Charles's Seattle Home Inspection Blog

Northwest Vented Crawl Spaces

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Fri, 31 May 2019 10:47:31 -0700

I wish vented crawl spaces would just go away.We could then turn the entire conversation into a discussion about conditioned crawl spaces. It is still the norm to have vented crawl spaces in the Northwest. New vented crawl spaces are being built every day, in numbers much greater than conditioned ones.It is important to understand how crawl spaces work because we are going to continue seeing them in older construction, as well as in newer construction.If you live, or have lived, in other parts of the country, some of this may seem counter intuitive. One could create problems in the crawl spaces of Minnesota or Georgia if one did some of the things we have to do in the Northwest. The numbers one puts in the equations are different, but the science is the same.Getting just a few things right will allow a crawl space to behave itself and manage moisture conditions adequately.The crawl space should be constructed such that vents can be installed on at least 3 sides. A good vapor retarder on the crawl space floor is essential to the success of most crawl spaces. It would be nice if all the seams of the plastic were welded together and all the edges were caulked/sealed to the foundation. However this degree of tightness is not necessary. I have seen crawl spaces with floating vapor barriers and normal wood moisture content levels. Adequate passive ventilation will remove the amount of vapor that finds its way around the seams of the vapor retarder. The building codes dictate how much ventilation is to be installed around the perimeter of the crawl space.Crawl spaces that only allow for the installation of vents on one side, or two sides, may require a means of moving air through areas of poor circulation. This can be accomplished with vents at the open side that are ducted to the poorly vented areas. We then install a power vent fan in the duct to move the air mechanically. Crawl Space Power Vent It is unusual to see crawl spaces that need mechanical ventilation. It may be warranted in instances where enough passive ventilation cannot be installed. You certainly cannot fix a moisture issue in a normally vented crawl space with power ventilation. You first must address the moisture issue.The purpose of crawl space vents is not to lower moisture levels created by flooding and plumbing leaks. The purpose of venting is to deal with minor amounts of soil moisture vapor and to lower humidity that builds up seasonally.We must understand the science of Northwest crawl space moisture.On a recent inspection there was a power vent installed. Operation of the fan was based on crawl space temperature. It was set to run at 50°F. It was running at the time of inspection. The unit’s built-in sensor shuts the unit off at 40°F. This particular system operated under the assumption that the higher the temperature, the more the fan needed to run. This is exactly opposite the science.In the summer we have moderate relative humidity and higher temperature than we do in winter. In winter, we have very high humidity with lower temperature. 70°F at 65% humidity would be normal in summer, while 37°F at 80% humidity would be normal in winter. While humidity in summer is lower than in winter, the “actual amount” of moisture in the air is much higher in summer. Warm air can contain more moisture.In summer, when that warm moist air enters the crawl space, it mixes with the warm wet crawl space air to effectively raise humidity levels in the space as it passes through. This elevated humidity in turn raises wood moisture content of the crawl space framing.In winter, the air outside the crawl space has very high humidity but at low temperature. When we bring that wet cold air into the crawl space, it mixes with the warm moist crawl space air and effectively lowers the humidity as the air passes out of the space. Wood moisture content of the crawl space framing lowers as humidity drops.Crawl space wood moisture content goes up and down with the seasons.If we do not recognize this, plan for it and build for it–bad things are likely to happen. A few of those “bad things” might be mold, rot and wood destroying insects. ANOBIID BEETLES: When we do not control moisture levels in the crawl space, it becomes vulnerable to wood boring Anobiid Beetles. This is true even if there are no other uncontrolled moisture sources. Anobiid Beetles prefer wood moisture content between 13% and 18% so it is important to keep wood moisture content below 13% in the summer. A properly vented crawl space can do that. When I find moisture levels around 13% in summer, I generally do not worry about it as much because I know moisture levels will drop below that in winter. If I find moisture levels at 13% in winter, it is more of a concern because wood moisture content will be higher in summer. This is when the crawl space is vulnerable to infestation by Anobiid Beetles. Moisture levels must be brought under control.Anobiid Beetle exit holesSome climates that are dry in the winter close their crawl space vents in the winter. Closing vents in winter in the Northwest would result in increasing moisture levels in the space year round. Wood moisture content will increase if the power vent is allowed to run all summer. In the winter, when it is colder, the fan will shut down. We will not lower the levels that built up in summer–levels that increased more than normal because of the fan. If you have a situation where power venting is necessary, the fan should run in winter and not in summer. A good vapor retarder on the crawl space floor and repairs to all bulk water issues is assumed.There are vendors in the Northwest that would have consumers believe that no crawl space can be successfully vented. This likely has more to support product sales than science.Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle and the Great Northwest* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

When the cat wants out, the cat wants out!

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Sat, 18 May 2019 05:40:07 -0700

I would never try to escapeInspectors frequently have to deal with pets left at home at the time of inspection. I really appreciate it when they are either gone or corralled somewhere in the house. On a recent inspection the agent had warned me the cat would try to escape and sure enough, as soon at the door opened a crack the cat launched itself at the daylight. I have seen lots of pets that wanted out, but this one was SERIOUS about it. The cat was shooed away from the door and we all got inside. The inspection went without event except for one short term escape accomplished by the cat. At the end of the inspection, the agents all left and the inspection of the exterior continued. This is not my normal protocol but this was a large apartment building and we saved the exterior for last. The cat’s unit was on the 3rd floor, end unit. The walkway ended at the entryway door and the bedroom window was located just past the end of the walkway guard railing. As I approached the end of the walkway the cat launched itself onto the window screen and started clawing at the screen with a vengeance.The damaged screenThe screen came undone along the edge and was ripped open vertically. I tried to push the cat off the screen and into the room but the cat was having none of that and just clung and scratched at the screen even harder. Eventually I was able to reach between the cat and the screen and pull the window shut– successfully bumping kitty off the screen and into the room. The cat was not aware of it, but I probably kept it from using up one of its nine lives by saving it from a 3 story fall to the concrete below.But I want OUT!I called the listing agent to let the cat’s owner know about the damaged screen and that the window was no longer adequate to prevent escape of the beast. Sometimes cats just want out. Please don’t leave your pets for the inspector to deal with. Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Carbon Monoxide and Your Oven

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Mon, 06 May 2019 09:34:40 -0700

