clearance to combustibles

[Marc]

Findings that are isolated to a particular room are listed in the section for that room. If a finding is found in several rooms (many windows in this house do not open properly), it goes elsewhere, depending on what it is.

Point is, I don't repeat certain finding found in several places. I say it but once. No 'skipping record'.

Marc

[hausdok]

I don't list individual rooms and never have. The SOP's have 10 basic categories:

Structure

Exterior

Drainage/Landscaping

Roof

Plumbing

Electric

Heating and/or AC

Interior

Attic, insulation, ventilation

Fireplaces and Chimneys

• If it's related to framing or foundation put it in structural.
• If it's related to the exterior of doors, windows, siding, trim and decks put it in exterior
• If it's related to drainage issues or exterior retaining walls etc. that directly impact the house, put it in the Drainage and Landscaping section.
• If it's related the supply or waste plumbing or septic system or wells and pumps, etc., put it in plumbing.
• If it's related to heating or AC put it in the HVAC/AC system.
• If it's related to interior issues such as doors that are binding, holes in walls, falling down plaster, damaged/worn-out applances, grout that needs resealing, bath surrounds that need rebuilding, etc., stick it in interior.
• If it's related to issues found in the attic or crawlspace related to ventlation, insulation, etc., stick it in the Attic, Insulation, Ventilation section.
• If it's related to wood stoves, fireplaces (gas or wood burning) and/or chimneys and exhaust vents, stick it in the Fireplaces/Chimneys section.

Make sure you specify where the issue is - Ex., The grout is cracked and there are loose tiles at the shower surround in the master bath. Have a grout/tile professional make repairs as needed. or There is serious delamination and keyway failure at the northwest corner of the plastered ceiling in the southwest bedroom. Have a plasterer make repairs as needed. Etc..

If you use pictures, stick a picture of the issue next to the comment.

No need to list individual rooms in their own pages - that just complicates the client's understanding of the report and makes it harder for the client to find issues. They're even harder to understand when you combine a plethora of room pages along with icons and colors instead of simply telling them where it is, what it is and what to do about it.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[John Dirks Jr]

What about fire stopping issues? I've been putting them in structure. Does that sound right?

BTW, report categories based on SOP is the way I like to do it too.

[hausdok]

If it's related to openings that aren't around a furnace exhaust vent, such as a cold air return, that need sealing, I put it in the interior section. If it's related to the exhaust vent on the furnace, I stick it in the heating section.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[Mike Lamb]

I don't list individual rooms and never have. The SOP's have 10 basic categories:

Structure

Exterior

Drainage/Landscaping

Roof

Plumbing

Electric

Heating and/or AC

Interior

Attic, insulation, ventilation

Fireplaces and Chimneys

• [*]

I use all of the above as categories/sections in my report but I also have added the following, each with their own category/section for comments: WINDOWS, DECKS/PORCHES, BASEMENT/BELOW GRADE, CRAWL SPACE/UNDER FLOOR SPACE, BATHROOMS, KITCHENS and LAUNDRY.

[John Dirks Jr]

If it's related to openings that aren't around a furnace exhaust vent, such as a cold air return, that need sealing, I put it in the interior section. If it's related to the exhaust vent on the furnace, I stick it in the heating section.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

What if it's an old balloon framed house with wall cavity openings at the sill plates?

[kurt]

I put all fire blocking or separation issues in Structural.

As Mike said, the thing to avoid is listing everything by rooms. It's very poor report design, and as a result, confusing.

[John Dirks Jr]

I stopped organizing boiler after realizing I first need to lay out my inspection approach and report flow in what I think will be more efficient. Here's what I've come up with and why.

Site - on site early and dont need access to inside yet - taking wide angle pictures from all exterior angles and checking for drainage and vegetation issues at the same time

Exterior - still don't need interior access - moving in closer to check specific exterior and water intrusion concerns - checking or any evident foundation issues as well

Roof / Gutters - same as above

Garage - this extra section was added to spread things out a bit since there are issues related to garages that don't fit specifically into other categories - inspect any electrical panels or other equipment that might be in the garage

Heating - by now have access to interior - I want to ramp up these systems to get them up to speed and producing condensate if applicable - for homes with attic units and attic ductwork, I want the systems up and running before I enter the attic - I usually check for adequate flow at registers before entering the attic in case I find weakness I might be able to zero in on a cause while in the attic

AC - same as above

Insulation / Ventilation - in the attic now and checking all relevant systems while in there

Interior - come out of attic (leave hatch open) and shut down attic mounted HVAC where applicable - spiral around the top floor visiting all rooms and checking everything as I come to it - by now the attic HVAC has had time to calm to its resting mode - return to attic to remove air handler panels for further inspection - climb down and close hatch

Electric - during the downward spiral movement, inspect all relevant electrical items

Plumbing - during the downward spiral movement, inspect all relevant plumbing items

Fireplace / Chimney - inspect all relevant parts during various positions of exterior, roof and interior

Structure - I've been gathering foundation and structure info throughout the inspection - saving the bottom level basement or crawl for last lets me be more able to detect pipe leaks since I had been running all the water supply and drain systems during the previous functions

So there it is. This is just a general idea of movement so fill in the obvious blanks in your own mind.

Critique and suggestions are welcome.

[Marc]

I didn't mean to imply that I list every room. Only those that have a finding not found elsewhere. 'kitchen' always has it's own section. Most of my reports have no more than 4 rooms listed. Some have only 2, some perhaps 6 or 8. Depends on the house.

