Thread: Cracking

Hello to everyone... Im a new Inspector from the state of Mississippi. This is my first post, although I've been a member for a few months now. Been reading over old post, lots of great information here.

Attached are photos of cracking above windows and the garage door of a brick veneer house built in 2006. The cracking appear above over half of the exterior windows. There also appear to be a repair job done at some point to the brick above the arched front entry door (fresh mortar). My first thoughts were rusted or bowed lintels or foundation problems or settelment (Yazoo Clay...notorious in the south) but after furthur investigation I could find no visual evidence of either.

What could cause this? and should this be considered a major problem?

Thanks

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Originally Posted by Kemp Odom

Hello to everyone... Im a new Inspector from the state of Mississippi. This is my first post, although I've been a member for a few months now. Been reading over old post, lots of great information here.

Attached are photos of cracking above windows and the garage door of a brick veneer house built in 2006. The cracking appear above over half of the exterior windows. There also appear to be a repair job done at some point to the brick above the arched front entry door (fresh mortar). My first thoughts were rusted or bowed lintels or foundation problems or settelment (Yazoo Clay...notorious in the south) but after furthur investigation I could find no visual evidence of either.

What could cause this? and should this be considered a major problem?

Thanks

Hi Kemp the first thing am noticing is lack of flashing or weeps at the lintels.
If there were weeps someone came along and sealed them.

The water has no where to escape.

Something is certainly going on. The bricks at the arch and in the second pic look misaligned/displaced indicating downward/upward movement. The others are separated which I interpret as lateral movement. Might be due to clay soil, but not typical of the movement that I see in my area. I would note what I saw and defer to a structural engineer.

Yeah there is some kind of settlement issue going on besides the lack of flashing and lintel rusting would not be that big of an issue at this point.

I am also noticing the big gap at the left side of that window framing or is that the garage door?.

Yes.. That is the garage door (2nd picture).

correction.. 3rd picture is of the garage door

Originally Posted by Kemp Odom

Yes.. That is the garage door (2nd picture).

From what i see they did not caulk anything.
Got a few more bigger views/ and what kind of roof /foundation is it?

Was the foundation visible and did it have any issues ?
I hope they had a good shelf ledge.

Originally Posted by Kemp Odom

correction.. 3rd picture is of the garage door

I figured that's what you meant.

Originally Posted by Bob Elliott

Hi Kemp the first thing am noticing is lack of flashing or weeps at the lintels.
If there were weeps someone came along and sealed them.

The water has no where to escape.

Bob,

I am not familiar with the flashing or weeps at the lintels.

Kemp,

A house built in 2006.
Pic 1: repair on a 3 year old house is a red flag.
Pic 3: a huge gap (and a huge problem) for a 3 year old house.

I believe HI's recommend SE's to quickly in some cases, but in this case it is warranted.

Originally Posted by chris mcintyre

Bob,

I am not familiar with the flashing or weeps at the lintels.

Kemp,

A house built in 2006.
Pic 1: repair on a 3 year old house is a red flag.
Pic 3: a huge gap (and a huge problem) for a 3 year old house.

I believe HI's recommend SE's to quickly in some cases, but in this case it is warranted.

Flashing is a big issue around here.
Any building constructed since 1970 should have rubber, plastic or metallic "flashing," a protective skirt that curves around joints to protect against moisture. When water does get through a wall, it collects on the flashing and is released through "weep holes," small openings in the masonry. These holes are most obvious at the top of the foundation wall.
3/16-inch-diameter weep holes every 33 inches at minimum, just above the flashing . Flashing, in turn, is recommended under the first course of masonry at ground level, above windows and doors, below window sills, and at any lintels and shelf angles

In a new house like this I might go the old recommend structural Engineer route .
To many things could come into play here besides lack of flashing such as ,poor brick support ,brick ties,bad mortar install by not tooling it properly,etc (not to mention differential movement).
May be beyond the Inspector to determine for sure.

More info...

