SWagar

Brandon, Maybe the guy who did this thought the "B" in "B" vent stands for Bean. It is a "B"ean vent.

Brandon, As far as I know E&O was never required, just general liability insurance and bond are necessary. My policy has an exclusion in very bold print that states that my insurance policy is not a professional E&O policy. I do not carry E&O yet, I have thought about it from time to time. When I did look into it, wow $$$$.

He's got more (fill in the blank) than Carter has little liver pills. eg. He's got more junk in his yard than Carter has little liver pills.

Yes the 2008 version of the NEC 210.8.A.2 states all receptacles in garages must be GFCI protected. Your state however, may not have adopted or modified that rule. So you also need to check with your state code (if any). Oregon has an exemption 918-305-0130(1)(b) that could be used to exempt garage door openers. Although most door openers since 2008 that I have seen have been GFCI protected.

I'm with Mike, the SEC looks like tin coated copper not aluminum. Does any one know when was aluminum SEC was first used generally speaking. And was there ever any rag covered aluminum SEC.

John Dirks Your Anti-Terrorist Home Inspector

Nature can be a brutal beast! Nice shot of the sky, How many photos did it take to capture that? Click to Enlarge 62.44 KB

Jim, You are right, they are terrible, I told my client that they look more like a funnel than a valley. And that the weave was incorrect. After further discussion with my roofer (I sent him photos last night) he thought that they were half baked closed cut valleys. They laid the shingles but never cut them. Which is why we see shingles out of place. I did find a cut sheet for those shingles and Certainteed strongly recommends open valleys with metal but don't really say no way. At this point we know the valleys were probably done by a monkey on Acid and need work!!

Has anyone had any experience with a woven valley of Certainteed's Presidential Shingles? Six of the valleys in today's house were woven, not closed cut or open. They looked like they should leak. The roof was approximately 4 years old (or so I was told). I did not see any signs of leaking on any of the ceilings, all of which were vaulted. The only attic was under the roof with an open style valley. I called my favorite roofer he said he thought it could be done "but it would look like crap", which they did. We (the roofer and I) are heading off now to find the manufacturer's installation instructions. Kinda' funny how they decided to do the valleys in two diferent ways. Click to Enlarge 98.4 KB Click to Enlarge 119.86 KB Click to Enlarge 100.31 KB

What a great idea, I think I'll try that. (me speaking to my wife -What's that honey, over your dead what?). Guess I'll have to find another great idea.

If the weeps are embedded in dirt, a concern is that they would clog/silt in over time. The underground stone and mortar could transpire water vapor and condense behind the stone. The water may not be able to get out. Freeze thaw cycles could cause the stone to pop.

Back then people were much more generous, I'd think of it as a Stink Sharing System. So what happens when both fans are on at the same time???? Gas under pressure can be explosive!!

Did they have heating elements??

I just thought I'd post these as a follow up to my original post. Like I said, I did not see the condensation on the windows. I asked the client to take photos of the condensation. The overnight temperature has not been as cold as it was before my Inspection. I imagine there is more with a 10 degree outdoor temp. decrease. Click to Enlarge 77.22 KB Click to Enlarge 57.05 KB Click to Enlarge 71.87 KB

Jim, I looked at those gloves on the web site. They looked kinda' cool. Did they have a fabric back? At one time I tried a pair of gloves with a thin leather palm and fingers and a stretch fabric back. I didn't like them; too much dirt came in the back through the fabric.

For crawl space inspections, I'm considering wearing rubber gloves instead of my trusty ol' leather gloves. I getting tired of taking off my gloves to operate the camera or to write down notes. And after an animal feces/urine filled crawl space they can get a little nasty. I've tried to wash them but that doesn't work so well. Before I make the move, I have a few questions for those of you who use them. How do they hold up during the inspection, do they rip or tear? Do they offer your hands any protection from abrasion? What brands you you recommend / not recommend? Can you operate your camera with them on our hands? What else should I know?

Brandon, Yes it was, I'll send you the name of the Condos in a Private message. No need to get people excited until I get more info.

I'd also check to make sure that there is sufficient slope to the exhaust flue (pipe) so that the condensate flows back toward the furnace. At the furnace there should me a means to get rid of all the condensate. However, if the furnace flue runs a very short distance to the exterior, the flue gasses may not have time to fully condense in the flue. In that case, they would condense outside. Judging by the location of the flue, I'm guessing that the furnace is in the basement. So the condensdate should go to a pump, sink, or floor drain. I just had a new Condensing Furnace (AKA High Efficiency, 90+ )installed, I'll have to say ,I'm amazed by the amount of condensate it produces.

Jim, This unit is in the SW Waterfront. The condo building has not yet been turned over to the HOA. I recommended to my clients that they contact the builder/developer. I'm guessig that since many units are not yet occupied, there haven't been that many complaints.

Thanks for the input. I agree that these are commercial windows the condo unit is in a 30+ floor high-rise tower. I spoke with my client about the use of their exhaust fans, her response indicated that they (2 occupants in 2000 square feet) used them during and after showering. I do not believe that there was an air exchanger installed, at least there were no visible signs of one. The HVAC system was a water sourced heat pump. I mentioned to them that the HVAC ducts, located on the walls at the ceiling, are blowing directly toward the windows. This may be compounding the problem. Not that they could do much about that. My clients said that this same thing happens in other units as well. A owner one floor below actually keeps towels on the window sills to soak up the water. This leads me to believe that the condensation is not caused only by their behaviors but rather something more systemic.

Yesterday I inspected a 2008 condo in a highrise. The potential buyer and current resident complained to me that every morning during the heating season there is major amounts on condensation on the all of the fixed and operational window sills. She said that there are actual puddles and there are drips from the horizontal metal window frames. There is enough water to soak a medium size towel. Se said it was more pronounced in the bedroom but that it happens in all rooms. I did not see the problem, by the time I started the inspection the water had been dryed. She also said it happens in other units but not too many units on her side of the building are occupied yet. From the inside, the windows appeared to be installed properly. I could not feel any drafts nor were there any broken window seals. I know metal framed windows may have some condensation but even if I take her description and cut it in half, that would still be way too much. From the exterior deck I noticed this feature on every window. There were at least two holes in each horizontal metal mmber. At first I assumed they were weep holes. But these were 1/2 to 5/8 in diameter, which seems excessive for weep holes. My thought is they may have been needed for installation and are now allowing air to circulate through the window frames keeping them cold. The constantly cold frames in contact with the warm interior air is producing condesation continually. I could see into a couple of the frames at the holes, they are hollow and uninsulated. Any thoughts? Click to Enlarge 85.5 KB Click to Enlarge 84.36 KB Click to Enlarge 68.73 KB

My guess is that the person responsible for the "fix" watched episode 1 "Plumbing Your House" on HGTV. He knew he needed a vent ... but didn't know it needed to go outside. I bet he did not watch episode number 2. Besides it works don't it ?!? In the first pic what is the left vertical pipe connected to, the horizontal pipe behind it? Does water flow uphill to get to the vertical drain? Very interesting .....

Well that was much less frustrating !!

OK, did that, then what?

Well I must be dense, because I can't seem to add me. On the map when I hover over my location the hand appears, when I double click, all that happens is the map zooms in. Any thoughts?