It may not be the Turkey that makes you sleepy. Carbon monoxide from an electric ovenCooking the turkey for hours can introduce considerable amounts of carbon monoxide to the home during the cooking process. Turkey has a component that has been attributed to that nap after dinner. Others hypothesize it is just eating too much that leads to sleepiness. It is also possible that exposure to Carbon Monoxide is a contributor.If carbon monoxide is a culprit, it is not only related to gas ovens.I am not sure how much CO is given off in an electric oven during the cooking of a turkey, but certainly some amount is likely. I will have to wait until Thanksgiving to get more information on that.Considerable is created when using the self-clean function of the oven.My own oven gives off between 28 and 3 PPM for the first 1-1/2 hours of the 3 hour cycle. After that time, whatever was creating the CO was successfully incinerated and CO levels dropped to normal.These amounts are perhaps not enough to kill you, but certainly enough to affect a person–especially infants that might be around.In the first 15 minutes of operation, my own oven gave off about 28 PPM, after about half an hour it settled down to 12 PPM and after about an hour it was down to 5 PPM. At the one-hour mark, ambient CO levels in the kitchen 10 feet away from the oven hovered around 3 PPM—with the exhaust fan on and a window open.I suspect the amount of CO will depend on what the oven is burning off in the cleaning mode, and levels likely could be considerably higher, and for longer periods of time, if the oven is not cleaned very often. I clean min probably twice a year. I may start doing it more often now.Of course your ordinary CO alarm is “not allowed” to alarm, per its listing, at these low levels, so most of the time you will have no idea why you need a nap.I think the lesson here is to clean your ovens regularly–don’t wait until you can see the bottom of the oven. You should also run the kitchen exhaust hood the whole cleaning cycle and keep a window open.Perhaps I will go take a nap, while I wait for the oven to finish.Charles Buell, real estate inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Do you have a Rheem Tankless Water Heater?

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Thu, 10 Jan 2019 08:49:15 -0800

If you have a Rheem tankless water heater or are thinking of getting one, you should be aware they have a little noticed requirement in their installation instructions it might be wise to think about or consider.Note the 3rd bullet point. While the 2nd specifies the unit must be properly grounded, it states the unit is NOT to be installed on circuits that require AFCI or GFCI protection.I found this troubling and baffling so I called Rheem technical support. I was informed that the unit WILL trip AFCI and GFCI devices. It is called nusiance tripping, and periodically having to reset the breaker is not desirable. I specifically asked what a customer should do that wants to install a unit where AFCI and/or GFCI protection was required, and was told, "find another location to install it."Now this is problematic, as in most jurisdictions that have adopted recent electrical codes, there are very few such locations any longer. Almost all locations where one would want to locate one of these units now falls under either AFCI or GFCI protection---and sometimes both.So outdoors is out. The garage is out. The basement is out. This leaves the attic.Of course the attic is problematic for other reasons. Leaks, attic temperatures that might necessitate installation of tempering valves as the water lines heat above 120 degrees F. I have not yet found another tankless manufacturer that has this issue and I would be surprised if Rheem is not working on a solution to this problem.With coming code changes, I suspect the receptacles in even the attic will require either/and/or AFCI / GFCI protection. This is just the way the codes have been moving---are moving.Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Grandfather gets Grandfathered

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 08:15:37 -0700

Once-upon-a-time, grandpa was working on a junction box in the basement when he came in contact with the neutral of a multi-wire circuit for the dishwasher/disposal. He had shut the circuit down but because there was no handle tie–the neutral was still energized.He got such a shock he fell off the ladder and broke his leg—already compromised by long term lead exposure.There was no way he was going to make it up the stairs, so he thought if he could crawl to the basement bedroom he would be able to get out the window. However, the window was too high off the floor and way too small to fit through. It was not an option.By now it was getting dark and he was beginning to panic.The stairs loomed like a mountain in front of him, dark and ominous. There was no light switch to light up the stairs and he might not have been able to figure out a way to turn it on anyway. The missing handrail would also be of no help. So, he began the long painful slide up the stairs dragging his sorry leg behind him.Fighting all the way, to avoid sliding back down the too steep stairs, he finally got to the top. That is when he realized he left his keys on the basement workbench. He remembered it being a bad idea when he set them down.Without his keys he could not unlock the keyed deadbolt. It would have been excruciating to reach anyway, but after the stairs he figured he could have managed.He thought about the back door but calling for help from there would have been useless. It had to be the front door.He thought about the phone hanging on the kitchen wall 5 feet off the floor, but he had already ruled out being able to reach that.He lay there listening to himself wheeze, mustering all the common sense he could. He likely later would trade that for good sense instead.He decided his only option was to break the very large plate glass panel next to the door to call for help.He lifted the heavy cast iron Cherub door stop and smashed the glass with one painful blow. The non-safety-glass panel shattered into large guillotine shaped pieces that swooshed down slicing off poor grandpa’s hand.He bled to death right there.Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Cat Scratch Fever (Pre-listing inspections)

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Fri, 01 Jun 2018 06:51:55 -0700

There is a recent move for sellers to not only have pre-listing inspections done, but to use the pre-listing inspection report as a means of promoting the sale of the house. This includes, in some cases, the sale of that report to prospective buyers for a small fee. This helps the seller recoup the cost of the pre-listing inspection and maybe even make some money on it.Other approaches amount to the inspector doing the inspection for free and the payments from prospective buyers goes to the inspector.In my opinion these models, and other similar ones, are fraught with problems.Despite this, there are so many good reasons to get Pre-Listing Inspection done on your home when you are planning to sell your home.The reasons most sellers are discouraged from having pre-listing inspections done, has to do with “disclosure” issues.Once the cat is out of the bag, they do not go back in quietly or safely.It does not seem to matter that sooner or later the seller is going to get scratched by the cat, but the thinking is that there is the “possibility” or “hope” the buyer’s inspector will not find the cat and the seller can ride off into the sunset financially better off.I think it is better for any possible cats to be found beforehand, so that they can be properly de-clawed, and the home can be improved in the areas that might prevent a sale—or narrow the field of potential buyers.This is a really good idea if the entire house has been used as a climbing pole and litter box.There is always a buyer for any house—but are we really thinking about selling it to someone that is just going to tear it down? That will likely make you the least amount of money—but then again it might be accurate.A pre-listing inspection can be meaningful in starting the conversation about what the house is REALLY worth—perhaps the seller has unrealistic expectations that need to be brought into perspective.Perhaps the cat just needs to be put out of its misery—or merely petted nicely.As compelling as the idea of pre-listing inspections might be to a seller, they should be of zero interest to a buyer, other than to maybe give them a clue as to whether they want to make an offer. This makes even more sense in a really hot market where there are going to be a lot of offers.They should NEVER be a substitute for their own due diligence.There are questions as to who owns responsibility for the report and its content once the report is sold. Since the inspector has a contract with the seller and not the buyer, the buyer certainly cannot “rely” on that report for anything.This would seem to add potential liability on the seller–or whoever is selling the report that is not likely even a home inspector.Sure the “fine print” will say that the pre-listing inspection is not a substitute for a buyer’s due diligence,but there is a real danger the consumer will not know these reports do not satisfy their due diligence. Under the pressure and the heat of the moment, and without reading the fine print or any encouragement to read the fine print, the buyer can make one of the bigger mistakes of their life. Is it in the vested interest of the agents and seller to communicate clearly that the pre-listing inspection does not satisfy the buyer’s due diligence?I caution any buyer, to not rely on these pre-listing inspections solely to make their decision. If the report is inaccurate or incomplete and you “rely” on that information there will likely be no recourse because you do not have a contract with the inspector that did the report. Most reports go out with very specific expiration dates and who can rely on them. The further these reports get from who they were done for the less value they have.There will be no way to put the cat back in the bag—and there may not be bandages enough if you try.By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Where oh where did the google juice go?

