unsafe conditions: How About A Really, Really Hot Bath?
- 12/05/14 06:14 PM
Who doesn't like hearing this - how about a really, really hot bath?
After a lot of work, a long day, shoveling snow, getting ready for bed - what's wrong with a hot bath?
NOTHING!
We love our hot water heaters!
You go to the bathroom, draw the bath, slide in and soak.
Sometime during the bath you think you might soap up, or just finish the bath and stand up to stretch.
And you touch Aunt Myrtle's special chandelier in just the wrong place!
Yes, you both thought it would be very pretty to have that very nice chandelier in … (27 comments)
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unsafe conditions: A House Full Of Kids Needs An Extra Fridge In The Basement
- 04/25/13 07:49 PM
This family has lots of kids and an unfinished basement that is partially finished as an ice hockey rink! And, as we all know, a house full of kids needs an extra fridge in the basement.
And there it is. Sitting there just beside the penalty area.
It's full of sodas and water and treats for the kids.
Ice hockey makes you thirsty! And hungry!
See how it's plugged in on the side? Right there to the left.
Can't see it too clearly?
There it is, in the left photo, a little more close up.
Just kind of hanging there.
… (15 comments)
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unsafe conditions: Floating Porch Corners
- 04/21/13 07:44 PM
Yes, despite everything I saw I was particularly struck by the floating porch corners.
Sure, the new porch lacked lots of things, like a permit for instance.
The sides are 34" off the ground, so guardrails would be needed.
The stairs are 65" wide, so a handrail would be needed on both sides.
The stair heights are erratic, ranging from 5 1/2" to 8 1/2". Stair heights should not vary very much, no more than a quarter inch or so (technically 3/8"). Consistently the same height is most desired.
The stairs are not level.
We can see all this. … (28 comments)
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unsafe conditions: What Do You See Wrong Here?
- 03/21/13 07:39 PM
So often we see things that are wrong, but maybe we don't know why. Or we see one wrong thing but not another. Yesterday Charlie Buell had a post about that very idea.
During the think about purchasing this house (a log cabin with lots and lots of problems) the family was divided. The buyer's mother was vehemently opposed to her daughter buying it.
After seeing this house, and talking with the neighbor's, I saw many things that were wrong and heard about more.
So when my client arrived I asked her into my office.
We sat on a rock together, … (19 comments)
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unsafe conditions: When Is A Fire Wall NOT A Fire Wall?
- 02/27/13 07:48 PM
So, when is a fire wall not a fire wall?
When it has a hole in it, silly.
You were waiting for, "When it gets to the other side..." or "To meet the chicken on the other side..." ?
One of the nice things about the old, masonry fire walls between townhouses was that they were true fire walls!
The idea is to block the passage of fire from side to side.
Masonry walls work real well to quash the passage of sound from side to side as well.
When thick drywall came into use as the fire wall between townhouses, … (35 comments)
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unsafe conditions: People Can Step Up, But Water Can't
- 12/08/12 08:26 PM
Downtown Washington DC - a two-unit condo created from a flipped property. This inspection is of the upstairs, two-level unit of the two. Off the bedroom upstairs is a nice deck. It extends out over one end of the condo below.
From the street you can't see exactly how it extends over the condo below.
Opening the door to the deck I noticed a few things!
1. There is a nice trip hazard as you step up to go outside. A handsome 1.5" stair. Unacceptable!
2. The middle step is 3/4" higher than the top one. Unacceptable!
3. If leaves collect … (29 comments)
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unsafe conditions: "Kitchen Fan Comes As Is." The New Normal.
- 08/26/12 08:55 PM
Sometimes on listing information it will mention something like, "Kitchen fan comes as is." That's a tip it doesn't work. In this case they could have said, "Or isn't, as the case may be ... whatever." This is The New Normal.
I was exceptionally amused when I saw the "kitchen fan."
And this apparently happened some time ago!
They were using the range with things in this condition!
Now, before you say there is no kitchen fan, and you might be right, there is a kitchen exhaust!
What, you say?
YES! THAT FLAP LEADING TO THE OUTSIDE STILL OPENS! SO YOU … (25 comments)
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unsafe conditions: "Well, They Never Use It..."
- 04/21/12 09:34 PM
Sometimes the listing agent will show up toward the end of a home inspection to "see if there are any questions [the] can answer."
