Derek Lewis
posted on August 29, 2008 10:35:24 am
Greetings all, Just found this site and am interested in participating and getting acquainted with the members. I am a licensed builder and a certified home inspector with over 1,000 home inspections to date. In addition to the standard home inspection the company I work for provides mold, pest, well & septic, radon and air quality inspections. I am here to learn and if possible I will do my best to contribute.

Pex pressure test
posted on August 29, 2008 08:43:28 am
'Converstion with a plumber yesterday - he mentioned that he tests pex with 120 psi. Sounded high to me, but, I don't know. Anyone??

Looking To Buy In New York City and Long Island
posted on August 29, 2008 08:33:51 am
I'm looking to expand my current home inspection business in New York City and Long Island.If you are looking to retire,exit the business or interested in a revenue sharing arrangement please contact me. My name is Dov Herman and my company is NY Inspect.Emails will be kept confidential ,buildinginspector@gmail.com

Framing in attic
posted on August 29, 2008 08:08:24 am
Looking at the pictures, does the framing in the attic look conventional. Seems to be lacking supports, the support present does not seem to be structurally sufficient {used for support in the early stages of construction and left} and it looks like there should be straps and hangers present. New Construction, unfinished repo being sold "As Is". Thanks, Jim Murphy

Height of outlet
posted on August 29, 2008 07:58:50 am
House I inspected yesterday had all of the receptacles including telephone and cable mounted hortizonially and only three inches from the floor in the baseboard. Is this height correct? Jim Murphy

Foundation Slab Cracks
posted on August 29, 2008 07:53:35 am
Need some help! Inspected a house yesterday that was not finished and was being sold "As Is" The bottom floor is a raised slab that has not had the carpet or flooring installed yet. The question was that there were several cracks in the foundation floor in addition to the normal expansion crack that would be found. These were migrating within the interior in almost every room. The question from my client is; Is this going to continue, Should this be happening this early and what is the remedy? The pictures show the patterns of the cracks. Jim Murphy

Grounds and neutrals sharing terminals
posted on August 28, 2008 06:40:24 pm
Other than the fact this panel looks like a bowl of pasta, is there any configuration which allow grounds and neutrals to share the same terminals. The house was built in 81 and it is a Square D panel. Thanks

Just saying hello
posted on August 28, 2008 05:26:00 pm
Hello everyone, I've been watching these forums while I was taking my 124 classroom hours and now that I've completed them I've had 0 luck finding a professional inspector to help with my 60 hours of inspecting, If any of you know someone in the DFW area who's a professional inspector please contact me. Looking forward to meeting all of you.

AC DISCONNECT OVER AMPED
posted on August 28, 2008 05:10:45 pm
hey all inspection today and ac max fuse was rated at 35 amp. main panel breaker was 30 amp,but ac outside disco had a 60 amp breaker in it. a write up YES??? CHARLIE

Hello, New Inspector just joined
posted on August 28, 2008 11:05:12 am
Hi everyone, I just completed my first paid Home Inspection. I was an HVAC Rheem Dealer for 15 years and in the HVAC business for over 30 years. My experience is HVAC, Electrical and Plumbing as a Building Specialist for 30 years in Iowa. I enjoy reading all of your insite on these topics of discussion. I'm learning from you! Thanks

Sump Pump odors?
posted on August 28, 2008 10:51:48 am
I live in the land of crawl spaces. Very few sump pumps around here due to extreme lack of basements. Past client called this morning complaining of musty odor in basement. New construction, closed about 3 months ago. There are 3 holes in the basement floor. 2 have sump pumps installed while the third has a cover over the hole but no pump. ~4800 square feet finished space. Basement unfinished and all below grade with the exception of a stairway about 6 feet wide leading below grade to door and window. Client had opened the window of the basement and ran a fan to draw fresh air into the basement for a while. Then he turned the fan around and blew air out the window from the basement. Then he closed the window and ran a dehumidifier. Started at 85% and has gotten it down to 45% humidity according to him. Last 3 months the weather around here has been about 90 degrees with 85%-95% humidity. He complained to the builder about the musty odor. The builder suggested it was probably the fiberglass batt insulation giving off the odor. Huh? He poured bleach into the sump pumps and the odor diminished and took on a slight bleach odor. Shortly thereafter the odor returned to full strength. The one opening in the floor without a sump pump has several threaded openings which are not capped off. My guess is that the high humidity has caused some growth of mold or mildew. Reducing the humidity is a good thing and may eventually kill off the mold/mildew. I would think capping off the unused sump pump hole openings would limit odor and further growth but may limit the capability for water to enter the sump during high water? I am definitely sump pump challenged. I am looking for some guidance about sump pumps in general. I am looking for suggestions to help the client better manage the moisture and odor in his basement. Any ideas? Pics are front of house at final inspection Blurry pic of one of the sump pump openings in the basement floor.

Flashing at pitched to flat dormer transition
posted on August 28, 2008 09:50:42 am
Does anyone have a link to an illustration of a better flashing technique for this transition than just adhering the edge of the sheet material to the dormer fascia? (Sorry no closer pics, or pics form above, but the roof of this three story building was beyond the reach of my 32' ladder).

Rafter Too Short at Ridge Board
posted on August 28, 2008 06:51:26 am
I was inspecting an attic in a house approx 50 yrs. old. On one side of the ridge board the rafters were fine. On the other side almost all the rafters were ban inch or two short. Should this be corrected or since its been like this for so long is it not worth worrying about?

Roof tiles
posted on August 28, 2008 06:22:49 am
I have never seen tiles run like this along a valley. The whole complex is like this, build in 2000.

Window by stairs
posted on August 27, 2008 11:29:34 pm
This looks like a real hazard to me. The window is tempered glass but it seems to me there should be a gaurdrail or an additional banister. New house, the second picture is in the master bath shower. Sheeze! Attachment 8123 (http://www.inspectionnews.net/home_inspection/attachments/building-interior-home-inspection-commercial-inspection/8123-window-stairs-dscn2050.jpg) Attachment 8124 (http://www.inspectionnews.net/home_inspection/attachments/building-interior-home-inspection-commercial-inspection/8124-window-stairs-dscn2057.jpg) Might as well add one more. Here is where the T&P drains from 2 water heaters (teed together) are connected to the PVC air conditioner condensate line. Attachment 8125 (http://www.inspectionnews.net/home_inspection/attachments/building-interior-home-inspection-commercial-inspection/8125-window-stairs-dscn2060.jpg) We need a "Why do I need to get a new house inspected" category on this forum!