There was discussion on categorizing findings in a report. To me the biggest factor in how it's categorized depends on the house. One size, one category scheme, IMHO, does not fit all.

Marc

[Chad Fabry]

My report is organized by systems. The furnace flue would be mentioned in HVAC, the water heater flue in plumbing.

All electrical issues are discussed in electrical and bath fans and range hoods are discussed in insulation and ventilation.

The rooms are mentioned only to serve as a compass for system defects.

[Tom Raymond]

I placed my plumbing section immediately after my HVAC section. Generally the furnace and DWH are going to share a flue and I can comment on it in either section. If there are particularly nasty venting issues, I'll mention them in both sections for emphasis, like this clipped from the plumbing section of the Dansville report:

16. The water heater is clearly original. Gas water heaters tend to last 10-15 years. There is rust around the burner, and debris sitting on the burner. It took a long time to get hot water at the kitchen sink, and it wasn?t that hot. Cleaning the burner and flushing the tank might help, but it might not. It is working now, but I?d budget for replacement in the not too distant future.

17. The water heater and the furnace share an exhaust vent. The furnace uses a fan to induce a draft, while the water heater uses a draft hood and standing pilot to keep the vent warm enough to maintain adequate buoyancy for draft. When the furnace runs the water heater draft hood sounds like the business end of a vacuum hose, cooling the vent connector that should be warm. While both are Category I units and this is allowed by code, the arrangement is less than optimal and can lead to spillage of exhaust gas at the water heater draft hood. Consider this vent arrangement when replacing these appliances. Until then, install a CO detector near the water heater.

[Chad Fabry]

Tom, you write just like I used to write. If I influenced that, I apologize. Unless you're charging by the word, consider print parsimony.

16. The water heater is clearly original. Gas water heaters tend to last 10-15 years. There is rust around the burner, and debris sitting on the burner. It took a long time to get hot water at the kitchen sink, and it wasn?t that hot. Cleaning the burner and flushing the tank might help, but it might not. It is working now, but I?d budget for replacement in the not too distant future.

These days I say: The water heater is really, really old. The water isn't too hot. Expect to replace it soon.

17. The water heater and the furnace share an exhaust vent. The furnace uses a fan to induce a draft, while the water heater uses a draft hood and standing pilot to keep the vent warm enough to maintain adequate buoyancy for draft. When the furnace runs the water heater draft hood sounds like the business end of a vacuum hose, cooling the vent connector that should be warm. While both are Category I units and this is allowed by code, the arrangement is less than optimal and can lead to spillage of exhaust gas at the water heater draft hood. Consider this vent arrangement when replacing these appliances. Until then, install a CO detector near the water heater.

[kurt]

The report systems that are structured room by room were developed by report systems developers; it's easier to construct a database that organizes by room. It's also easier to develop checklists in that manner.

It also helps the inspector; they don't have to aggregate information in an organized manner; just go through rooms making check marks. All benefit accrues to the developer and inspector. The customer is left with information scattered all over the place.

I use the term "Site" to accommodate all site issues; in my world, folks don't know what "drainage" means, and landscaping means buying pretty plants to spot around the house.

I work top down once I get inside; I trace load paths as I work down, and finish up the structural thing in the basement. It gives me a basic guideline on heating/cooling layout issues and a baseline between what I feel before and after I activate the heating systems. I'm running fixtures, flushing toilets, etc. as I work down on the off chance that any large leaks might reveal themselves as I work down through the property.

More and more, I write like Fabry. "It's broke; fix it", with a picture. This whole idea of long boilerplated commentary is mistaken.

The original developers of HI report software (not HI's) started it, and it's continued and increased. If bounced off the idea of thoughtful and well engineered fact aggregation, it fails badly for relaying useful information.

Something to consider......

It doesn't matter what pile of crap you deliver to the customer. They will think it's wonderful (for a while). The longer and more convoluted it is, the more likely they are to initially think it's a great report. This fact alone explains the continued existence of 3 ring binder report systems; hand folks a pile of anything, and they think it's cool. This is closely related to folks fascination with shiny sparkling objects.

Only years down the road, when things start becoming apparent and contractors get involved, do folks see how worthless these piles of boilerplate really are.

[Tom Raymond]

I'm working on that. Every report has shorter descriptions and more pictures than the previous one. I'll get there eventually.

[John Dirks Jr]

Originally I thought I would be limited in the number of Quick Part galleries I could have on the toolbar. I discovered I can use other built in galleries to store whatever content I want. I got 14 on the toolbar now. This is great since now each gallery is its own button on the QAT and there is no need for sub categories. Keep in mind, I cant change the name of the built in gallery but I can store whatever text content I want in them. Click on any text box in a gallery and the content drops into the document at the cursor position.

Here are the various built in galleries I'm using and the type of content I'll be storing in each. This is starting to come together quite nicely.

Auto Text General

Custom Auto Text Egress

Quick Parts Site

Custom Quick Parts Exterior

Custom Gallery 1 Roof/Gutters

Custom Gallery 2 Garage

Custom Gallery 3 AC

Custom Gallery 4 Heat

Custom Gallery 5 Insulation/Ventilation

Custom Equation Interior

Bibliography Electric

Custom Bibliography Plumbing

Tables Fireplace/Chimney

Custom Tables Structure