Inspecting log homes is a specialty in itself. In fact, there are specialists in that field. In our region of the northwest, even with mountains and woods there are still not that many of these homes. So such inspections ore only occasional things. A problem with logs is that the pests can love them, from various wood boring beetles to carpenter ants and so forth. On thing, in looking at and inspecting a log home, is to follow the water. If trying to track corruption they follow the money. In this case, follow the water. Logs look durable, tough, etc. But, fact is, when they start to go they become as soft as Styrofoam. The fact this one rests on a flat surface, and water can pool around it does not help. I was suspicious of the dark color, which can be a sign of decay. The ice pick is in about 7 inches. There were a few logs in this condition. This, fortunately, is just part of a handrail. This is the second time I have seen the home. First time, a year back, the decay was in cantilevered beams. They have repaired that but missed some of the other log issues.
Thanks for looking.
Steven L. Smith
Bellingham WA home inspector
In the Pacific Northwest, where we have so much rain, gutters are a pretty important part of a home. They control the rain and runoff water. Around here, when you see a house without gutters and downspouts there is almost always a big pile of mud under the eaves, caused by the falling water. Missing gutters is what we call a conducive condition. One construction method that has become common is to install gutters on dormers but to install gutters that have open ends. The gutters have a slight slope back and from there they drain onto the roof below. From a home inspector's standpoint, these are not our favorites. For one thing, they lead to heavy runoff on that area of the roof, and usually for quite a distance, so the runoff is hard on the surface of the shingles. Also, since they tend to be high, people are even less likely to clean them than other gutters. When that happens, an inspector usually finds something like in the photo below. When gutters are like this, they often overflow during a heavy rain. Also note the small section of trim wood behind the open end of the gutter. You can be sure that it does not appreciate the water.
A common problem in crawl spaces is the plastic vapor barrier being out of place or missing altogether or at least missing in some areas. The photo below is a crawl space that is very damp, as you can see. As a result of that the 
When a home inspector sees crawl space insulation that has fallen, such as this, it usually means one of a couple things. In this case, the crawl space is wet and the moisture has evaporated up into the insulation and it is heavy and no longer supported. The little metal rods that hold it in place cannot support the weight. Another time one might see insulation that looks like this is when rodents have been working it. In that case, often you will also see straw, sunflower seeds and things like that worked up into it. Obvious remedies are drying the crawl space or getting rid of the vermin.
When a home inspector sees tar around the chimney are the vent stacks, or roof vents, it usually means one of two things: The roof leaked there and this was a repair or that the person who did the roof was not a professional and trained roofer. A professional roofer might, on occasion, use tar more like glue -- putting it under a shingle to hold it down. That way UV cannot get to it. But the wide use of tar is discouraged. Sunlight kills it quickly and before long you have a rough surface, with penetrations, that might lead to water collecting and penetrating. Now, if someone gets up there every year and re-coats it, it might last for some time without a leak. But the heavy use of tar like in the photo below is, in itself, a concern.
Registration is now open for the 
Below is a photo of the main breaker at a condo. Inside a condo, people see an electric panel and assume that it is like the main panel inside a home. Usually that is not the case. At condos the panel inside is usually a distribution or sub-panel. The main breaker will be outside by all the meters for the various units. It is not hard to find, look for the meters and, beside them, there are usually a number of individual breakers -- as shown in the photo. Sometimes the sub-panel will have a dual breaker labeled as the main, but if there is the arrangement shown here, that is still NOT the main. The main is the first breaker which is outdoors. Because the main is outside, that means the panel inside requires a different wiring arrangement.
Metal roofs, over recent years, have developed a good reputation. There is a catch however. The metal roof that is generally considered to be high quality is the standing seam metal roof. This popular roof is durable and has a minimum of exposed screws or fasteners. That catch I described is that buyers hear "metal roof" and immediately think they are getting a roof that will last almost forever. Well, sorry to say, often they are wrong. A common metal roof to find, instead, is the corrugated metal roof. This is really not much different than the plastic or fiberglass corrugated roofs you see over decks or patios. Corrugated metal roofs, far as I can determine, were never really designed to be put on quality homes. They have a number of problems and people put them on because they are really cheap -- if labor intensive to install all the fasteners. They tend to rust for one thing, also the screws or nails that attach them to the home have neoprene washers underneath to seal against leaks. The washers deteriorate, and the nails work up, and then there is a leak situation. Below are photos of these roofs. Below that is a picture of the perfect, and intended use, of a corrugated metal roof. This last photo also lets you see that the owner, who has a modest life style, is very pleased with the corrugated metal roof. 
The photo below is something seen a lot when inspecting older homes. This is an old galvanized system of drain pipe that is now beyond its useful life. You can see the moisture around the threads and there was water on the vapor barrier -- a conducive condition. Whenever such pipes are seen, one has to look closely for leaks because any such pipes are old systems and that, alone, means they are suspect. Galvanized drains pipes, especially the horizontal runs, will often leak. Sometimes it is not even apparent at a glance at the pipe. At my own home, years back, I removed such a pipe from the kitchen sink, about a 15 foot run, and when I got it outside in the sunlight it was full of tiny pin holes and rust, lots and lots of rust. This is common with these old pipes. Cast iron pipe is in use in many older sewer systems and stacks as well. So far, it is my experience that the locations where cast iron is used seem to be holding up better than the galvanized runs. 
The state of Washington WSDA considers the carpenter ant to be the most "important" insect pest in the state. I kind of question the word "important" and think it might be better to just say the most "significant" insect pest. The carpenter ant is much misunderstood by the average person. For example, most people talk about them eating wood. Truth is, the carpenter ant does not eat wood. The ant is building in the wood -- being an insect carpenter. They tunnel in the wood to make galleries and will have an expel hole somewhere where they spit out the wood, so it is not in their galleries. They are chompin' and spittin'! From the standpoint of an inspector, this is helpful because at least there is something to see as we search for signs of this pest. Termites stay inside wood and, while there are signs to look for, they are much more concealed and private than the carpenter ants. The fact carpenter ants do not eat wood is another reason they are more likely to be seen. Since they get hungry they are often scoping out the house -- spotted in cupboards, sneaking in the dishwasher looking for sweets. The average homeowner, even if he or she does not realize the ants are working on the home, will still have a pest control operator take care of the roaming ants.For that reason, statistics I have seen show that, nationally, carpenter ants only do about half as much damage, dollar-wise, as the termites. Sometimes we will find carpenter ant frass and no apparent damage. Homeowners should keep an eye out for these ants. A few scouts outside the home are usually not a big deal but if you see them in any quantity walking around inside the home, pay closer attention. Below are a couple photos of some visible frass kicked out by carpenter ants at inspections I have done here in the northwest. Their frass, usually, contains not only the fine wood shavings but also little bits of insect parts. That helps identify the frass and is the remainder of food they have eaten, and discarded, and also the body parts of a few of their fallen comrades.