The house sit at the end of a cul-de-sac where the elevation at the street is substantially higher than the elevation of the slab at the front of the house (Negative grade). Not sure what type of foundation the house sits on... front appear to be slab on grade but the rear appear to have a crawl space but with no outside crawl space access door. The roof is high pitched hip. The house basically sits on a sloped hill side.

Did not notic any cracks or settlement near the bottom of the brick walls.

Attached is photo of the rear of the house.

Originally Posted by Kemp Odom

More info...

The house sit at the end of a cul-de-sac where the elevation at the street is substantially higher than the elevation of the slab at the front of the house (Negative grade). Not sure what type of foundation the house sits on... front appear to be slab on grade but the rear appear to have a crawl space but with no outside crawl space access door. The roof is high pitched hip. The house basically sits on a sloped hill side.

Did not notic any cracks or settlement near the bottom of the brick walls.

Attached is photo of the rear of the house.

Why do you think there is a crawl?

Also I do not see exposed concrete which means the brick is not going to drain properly.Where are the bottom weeps? They are supposed to be located at the foundation/brick intersection.
I must admit it looks from the picture that you might have one.
Maybe it was a hatch in a closet.
I had one this summer where they sealed the opening and I put my camera down a heating vent opening because the duct fell from lack of support....haha.

I agree with Gunnar 100%.

looks like the header was designed for vinyl and brick came along without the extra deadload considered

Kemp are there issues on the right side of that porch or is that the photo /
I would have called out the lack of guardrails to.
Another thing I notice is the columns wood looks displaced.

Somehow I get the feeling this place has never been occupied.

Don't see any rusting at lintels. If lintels are rusting there is usually horizontal cracking.
If the lintel is weak there would be inverted V above the window.
Also no gutters installed permitting water to splash brick (freeze/thaw) at valley areas of portico.

A professional engineer with structural experience presented at the last association meeting regarding weep holes and possible effects.

He showed a series of photos of a brick veneer home with similar cracking problems. His response was the wood frame house shrunk 1/4 inch vertically and the brick work does not. The windows attached to the wood frame move and the brick does not causing the brick work to crack above openings like doors and windows.

If the house has been vacant for 3 years, the house has gone thorough several cycles of low and high humidity forcing the house to shrink and swell.

No foundation vents on the front of the house but a raised first story says sealed crawlspace.

Bob.. yes there are issues on the right side of the porch. The 4th photo is a close up of the area above the 3rd window on the right side of the rear door. I also don't think that the house has ever been occupied (beginning to see why), there is no electric meter installed and no cooling units outside... the pads, electrical box, refrigerant lines, etc. are all there but no units. Handrails... I agree. theres also a trip hazard at the bottom step (rise is off).

Gunnar.. I also agree with you 100% "I would note what I saw and defer to a structural engineer".

The lot design and drainage are poor.. 3 year old house with brick repair, displacement and separation on over half of the exterior openings.. possibly unoccupied home for the past 3 years. These are all red flags but the one thing that throws me is that there are no visual indications of settlement down low (cracks) near the slab or footings.

Thanks to everyone for your response.. very good info.

Originally Posted by Bruce Ramsey

A professional engineer with structural experience presented at the last association meeting regarding weep holes and possible effects.

He showed a series of photos of a brick veneer home with similar cracking problems. His response was the wood frame house shrunk 1/4 inch vertically and the brick work does not. The windows attached to the wood frame move and the brick does not causing the brick work to crack above openings like doors and windows.

If the house has been vacant for 3 years, the house has gone thorough several cycles of low and high humidity forcing the house to shrink and swell.

No foundation vents on the front of the house but a raised first story says sealed crawlspace.

Bruce.. are you saying that possibly the lack of weep holes at the lintels above the windows caused moisture to become trapped causing the header to shrink and swell and over time created these cracks?

Should the builder compensate for this type of shrinkage during the construction of the home.

Kemp here is a good instructional for brick veneer.

I have more info if you email me ,but this is a good basic approach and easy to skim through.

