SonOfSwamp

I did the things you describe (except the IR thermometer shoot), but I took the Tramex specifically for the oohs and aahs. Customers could watch its needle move, hear its little cricket noises, see when the meter reached the edge of the wet spot and found the dry spot; and, they could watch the blinkylights. Also, the dog & pony show obviated the need to fight my way through an attic loaded with hazards (not unusual in the old houses I inspected). "Get a roofer to find the leak above that wet spot and get it fixed," I'd say (and write). And my leak hunt (in that spot, anyway) would be done. WJ

Put a hyphen between "well" and "supplied" and I would've had a Happy-Go-Fun Day. WJ

It's been a while for me, but here's what I remember taking: Laptop w/current codes on the hard drive Portable printer A/C D/C converter to power the above in houses w/o electricity Code Check books 2 or three Streamlights 17' foot little giant ladder (rarely used) 6' step ladder Two battery-powered screwdrivers Laser thermometer Cheap 3-light tester SureTest (an old, good one) Tramex Moisture Encounter Delmhorst invasive moisture tester, w/pins Long-distance wasp/hornet spray Cheap angle-finder from Home Depot, to set on window sills to confirm inadequate pitch Coathangers, to prove that the weep holes won't weep All manner of batteries Box-o-rags from Home Depot A digital camera (I never used it) Two sets of coveralls, gloves, knee pads WJ

Just curious: Who wrote the above? WJ

Maybe it's just me, but I'd call Carrier, get a tech on the phone, and ask the tech to tell me if the presenter is correct or a folklorist. (As we all know, there's plenty of folklore blowing out of HI "schools.") I think I'd get a better answer from a manufacturer's tech than I would from an HI "instructor." (As we all know, HIs' opinions vary all over the place...) Speaking just for myself, I wouldn't change anything on the say-so of an HI "instructor." WJ

Yeah. A few years back, co-inspector Rick and I inspected a RE agent's newish (Pulte) house, in which the blowholes sucked and the suckholes blew. Both HVAC units were located in the attic (the usual for Pulte here.) Sure was hot in the kitchen. I did not offer any handyman advice. I just said something like, "This thing's hooked up backwards. Call an HVAC man, but don't call the one who put in this system." WJ

I've seen a few -- maybe less than a dozen. Some were cracked. I wrote up all of them, and attached whatever supporting documents I could dig up. WJ

Why not just recommend that the customer install an adequate barrier to protect the water heater, and leave the builder out of it? FWIW, if I were going to cite the code, I'd cite the one that's in force now. WJ

Get the specs from the manufacturer. With a few notable exceptions, home inspectors aren't really qualified to engineer pole barn roofs. In the HI business, we're mostly on the lookout for homeowner/handyman/builder screwups. It's best, I think, to get your info straight from the horse's mouth. I'll offer this: Sooner or later, the exposed metal roof will sweat. Good luck, WJ

That's not nice John. The post police should be along soon. Sigh... I'll do it. I'm in Pedant Purgatory anyhow... TRANSMOGRIFIER Definition: someone or something that can change or transform its appearance to something else WJid="blue">

Good point. Pretty soon, I think, there will be a lot of touch screen users. That'll change a lot about how people interact with computers. I hate touch screens. They get nasty with fingerprints. I think kids will be using handhelds. Something like the iPhone. I think that because I haven't noticed many kids -- or adults -- who type fast. I suspect there'll be a lot of voice-command gear. Better than texting LOLs and BRBs -- if it works. In the meantime, it'll be the usual. I rarely see links on folks' toolbars. I think most people peck in a whole web address. WJ

Keyboard-shortcut users (like me) go to a website by pressing ALT+D, followed by, say, "Ford," followed by CTRL+ENTER. That would automatically enter "www." and ".com" and take the user to the Ford website. Best I know, there's no substitute that'll take a user to a ".net" website. In short, if you go with ".net" you lose all the keyboard "power users" who don't bother to mouse up to the address bar and start typing, "www." I say come up with a good ".com" name. Com stands for commerce (or commercial). Either way, ".com" is the way to go for a business site. Here's an opinion piece on this question: http://www.discountdomainsuk.com/articles/5/835/0 WJ

I watched the Smug Channel (aka Green Channel) this AM, and learned that boric acid is routinely mixed into cellulose insulation. It must be true, because the Internet agrees with the Green Channel. Another thing: They're using shredded blue jeans for wall insulation now. Says Steve Thomas, "You could eat it..." WJ

I suggest that you go the vent manufacturer's website and look for instructions. Liability-conscious home inspectors are unlikely to give how-to instructions for HVAC hardware. WJ

Ditto that. It happened to some local college-age girls from Nashville, a few years back. Same story -- teens gathered in a closed-in area, and apparently unaware of the risks. Just a few months back, some local teens went "mudding," in a truck, got the exhaust pipe stuck underwater, and the CO from the engine killed the young adults in the truck. These are heartbreakers. The deaths were avoidable. No offense to anybody, but this is the kind of info that science teachers ought to be teaching by seventh grade. And if the schoolteachers don't do it, I'm in favor of us daddies picking up the science slack. Maybe it's time for an update for Life's Little Instruction Book. WJid="blue">

