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Many decades ago, when I was a juvenile delinquent...

....I used to hide my "belongings" under our house, which had a raised foundation. I soooooooooo thoroughly enjoyed crawling under the house to admire that which I possessed, so I guess it's only natural that I became a home inspector since crawling under houses is one thing that we do best.

However, there are times when I just absolutely refuse to go where others might have gone before, as illustrated by the picture here.

Foundation danger

Almost by definition, the foundation is a dangerous place, but when the soil is wet, as it is here, and there are a gazillion bazillion wires laying on the ground, any one of which could be a damaged live electric wire, well, if I'm not back by supper time, call 911. I would prefer to be cremated and have my ashes scattered in thirds: one-third at Blacks Beach in San Diego, one-third at Texas A&M University in College Station, and one-third at the Union Pacific rail yard in Omaha, Nebraska. Thanks.

Posted by Russel Ray, San Diego home inspector on 09/04/2008 09:56 AM

Comments (22)

Foundation Dangers in the ActiveRain Channel

foundation, raised foundation, crawl space, electric wires, blacks beach, texas am university, college station, union pacific rail road

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22 Comments on Many decades ago, when I was a juvenile delinquent...

SEP

2008

think that has to be the worst part of the job!

Cool Blog Russel. That was really personal and to the point! A+. Thank You Sir.

Warm Regards,

Hi Russel! I used to live in a house that had a crawl space and it always was scary down there to me. I think of rats, snakes, bugs.....yuck!

Have a great day!

Ann Allen Birmingham Realtor

That's a scary picture! Home Inspectors have the best "horror flicks" :)

Wow. Seriously? I'm just not sure what people are thinking sometimes. Too funny.

Okay, I get the "Beach" and Texas A&M thing, but you gotta explain the "rail yard"................

Yikes! Good thinking not to go down there.

Kind Regards,

Manolis

Yeah, I grew up in Omaha, why do you want to be 1/3 scattered in the UP rail yard? Inquiring minds want to know!

Wow what a picture. I feel bad for the electrician

Crazy picture there Russell. Makes you wonder what goes through people's minds sometimes...

Hey, Russel. Yeah, I would be very nervous about going under that house as well. Thanks, Jim

Hey, Folks! Thanks for stopping by.

My "formative years" were spent in northern Utah, where Union Pacific Railroad was king. I used to skip school and go out to the gravel pits, sit at the top of the tallest one, and watch all the trains go by. Occasionally, when I had an extra penny, I'd place it on the tracks and let the train smush it for me. Got called a lot of names by engineers leaning out of the engine window and shaking their fists at me. I was the leader of the UP gang (juveniles skipping school and hanging out at the gravel pits).

My dad and granddad both were Road Foremen of Engines for Missouri Pacific Railroad, although my dad had gotten a promotion to Vice-President, and we were scheduled to move to Gurdon, Arkansas, when he chose to die. Union Pacific ate Missouri Pacific a couple of decades ago.

I love the trains. I've ridden every major railroad that currently exists and many that don't exist anymore, all the major metro commuter trains, and every scenic tourist railroad in the United States, unless one has been started up since Summer 2003 that I don't know about yet. Here in San Diego we have the San Diego Trolley, Amtrak to Los Angeles and beyond, the Coaster up to Oceanside, and Metrolink from Oceanside to Los Angeles. This is a great rail city to live in.

When I visited the Union Pacific rail yard in Omaha back in April 1993, it was the largest rail yard in the world. I suspect that it still is because their business has boomed the past two decades. Every time gas prices skyrocket, railroad business soars because of the economies of scale in moving consumer goods in long trains.

Yeah, no. I'll stick to selling the part above that and leave the crawling in holes to you guys. I'm also not so fond of attics at 2 billion degrees. Don't fry yourself!

Russel- Do you agree to make a return visit to inspect the crawl space after the mess is cleaned up? I know that there are generally a lot of defects to be found in crawl spaces.

Electric spagetti is my favorite-----enough of the right "sauce" and one might travel across it. Maybe an extra "margaritta" before entering the crawl space?:)

Hey, Steve. I will go back out for a re-inspection if my Clients want me to. Since all I have to sell is my time, backed up by knowledge, I do charge for the time required to do a re-inspection.

I did have a Client and his Realtor one time ask me why I wouldn't move all the storage somewhere, either in an attic or a garage, and I just had to tell them that I'm a home inspector, not a mover, and I don't know any movers who are also home inspectors. They are two different professions with two different types of insurance.

It's amazing how many people despise insurance, but when you bring insurance into the picture, suddenly everyone understands.

Russel- Cute Post with a serious message :) Boy those wires would make me leery too.

I have looked under a few houses that looked like they were about to fall down. Those are the days I am glad I am not a home inspector.

Thanks for sharing part of your life with us. I would have to completely dress out in the Tyvek disposable jump suit to crawl under a dry house in perfect condition. You earn your money. btw, Boomer Sooner!

Russel - You just might be cremated and your ashes thrown in all directions if you went in there.

SEP

2008

Russel,

I find boards with rusty nails as my worst foe. Today talked to a crawl space contractor I referred. He said "thanks a lot. When I pulled up at the house a skunk hopped out of the crawl space." I thought it smelled a bit skunky but with my respirator it was not too bad.

There was someone with another post recently who said that there were a bunch of razor blades in the crawl space - guess you always have to be careful and prepare for the worst.

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