Good luck and keep best practice in mind on this report, as they will truly have many future issues at this property.

May I suggest you recommend a good Mason.

brick veener instructional.pdf

Originally Posted by Bob Elliott

Kemp here is a good instructional for brick veneer.

I have more info if you email me ,but this is a good basic approach and easy to skim through.

Good luck and keep best practice in mind on this report, as they will truly have many future issues at this property.

May I suggest you recommend a good Mason.

brick veener instructional.pdf

Thanks Bob

Hi Kemp,

I moved from Central MS in July 2006. You will be lucky to find any weeps at windows, doors, etc. I was happy to find them along walls along the foundation! Builders just don't put them in and the AHJ's do not require them. Why? It's any ones guess. I must say that I never found any problems with the absence of the weeps at windows and doors. Maybe it was pure luck, but I think it also has to do with the weather in the South.
I did report their absence in my reports.

Your pictures are showing movement. If I did not see any cracks on the interior drywall or problems with the wood trim, what I'm seeing in your pictures would not bother me all that much. I would point it out and tell my client that if it is a concern to them, they should get a PE to look at it and even then the PE will not guarantee them that it is not a problem.

Yazoo clay is a form of Bentonite, it is one of the most expansive clays known to man! Yes, it does cause problems and you will find that it is just something that you will have to deal with in your area.

When I found cracks like you are seeing at garage doors and windows I also looked at the miter joints with the wood trim to see if it was pulling as well. I found that the frieze boards were very good at showing movement. They will pull and separate with just about any movement.

Many builders in your area started to compensate for movement by placing expansion cuts or joints at the garages, windows and on long walls. Get with Charlie Sesums or Gary Smith in your area. Both are very good inspectors, Gary is also a former builder. They can help you out when you have a local question.

Originally Posted by Bob Elliott

Why do you think there is a crawl?

Also I do not see exposed concrete which means the brick is not going to drain properly.Where are the bottom weeps? They are supposed to be located at the foundation/brick intersection.
I must admit it looks from the picture that you might have one.
Maybe it was a hatch in a closet.
I had one this summer where they sealed the opening and I put my camera down a heating vent opening because the duct fell from lack of support....haha.

It is a slab foundation. That is pretty much all they use in that part of the country.

In my opinion it's a clear indication of movement. Brick and mortar are the least resistant to movement and show cracks readily. There's more than just cracking here however. There is movement as well. I think recommending further evaluation by a structural engineer is a good recommendation.

Originally Posted by Scott Patterson

Hi Kemp,

I moved from Central MS in July 2006. You will be lucky to find any weeps at windows, doors, etc. I was happy to find them along walls along the foundation! Builders just don't put them in and the AHJ's do not require them. Why? It's any ones guess. I must say that I never found any problems with the absence of the weeps at windows and doors. Maybe it was pure luck, but I think it also has to do with the weather in the South.
I did report their absence in my reports.

Your pictures are showing movement. If I did not see any cracks on the interior drywall or problems with the wood trim, what I'm seeing in your pictures would not bother me all that much. I would point it out and tell my client that if it is a concern to them, they should get a PE to look at it and even then the PE will not guarantee them that it is not a problem.

Yazoo clay is a form of Bentonite, it is one of the most expansive clays known to man! Yes, it does cause problems and you will find that it is just something that you will have to deal with in your area.

When I found cracks like you are seeing at garage doors and windows I also looked at the miter joints with the wood trim to see if it was pulling as well. I found that the frieze boards were very good at showing movement. They will pull and separate with just about any movement.

Many builders in your area started to compensate for movement by placing expansion cuts or joints at the garages, windows and on long walls. Get with Charlie Sesums or Gary Smith in your area. Both are very good inspectors, Gary is also a former builder. They can help you out when you have a local question.

Scott
How often are you seeing single wythe brick veneer homes in your area, because around here we are having all sorts of issues with damage and mold from lack of proper flashing and lack of weep holes.

