Tuesday, November 18, 2014

The crazy things a home inspector finds



This first one is from a condo inspection.  The black hose attached to the PVC sink trap under the kitchen sink was for the washing machine.  Notice that it attaches after the trap.  Needless to say, while I was running the kitchen sink, I was smelling sewer gas from the washing machine at the other end of the kitchen.  Not the clean fresh scent I want from my clothes!


A crowded electrical panel with multiple mini breakers is a sign that it's time to replace the whole panel.  Not to mention, there were multiple other issues with this panel.  Inspecting the panel normally takes me about 5 minutes.  I spent more than that here just trying to figure out where everything was going.


I've mentioned it before, but if your inspector doesn't go into the attic, they could be missing a lot.  This cracked roof truss was not visible from the access hatch.


And while we're on attics, make sure the bathroom exhaust fans completely exit the building.  Close doesn't count, it just leads to mold.

A couple of the comments I got on this one were: mother-in-law's shower, and hot water for your coffee

This one was just plain scary and a head scratcher at the same time.  The Temperature-Pressure Relief Valve extension was plumbed correctly, until they added this nifty loop.  They worked hard to screw this one up.

This garage door self-destructed on me.  They tried to get me to pay for repairs, until I told them they needed to go after the person that installed the garage door opener.Turns out the homeowner installed the opener and modified the door so the arm would fit.


That's all for this edition, but stay tuned, there are plenty more where this came from.  Including Knob & Tube (hint, it runs through the whole house, not just the attic), more water heater plumbing fun, and a roof top pool the client didn't know they had!

Stay safe out there, and remember to hire the best home inspector you can find.  For more on our services, check out www.vhillc.com