Starting in 2008, the National Electrical Code®(NEC®) required new and renovated dwellings to have tamper-resistant (TR) receptacles. These receptacles have spring-loaded shutters that close off the contact openings, or slots, of the receptacles. Although the NEC has required TR receptacles since 2008 this does not always mean that all homes built after that year will have them. It all depends on the local adoption of the code by your city, township or municipality. As a home inspector I see new homes with out TR receptacles because many areas have chosen to not adopt this section or have modified the code. This type of receptacles does cost more and builders have been upset about being required to put them in their homes and this could be the reason that some areas are not requiring them.
When a plug is inserted into the receptacle, both springs are compressed and the shutters then open, allowing for the metal prongs to make contact to create an electrical circuit. Because both springs must be compressed at the same time, the shutters do not open when a child attempts to insert an object into only one contact opening, and there is no contact with electricity. Many feel that tamper- resistant receptacles are an important next step to making the home a safer place for children. If you do have TR receptacles you will notice that it can be difficult to insert the blades of a plug into the receptacle at first. As that receptacle is used more it will become easier to insert plugs as the TR device loosens with use. I recall my mother telling the story about when I was around 5 years old and I stuck a car key into an outlet. She said I only did it once! Oh, and my baby crib was painted with lead based paint too! Happy Mothers Day to everyone that is a mom and to all of the single dads who are the mom as well. The Mothers Day I will never forget: When I was a single dad with three children back in the early 90's I will never forget going to church(First Baptist, Jackson MS) in 1990 on Mothers Day. Our family was well known in our church (the dad with 3 children), so after I dropped all of the kids in their prospective Sunday school rooms I headed to the main sanctuary for Sunday service. Our church had a tradition that went back 50+ years; all Mom's were given an orchard corsage on Mothers Day. I was standing in line to enter the sanctuary for the service, it was taking a little longer than normal as the corsages were being given to the "Mom's" as they entered the sanctuary. As I reached the front of the line I was surprised when I was handed a Rose boutonniere with three Sweetheart roses, one for each of my children. I wore it proudly all day and I still have it pressed between some pages in my old bible. So to all Mom's (even us male Mom's) Happy Mothers Day! This is a short 15 sec video (sorry for the sideways shot!) of what it looks like when a water heater decides to fail! Shortly after the video nothing but steam came out. I had to quickly run out to the garage and turn the power off to the water heater (this was an electric water heater). Apparently the thermostat on the heating element failed as well. It would have been just a matter of time before the TPR valve would have opened(hopefully opened!). The brown color was coming from all of the sediment that had built up in the bottom of the tank over the past 13 years. The sputtering and air sounds are coming from the water heater running out of water because it was so hot and the water was turning to steam inside the tank due to the failed thermostat. If you ever have this occur at your home, chances are the water heater will need to be replaced. One of the common items that home inspections will discover and report on are cracks in concrete driveways and patios. This might seem like a trivial item to some owners and their real estate agents, but for a potential buyer it can be a major headache if it is not addressed and properly taken care of. Cracks in concrete are almost inevitable; it’s just what concrete does! It becomes a problem when it is in the weather and exposed to wet conditions and in many areas of the country freezing conditions. Water seeps in under the concrete slab and erodes the underlying soil; if the water freezes it will actually enlarge the cracks or in some instances uplift the section of concrete. If the concrete slab is outdoors, such as a driveway or patio, the cracks need to be sealed properly to keep water from seeping under the slab. To seal crack in a concrete slab: • Remove any debris or loose concrete in the crack using a screwdriver, followed by a wire brush. • Use a broom or leaf blower to clean out the crack. • Fill the crack with concrete repair caulk, such as Polyurethane Concrete Crack Sealant from Quikrete. Other brands are available but this is a product that I have used. On cracks that are wider than 1/4” push foam backer rod into the crack with a screwdriver, so it’s 1/2” below the surface, then fill the crack with concrete repair caulk. If cracks are related to tree roots, underground voids from decaying organic material, expansive soils or just poor design and construction, sealing the cracks will only delay the inevitable and that is the correction of the problem and replacement of the concrete. The following pictures are from inspections that I have performed over the past couple years. All were 1 year warranty inspections. None of