Now where did the car jack go?

Mitchell Meeks · 08-21-2008, 05:53 PM

Inspector who inspected this house did not note this on the report. I am looking at as a consultant. I will be writing up a scope of work to be done to the house before the clients move in. He could not access this specific area, however, it could be seen from the access door. You could not turn right but you could turn left..

Should it have been noted?

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**wayne soper** · 08-21-2008, 06:26 PM

Doesn't look like a structural support does it? At least they didn't leave the car in the driveway. Or did they?
What was above it?
How big was the access opening.
Did you crawl through the entire crawlspace?
Will someone else crawl through after you and ask us why you missed things?
Did your client hire a real home inspector and pay a real fee or did they go for the low baller.
This is our life.
To ask "Shouldn't they have noted this" is all a matter of perspective.
That's like asking' Why would they do that"?
Who knows, but if you happen to buy a car and it dosen't have a jack I know where you can find one.

**Rick Hurst** · 08-21-2008, 06:47 PM

Before you go bustin the other inspectors ballz on this, you should see his report if you have not actually done so. Was this information just told to you by the buyer or what?

Many times, I've gone out and the access panel to the crawl space be covered up or just not accessible at the time I was there. Same thing could be true for this "last man out".

I had a pier and beam home last year that actually had no access panel to the crawlspace as the hardwood flooring had been replaced and the installers just covered up the opening. I noted it on my report as not accessible and recommended that a access panel be cut so the crawlspace could be inspected. The buyers backed out of the deal due to the other many issues.

Along comes another HI a few weeks latter and the listing agent give him a copy of my report. This idiot calls me and says that I should be sued because there is a access panel and that I must have just been looking for a way to get out of having to crawl under the house. I told this a-hole newbie to read my report in whole and if he wanted to discuss it further he could talk to my attorney. He hung up.

Write up what you see and leave the other HI out of your report unless you have all the facts of his report in hand.

JMHO

rick

**Bill Wieczorek** · 08-22-2008, 11:43 AM

Had a similar problem as Ricks accept my client wasn't happy that I wouldn't climb under the home from the outside. The opening was 11 inches high and 22 inches wide, she offered to get me a shovel so I could make the hole larger, I declined. She called me several days later and told me her grandson who is a contractor was able to climb in why wasn't I. I said I'll come back and watch him, if he can get in the same space you asked me to go in I'd refund her fee. Never heard back from her.

Ron Bibler · 08-22-2008, 02:04 PM

Originally Posted by Mitchell Meeks

Inspector who inspected this house did not note this on the report. I am looking at as a consultant. I will be writing up a scope of work to be done to the house before the clients move in. He could not access this specific area, however, it could be seen from the access door. You could not turn right but you could turn left..

Should it have been noted?

Looks like you went over the other inspectors report.
You stated that he did not note it in his report.

If that is an inaccessible area and no information is stated then Dang he has a problem. If that areas is accessible from another area then no big deal. the car jack the condition of the duct work with unsafe working condition. just to get started. Why was the car jack put in ? I had a wood jewelry box on top of a stack of school books one time that was the support under a section of the fireplace.

Best

Ron

Mitchell Meeks · 08-22-2008, 05:47 PM

Hold on guys!!! I did not bust anybody's chops. I crawled under the house to look at what kind of work was required to redo a beam under some floor joists that were noted on the report. This picture is in a totally different location. Yes it was noticeable right at the door. That is how I saw it. I did not have to crawl to it. And yes I do have a copy of the report.

I did not report it mainly because I was not hired as a home inspector. I was hired as a contractor/consultant to make up a work scope so that the work can be bid out. I am going to put it in the scope to remove it and do something different. I have a feeling that the floor had a bounce so someone just grabbed a old car jack and "fixed" it.

Please understand that while there are some inspectors out there that have no business doing inspections I am not going to bust anyone unless it is a blantantly abuse of what they should be doing. And then I can assure you that it will be to licensing board. I would even try to point it to them first. I have seen numerous things that have been missed but I will not gain anything by saying something bad about the inspector.