Can I translate that into people speak? "Are there any problems I should know about now. I want to gird my loins."
Sometimes the translation is: "I am ready to argue with you about anything."
May I say, and I know who my major audience is here, I don't like it when the "other" agent shows up at a home inspection and I certainly don't like arguments. There is no place for this sort of thing. Buyers … (55 comments)
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unsafe conditions: I May Have Found The Stairway To Heaven
- 03/17/12 07:48 PM
While going down a very bouncy staircase to the basement, I thought that I may have found the stairway to heaven.
When a staircase is that Bouncy, with a capital "B," hitting it with enough energy or weight it might just become somebody's stairway to heaven!
Viewing the underside from the closet below I could see why.
Apparently somebody, probably Uncle Bob (he gets around), decided to shore up a squeaky staircase by removing the factory-installed shims, which are nailed and glued, and added his own very special supports.
This material looks like it was retrieved from the scrap bin at … (28 comments)
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unsafe conditions: HOARDING
- 09/28/11 10:50 PM
There were many issues with a circumstance I encountered in a recent inspection. One those many issues was a condition called HOARDING.
The Mayo Clinic says this about hoarding:
" Hoarding is the excessive collection of items, along with the inability to discard them. Hoarding often creates such cramped living conditions that homes may be filled to capacity, with only narrow pathways winding through stacks of clutter. Some people also collect animals, keeping dozens or hundreds of pets often in unsanitary conditions.
Hoarding, also called compulsive hoarding and compulsive hoarding syndrome, may be a symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). But … (46 comments)
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unsafe conditions: The Inevitable Sagging Of A Lack Of Support
- 06/08/11 09:42 AM
I don't know when it was done. All I know is that this balcony and roof were added sometime after the house was built. If it was done professionally it was probably not done with the advice of a structural architect or engineer. From top to bottom it demonstrates the inevitable sagging of a lack of support.
The columns are cracking.
They are attached to the beam with a small strap.
The guardrails have a ladder pattern. And this may have been acceptable when this deck was built, if it was built a while ago.
There are only two supports - … (43 comments)
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unsafe conditions: The Overflow Valve MUST Be Checked!
- 05/21/11 07:30 AM
When I am on new construction inspections I always check the overflow valve on bathtubs. Especially when I am in a flipper's property I always check the overflow valve, if the tub is new.
You've seen them. The are found high on the wall under the hardware and covered, typically with a metal disk.
If the tub is forgotten while the water is running, or if slightly too full when someone dips themselves into the water, the only place for water to escape, except into the house, is the overflow valve. So, the overflow valve MUST be checked!
What I often … (25 comments)
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unsafe conditions: At Your Service
- 11/11/10 11:01 PM
My friend Flipper does things that are truly laughable, if they weren't so sad!
He is a creative fellow!
On this house he decided to really spruce it up. He decided to replace the siding, which was cement asbestos and probably pretty cracked up with new vinyl. Then he covered the fascia boards with an aluminum covering. That was fine, until he painted the vinyl siding, but that is a different story.
However, he also got the idea to upgrade the electrical service from what was likely a 100amp fuse box to a brand new 200amp breaker box. That is … (62 comments)
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unsafe conditions: This Is A SHOP Light! And That Is An EXTENSION Cord!
- 07/14/10 12:14 AM
The key word in shop light is "SHOP!"
It is a light intended for the basement shop, or the garage shop, or the unfinished room shop, or the WORK SHOP!
It is not intended for under the deck!
Or any outdoor place for that matter.
Do you see the wiring? That is an extension cord!
The key word in extension cord is "EXTENSION!"
An extension cord is for temporarily extending the cord for a tool or appliance to gain an outlet it cannot reach otherwise. It is NOT to be used for permanent wiring.
The other end of this extension cord … (56 comments)
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unsafe conditions: Home Safety: A Long Way To Fall
- 07/12/10 11:47 PM
One of the most dangerous things I do every day is climb up into attics. The access ladders can be wobbly; they can be full of personal belongings to block my way; insulation can hide where to step; they can be extremely hot! Most of the time I use my own ladder, but sometimes a convenient access ladder is in place.
I don't lik'em! They worry me. For lots of reasons. Once I was to conduct an inspection and met at the door by the seller. He was in a wheel chair. He had fallen from an attic access ladder when … (26 comments)
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Who doesn't like hearing this - how about a really, really hot bath?
;)
;)
;)