Even when they put them in some bright guy does not like the wicks and cuts them then tuck points over them causing water intrusion into the structure where you have plaster cracking,paint bubbles,water running down walls and mold issues.

Once that drywall starts getting wet I would think mold would form even faster in a warm climate.

I went into a new building this summer and watched the attached garage wall turn into a water fall before my eyes during a rain storm.

Now in days they use poor mixes of Portland cement that cracks more easily than a lime based mortar and that could be contributing to the problems we see at Kemp's place.
With no moisture barrier or weeps the water has no place to go but wick towards the inside.
I would like to ask Kemp if he saw any signs of organic growth in the home.

Kemp are you still following the thread?

In the old days they had double and triple wythe walls that would absorb and release the water ,but single wytheis asking for all types of horror.

I have never heard that eliminating weeps was considered good practice in warmer climates.
Do you have any facts to back that up? ,as I would be shocked to learn this.

Originally Posted by Bob Elliott

Scott
How often are you seeing single wythe brick veneer homes in your area, because around here we are having all sorts of issues with damage and mold from lack of proper flashing and lack of weep holes

Even when they put them in some bright guy does not like the wicks and cuts them then tuck points over them causing water intrusion into the structure where you have plaster cracking,paint bubbles,water running down walls and mold issues.

Very common in Middle TN and they were also very common in MS. We see very few solid brick walls in the South; most were destroyed during the war of northern aggression! In TN I see weeps on almost all of newer homes but in homes that are 30 years + weeps are still not common at windows and doors.

Once that drywall starts getting wet I would think mold would form even faster in a warm climate.

I went into a new building this summer and watched the attached garage wall turn into a water fall before my eyes during a rain storm.

Now in days they use poor mixes of Portland cement that cracks more easily than a lime based mortar and that could be contributing to the problems we see at Kemp's place.
With no moisture barrier or weeps the water has no place to go but wick towards the inside.
I would like to ask Kemp if he saw any signs of organic growth in the home.

Kemp are you still following the thread?

In the old days they had double and triple wythe walls that would absorb and release the water ,but single wytheis asking for all types of horror.

I have never heard that eliminating weeps was considered good practice in warmer climates.
Do you have any facts to back that up? ,as I would be shocked to learn this.

Bob, the brick veneer still has a moisture barrier (most of the time a house wrap Tyvek type product) between the substrate and the brick. With a slab foundation as the wall get down toward the brick ledge you usually see a section of plastic sheeting that is attached to the substrate wall extending down and under the moisture barrier. The brick is then placed on the plastic flashing and the cladding is built up as normal

I agree that weeps are important, I just never found any damage in homes from not having them while I was in MS. I really think it has more to due with colder climate homes and that most of the problems come from when the home is heated and it is cold outside.

Originally Posted by Scott Patterson

Very common in Middle TN and they were also very common in MS. We see very few solid brick walls in the South; most were destroyed during the war of northern aggression! In TN I see weeps on almost all of newer homes but in homes that are 30 years + weeps are still not common at windows and doors.



Bob, the brick veneer still has a moisture barrier (most of the time a house wrap Tyvek type product) between the substrate and the brick. With a slab foundation as the wall get down toward the brick ledge you usually see a section of plastic sheeting that is attached to the substrate wall extending down and under the moisture barrier. The brick is then placed on the plastic flashing and the cladding is built up as normal

I agree that weeps are important, I just never found any damage in homes from not having them while I was in MS. I really think it has more to due with colder climate homes and that most of the problems come from when the home is heated and it is cold outside.

Funny thing is we are having more problems lately because of the warm winters (may Gore knows something)

Most of the drying out period here happens in the winter but I can see where a different climate may have different results.

Just hitting my slower period till after Christmas so i need to look into this.

I know crawl spaces for instance and insulation is installed differently down south with paper not always being towards the people.

Interesting subject ,as I just took a residential water intrusion course at the local chapter recently .

