West Omaha. As you can see, the loose blown insulation has been blown back leaving the ceiling over this bedroom exposed. This will be a significant loss of condition air over the years if not corrected. For other home inspection tips, check out: www.Omaha-Home-Inspection.com.
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home inspector omaha: Omaha Home Inspection: How Do You Disclose Used Car Oil Dumped Into Ground On Property?
- 12/02/10 09:58 AM
This charming home in South Omaha even comes with quite a bit of contaminated soil. The previous genius homeowner changed the oil in his cars and drained the oil into a hole in the ground in the garage. Now that the Listing Agent has become aware, I'll be curious to see if that little factoid is disclosed to future buyers. I'm not sure of many Buyers who will want to pay for cleaning up all of that contamination. For more wonderful surprises found on my home inspections, check out: www.Omaha-Home-Inspection.com.
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home inspector omaha: Omaha Home Inspection: No Insulation In Exterior Walls
- 12/01/10 01:06 PM
In the Omaha Metro, most turn of the century homes don't have insulation in the exterior walls unless a company has come through and blown in Cellulose insulation. To find out, simply remove an outlet or switch plate cover on an exterior wall and look. If you don't see any insulation, there's your answer. You can hire an insulation contractor to either drill holes through the siding or through the inside walls, they'll blown in the insulation, and plug the holes afterward. Your utility bills will thank you greatly! For more tips, check out our website: www.Omaha-Home-Inspection.com.
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home inspector omaha: Omaha Home Inspection: Don't block your A/C or Heat Pump
- 11/20/10 08:16 AM
Air conditioners and heat pumps need to be able to expel heat during the cooling season. When vegatation or other obstacles block the air movement around the fins, it makes them work much harder. This can cause your cooling system to wear out faster and your utility bills to run higher. Keep them free & clear so they can do their job. For other helpful tips, go to: www.Omaha-Home-Inspection.com.
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home inspector omaha: Omaha Home Inspection: Shifted Clay-Tile Liner In Chimney
- 11/02/10 01:15 AM
This is one of the more extreme shifted clay-tile lined chimneys I've ran across. Usually on older homes from the 1940's-1960's, they'll have a clay-tile liner. Most often, the mortar joints have deteriorated out allowing the flue gases a secondary avenue to flow. Shifted liners and cracked liners are found frequently as well and pose the same problem. Whenever there is a breach in the liner, there is a threat of catching the house on fire and having flue gases leak into the home which can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning. Because this is connected up to the furnace and water … (2 comments)
home inspector omaha: Curb Appeal Sinking On This Omaha Home Inspection
- 10/21/10 11:09 AM
This beautiful 3,500+ s.f. home in Omaha, Nebraska had it all! It truly was a dream home!!! One of the biggest issues found during my home inspection was the unique front that set this home apart in the neighborhood was sinking. I'll show you... The photo below shows where the weight of the overhang sits...directly onto the concrete steps. Based on the settlement, I don't believe there are any footers under this area.
The next photo is a close up of the settlement of the concrete steps.
Pay attention to the railing up against the exterior wall. Notice the … (0 comments)
It's that time of year again. The days are getting shorter and cooler. To ensure that your house remains in prime condition over the winter, a good weekend spent on preventative maintenance is a great investment. By making a thorough inspection of your home inside and out you can detect and repair problems before they become issues. This can save you time and costly headaches down the road. If there are repairs below beyond your comfort zone, hire a licensed Contractor to handle the job. GUTTERS AND DOWNSPOUTS Neglected gutters can lead to … (0 comments)
home inspector omaha: Omaha Home Inspection: Is Your Dryer Vent a Fire Hazard?
- 10/10/10 02:55 PM
Dryer vents should be a maximum 25' in length, minus 5' per 90 degree turn, minus 2.5' per 45 degree turn. The only time the dryer vent can exceed this length is if the dryer manufacturer specifies it. Some of the higher efficiency dryers can be upwards of 50', but common sense says you shouldn't push your luck. If the dryer vent is too long, the dryer may not be able to push the moist air out, thus building up with lint. They should be made of approved dryer vent material...rigid metal with interior smooth surface or the flex type (that … (1 comments)
My blog is packed full of home inspection related articles that are useful for homeowners, Buyers, Sellers, and real estate agents. I also post interesting inspection pics regularly as I run across something on my inspections that peak my interest.
Enjoy!
Panic room baby!
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