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Thu, 05 Apr 2018 10:59:28 -0700

I was working through some old posts today and I thought I would copy and paste some snippets of the posts into Google to see if these were posts I had already done on my own website.Post after post returned zero results in Google. Occasionally the results would show up in posts sent to my AR outside blog---but not ActiveRain itself.Anyone have any idea what I am missing? This always used to work very well.Does google merely know it is me looking for my own stuff?Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Is There Really a Real Estate Agent / Home Inspector Conspiracy?

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Sun, 04 Mar 2018 06:00:33 -0800

Is there actually a conspiracy or just a huge misunderstanding? Listening to agents we get one perspective, listening to inspectors we get another, and listening to clients we get yet another. It seems all parties to the transaction act as if there is some established “standard” that home inspectors should be following, and if they would only do that everything would flow smoothly to closing and everyone would be happy. The old tired arguments of home inspectors being deal killers, or in some way preventing the sale from moving forward because of what they found, or the way they communicated what they found, somehow killed deals has likely run its course. The reality is that all parties share the blame for how our various “professions” have turned out. Whether it was the “tone” of the inspector’s voice, or what he or she specifically said, that lead to the loss of “perspective,” it was still the inspector’s fault in the eyes of the agent and sometimes even the eyes of the consumer. This speaks to ineffective or inadequate research on the part of the consumer and ineffective or inadequate setting of expectations on the part of the agent and the inspector. Here is one common phrase, “It has been that way for 100 years and nobody has died.” Another good one is an agent not wanting me to call a room a bedroom because there is no closet, when nothing in the building codes require a closet. This would warrant an informational comment, not a call for repairs. And, what about the agent that thinks some cosmetic issue should be included in the report while actual issues like emergency escape and rescue from old house windows should be “soft pedaled” –because of silly notions like “grandfathering?” Grandfather is dead! He would have wanted to have a home that was safe for his kids too. How do we define “perspective?” It is thrown about as if it was “common knowledge” that can be simply glossed over to move on to the rest of the argument. The reality is, I seriously doubt anyone involved in the transaction can readily define “perspective” beyond their own narrow view. When there is no established definition, and someone else has a different perspective, there is bound to be considerable angst and finger pointing when the transaction falls apart. I by no means intend to let home inspectors off the hook on this either. Many are under-trained, say stupid things about easy obvious conditions and even communicate as if the sky is falling over these “findings.” But let’s back up a bit and look at what inspectors have historically been hired to do at a home inspection and why agents even tolerate them as part of the transaction at all. How the heck did home inspectors even become a necessary evil? Home inspections allow the agents to separate themselves from the liability of all the stuff they do not understand about houses. Things that could come back to haunt them later. What a cool idea! Get an inspection, and then be able to relax a bit about that giant crack in the foundation they might have otherwise sold to their equally clueless client–a client that could end up p.o.’d enough about the crack to look for compensation. Of course, there has always been this unjustified assumption that home inspectors know what they are doing. Some do, and some don’t. Just like agents, some do, and some don’t. So how do we get home inspectors to a place of “knowing-what-they-are-doing?” We create a plethora of mediocre training programs that crank out “licensed, qualified and certified” home inspectors in 1 and 2-week courses. We even create state licensing laws that set minimum standards for the schools to follow to ensure that home inspectors starting out have some minimum level of competency. We have home inspector associations that fight in public about who is better when none of them are good enough. Is any of this adequate? Certainly not. This is the elephant in the room, it CANNOT BE DONE, and most inspectors starting out are expected to learn on the job. It results in huge numbers of inspectors failing before they even get started. Some sort of apprenticeship type program could fix this, something like what most “real professions” have. In all of this, the consumer is likely to suffer the most. Right from the get-go we are setting the stage for a great deal of difference in “perspective.” The agents are not getting what they are expecting. The consumer is not getting what they are expecting. The inspector is not getting what they are expecting. How each party defines what they “expect” will run the gamut from what they are told by each other as well as what they see on the internet or from friends. It will sometimes even be driven by how hungry they are. The agent tends to see the home inspector as a facilitator of the real estate transaction and training and education of home inspectors is designed to support this. Home inspector standards of practice are even designed to support this notion. Unfortunately, this does not often bode well for the consumer. The home inspector has a huge opportunity to be of service to their clients above and beyond the simple job of facilitating a real estate transaction. In my opinion home inspectors should distance themselves from the very notion that they are in any way supposed to “facilitate a real estate transaction.” This likely gets to the core of complaints I hear from agents about home inspectors not playing the game properly. These inspectors are only interested in their client and not so much in that closing off in the distance. These can never really be reconciled between agent and inspector but it sure can result in happy clients. Given there is no apparent path to sort out any of this, leaves us with a guarantee for the dissatisfaction of all parties. There are agents also that suffer from lack of training and may be so hungry they take the process in directions not benefiting the client. It is highly likely agents kill more deals because they are involved in far more aspects of the transaction. Short contingency periods are perhaps the most common tool used to control the transaction and actually can result in many of the problems associated with poor inspections because the better inspectors will be too busy to meet the short contingency period. The result is the agent recommending inspectors that are new and perhaps less competent. There is this very misguided perception that all home inspectors are equal while at the same time many are being perceived as inadequate. Is either actually true? Let’s take for example a 1910 house the agent has counseled their client to make an offer on. The client calls the inspector and sets up the inspection. They meet at the agreed upon time to do the inspection. One of the first thing the client says to the inspector is, “If you see anything that looks like lead paint or asbestos please let us know, as we really do not want to buy a house with either.” WHAT? SAY WHAT?!! How the heck did the process ever get as far as an inspection? Why did the client not have this conversation already with their agent? Does not every agent know that pretty much all houses built in 1910 are going to have some amount of lead or asbestos? Why is the agent even showing them houses from this time period? The best agents obviously could care less about whether the deal proceeds. Wouldn’t that be nice? Inspectors should not care either, but which makes the agent happier? Which will likely result in more referrals from that agent? Is it any wonder inspectors are perceived as being in bed with agents—Sleeping with Agents? BUT: when the deal falls apart and there is someone to blame you can bet the blaming will happen anyway. It seems “not caring” whether the deal moves forward has more to do with the assumption that everyone has performed in accordance with the agent’s expectations—with the agent’s perceptions. Somehow this perception seems sacrosanct because they are the one that is not getting paid. The home inspector obviously collects his peanuts. Here is the bottom line. HOME INSPECTORS CANNOT AFFORD to care one hoot what the expectations or perceptions of the agent. Harsh I know. The idea the inspector must understand the needs and wants of the agent is absurd. How much do agents understand the requirements of the inspector? They are two very different jobs. The inspector is taking on the liability and responsibility for all that technical crap about houses that the agent chose to give up. As near as I can tell they do not want it back. I cannot remember the last time when an engineer had to be called in to sort out some structural engineer and they got blamed for ruining the deal. The reason for this is they are perceived as professionals and home inspectors are not. This obviously must change and there is no mechanism currently for home inspectors to cross that chasm. Agents have their own chasms to bridge as well. Following this thought, the inspector cannot be involved in whether the homeowner can afford or not afford the house—including whether they can afford the cost to repair any issues that are found. The house and its issues are just the house and its issues. Period. Some future homeowners are “renters” and should probably stay renters–especially unhandy people buying at the low end of the market. Some agents say home inspectors think buyers are entitled to a perfect house. This is of course preposterous, but the fallacy that everyone should own a home is equally preposterous. We must tackle this question from multiple angles because of the fact way too many home inspectors, both new and old, are grossly incompetent to do what is asked of them. There is a tendency to fault the newer inspectors, but the reality is that newer inspectors have a much higher likelihood of being better trained than the older inspectors were when they started. They also started at a time when almost nothing was expected of them. More experienced inspectors have merely survived the self-teaching process and were lucky enough to not get anyone killed in the process. Luck should not be part of the picture, but it unfortunately is. Lack of training and experience should not be part of the picture either, but it unfortunately is. I have heard agents argue some inspectors kill deals because they can then get another inspection from that same client. Lack of ethics is a problem in both “professions” and I suspect the market place weeds these sort of agents and inspectors out. None of this kind of argument brings the “perceptions” of any of the parties any closer to alignment—it is just one more separator and is counterproductive. So far, we have not talked much about the consumer. Is that not strange? After all they are the reason agents and inspectors both have jobs to begin with. Business models, whether agent or inspector, should be about taking care of the client. If either is starving to death and “invested” in outcomes, whether it is getting a pay check, securing future referrals, meeting numbers goals–whatever—IT IS BAD FOR THE CONSUMER. So, inspectors must figure out how to get work on their own and not rely on agents. This is obvious. This does not mean they cannot work together–they just cannot be “partners” in bed together to get things done. It should be just as common for our clients to ask if we know any good agents as it is now common for clients to ask their agent if they know any good home inspectors. As an inspector, I make it very clear I work for the client regardless of how grateful I might be for the agent’s referral. That referral can never have anything to do with my performance for my client. I know there are home inspectors that are just arrogant donkeys (euphemism for something else), and that of course is just as unacceptable as a micromanaging agent that attempts to “explain” the defects found by the inspector in their own language–sometimes to soften what probably does not warrant softening. Another huge issue that I have experienced with agents is how they take the recommendations of the inspector and “rewrite” those recommendations in their own words. They have no license or training to perform the duties of a home inspector and should never alter one word (or even a comma) of the recommendation. If they do, they then own that recommendation and may very well be in violation of licensing laws–even their own. Agents talk about it not being an issue if the inspector finds things wrong, it is more about “how” the inspector talks about those issues that is the problem (the way, or tone of delivery of the information). I have never been able to get an agent to provide the definition of “how” or what that “delivery” is supposed to “look like.” It is sort of like, “I cannot define it or describe it, but I know it when I see it.” Is that not “convenient?” What can the inspector possibly learn from that? Nothing. The inspector cannot afford to even be in a place where they are attempting to figure out what will keep an agent happy, and likely most clients appreciate this about their inspector. Every home inspector has experienced how what worked one day did not work the next. The only difference in the “how” or the “delivery” was that the deal either went forward or did not. All the home inspector should care about is that the client is happy with what the inspector has done. That right there is also what the agent should probably like as well. If the two can align, then that is also OK. Solutions to all of this are difficult, but I do know that agents need more training, home inspectors need more training and consumers need to learn how to demand more of both. By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