I will even go on to say that I found some serious rot damage in some boxing. However, I only saw it because I did go on the roof. The inspector did not and with the roof framing like it is, there is no way he could have saw it unless he was on a ladder or a lift or actually on the roof. And yes he noted that he inspected from the ground and with binoculars.
And Wayne, this inspector was from a different area from this job. I did not hire him and I do not know who hired him as this was for an office and non-profit organization. I do not know how much he was paid or whether they got other bids.

The mention of this jack was to more just make a statement as I think it should have been on the report. While there were some other things that I found that were not on the list, I have, what I feel is a more valid point of finding things and marking them on the report. With that said, I think I am going to mosey on over to the Off topics sections and see what kind of response I would get on it.

**wayne soper** · 08-22-2008, 06:19 PM

Mitchell, I could only assume that since the pic of the Jack was the focus of your question, and that you thought it to be an issue, that you were a painting contractor looking for beer in the crawlspace.. If you didn't think it was an issue, why ask. I would have taken a picture of it and put in in my report as possible bounce remedy BLAH,BALH, BLah
BUT, you made your post to sound as though you wanted to do some nut squeezing and as you only indicated that it was about a car jack plus some other things, Well you have to understand the responces.
We have to stick togeather as a team. There is no one looking out for us but us.
Most days we are the good guys and we ALL strive to be that, but we have all had unlicensed painting contractors convince home owners that they know more about what we should have seen and what we are responsible for.
Sure, after all the furniture is moved and storage moved. Sure. They will find things. And after they have spent 2 weeks in a home that we spent 2 hours in.
Odds are against us.
Now I am not saying you are a painting contractor as I have seen that you can type, so don't get me wrong. I am just saying if you start your post with "Shouldn't he have seen this", you should be ready for some venting on our part.
No grudges, Just venting
And as you have explained in more detail that you really are looking out for your client as we all are. Welcome to the club
All of us on this post are only here to help people and do our jobs the best we can do them. As are you, and as you do also.

**wayne soper** · 08-22-2008, 06:22 PM

By the way, Billy didn't give me that Avatar for nothing!! HEEHAW!!

Ron Bibler · 08-22-2008, 06:23 PM

Originally Posted by Mitchell Meeks

Hold on guys!!! I did not bust anybody's chops. I crawled under the house to look at what kind of work was required to redo a beam under some floor joists that were noted on the report. This picture is in a totally different location. Yes it was noticeable right at the door. That is how I saw it. I did not have to crawl to it. And yes I do have a copy of the report.

I did not report it mainly because I was not hired as a home inspector. I was hired as a contractor/consultant to make up a work scope so that the work can be bid out. I am going to put it in the scope to remove it and do something different. I have a feeling that the floor had a bounce so someone just grabbed a old car jack and "fixed" it.

Please understand that while there are some inspectors out there that have no business doing inspections I am not going to bust anyone unless it is a blantantly abuse of what they should be doing. And then I can assure you that it will be to licensing board. I would even try to point it to them first. I have seen numerous things that have been missed but I will not gain anything by saying something bad about the inspector.

I will even go on to say that I found some serious rot damage in some boxing. However, I only saw it because I did go on the roof. The inspector did not and with the roof framing like it is, there is no way he could have saw it unless he was on a ladder or a lift or actually on the roof. And yes he noted that he inspected from the ground and with binoculars.
And Wayne, this inspector was from a different area from this job. I did not hire him and I do not know who hired him as this was for an office and non-profit organization. I do not know how much he was paid or whether they got other bids.

The mention of this jack was to more just make a statement as I think it should have been on the report. While there were some other things that I found that were not on the list, I have, what I feel is a more valid point of finding things and marking them on the report. With that said, I think I am going to mosey on over to the Off topics sections and see what kind of response I would get on it.

WELL. As Andy Devine would say. Well why didn't you say so in the first place.

Best

Ron