Originally Posted by Bob Elliott

Funny thing is we are having more problems lately because of the warm winters (may Gore knows something)

Most of the drying out period here happens in the winter but I can see where a different climate may have different results.

Just hitting my slower period till after Christmas so i need to look into this.

I know crawl spaces for instance and insulation is installed differently down south with paper not always being towards the people.

Interesting subject ,as I just took a residential water intrusion course at the local chapter recently .

With insulation on the interior we still install paper faced batt with the paper toward the interior or warm part of the home. As for crawls, most walls are not insulated. Some builders use that spray crap and cover everything so you can't see anything! Some use batt, but they either use unfaced batt or install it with the paper toward the exterior as the paper can't be exposed unless it is covered with drywall or another approved material. Fire hazard ya know.....

One thing no one has addressed is rafter spread. The crack in the pic does not look like it has any vertical movement to me, and OP says there are no cracks at the foundation. This crack could be due to push-out. Which way do the rafters run? How far to the nearest perpendicular wall and are there any windows or doors between?

Originally Posted by Richard Pultar

looks like the header was designed for vinyl and brick came along without the extra deadload considered

How can you tell?

Should the builder compensate for this type of shrinkage during the construction of the home.

No.

I'll bet there isn't any control/expansion joints on the whole house. Looks like normal expansion and contraction of the brick is making it's own control joint. It makes them at the weakest points, over the door and window openings.

Originally Posted by Door Guy

I'll bet there isn't any control/expansion joints on the whole house. Looks like normal expansion and contraction of the brick is making it's own control joint. It makes them at the weakest points, over the door and window openings.

I think those are needed about every 40 feet .
Should not be a big issue here ,but who knows.

It would be interesting to know whether this house has a southern exposure as this would determine the rate of expansion/contraction of the brick.

Personally speaking I don't think this requires a professional engineers opinion based on a number of factors already discussed, expansion/contraction, clay brick, soft/hard mortar, weep holes, wood frame/brick veneer, and certainly those cracks are not necessarily out of the norm for brick veneer houses in my opinion.

Originally Posted by Bob Elliott

I think those are needed about every 40 feet .

http://www.gobrick.com/BIA/technotes/t18a.pdf

Vertical Expansion Joints in Brick Veneer:

• For brickwork without openings, space no more than 25 ft (7.6 m) o.c.
• For brickwork with multiple openings, consider symmetrical placement of expansion joints and reduced spacing of no more than 20 ft (6.1 m) o.c.
• When spacing between vertical expansion joints in parapets is more than 15 ft (4.6 m), make expansion joints wider or place additional expansion joints halfway between full-height expansion joints
• Place as follows:
- at or near corners
- at offsets and setbacks
- at wall intersections
- at changes in wall height
- where wall backing system changes
- where support of brick veneer changes
- where wall function or climatic exposure changes
• Extend to top of brickwork, including parapets

Horizontal Expansion Joints in Brick Veneer:
• Locate immediately below shelf angles
• Minimum ¼ in. (6.4 mm) space or compressible material recommended below shelf angle
• For brick infill, place between the top of brickwork and structural frame

Originally Posted by Jerry Peck

http://www.gobrick.com/BIA/technotes/t18a.pdf

Ok there you go.
Thinking off top of my head as a typical home does not have expansion joints around here ,though over 25'.

Even when done at proper distance they seem to put it right where the window frame openings are located.
(go figure)

They should be placed by the window and door openings. They are weak points to start with. Bricking a complete house is a lot of brick and it will expand and contract. You just can't put that much masonry togther and not have it move. I didn't see anything in the posted pictures that suggested anything other than expansion and contraction.

I have worked on/worked around/built 1000's of brick veneer houses, and yes there are very few that do not have at least some small, hairline cracks.

We (the company I worked for at the time) had a zero lot line subdivision where the house was built on the property line, which of course required a fire wall. So the brick wall on the property line (no doors or windows) was 10' to 12' tall and 60' to 70' long which created a lot of cracking problems, but once we figured out how many expansion joints were needed along with there placement, we had no more problems.