The Range Hood Exhaust Should Not Be an Air Intake

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Sat, 13 Jan 2018 12:02:12 -0800

Modern tight houses can easily become depressurized when exhaust fans are turned on. What this means is there is no place for the air to come into the home to replace the air that is trying to leave.If there are gaps around door weather-stripping, or gaps around window sashes or similar locations, the air will come into the home at these locations. Sometimes even chimneys might be the path for this air. If we operate and exhaust fan in a bathroom the house becomes depressurized, or an area of “lower pressure.” Areas of higher pressure will tend to make balance with areas of lower pressure, so the air outside the building literally “pushes” its way into the area of lower pressure.Most houses are not tight enough for the air to not find its way in somewhere, and general infiltration was once allowed to be the source of this air replacement.This small condo unit was too tight for general infiltration to be the source of make-up air, as was evidenced by its finding a path through the range hood exhaust.Most range hoods have a back-draft damper in them, but there should also be one in the cap at the exterior of the building as well. You can see in this picture there is no damper—but there is a screen.Exhaust fan vent termination with no back-draft damper With two bathroom exhaust fans and the laundry exhaust fan running, the purple/violet colors of the thermal image of the chase and microwave/hood shows cold air cooling the chase and the area around the microwave. The screen at the exterior cap location did hold a tissue paper to show that indeed air was pushing its way through the microwave/hood.So, let’s say we “fix” the cap at the exterior with a proper back-draft damper. Where will replacement air come from? General infiltration may still be adequate, it is just easier coming from where it is now. If it is not adequate, the functionality of the exhaust fans will be reduced. In other words, they will make noise but not exhaust enough air from the room. It is like turning a 100-cfm fan into a 50-cfm fan.For exhaust fans to do their job, replacement air is necessary and is required by modern codes when houses get to a certain point of air-tightness. This one may be at that point, even though it is an older home in that respect.Some “positive” means of allowing exterior air to enter the home may be indicated if exhaust fans do not function properly after the exterior cap is repaired and its back-draft damper installed. By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Have a great holidays and a great new year.

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Sun, 24 Dec 2017 14:16:20 -0800

Today marks my 10th year fooling around on ActiveRain, and admittedly I am not as active a participant as I was in the past or would like to be in the future. May you all have a happy holidays and a great new year. Who the heck can believe it is 2018 already---weren't we all just the other day worried about Y2K?Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Are your clients alive and kicking?