Now, about those "dampiers:" Dampier -- –noun William, 1652–1715, English navigator, explorer, buccaneer, and writer. Dictionary.com is free and easy to use. I recommend that professional folks use a dictionary, rather than invented spellings. It's really not good to mix up a damper with a pirate... Not to mention that the word "damper" is written on a big red-and-white sign attached to the very furnace in the picture. What was it brother Kibbell said? Since folks come here to learn, we ought not confuse them with invented words? WJ

Just doing some garbage-in-garbage-out cleanup. Sometimes it can help with one's professional growth. Allow me to offer another excerpt from Kilpatrick's Fine Print. Setup: The man described below was in the roofing business; he spoke and wrote crudely and incorrectly. The italicized text below is from Kilpatrick's book. One day, his daughter, a schoolteacher, reproached him. "Daddy," she said lovingly, "you really must try to use good grammar." "Honey," said he, "good grammar never made me no dollars." Perhaps so, but "bad grammar" cost the fellow in all kinds of ways, in the amusement of his better-educated associates and in the impression he made upon others. What we provisionally call "good grammar" is among the hallmarks that identify a civilized society. Sterling silver is better than tinware. To write at the level of a plastic fork amounts to communication of a sort, but it is not the kind of writing that appeals to cultivated readers. My interpretation of the above: If one wants to be perceived as knowledgeable, he has to first become knowledgeable enough to make a good impression on educated folk-- he must at least speak and write at the level of a competent high-school graduate. HI work isn't a handyman job (or shouldn't be); it's a profession that requires the HI to create reports that should be written carefully and correctly. Similarly, when one communicates with one's peers electronically, he has a duty to do a decent job of it. Otherwise, he's just spewing words that don't make sense. Nothing personal; it's just that for HIs to give the impression of professionals, they can't write at the plastic fork level. WJ

I think our friend Energy Star is probally looking for "scupper." Which isn't really hard to look up... From Dictionary.com: Scupper: any opening in the side of a building, as in a parapet, for draining off rain water. Elapsed time for me to find and write the above: One minute. But as Energy Star wrote: "The term used on a job in GA was skuttle but I spelled it wrong and never really cared to look it up. Sweet Baby Jesus! I guess some folks don't have all minute to get a word right. I say: Don't rely on Georgia laborers or other "invented spelling" users for your nomenclature. Try an 8th-grade English teacher instead. Shakin' my head in wonderment, WJ

Changing out the two prong outlet without a ground being present will create a false grounded outlet. I would rather suggest having an electrician upgrade the wiring. Installing GFCIs (properly) could cure the grounding problem. Also, best I recall, covering up a junction box is just plain wrong. I have no C&V handy. WJ

I think a jackleg put a round box in the wall, messed up the installation somehow, then mudded right over it. I'd write something like, "There's a round depression around the receptacle at the XYZ. I don't know how it got there, but I'm pretty sure the receptacle isn't installed correctly. I recommend that you get an electrician to open up the box and make repairs, if any are needed. Bear in mind, if you get this work done, somebody will have to patch the hole around the receptacle." Note that I didn't write "Recommend that you get an electrician..." because that would be substandard communication, and make educated customers wonder what I did in 8th grade. WJ

Not to be harsh, but Barry Stone's column is, IMHO, not the best source of information regarding houses, house parts and real estate deals. In the columns I've read, there's a lot of avoiding the elephant(s) in the room, such as conflicts of interest with RE agents, lobbyists, lenders, appraisers, builders who hire undocumented laborers, local codes bubbas who remain willfully ignorant, etc. But that's mainstream media for ya. If you want to sell ads in the RE section of the paper/website, you have to eat some worm sandwiches... WJ PS: Local builders here are promoting "rescue packages" for potential homebuyers. Their current tactic: "Don't give us a dime. Just give it to the buyers." As if the buyers don't hand the money over to the builders.

I'm still using one that's at least 12 years old. Whenever a light would start going dim, I'd just buy a couple extra batteries from Gall's. Every day, when I'd get home from work, I'd drop two lights into their chargers. Streamlight refurbed two lights for free. Lenses, switches, etc. WJ

Hello back atcha. That's a page from Ace Weekly, an alternative newsweekly up in Kentucky. They ran my "Helter Shelter" column for a couple years. Apparently, their webmaster at the time was, uh, experimenting. With something... Anyhow, thanks for going to the trouble of reading the story. WJ

I'd say you're missing flashing over the door and ice/water shield on the roof. Putting in flashing and ice/water shield after the siding and shingles are installed will mean tearing stuff off and starting over (at least in some places). Of course, I could be wrong. There was a time when I thought snow dogs were actual dogs. WJ

I have no idea how bad it actually is, but I'm confident that touching it would make it much, much worse. I'd wait for the leaks. Then it'll be a tearoff. WJ