This is the only time I recall seeing expansion joints is residential brick veneer, I'm not saying it is right or wrong, you just don't see it here. As Scott said earlier you also never see flashing and weep holes at the lintels, in fact this is the first time I have ever heard of flashing lintels.

All of that to say this, hairline cracks, in my experience, are typically not an issue, but when you have multiple cracks, some of those cracks are big enough for a small child to crawl through on a three year old house, it has always turned out to more than, brick expansion-contraction, or the house shrinking. As Gunnar said way back, something is certainly going on.

I would not be surprised to see that the lintels were not bolted to the headers to pick up the load.
And I would check to see that the post continuations were installed to hold up the headers that are holding up the veneer.
The obvious poor quality of the workmanship leads me to think what you can't see is just as bad.

Originally Posted by Richard Pultar

I would not be surprised to see that the lintels were not bolted to the headers to pick up the load.
And I would check to see that the post continuations were installed to hold up the headers that are holding up the veneer.
The obvious poor quality of the workmanship leads me to think what you can't see is just as bad.

I would have to agree. After looking back at the pics. Most of the cracking appears to start where the edges of the lintels would be.

Here in Louisiana, weeps are rarely installed above doors or windows and fine cracks above the wall openings are very common. Separation or gaps between the bricks and window and door frames are a definite sign of structural movement. Gaps typically occur only along one side.

I would say that the house should be looked at and that it most likely is the house settling.

The wall is making its own control joints at the weakest points with the aid of the steel angle which expands and contracts at a different rate than the brick.
Evan Wray
Mason and Internachi member

Originally Posted by Kemp Odom

Hello to everyone... Im a new Inspector from the state of Mississippi. This is my first post, although I've been a member for a few months now. Been reading over old post, lots of great information here.

Attached are photos of cracking above windows and the garage door of a brick veneer house built in 2006. The cracking appear above over half of the exterior windows. There also appear to be a repair job done at some point to the brick above the arched front entry door (fresh mortar). My first thoughts were rusted or bowed lintels or foundation problems or settelment (Yazoo Clay...notorious in the south) but after furthur investigation I could find no visual evidence of either.

What could cause this? and should this be considered a major problem?

Thanks

Hello Kemp
My name is Robert and I am a fully trained brick mason among other completed trades that I have gained over the 35 years of commercial and residential building and repairs.
You are seeing typical expansion cracking.
I see several problem here.
First let me say, windows are the weakest link in the chain. ( Always ) any veneer.
The problems with the brick veneer brick here are many.
The reason is, not many brick courses above the windows to stop the cracking caused by window openings expiation and contraction.
More bricks courses above " the higher " hold in place the bricks below.
( TIP ) Always look at the top 10 courses of bricks on any home and mostly " the parapet wall ".
1: The mortar looks tight or rich. To much masonry and not enough sand.
2: If the bricks had been watered and let to dry " but not complete " they would have a better bond. Just a guess and would have to see in the wall person.
3: BOB is right. No weep holes but ?
4: bricks are dirty.
5: The radius brick above the door. All the radius brick should have been angle cut on both sides of the brick. to the degree of the radius.3-4-5-6 degrees.
Its experience that makes a job last.
Fixes or what should have been done.
I can write a page.
Not a deal killer and the lack of weep holes should be noted but? Again I can not answer and have argued with others about weep holes on lentils and architect and engineer will decide were or, if any are needed..
Repairs will work, again if done properly.
Not costly and I charge about $500 per window on jobs like that.
I am in Canada, Montreal Quebec, and giving you a rough price. Could be more and might be less. I guarantee my work 100%
Good luck and my you have a successful carrier.

We had this problem with an entire subdivision in Atlanta. The problem we found was no proper footings or brick ledge. The brick veneer was set in a bed of mortar about 3 inches below soil level.

A typical problem on garages is no footings or bridge ledge, but bricks sitting on the concrete slab driveway, which was poured on loose fill with no tamping, so of course the driveway settles, taking the brick with it.

