Today, I received a call from a potential client telling me his bank told him that he had to pay for a Code inspection for the home he was purchasing in Allentown. I explained to him that he needed to call Allentown's Building Standards and Safety Department due to the fact that a Home inspection is not a code inspection. I told him that most Home Inspectors are not licensed/certified code inspectors. I told him that CODE was a four letter to a Home inspector and that home inspectors were aware of code but did not inspect to code. I also said as Home inspectors we were looking for issues with items and systems that were health issues, safety issues, could cause failure of an item or system or indications that an item or system was close to failure.
Finally, I went on to explain to him that for the most part the code inspector is looking for the following items:
- Handrails and stairs that are solid and have certain dimensions and characteristics.
- GFCI's in the kitchen, bathroom(s), exterior and garage.
- Windows that stay in place when opened.
- Cracked/broken windows
- Flaking paint in homes built prior to 1978.
- Knob & Tube wiring.
- Smoke detectors - each bedroom and each level.
- Unprotected light bulbs in closets.
- Ungrounded outlets.
- Double tapped breakers.
- If the structure is a multiple unit then electrical panels for each unit plus one for the Landlord which is the common areas.
- Bonding of the electrical panel to the metal pipes in the structure.
- Outlets, switches and junction boxes without covers or with broken covers.
- Overflow line from a relief valve.
- Drip legs at gas boilers, furnaces and water heaters.
- Various other items.
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