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Thu, 23 Nov 2017 06:22:09 -0800

Most of us can remember the movie “Vacation,” where Chevy Chase is much more interested in getting to Wally World than almost anything else along the way, as they drive across country. The scene where he spends less than 5 seconds taking in the Grand Canyon is epic.Home inspections can be a bit like this scene from vacation.Inspectors are so interested in getting to “Wally World” they minimize the importance of what happens along the way–ever ready to give up 5 seconds (or less) to any given scene—and then “move on.”What “moving on” is often more about is, the inspector being concerned about moving on to the next inspection—the next stop on his way to Wally World (his own bank account). The inspector has simply lost touch with the client’s Wally World.Without the “process” along the way, the client is left like grandma on the roof of the car and no longer with us by the time we get to our destination.Inspectors can do so much more, but it takes time, knowledge and willingness.When the inspector finds an issue, they can describe thoroughly what is going on, what it means to the big picture, what should be done about the problem and even who should make the repairs.Sometimes this means the inspector will need to do research off site to provide the best level of information for the client. Researching manufacturer’s requirements, code requirements or other sources of “best practice” is often necessary with this approach.The more experienced inspectors will even be able to describe possible options as to what those repairs might look like. This can help put things in perspective for the buyer. Otherwise the client might not grasp either how inconsequential the issue is or how serious the issue is. They may just conclude the issue is serious, triggering a flight and fight response. Knowledge is power and freedom.This approach takes seeing their client as what is most important, so that ultimately when they do get to their destination, the client has the information and ammunition they need to proceed in a meaningful way.And, they are still alive and kicking! Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Is your home really a house of horrors?

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Sun, 05 Nov 2017 10:27:23 -0800

Home inspectors have a lot of fun sharing house horror pictures that show how poorly things get installed in homes and “fixed” in homes, but I am concerned with an over emphasis on defect recognition in inspection training. It can leave inspectors unable to truly communicate what is actually going on and therefore inhibit recommendations that may be necessary. Ultimately it leads us further down the road to mediocrity. The question is: Can students be better trained by showing them thousands of examples of defects or by teaching them how things are installed correctly, and why things should be installed a particular way? Or perhaps a combination of all three?A home inspector could see thousands of wrong installations of something and someone will always come up with some installation of that component they have never seen before. If the inspector is trained on the proper installation of components in the home, the defects make themselves visible.No cornucopia of defects can show a person the correct way to do it.Proof of what I say (for those of us that follow the home inspector forums), is, every day someone posts “Is this wrong?” type pictures. Now if they knew how the item should be installed, knew the codes or MFG instructions about how the item should be installed, knew a bit of the science of how things work, there never would have been a question in the first place.Inspectors must also have a good grasp of the “history” of requirements as well. Codes change, manufacturer’s instructions change, and new products come on line all the time. Are we seriously going to wait until defects with these products get added to the mountain?I think setting up demonstrations of some conditions can be useful, but attempts at “building-the-mountain” of possible defects just supports the myth that learning every defect is somehow more important than learning the hows and whys. Add to that the shear impossibility of doing such a thing. Entertaining inspectors is not the same as teaching inspectors. Where Snake Oil comes from The home inspector does not even have to find all the issues, as long as he or she adequately communicates the house condition to the the client.There is one thing that teaching the "hows" and "whys" cannot really deal with and that is "product defects." For this we must rely on experience and ongoing involvement with our peers--by not living under logs where we do not get wind of information about such issues. While we hide under our log, our peers are most certainly sitting together on the log figuring out how to deal with these issues. Knowledge is power.If all we did is study the codes and manufacturer installation instructions we would not be awake to older LP Siding, Polybutylene piping, and a host of recalls. So these are things we must embrace as well.Fortunately they are a very small hill however compared to the mountain of other information we must embrace.Because home inspectors are under the illusion they can learn all the possible defects, they will never come to an understanding of how the component was supposed to be installed in the first place.It is interesting to me that learning a mountain of defects is a larger hurtle than learning the hows and whys and yet we continue to choose the bigger mountain. I think it is the sheer pleasure derived from looking at wacko installations that encourages this.Some of the blame for why inspectors are taught to learn this way, goes to the home inspection training programs around the country. A lot of these programs are geared too much to teaching what inspectors will find wrong in the field. There is not so much attention paid to the science of houses, or the proper installation of components, whether it is how it relates to manufacturers requirements or the code requirements of component installation.This leads to the erroneous notion that the best inspectors are ones that come from the trades--this does not have to be the case and often is not the case. While they may have a better working knowledge of their particular "component" of the house it still does not mean they are going to have a clue about many of the others.However, the more an inspector can embrace an understanding of “How Things Work,” and “Manufacturer’s Installation Instructions, and the “Building Codes, very little actual teaching of defects is necessary—the defects simply speak out loud and clear for themselves.We have all heard the statement “We are not code inspectors,” which reinforces this approach. If you want to routinely have egg on your face, ignore the codes and manufacturer’s requirements. Oh, and also, crawl back under that log.Did you guys hear there is something fishy in the water?No repertoire of horrors can ever teach a person how something should be installed or constructed.They are fun—not much more.By Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Wishy-Washy Inspection Report Writing

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Tue, 17 Oct 2017 11:12:28 -0700

Most of the time, in report writing, it is advisable to be as clear and to the point as possible.When reporting on issues discovered in the home, we want to describe what the issue is, what the consequences will be if nothing is done, and what repairs should be made and who should make the repairs. Most of the time this is not difficult for an inspector, and the more experienced the inspector is, the number of times this is not the case goes down.Sometimes however, it simply is not possible to “know” with any degree of certainty what is “actually” going on, or what the “actual” consequences will be.An all too common example of this is moisture around toilets. How can the inspector determine this? Well obviously if the area is visible from a crawl space and the floor is all wet, the written narrative is pretty easy and straightforward. But let’s say it is a second floor bathroom with no access under the toilet. Now if the inspector checks around the toilet with a moisture mete, they notice what appears to be moisture under the floor covering, can the inspector categorically state there is moisture under the floor?They certainly should not conclude there “is” moisture under the floor without other forms of confirmation. Some types of floor coverings and/or lack of temperature differential will prevent even thermal imaging to be of use--or at least to a high level of confidence.Moisture meters are vulnerable to “false positives” as well. If salts are present around the toilet, this could confuse the moisture meter. Houses with boys can often have this issue. Cleaning the floor can often eliminate this variable.I routinely hear of home inspectors stating something like: “Moisture was noted around the toilet as indicated by moisture meter. I recommend repairs by a licensed plumber.” The plumber subsequently shows up and finds nothing wrong with the seal when the toilet is removed and no indication of moisture under the toilet.There are two big problems with the inspector’s statement. Just because the moisture meter says there is moisture does not mean there “is moisture,” and repairs may not be necessary.So the inspector has a problem.How do we communicate this finding to the client? All we can do is comment something like this: “A moisture meter was used to check for moisture in the floor around the toilet and it indicated the possibility of moisture. The only way to know for sure is to remove the toilet and check. False positives are possible and common. I recommend further evaluation by a licensed plumber and if any leaking is found I recommend that proper repairs be made as deemed necessary. Damage discovered may also involve other parties that might need to make repairs to the structures under the toilet. Hidden damage is common, but often times there is no damage. This is especially true when the toilet is in fact leaking, but moisture is confined between layers of floor coverings.”It may seem wishy-washy, but this is what is necessary to communicate an issue that cannot be “positively” confirmed in the context of the home inspection. Stating that there “is” moisture is not adequate and stating there “is not” moisture is not adequate. Sometimes the inspector MUST be wishy-washy.Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Nature's air conditioning