the owners had their homes inspected before they closed on them. The sad part about this is that all of the issues would have been caught if they had only had an inspection before they closed. All of the owners thought that because they were new construction that they did not need to have an inspection. This is a condensation line connected directly to the main sewer line in this home. The 1" line has been tapped directly into the 4" sanitary line. Sitting on top of that 4" line is a toilet! For those of you that don't know what is wrong with this let me explain: The small line is coming directly from the A/C evaporator cabinet. This is where the air blows over the cold coils, producing cool air for the home. The line drains off the condensation water. The problem outside of all codes saying this can't be done, is that sewer gas and bacteria could be introduced into the air that is being blown into the home. This is how Legionnaire's disease is started. Also the clean-out port is only 3" from the foundation wall! This home was completed in Nov, 2013. This is a major hip rafter. It has been cut and less than 1/4 of it is bearing on an improperly constructed and supported top plate of an exterior wall. It has no nails to secure it and it is resting on two metal shims. I found this after I noted several wall and ceiling cracks in the interior of the home below this area. After additional searching I found three more rafters like this. This was a 1 year home warranty inspection. Builder has gone belly-up and the home owner is now stuck with the repairs. Home owner is being forced to pay for the repairs that are estimated to be around $25,000. Home was built in July 2013. This one is really comical. That is planking up in a skylight. This is in a 23,000 sf home, this bathroom was right at 1,500 sf. This skylight is about 20' above the shower area. Believe it or not the owners never noticed it! It was a major undertaking to get the boards down. They had to first erect scaffolding up and over the shower walls. Then they had to cut the boards to get them out. The shower is a unique doorless design, the walls are in the shape of a Nautilus shell and curl around into the shower area. Also notice the the right light fixture on the right has a different finish ring and the protective lens is missing. Home was completed in January 2014.
All of the photos show prime examples why new construction homes must be inspected. All of the homes passed city code inspections and the owners are living in them. The home inspector profession is divided into a couple of groups when it comes down to mold testing. You have the group of inspectors who do not test for mold. This group tends to be comprised of the more experienced or seasoned group of inspectors; they do not really offer or sell ancillary services to increase their sales. They use their knowledge and experience to locate the source of moisture that might be supporting mold and then they move on to the next problem. The logic that this group uses is; if you see mold, smell mold then you have mold! Why test for it when you know you have it! The other group from my experience tend to be the newer inspectors or lets say those with less than five or so years in the profession, they are still building their referral base. They are trying to sell everything under the sun to help supplement their inspection business. Many in this group have attended a one or two-day class on mold sampling and that is about the extent of their knowledge on the subject. The same testing labs that are selling the service to the home inspectors perform much of this training and the so-called “certifications”! Talk about being self-serving and a conflict of interest! With this group, they test for mold and then when the results come back from the lab in a week or so they hand their client the lab report. The report tells their client that they have ABC or XYZ spores in X concentration and that is about the extent of the report. Yes, some do tend to provide a little more information than others, but when it is all said and done with they really don't offer much more than everyone already knew in the first place and that was that the home had mold. The exception in the second group would be those that have the proper training and skill sets to write an abatement plan for a mold damaged structure, but these folks are not easy to come by and tend to work for the environmental consulting firms. They have advanced training and many have specialized degrees or certifications from accredited schools. Just handing a client a "Mold Report" does nothing for anyone, a true abatement plan is needed. The abatement plan is what the mold abatement contractor goes by to clean the structure. It is the road map so to speak of how and what needs to be done. The EPA has a great pamphlet that tells consumers what they need to do when they find mold. It is full of common sense and not hyperbole. http://www.epa.gov/mold/pdfs/moldguide.pdf I can't even begin to tell you how many times I have been asked what is a "Rake" on a roof or what is the "Valley". Sometimes I forget that what is common terminology for me might be like Greek to the person I'm talking with. When I'm talking about the rake on the West side or whatever side of the roof some folks get the strangest look on their face, some are thinking that I'm talking about a common yard rake.
