Jim Katen

1977, according to Preston's Guide. 120,000 Btu

Any clue how to resolve that with the serial number.

House built in 1966.

Horizontal furnace in the crawlspace,

Model GS11Q4 120

Serial 465863J04

The old flexible brass gas connector is dated '64, but I think it was re-used from the previous furnace.

This furnace looks, smells, and tastes like it's from 1978, but I can't resolve that with the serial number.

It doesn't really matter because the thing is ancient, but I enjoy the hunt. . .

Ideas?

FWIW, I just figured out that ES5Q3-631-1P is a Lennox model number, not serial number.

As for the original post, none of the information presented so far enables me to make an intelligent comment about the issue - except that it *sounds* like no one has really discovered the fundamental cause of the problem yet.

Just as an aside and not to hijack this thread:

Am I the only one that finds it peculiar to write about a building in the past tense? I.E. "The foundation was blah, blah blah...It is my style to report on a building in the present tense.

I can understand if you want to say something like "When I was there the basement was full of stored items and blah, blah, blah...

I guess technically if you write the report the next day you can talk about the whole building in the past but I do not do that. Am I wrong?

Grammar expert advice please.

I agree with you. It's jarring for the reader.

Some people out there actually teach this to home inspectors. In their minds writing everything in the past tense reinforces the notion that the inspection occurred at a specific date in the past and might not reflect conditions that have since changed. It's a feeble and pathetic attempt at butt covering.

I've had this exact same thing happen to me. Turns out it was a bad batch of joint compound. Wherever this compound was applied, the paint simply would not stick to it. It's almost like there was teflon in the compound. I finally resorted to skim coating the entire area with new joint compound.

If that's a new house, I'd advise them to have all of the shingles stripped off and new shingles installed by a different crew. Whoever did that work had no clue.

How do the lighting circuit wires get into the meter box? (Assuming that they don't originate there, which would clearly be way wrong.)

230.7 prohibits branch wires in the same raceway as service conductors. So, if the light's wires get into the box by passing through the service entrance conduit or nipple, then it's clearly wrong.

The meter box, however, is not a raceway. If the lighting circuit wires enter the back of the meter box on their own, then I can't find anything specific to prohibit this. Though it does seem to defy the spirit of 230.7.

The pipe originally continued to the atmosphere. Either through the roof, into a stack pipe or back down to the basement and near a floor drain. You opened the manual fill valve in the basement until the water ran from the pipe (or off the roof).

The cap was added when the system was converted to a closed and pressurized system.

Tom Corrigan

Thanks, Tom

For those who know about these things, is there a purpose to the small nipple at the top right side? Why didn't the installer just use an elbow there?

They're not rifles.

Thanks for the correction. I'd be a lousy gun inspector.

OTOH there are those who say any penetration of that roof deck invites trouble. Was there not another way to vent?

Who here has seen a skylight that did not leak?

I've seen hundreds of skylights that have never leaked.

Roofs are all about penetrations and any competent roofer can deal with them successfully.

There are plenty of sources that would argue that ceiling mounted CO detectors are vulnerable of NOT alarming if the CO is being generated from a heat source. . .

That defies common sense. It seems like CO generated from a heat source would tend to rise and trip the ceiling mounted alarm. What's the reasoning behind your statement?

I've got to admit, I wouldn't even pause before moving the rifles out of the way.

What am I missing? Are we afraid that the guns will somehow go off if we touch them?

The only time I see them is as jumpers.

Heck, it might only need a pair of new washers (950-001). If the valves are still working well, there's little point in replacing them. With the exception of the brass body, everything in that valve assembly is designed to be replaced from the shower side of the wall.

Was there no blocking to hold the valve body in place? There should be.

That open pipe is definitely a disconnected vent. You can re-connect it and vent it through the roof or run it up to an air admittance valve and create an access hatch so that the valve remains accessible.

Is that an outside wall?

If you're certain that you left them on, you shouldn't pay for the food.

If you think that you might have left them off, then offer to pay for the food but insist on an inventory. Tell them that your company requires it.

There have been times when I would have sworn that I reset a GFCI, but when I, in fact, forgot to. It happens. You might consider a post-inspection checklist for things like this, just to assist your memory. It helps to frame a convincing argument when issues like this come up.

Other than providing some strength at a vulnerable point, I see little advantage in that method.

I've built them both ways. Back east, because of the deeper frost depth (as you say) we ran the stemwall all the way around, making it easier to compact the gravel fill.

Out here, everyone seems to omit the stemwall at the door opening and allow the slab to be thicker there. Since our frost depth is only 12" to 18" (depending on county) there's really no need for a stemwall. That's how I built my own personal garage.

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It doesn't merit a second glance.

Since no one ever actually answered the original question . . .

I had time to mess with a Cash Acme TPR valve today. The valve seat does, indeed, float on the shaft and will open in response to *pressure* without regard to whether or not the top of the shaft is pinned against a wall.

However, a pinned shaft will prevent the *temperature* response function from working properly. The temperature sensor pin pushes up directly against the bottom of the shaft, not the valve seat. So if the top of the shaft is pinned against a wall, it might delay the reaction or prevent it entirely.

What do the letters SDR stand for?

Marc

In the trades around here, it just means "sewer pipe," though most people here call it "3034," after its ASTM designation.

In a quick Google search, I was surprised to find that it actually means "Standard Dimensional Ratio" and refers to the ratio between the diameter of a pipe and its wall thickness - the lower the SDR number, the thicker the pipe wall.

The thing in the picture does, indeed, look like sewer pipe.

Isn't mineral wool the generic term and Rockwool a brand name?

Does your local code allow single-wall vent connectors in unheated garages? Mine prohibits it. Could be relevant.

Could be heat being retained by the nail-head...concentrating.. and somewhat changing the vinyl???

An IR shot would be a good idea to figure this out..

Sort of like when we see roofing nail heads 'cuting thru' asphalt on roofs that are poorly-ventilated... ?

I think it's more like the thermal bridging we see on interior drywall and the dark spots associated with it. I suspect that water condenses on the outside of the vinyl less readily at the nail spots and at the spots where there are gaps in the insulation. That water probably has an effect on the color of the vinyl over time.

IR investigation would show that at some times of the day, the nail-head spots are warmer than the surrounding vinyl and at other times of the day, they're colder. No big help there.

The marks are permanent. Either you paint the vinyl, replace the vinyl, or live with it. It would be interesting to figure out the mechanics of why this is happening, but sort of pointless. I suspect that the vinyl manufacturers are well aware of it and have, possibly, altered their formulations to account for it.