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Sat, 22 Jul 2017 07:17:49 -0700

How long have we been building houses? A lot longer than we have been air conditioning houses.Well we have certainly done things to keep warmer and dryer for thousands if not 100’s of thousands of years–but we have also done things to keep them cooler as well.As a designer/builder for most of my adult working life, I have marveled at how ignorant we are of how to accomplish keeping warm, dry and cool.We now have air conditioning systems that allow us to live in places where not too long ago it would have been considered uninhabitable–or at least inhospitable.We have long had the knowledge to mitigate the use of air conditioning to some degree and yet we simply choose to turn down the knob on the thermostat.Today I just want to talk about a few “passive” things that can be done to greatly decrease the use of actual mechanical air conditioners.First and most important is house design and orientation. Obviously if we build a house and make all the south facing walls floor-to-ceiling glass, with no roof overhangs, we can expect to find ourselves inside a solar heated oven. Just providing a roof overhang to prevent the sun from hitting the windows directly can go a long way to turn the oven down a bit. By eliminating ground and other surfaces that might reflect the sun’s rays into the home can also be an improvement. Even these Native Americans made an attempt at basic principlesOf course reducing the amount of glass itself will make the most difference because then the walls themselves can be better insulated. This brings us to the huge topic of insulation in general. There is nothing like highly effective insulation in the walls and ceilings to keep the heat out of the house. This is not as simple as it may seem because heat is always attempting to move to cold and make balance. When it is 95 degrees outside, all that hot air is just hungry to gobble up our pathetic little bubble of coolness. So our air conditioners have to work their butts off to maintain that bubble of coolness.While today I do not want to go into how I think houses should be built to eliminate the need for air conditioners altogether in many areas, I want to talk about ways we can deal with adverse conditions in our older homes in passive ways. While these things will not reduce your need for air conditioning in some areas it may greatly reduce the amount they may have to run. It may mean in some hot humid areas you might have to add a dehumidifier to make up for what the AC used to do.The short story in all of this is to insulate your house as much as practical and use good air sealing type insulation–anything longer and we are into the full fledged novel.One of the most important things you can do, if you live in an area where the nighttime temperature drops even 20 degrees between daytime and nighttime, is to change the air in the home and lower the thermal loading that has built up in the home during the day. The house is then closed up during the day to keep the nighttime cooling in and then the process simply repeats itself. In an average size house, even a simple window fan in a window on one side of the house and a window open on the opposite side of the house can accomplish this goal.I cannot stress the importance of roof overhangs to keep the sun out, but in older homes that is not likely going to be possible.In my own house, built in the early 30’s, the overhangs are insufficient to keep the south facing windows from overheating the house in the summer. So a simple thing I have done is to shade the windows with a grape arbor–the one plant now creates shading of most of my south facing windows and makes an amazing difference, and of course provides grapes in the fall.While we certainly do not get as hot as lots of areas of the country, my house certainly never needs any mechanical air conditioning. The attic has a ton of cellulose fiber insulation, the walls have minimal insulation limited by the 2×4 wall thickness, and we put a fan in an east window at night and open up a west window–on those occasional really hot days.Before the days of the grape arbor, we use to have to do the fan approach a lot more.If you have a house with a basement, you can open up a basement window (as the path to the upper fan in the window) and get the benefit of the cooler basement to improve the cooling of the interior space during the nighttime. Accessing the constant ground temperature is another thing that can have a huge impact on minimizing the mechanical cooling needs of the home.A huge number of homes across America could benefit from this passive approach to improving house comfort and energy efficiency.Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

They Buyer's Due Diligence

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Tue, 04 Jul 2017 06:23:57 -0700

There seems to be a general misconception among some home buyers that the hiring of a home inspector is the completion of their due diligence, when in many respects it is just the beginning—or at best just part of the process.The home inspector will expose the concerns, but often they will not be able to allay justifiable concerns related to those findings.The problems arise when the buyer assumes that the inspector’s findings are enough. They make their decision to move forward with the purchase based on the inspector’s findings without following through on the various recommendations the inspector has made.Admittedly, many of these things are probably of little consequence but others could result in the buyer taking possession with later regrets.For example, getting the sewer scoped. It can be a very big expense to deal with problems with the drain between the house and the city sewer, and yet many buyers do not follow through on their inspector’s recommendation to have the sewer scoped. Some inspectors encourage their clients to get it done during the time of the inspection and sort of kill two birds with one stone in terms of time.Other things that might need further evaluation outside the inspection include: property easements, clear title, neighbors, wood destroying insects, retaining walls/fences, trees, swimming pools, abandoned or used tanks (septic oil etc), wells, lead, asbestos, water quality testing, radon testing, conditions of the electrical system, conditions of the plumbing system, HVAC equipment issues, energy efficiency, indoor air quality, foundation/drainage issues, chimney issues, roof issues, window/cladding issues etc.Basically anything that requires further evaluation, because it is either outside the scope of the inspection or outside the inspector’s areas of expertise, should be followed through with in order to do ones due diligence, but many merely see the inspection as completing that regardless the recommendation for further evaluation.The bison in the china closet in all this is the enormous pressures present to “keep-the-ball-rolling” to closing. There simply is not enough time for a buyers to do their due diligence, so all parties to the transaction encourage seeing the property inspection as the final step in the process—the last big hurtle to vault over or limbo under.In a seller’s market a lot of the blame for accepting shorter and shorter due diligence comes right back to the buyer—and of course their agent who support the idea as the only way the buyer has a chance of getting the house. Being more or less forced into this arrangement, it is only natural the buyer would expect perhaps a bit more of their home inspector than any home inspector can deliver.It really is a no win situation for the buyer and they best find a home inspector that gets them as close as possible to all the pertinent information—and perhaps one that has the experience and is willing to guess a bit on their behalf.You know the client has unreasonable expectations of the inspector when the inevitable question arises, “Would you buy this house?” It is actually quite a reasonable question in light of the position the buyer has been placed, it just does not have an answer unfortunately.As a side note, and perhaps a topic for a post of its own, a buyer should never rely on an inspection report provided by a seller. Use it as information on top of an inspection you procure on your own, but do not rely on it for your own due diligence.Let the bison roam, and fix the yard afterwards.Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Why is your Attic Access smiling at you?

