Home inspecting is not rocket science… Most of it is just plain, common, simple horse sense. Generally, if an item does not look right or isn’t functioning correctly something is wrong which needs to be looked into a little further. The two major problematic areas are generally plumbing and electrical. Unhandy home owners and tradesmen either are not competent in various trade disciplines or just like to take shortcuts or the easy way out while doing home repairs or remodeling.
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| A classic example of this was while inspecting a rehab yesterday, the basins and the kitchen sink were not draining properly. When I opened the cabinets, the problem was obvious. There were no vents installed in the plumbing system. |
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Standard plumbing systems use water trap seals to perform the critical function of preventing sewer gas from seeping into living areas. Air pipe venting of some type is commonly used to prevent siphoning of traps. Although this method is simple, reliable and effective, it requires each plumbing fixture to have a lateral return vent that passes into the wall cavity system to a central stack system, or to have its own vertical vent that passes into the framing system of the property and out through the roof. |
Another way to achieve this is venting is through the use of Air Admittance Valves. These are mechanical devices designed to maintain trap seals without the need for additional vent piping as described above. They are one-way valves that open only under negative pressure (created when a plumbing fixture is operated). When the water flow stops, gravity closes the valve, preventing the escape of sewer gasses into the property.
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Copyright © 2008 by Michael Thornton of Complete Home Inspections, Inc., All Rights Reserved.
I cant believe some realtors dont comment about the condition of the home have the client spend money on inspection including time with contract escrow home has many issues. or obvious signs for foundation issues. HAPPY you posted this.
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