I hope this diagram helps with some of the terminology that you might find in a home inspection report. This casserole is made with a whole chicken, onion, carrots, celery, rice, and almonds, along with other ingredients. It is fairly simple, but it does take a little time as you must cook the chicken first and then assemble the remaining ingredients and bake. It is well worth the extra time!
INGREDIENTS:
PREPARATION: In a large kettle or Dutch oven, combine chicken, water, onion, carrot, celery, salt, and bay leaf. Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, or until tender. Cool chicken in the stock; remove from stock. Remove skin and take meat from bones; cut into bite-size pieces and place in a medium bowl. Pour about 1/2 cup of stock over the chicken; cover and refrigerate. Strain remaining stock into a bowl; chill. Skim fat off the strained chilled stock; save for the sauce. Heat 1 cup of stock; pour over cooked rice in a bowl; let stand while making sauce. Melt chicken fat or part chicken fat and part butter in a saucepan over medium low heat. Blend in flour until smooth and bubbly, you are making a Ruex. Stir in 2 cups of strained stock. Cook sauce over low heat, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens; let boil 1 minute. Gradually stir cream; remove from heat. Stir in mushrooms with mushroom liquid, pimiento, and almonds. In a buttered 12 cup casserole dish, alternate layers of chicken with sauce and the rice-broth mixture. Sprinkle buttered bread crumbs over top. Bake at 350° for 45 to 55 minutes, or until sauce is bubbly and crumbs are nicely browned. Scott Patterson, Spring Hill, TN. Well, I must say that this was a total surprise. It was a great country home that had a wonderful view overlooking a typical middle Tennessee valley. The only problem is that the former owners did not disclose that their heard of cats had used every single room in the home as their own personal litter box! When the new owner viewed the home, new carpets and laminate floor had just been installed over the past few days. The former cat herdsman owner had plug-in room air fresheners in every room, along with some reed diffusers and a couple of Old Yankee jar candles burning. The new owner said it smelled like a big basket of wild flowers! I did not do the original inspection but I can imagine the way the home smelled with plug-in air fresheners all over the home. About 7 weeks later the new owner takes ownership and is camping out in the home on an air mattress. He was moving the family as soon as school was out, he was in the home alone. While sleeping close to the floor he noticed that it smelled like an old wet dipper!. He proceeded to pull a corner of the carpet up and he found why the home had new carpet in it. The following photos are of what the new owner found! If you have a weak stomach, you might want to skip the photos…. The last picture shows the floor in the dining room. It had been painted by the former owner with KILZ in an attempt to cover the cat urine. The problem with that is that urine is Hygroscopic, the salts in the urine attract moisture (humidity) and this then reconstitutes the urine. This is why you can't get rid of the odor! The only cure for this home is to have all of the sub-flooring replaced. Yes, I'm sure it will not be a simple matter and it will get nasty down the road with all of that legal stuff.
American Society of Home Inspectors® (ASHI®) Client Bill of Rights As a profession, home inspectors have an ethical obligation to the public. This obligation includes integrity, competency, honesty, confidentiality, objectivity and an interest in public safety. Fulfilling this obligation will promote and preserve public confidence in the profession. In recognition of this obligation, we hereby promote and proclaim these rights for our clients. I. To be assured the inspector is objective in his or her reporting and will not knowingly understate or overstate the significance of reported conditions. II. To be assured the inspector's opinion is based on genuine conviction within the scope of his or her education and experience. III. To be assured the inspector stays current with the industry's body of knowledge through continuing education. IV. To be assured the inspector will not disclose inspection results or client information without client approval. V. To be assured the inspector has not accepted any form of compensation for recommending contractors, services or products. VI. To be assured the inspector will not offer to repair or replace for compensation any component covered by the ASHI Standards of Practice for one year after the inspection. VII. To be assured future referrals to the inspector from real estate agents are not dependent on the inspection findings or the sale of the property. VIII. To be assured the home inspector has no financial interest in the transaction. IX. To be assured the inspector is not receiving compensation for the inspection from any other party. X. To be assured the inspector did not compensate the real estate agent or other party for the referral to the client. |
AuthorScott Patterson has been a professional home inspector since 1995. Scott works out of the Greater Nashville TN area. Contact his team at Trace Inspections for all of your inspection needs. Archives
September 2023
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