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Mon, 12 Jun 2017 15:51:33 -0700

People love to install pull down stairs as the means of attic access, Stairs tend to make the attic space more useful as one is not teetering on a step ladder to get things up and down.Before I go further in this discussion, I want to state that attics are for insulation–not storage or other purposes even though commonly done. There are numerous problems with using attic space for things other than insulation and this article is NOT about all of those things.At this time I only want to discuss the pull down stair attic access.As you can see by this infrared picture, the pull down stairs is staring right at us and gives away the problem.I am smiling because of how much I am costing you! The two beady white eyes are all that shows of the zipper seam of the insulating cover between the poor seal of the lid. This picture is what the lid looks like without the infrared.The foam zipper cover made to improve energy efficiency is a whopping R-3.8 at a cost of around $116.00 from the Big Orange Toolbox. Modern standards require that attic hatches be insulated to the same level as the rest of the attic. In other words R-38 to R-49. Some sort of thick foam cover would be necessary. And, of course with that much insulation in the attic any storage floor system gets quite complicated.This next picture is what the R-3.8 foam cover looks like with the infrared camera and with the stairs pulled down. As you can see, it represents little resistance to heat flow from the warm attic.This greatly increases energy consumption due to heat loss in the winter and heat gain in the summer.Like I started out at the beginning of this conversation, it is best to leave the attic to insulation–and find a better place for the Christmas decorations and stuff your kids will have to deal with when you are gone. Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Myths of fire-rated walls & doors between the garage & the house

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Fri, 12 May 2017 07:50:32 -0700

A common mistake that home inspectors make when inspecting single family residences is related to opinions stated about the requirements for separation between the home and the attached garage. Their comments often leave them “out on a limb” when repairs are called for and a builder or repair person informs them there are no “fire-rated” requirements.I should clarify, this article is based on 2015 IRC and may not be consistent in every regard with the codes amended or otherwise in your area.I routinely hear erroneous statements about compromised “fire-rated surfaces” between the house and the garage. Also common are statements declaring surfaces between the house and the garage are not “1 hr fire-rated,” or that the “1 hr fire-rated surfaces” are in some way compromised.The wall between the house and the garage–believe it or not–is NOT a fire-rated assembly and is referred to in the code as the “Dwelling-Garage Separation.”Meeting the “separation” requirements is really quite simple and minimal compared to what would be necessary in an actual “fire-rated assembly” (As would be required between multiple dwelling units like condos, townhouses and duplexes etc.)Typically, ½” drywall (or equivalent) is all that is necessary to meet the separation requirement. If there is living space above the garage, the ceiling would have to be 5/8” type “X” drywall (or equivalent). Again, this is not a “fire-rated assembly,” but merely what is required to meet the proper “separation” requirements.These wall and surface finishes have to have a flame-spread index not greater than 200, however wood frames and trim around doors and windows are excluded from this requirement.Duct-work inside the garage, or duct-work that runs through these fire-resistant surfaces must be constructed of minimum No. 26 gauge sheet steel or other approved material and shall not have openings into the garage. So this means no return air registers or heat supply registers inside the garage.Openings around other types of penetrations in the walls and ceilings (ductwork, pipes, wires, etc) must be filled with an approved material to resist the free passage of flame and products of combustion. There is nothing in the code, for single family residential construction, that prohibits plastic piping through these fire-resistant surfaces. This is another common incorrect call-out by home inspectors. The openings around them merely have to be properly sealed.Pull-down stairs in a garage ceiling would be required to meet the requirements of 1/2 drywall or equivalent, or have a 20 minute fire-rating.The door or doors placed in this “separation” are also frequently misunderstood and incorrectly reported on.For the door between the house and the garage, all that is necessary is to install a door that meets the “separation requirements” of the code. Of course this door can never lead to a bedroom.There is nothing that says it has to be a “fire-rated door,” as frequently reported by home inspectors. While this may seem confusing, if one looks at the code it becomes clearer. It also reveals the source of some of the confusion.To meet separation requirements, the door must be one of three types of doors: a solid wood door not less than 1-3/8 inches thick, a solid or honeycomb core steel doors not less than 1-3/8 inches thick, or a 20-minute fire-rated door, with a self-closing device. Another thing to note, is that a 1-3/4″ thick solid wood raised panel door would likely not comply because the minimum thickness at the recesses would likely be less than 1-3/8.”As a side note, that little comma after “door” in: “door, with a self-closing device,” is consistent with its pertaining to all three choices–not just the 20-minute type door. If it applied to only that type of door the comma should not be there.The first two types are fairly self explanatory but the inclusion of the third type has lead to a great deal of confusion because a door that is a “20-minute fire-rated door” leads one to think that the door in general, and thus the walls and ceiling, have to somehow be “fire-rated.”Also having a “fire-rating” (as all materials in the home do) does not make any of this a “fire-rated assembly.” It just means the fire-resistant surfaces are specified to be constructed of materials known to have known fire-resistant characteristics.For a door to achieve a 20-minute fire-rating it has to go through testing procedures by Underwriters Laboratories and then it receives its “UL listing” as a fire-rated assembly. All three types of doors will require weather-stripping/seals on all four edges of the door to prevent the passage of gases that may be drawn into the home, as well as meet energy efficiency standards.Hopefully this post will help clear up some of the confusion. Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

That time of year on Wednesday

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Wed, 26 Apr 2017 17:40:09 -0700

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Thermopane-in-My-Butt Windows

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Tue, 11 Apr 2017 15:22:48 -0700

