shane the builder

yup keeps you on your toes. I loved the idea when it came in, makes for better comunication between inspectors. Also if you have a real proplimatic inspector in the area, he'll get weeded out pretty quickly by his peers.

Hey Terry Mike is right about Canada exporting Asbestos. We are not allowed to use it in domestic products and there is a huge push to remove it from all our buildings. Even so we still produce it and ship huge amounts to developing countries. The real twist is that asbestos was banned from insulation and other domestic construction products in 1972. So Canadian producers shipped it south, where it was added to fire guard drywall and sold back to us as a safe product. We are now finding asbestos in drywall products installed as late as 2001. It's embarrassing as a Canadian to know our government is still promoting the sale of Asbestos especially to poorer nations where worker safety is not assured. Every time I have to tell a customer they are going to have to fork out huge wads of cash to have their drywall removed by a certified hazardous waste removal company. I shake my head and tell them our elected politicians think it's a safe product.

Up here in this area, the realtors I work with want to know everything. Canadian real-estate laws are much more comprehensive. Resent changes to disclosure laws have made these guys nervous, they can be sued into oblivion if the new homeowner gets stuck with flawed construction. You pretty much can't get a good dollar for your home without an inspection here. Alberta inspectors are usually pretty well trained, though there are a few idiots in the bunch. Maybe your realtors need to get hit with a couple twenty five thousand dollar non-disclosure fines. Then they might appreciate you more. As for liability you screw up here, you pay or lose your licence.

PWFs are common place here in Alberta Canada. Again most are not built right here as well. Windows installed in PWFs should be sealed the same as main floor windows. I see in the picture that there is no parging or covering over the foundation vapor barrier. Once the poly has been exposed to the sun for more than six months it will have lost its effectiveness. The code here is that all above ground exposed vapor barriers shall be covered. The general practice here is to wrap the basement in reinforced poly and cover the above ground area in 5/8 preserved plywood. On the PWFs I build I use a multilayer system. First a rubber/asphalt mastic coating sprayed directly on the wood followed by reinforced poly covered with a High density polyethylene Foundation Waterproofing Membrane. And I would never leave the foundation exposed. Simply applying silicone behind the nailing fin will not seal a window. Ask yourself if you would let this window fly on a main floor. As for being an egress window I agree with Richard's approach. Look at your local and federal codes.

This would not be considered inexpensive. Hiring a cheap roofer,... $1500 Hiring a professional to repair the cheap roofers screwup,... $15,000 Doing it right the first time,....priceless