Thread: Have Fun Fixing It

I had a pre-drywall inspection scheduled for this morning a couple days ago. My clients asked me to e-mail the builder with any requests I had for the inspection. I asked for a floor plan of the house and installation manuals for any fireplaces. They replied with a floor plan, said fireplace manuals would be delivered to the buyers at settlement (which was their way of telling me "we're not giving you that), and also said the pre-drywall meeting was time for the builder and buyers to go over things and that I would need to schedule time with the buyers after the inspection to go over my "non-binding" report information.

I get to the house this morning and exchange pleasantries with the builder rep who again reminds me politely that I will need to meet with the buyers after he is done his meeting with the buyers. About an hour into the inspection, the workers show up with insulation and start getting at it. After almost two hours, I'm done but the builder is still going over things with the buyers. I tell my clients that I am done and that we should talk later today. The builder doesn't ask if I have any issues to report and I leave without a peep.

Enjoy fixing this, among other things, after you get your drywall in.

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That's when your client tells the builder "My inspector knows why the floor is sagging there and why there is water coming through the ceiling ... but you did not want to know about it then. Now it's gonna cost you big time."

That's the first time I've had a builder not even care to hear about anything I found. They typically want to know what you found while you and the buyer are there so they can address it, commit to repairs, or provide an explanation.

Oh well.

Here are a couple of other "little" issues I found in the basement.

Looks like a K Hov...

Dewey.

Originally Posted by Nick Ostrowski

Dewey.

as in Dewey or didn't we just screw up

I love busting arrogant builders on stuff like that. Great insp work!
Is that CPVC supply piping in the first pic?

Thanks for the compliment Markus but some stuff is just so blatantly wrong that you can't help but see it.

I imagine some of the plumbing lines are CPVC, for the hot water supply lines.

Originally Posted by Nick Ostrowski

I imagine some of the plumbing lines are CPVC, for the hot water supply lines.

Is there an problem with that?

Not a problem for me Michael. It's use is very common around here, especially in areas with hard water that is not kind to copper plumbing.

I've heard it is allowed in places. Not here however. Depending on what scientific report you read it is or isn't hazardous to health. The pipe itself and then primer/glue into the water.

Originally Posted by Nick Ostrowski

Not a problem for me Michael. It's use is very common around here, especially in areas with hard water that is not kind to copper plumbing.

I wasn't sure what you meant by your comment.

Note: Not to be confused with PVC.

It's fine around here as well. I see it in "million dollar homes" with the price of copper being what it is.

The home I lived in for 12 years(until recently) that was plumbed with CPVC throughout in the mid seventies.

It was and still is on well water with high Calcium content. I change a few things when I change the W.H. to a power vent and relocated it. Only a light soft coating of reddish brown inside the pipe after all those years. No hard water deposits and it's very easy to work with.

I'll bet that even God hates plumbers!

Is that a test cap on the waste line or are they transitioning from PVC to ABS?

My father in law tells a great story about a job where one of the guys left a test cap on a buried line. He had to hang upside down in an access hole for six hours trying to pry/cut/burn the thing out, and then another two hours repairing the line. It's his motivational "don't say it can't be done - it can always be done" speech.

Corn Walker

Corn - Where are you from in Western Mass? I grew up in Northampton.

Originally Posted by John Arnold

Corn - Where are you from in Western Mass? I grew up in Northampton.

I live in Hatfield and work in Northampton but I've only been out here seven or eight years now.

Corn Walker

I noticed what appears to be a card labeled LIVING ROOM in the picture.

Do you carry a pile of cards with you to include in your photos for easier identification? What cards do you have and how do you carry them?

I can see where it would be helpful for identifing locations when all door hinges missing screws look the same back in the office.

Bruce, I carry the cards for pre-drywall inspections since the rooms are all just stud walls with no real reference points. I get a layout of the house beforehand from the client or builder and print them up in the office. It makes things easy in terms of identification for everybody: me, the client, the builder. When I move to a room, I pull out the labeled card for that room and make sure I get the card in any pictures of defects I take in that room.

Originally Posted by Corn Walker

I live in Hatfield and work in Northampton but I've only been out here seven or eight years now.

Corn Walker

Ever run into any of the Mcoys.

An interesting update on this house with the buyer.

The buyer e-mailed me a few days ago saying they have their final walkthrough coming up next week and wonder if I am available and what my fee would be. I reply that I am available and give my fee which by the way included a modest repeat customer discount (discount was not mentioned to him, just the fee). I hear nothing back from him so I send an e-mail to him this morning to ask if he would still like to set something up for the date and time he mentioned previously. Now up to this point, he had no problem e-mailing me with any questions or concerns since I did the pre-drywall inspection and stated multiple times there was a good chance they would have me come back for the pre-settlement inspection when the house is finished. The reply I got from him today is that they are now going with an inspector who was recommended by their future neighbor. Hmmmmmmm ($$$).

I guess I would have needed to find a hidden room in the house containing Elvis, Jimmy Hoffa, and Bigfoot to justify my fee a second time around for him.

I love plumbers. Whenever I meet a plumber that I've never worked with before, I tell him that my framer prefers to do things a bit differently. First, the plumber can install his pipes (before the house is framed), then the framer will frame the house and cut any pipes that are in the way of his framing. The plumber usually gets the point.