This is a rant that has been simmering for a few years.However well intentioned, I think the whole notion of thermopane windows is misguided. When I started building houses in the mid 70’s the idea had really taken hold as people became interested in conserving energy and improving the comfort of their homes. It was not long before the requirements for insulating glass became codified with different requirements varying with climate.We are now more than 40 years past the time when I started building and most of the seals have failed on those windows. That is, except for the windows that were not sealed thermopane type. Many of the houses I built had Pella type windows with removable interior panels. Those windows are still performing exceptionally.I do not belief it can ever be economically justified–over the life of the house–to install thermopane windows when you factor in the cost of replacing all that glass in less than 30 years. This becomes even truer if the windows are triple-pane or have funny gasses pumped into them or reflective coatings applied to them.Some of the newer windows with the “Warm Edge Spacers” are known to fail in less than 15 years.I think it is time to revisit the whole business of insulating glass windows and see if the use of removable panel type insulating glass–or even old fashioned storm type windows might have some merit–or at least be an option. Throwing money at the fruit so far off the ground may not have proved to be the wisest path–and is rotting by the time we get to it.The amount of energy expended to create thermopane windows simply cannot be justified against how long they last. Well cared for windows should last indefinitely, whereas sealed unit, thermopane windows are a version of job security for the windows replacement industry.I installed thermopane windows in my kitchen about 18 years ago, and this year two of the panes failed.This is unacceptable in my opinion. The labor and materials to replace these units will easily cost more money and consume more energy than any imagined savings accrued over the 18 years. If the windows had been a removable glass panel type windows, they would have continued to keep on saving energy, eventually even paying for themselves over the life of the home—probably sooner.I would like feedback from anyone that can make a case for sealed unit, thermopane windows.Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Venting Crawl Spaces in the Maritime Northwest

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Fri, 31 Mar 2017 08:22:46 -0700

If you have a vented crawl space, and you live in the maritime Northwest, you do not want to even THINK about closing those vents in the winter.If I ask the average homeowner which season, winter or summer, will moisture levels be generally higher in their vented crawl space, most will say, Winter.This is logical and obvious.It is however, not true.We actually have to vent our crawl spaces in the wet cold winter in order to lower humidity levels that have built up during the summer.I know this sounds crazy, but that is the crazy thing about science---it functions by physics, not thinking.I set up a little demonstration with how this works.Let’s pretend for a moment my car is my crawl space. Now the temperatures would not be the same but the same principles would apply.As you can see, the windshield is all fogged over and the temperature is 66 degrees F and the humidity is almost 73%---I am obviously full of a lot of wet hot air to fog up my windshield. Watch what happens to the humidity as I open the window and let all that wet cold air into the car. The humidity lowers to 62.6%, the windshield clears, and the temperature barely changes at all. (The fact that it is a hair higher is just an indication the first pictures temp was probably slightly low.)This next picture shows the actual outdoor temperature and humidity. We took 57 degree air at almost 81% humidity and lowered the humidity inside the car. This is the magic of science.If anyone tells you, you should block your crawl space vents in the winter (and you live in the Maritime Northwest) to prevent all that wet air from getting into the crawl space, tell them they have no clue what they are talking about. Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

So WHAT if there is a little missing insulation?

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Fri, 24 Mar 2017 06:54:38 -0700

Sometimes it is the little things that get you.However, these little things can end up costing you a lot of money over time.At a recent inspection I had a house where the insulation details were not well thought out. Without going into a discussion about the “type” of insulation, lets just discuss in the simplest of terms how the system was working—or not working as the case might be. The following sketch shows how the walls are insulated up to the ceiling and then the roof plane itself is insulated. What got missed was the wall between the roof and the ceiling. This space above the ceiling is essentially “conditioned” space and the short wall between has to be insulated to have continuous insulation around the conditioned space.This next picture shows what that un-insulated area looks like with thermal imaging from the exterior. However this is a space between the second floor and the main floor ceiling.Going back to the original drawing, here is an exterior view of that un-insulated space—as seen by thermal imaging. The un-insulated areas appear warmer (the white-yellow areas)The same areas of the above picture as seen from the inside of the attic space with the un-insulated areas appearing “cooler” (the black areas).These areas will need to be well-insulated to prevent wasting of energy that increases both heating and cooling loads of the home. The fiberglass insulation should be encapsulated, and for more information about that: All Fiberglass Insulation Must be Encapsulated.Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

What are you looking at on Wordless Wednesday?

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Wed, 01 Feb 2017 09:40:10 -0800

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Stabbing Daisy in the Back

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Sun, 29 Jan 2017 10:30:36 -0800

Daisy chaining is the practice of running wires from receptacle to receptacles via either back-stabbing (sticking the wires in holes in the back of the receptacle—left of picture) or using the screws on the side of the receptacle (center of picture).(This could be switches as well but for now we will discuss receptacles.)This is a poor practice, especially the back-stabbing approach, as every connection can result in voltage drop such that by the time you get to the end of the circuit the voltage drop affects the function of whatever is plugged in.The side screw type daisy chain is not quite as problematic but with that method if something goes wrong with one receptacle it would affect any others downstream from the problem one.A better practice is to wire-nut the wires together in the box, and then run a pigtail to the receptacle (right side of picture)—doing this for the ground wire, the “white” (neutral) wire and the “black” (hot) wire (sometimes the colors vary for the hot conductor).The pigtail method is considered “best practice” but is obviously more labor intensive and therefor more expensive to have done.Better modern receptacles also have plates with screws where the wires insert without bending and are tightened behind plates under the screw–this should not be confused with back-stabbing.With back-stabbing there is a sharp upward sloping barb that prevents the wire from pulling out and this is the entire connection–the amount that sharp barb grabs onto the wire. This type of connection is especially problematic with aluminum wiring.So lets not stab poor Daisy in the back. Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board

Seeing the light on Wednesday

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Wed, 18 Jan 2017 09:00:10 -0800

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Do you know what your fireplace damper is doing tonight?

Charles Buell, Seattle Home Inspector (Charles Buell Inspections Inc.) — Sat, 14 Jan 2017 16:42:45 -0800

Tonight or during the day tomorrow for that matter.It has been cold the past few weeks in Seattle---well, cold for Seattle that is.Having spent considerable time in the Syracuse, New York area, I am qualified to discuss cold weather. Most Seattleites are not qualified.I was thinking about the cold of the Northeast and other cold areas of the country the other day, when I was looking at a fireplace with my Infrared Camera. The damper had been left open and there were not glass doors on it to keep the heat from going up the chimney.What was particularly noticeable about this chimney was the amount of cold air that was dumping into the basement---coming DOWN the chimney. We are all familiar with how much heat is lost up a chimney---especially when it is being used---making other parts of the house colder than before the fire was lit, but this is about what can happen to your home when you leave the damper open. The blue/purple/black is the surfaces of the fireplace and hearth being cooled by the air stream dumping out of the fireplace into the family room.Coupled with the stack-effect created by the three story house, air was being sucked down this three story chimney hard enough to hold a wind-sock straight out. Well not really, but it was pretty drafty and you would not hang out sitting on the hearth for very long.So the question is, for all of you living in semi-habitable parts of the country, those of you that know what actual cold weather is, do you know what your chimney damper is doing right now? If you don’t take care of your chimney damper, who will?Make your basement family room warm again---close that damper.Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Seattle Home Inspector WA State, Home Inspector Advisory Licensing Board