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The house I want to inspect, but I'm not qualified

If you leave a comment, Russel will visit your blog and comment. Home inspectors have a reputation for disclaiming certain things in their reports. Depending on the State, such disclaimers could include recommend "further evaluation," a common occurrence in States that have no licensing for home inspectors, or simply stating that certain things are outside the scope of a home inspection.

"Certain things" often include environmental concerns; permit research; lead paint; problems that are hidden from view at the time of the inspection, usually due to furnishings and storage; septic system and water well testing; and central vacuum systems, just to name a few.

The Round House on Mount Helix, El Cajon, California There is a house here in East San Diego County, a unique house, that I see quite often when I'm out driving to and from inspections. It's quite visible because it's about 900 feet up on a hillside, and it's round. Perfectly round. Not only is it round, but it rotates. The reason why it rotates is so that no room in the house had to have a view of the mountain rather than a view of the
El Cajon Valley. The other reason why it rotates is because it was designed, engineered, and built by an engineer.

I'd love to inspect this house some day, but I fear that it might be so unique that I'd have to disclaim too many of the systems in the house:

House doesn't rotate. Recommend further evaluation by someone familiar with rotating houses.
Electrical wires are all twisted, probably from rotating the house. Recommend further evaluation by a licensed electrician familiar with how to prevent wires from twisting all up on rotating houses.

I suspect I'd be willing to give it the old college try, though. LOL

The Round House on Mount Helix, El Cajon, California

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Last week's posts (they'll open in a new window)

SST (Speechless Sunday with Text): Cat eyes - 6/7/09
Camera seller review - 6/6/09
Walter Andersen's Garden Nursery garden railroad - 6/5/09
Frenetic Friday pop quiz: Foto Friday - 6/5/09
Home inspectors could learn from the National Association of Realtors - 6/4/09
WWW (Worldless Wednesday with Words): San Diego Zoo cats have it made - 6/3/09
Another great Seller disclosure: "There's a leak by the chimney...." - 6/3/09
I love it when Clients follow up with me.... - 6/2/09
Manic Monday pop quiz: "There is a small roof leak...." - 6/1/09

Previous week's posts (they'll open in a new window)

Russel's Gardening Handbook: Grafting - 5/31/09
How to easily and naturally keep ants out of your home - 5/31/09
SST (Speechless Sunday with Text): S&S (not for the squeamish) - 5/31/09
After yesterday's inspection, I'm quite happy to be alive.... - 5/30/09
Frenetic Friday pop quiz: Kitchen sink cabinets and electricity - 5/29/09
I love it when the Seller's Realtor calls me.... - 5/29/09
Thunderstruck Thursday: Commander of the lake - 5/29/09
If you're trying to get your ActiveRain comments in for the day.... - 5/28/09
Suicide journey leads to a 15th anniversary - 5/26/09
Memorial Day for me.... - 5/25/09

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Posted by Russel Ray, San Diego home inspector on 06/08/2009 05:47 AM

Comments (20)

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20 Comments on The house I want to inspect, but I'm not qualified

JUN

Russel, you have brought up a very good point, LOL, the electrical wires. How do they do that? Now I will be thinking about that for quite a while...

Good post. I have seen reports where every major item was listed as need to be checked by licensed person.

I thought I could have writte a similar report.

Russel cool house though. Maybe he is the engineer that built all of those rotating restaurants you use to find in all the larger cities. I know growing up that was always where you wanted to go eat.

We have octagonal barns...and Frank Lloyd Wright round churches (check the roof...they always leak...but maybe that's a snow thing) we have several restaurants where some part of the interior rotates...ask me wht happens when you put your purse on the ledge next to you and see it 3 tables down...but as far as I know...we have none where the whole thing spins....could get frozen, snow bound, etc....maybe you can google rotating buildings and get NAR to endorse a rotating building inspector (RBI) designation...and you can teach classs...talk about a niche....albeit teeny !

Never heard of a rotating house before. .I would be in the bathroom 24-7 . . how do you come in? do you JUMP IN ?

Pretty interesting house - we have a restaurant here in St. Louis that rotates (great river/arch views). However, I haven't seen a residential home with such a feature. Thanks for the photos.

