Jim Ellis's (shamus) Blog

Some things don't seem to change, that is the quality of some work I've been seeing. I am wondering if perhaps it has something to do with hurricane Ivan. It's been over 3 years and some of those homes repaired are likely up for sale again. This is another picture of a poorly installed kick out f...

While entering a crawlspace during a home inspection here in Pensacola, FL I couldn't help but notice a rank odor. The odor was strong enough to pierce my breathing apparatus. It didn't take long to see someone had done some plumbing work under the home and didn't bother cleaning up. By the looks...

At an inspection yesterday all flashing and window sealants looked terrible. I expected to find lots of damage. Though I did get some elevated moisture readings, I probed to find no damage under windows or kick out flashings.Here is a picture of how someone added a kick out flashing. 

At an inspection yesterday all flashing and window sealants looked terrible. I expected to find lots of damage. Though I did get some elevated moisture readings, I probed to find no damage under windows or kick out flashings. Here is a picture of how someone added a kick out flashing. It's a grea...

At an inspection yesterday out in the country, I found some nearly empty barrels of some unknown fluids stored in the pump house. While going into the crawlspace the first thing I noticed was a familiar site, black beams and joists. I assume it's creosote but recommend they make sure it's dispose...