home inspection: Aluminum Wiring - What is the Hazard?
- 03/19/08 10:49 AM
Aluminum is a fine conductor of electric. It is much cheaper than copper. Just about all the exterior wire on utility poles (all in most areas) is aluminum. If it were copper people would be climbing the poles to steal it and sell it for scrap. The problem with single strand aluminum wiring is the connections oxidize develop high impedance connections and get hot. Connections can get so hot they can allow a house fire to occur. Even connections that do not get hot enough to ignite wood can get hot enough to lower the ignition temperature of wood by a … (2 comments)
home inspection: What Aluminum Wiring Looks Like
- 03/19/08 10:43 AM
While training a home inspector I saw an electrical contractor's apprentice look right at a panel wired with aluminum wiring and not even notice it. Why? He did not think to look for it because the home was "too new" to have aluminum wiring. He was correct, the home was built long after aluminum wiring was commonly used. Someone must have found an old coil or two around when the addition was added. What does aluminum wiring look like? How would most home owner's or Realtors know the home had aluminum wiring? If the home has BX (metal exterior wiring) it does … (0 comments)
home inspection: Air Conditioning Testing
- 03/19/08 09:51 AM
The simple way to test an air conditioning system to determine if it is functional is to wait for a 24 hour period when the exterior temperature is above 65 F degrees. Testing air conditoinig units when it is much cooler out can eitehr burn out the compresser as it tries to compress liquid referigerant or yeild a false result. If they system is not producing a 15 to 20 degree difference between the air coming out the registers and that going back into the return the system is not functioning properly. Contracry to what you may hear adding refrigerent to a … (2 comments)
home inspection: Aluminum Wiring
- 03/19/08 09:33 AM
Single strand aluminum wiring was used mostly in the late 70's and early 80's. The widespread use of single strand aluminum wiring was discontinued after there was a huge spike in house fires in homes that had aluminum wiring.Today there are several methods used to make homes with aluminum wiring safer. The long term success of these methods has not yet been determined.Most home inspectors will find aluminum wiring and report it to their clients as a concern. A few states such as New Jersey mandate inspectors disclose single strand aluminum wiring to their clients and the hazards posed by it.While … (4 comments)
home inspection: Should I hire an Engineer?
- 03/19/08 09:09 AM
Many people without specific home inspection credentials offer services. Likewise, credentials are not always what they seem. Engineering and architectural credentials alone do not prepare anyone to competently inspect homes and communicate the findings. A helping attitude, good communication skills, and mature judgment must supplement technical competence.
In New Jersey Engineers and Architects are supposed to obtain the same license I did to legally inspect homes! … (0 comments)
home inspection: Home Inspectors -Are They All the Same?
- 03/19/08 09:08 AM
Like any other professional, home inspectors (even those with licenses) have varied degrees of expertise. All home inspectors should be carefully screened. Inspectors learn from experience. It takes a few thousand inspections and a more than a few complaints for a home inspectors to LEARN what it takes to satisfy clients. I spent seven years as a construction contractor prior to becoming a home inspectors in 1993. I have taught the New Jersey home inspection training class to new inspectors since 2002. I still see things I have never seen before. Would you want the biggest investment of your life inspected … (1 comments)
home inspection: Why get the home you own inspected
- 03/19/08 09:07 AM
Home owners who are planning to make improvements to their homes in order to increase its market value would be well advised to have it inspected first. A home inspectors can help prioritize home improvements and offer advice on the best ways to approach repairs. More importantly, an inspectors can help the seller identify potential or undiscovered problems before those problems become material for contract contingencies. By taking a pro-active approach one can avoid the frustrations many owners encounter when they are asked to re-negotiate their contracts because of unanticipated problem areas. … (2 comments)
home inspection: How to avoid problems in your new home
- 02/15/08 03:15 AM
This may sound out and right silly but the best home maintenance you can perform on your home is obvious to any home inspector. Ready for this. Keep it dry. That is right keep water out of the outside of the home and within the plumbing pipes on the inside and fix what breaks as soon as it breaks and odds are your home will be trouble free. As a home inspector I see it all the time. The owner does not replace the roofing when he or she should. Water stains start on the underside of the roof shingles, progress … (2 comments)
home inspection: Home Inspector Qualifications
- 02/15/08 03:14 AM
Many home buyers have no idea what to look for when obtaining the services of the home inspector. Most call a few companies to ask "how much do you charge?" a better question might be "what do you do to earn your fee". A cheap price for an incomplete inspection performed by an inexperienced home inspector might not be such a great value in a few months when very expensive to cure problems start to show up. A higher price paid for a highly experienced professional may prove to be a much greater value if a buyer gets thousands or tens of thousands … (0 comments)
home inspection: Common Building Violations Additions and Alterations Without Permits
- 02/06/08 03:16 AM
Houses are seldom built perfect. Beware of those who tell you all the work in the home was performed by craftsman who pulled all the permits and dealt with all the difficult municipal inspectors. I am sure there are many great municipal inspectors out there. I find it hard to believe the only ones the owner tells us about are the strict ones. I also find it hard to believe they only used the best contractors. If there were that many great contractors out there I would still be a construction project manager. … (0 comments)
home inspection: Common Rotted Wood Under Plumbing Fixtures:
- 02/06/08 03:15 AM
A water stain or two under a bathroom can cost $15,000 or so to fix. If there is a stain under bathroom assume it is active till proven otherwise and keep in mind additional latent damages must be expected to exist. … (0 comments)
home inspection: Common Electrical Hazards
- 02/06/08 03:14 AM
I have been to thousands of homes and can not tell you why or how some did not have a major electrical fire. Many have such poor wiring and lucky owners (no fire yet) that I feel like asking the owner to go out and pick some lottery numbers for me. Do not play with electricity, you can cause a fire or electrocute you or others. … (0 comments)
home inspection: Common Ceiling Stains
- 02/06/08 03:13 AM
All stains are indications of an active leak unless corrective actions have been taken. As home inspectors we lack crystal balls. If stains exist the owner and or contractor must tell you in writing what was done to cure the problem and when or you are taking an open ended risk. … (0 comments)
home inspection: Common Roofing defects:
- 02/06/08 03:12 AM
A common problem found during home inspections is problems with the roofing. I swear people would rather sell a home than replace a roof. Roofing removal and replacement can cost $8,000o or so for an average home. The money is well spent because if the roofing is not changed before it fails expensive problems are just about guaranteed to occur. … (4 comments)
Aluminum is a fine conductor of electric. It is much cheaper than copper. Just about all the exterior wire on utility poles (all in most areas) is aluminum. If it were copper people would be climbing the poles to steal it and sell it for scrap.;)
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