Is there someone out there that even specializes in rotating houses? :-)

Russel, I am sure you are up to the challege because you rock, you roll, you rule!

We all have challenges in life. Perhaps, you can ask the owner to conduct one for free and give it old College try. Great experience under your belt. I have seen houses like this before. Who builds these homes?

Russel, I've often wondered how rotating structures run their electrical or even plumbing for that matter. It'd be interesting to see the explanation for such structures.

Chanda panda

Russel

I suspect the home is "overbuilt" if owned and constructed by an engineer. The question did he do practical things or were they "experimental"? Nevertheless it would be cool to see inside.

Russel,

That would be a cool house to see, but talk about a feng shui nightmare.

Hey, Andrea - I actually had the pleasure of watching him build the house over the years so I know what he did.

Hey, Gita - Pennsylvania is similar to California, which is why you've seen that. The State considers a licensed electrician to be more of an expert than an unlicensed home inspector, even if the electrician just got his license yesterday and the home inspector has been in business for 30 years. The inherent nature of licensing, then, means that anyone appearing to be practicing in that profession without a license can be subject to severe civil and/or criminal penalties. Ergo, "I think there's a problem with the electric panel wiring. Recommend further evaluation by a licensed electrician."

Hey, Larry - Those rotating restaurants still exist - Hyatt in downtown Houston, Hyatt in New Orleans, Hyatt in San Francisco. Hmmmm. Maybe this engineer works for Hyatt.

Hey, Sally and David - The first time I went to the Hyatt in downtown Houston, I had my Canon A1 camera with me. I put it on the ledge and we all proceeded to have drinks. All of a sudden my camera was missing. I found it halfway around the restaurant. The servers said it happens all the time and people usually just watch everything go by without disturbing or stealing it. I wasn't happy, though.

Hey, Fernando - Why in the bathroom 24/7? Do you get motion sickness? They can turn the rotating feature off so they can work on the twisted electrical wires - LOL.

Hey, Ryan - Is the restaurant there a Hyatt?

Hey, Chad - Not that I'm aware of. The house has become a tourist attraction, but it is difficult to get to.

Hey, Caren - If The Beatles are playing, I'll take on anything.

Hey, Harry - In this case, I know the owner built it. It took many years because it was one of those weekend and after-hours projects. He made the front page of the newspaper and headlines on the news when he finished and had an Open House. Of course, I wasn't around when he had the Open House.

Hey, Chanda - I know there's a center column to which utilities and the house are attached, but I'm like you, I still wonder about that rotating bathroom.

Hey, Trey - You used "practical" and "engineer" in the same paragraph! LOL. The whole house was experimental but the rotating feature is practical for its location.

Hey, Tad - Maybe Carole Provenzale will weigh in on the issues of feng shui.

Russel, that would be a challenge, but I am sure that you would figure it out! On a side note, I would like to have a tour of that house!

I would not have your job for no amount of money. Good luck and have a great week.

Russell, HOW WILD IS THAT!! I can't even imagine how the engineers came up with that. It seems like it would make you dizzy!

I don't know if you have ever driven out of Denver on I-70 but there's a weird house like this up the hill on the left as you are going in to the mountains.

JUN

If your house turns how do you know which side of the bed to get up on in the morning? Sounds like a fun place to live.

WOW, this must be on my next site seeing adventure in San Diego county. Looks pretty cool. That's the kind of house I want when I grow up.

JUN

The extension cord is wrapped around the Lazy Susan.

Something wrong with the windows. Went to 3 different rooms and all had the same view.

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I looked at the Quality Inn in Cinn. OH while it was being built. The gearing is a marvel (3 150hp electric motors), cool.

JUN

Russel, What a cool house! I thought of the Rainbow Room in NYC and how long it's been around but I can't say that would be good Feng Shui. The energy is ALWAYS moving, I imagine the occupants would feel unsettled....

Then I thought of the electro-magnetic energy. It may be good to dine in a revolving restaurant but I don't believe it would be at all good to live in a revolving house. Interesting and this is not something EVER brought up in any of my classes!

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