Quaility? pooh,,, until builders are held accountable, some of them will continue to do everything cheap and fast,,,, maybe a few months in the pokey would open their eyes. Extreme? Maybe but building crap homes is the same as stealing or robbing a bank in my opinion.

John Miller
Home Inspector in Atlanta

Originally Posted by Kemp Odom

More info...

The house sit at the end of a cul-de-sac where the elevation at the street is substantially higher than the elevation of the slab at the front of the house (Negative grade). Not sure what type of foundation the house sits on... front appear to be slab on grade but the rear appear to have a crawl space but with no outside crawl space access door. The roof is high pitched hip. The house basically sits on a sloped hill side.

Did not notic any cracks or settlement near the bottom of the brick walls.

Attached is photo of the rear of the house.

quick check for a crawl space or slab is you first stomp your foot. If you feel flex or a hollow sound you have a crawl. If unsure jump up and down a couple of times. If you have a crawl space you can search for access.

Originally Posted by john f miller

We had this problem with an entire subdivision in Atlanta. The problem we found was no proper footings or brick ledge. The brick veneer was set in a bed of mortar about 3 inches below soil level.

A typical problem on garages is no footings or bridge ledge, but bricks sitting on the concrete slab driveway, which was poured on loose fill with no tamping, so of course the driveway settles, taking the brick with it.

Quaility? pooh,,, until builders are held accountable, some of them will continue to do everything cheap and fast,,,, maybe a few months in the pokey would open their eyes. Extreme? Maybe but building crap homes is the same as stealing or robbing a bank in my opinion.

John Miller
Home Inspector in Atlanta

I am going to make a simple statement.
If you have the intelligence to see a property development being built wrong or any other home for that matter call the right authorities, news paper, anyone, to validate the issues you observe.
There must be places you can call?
It is steeling and you the tax payer and insurance holder will pay for there sins.
I do not call it informing as a bad thing. You are doing every worker right down to the person buying the home a service in bettering there ( apprentices ) practices and helping that poor home owner that gets stuck with that money pit.
I walked away from every builder that practiced cutting corners and robbed people when I did repairs.
They only hurt OUR GOOD NAME !!!!!!

In the case of the builder in Atlanta, actually Alpharetta, GA, the city inspectors shut him down until proper repairs were made on all of the houses in the subdivision, including all the ones closed and occupied.

Anytime I inspect a new home and find problems that are about to be covered up by drywall, siding, ect, I immediately call the local building inspectors and send them pictures of what I see before it is hidden.

I have never had an inspector show any problem with that and many times they have stopped construction until the problems are fixed.

In our area, the inspectors are underpaid and during the boom way overworked so they appreciated my calls and pictures.

Hey, nobody can catch it all but if we work together as a team to protect the home buyers, everyone benefits.

Originally Posted by john f miller

In the case of the builder in Atlanta, actually Alpharetta, GA, the city inspectors shut him down until proper repairs were made on all of the houses in the subdivision, including all the ones closed and occupied.

Anytime I inspect a new home and find problems that are about to be covered up by drywall, siding, ect, I immediately call the local building inspectors and send them pictures of what I see before it is hidden.

I have never had an inspector show any problem with that and many times they have stopped construction until the problems are fixed.

In our area, the inspectors are underpaid and during the boom way overworked so they appreciated my calls and pictures.

Hey, nobody can catch it all but if we work together as a team to protect the home buyers, everyone benefits.

MAN you said a mouth full.
God Bless you mate.

Now there is a question I have been asking, only get limited answers to.
Calling out defects.
When I ask about code violations ( seeing and recognizing defects) they say to me.
"Write it in your report and that's it." We are not code inspectors.
WOW I want to call someone. Thanks . I thought it was the right thing to do.
Its thinking like that , that will clean up this mess of greed and corruption.
It has to be done within legal limits and not cause that dreaded whistle-blower effect.
BRAVO TO YOU !!!!!