I spoke a week back at a John L. Scott Real Estate class for new home-buyers. One well-intentioned student asked the realtor instructor if there was, financially, any justification to spend money for an inspection at a new property.
The realtor said a resounding "yes" and, when my time came, I further elaborated on that statement.
Here in the Pacific Northwest, I can think of a major reason to have an inspection at a new home. Sure, there are the run of the mill things -- insulation not installed, insulation packed around the B-vent, heat ducts that are not attached, plumbing vents that are not flashed or are plugged with caps so they do not breathe. Again, those are the minor, common, things.
The photo below shows one of those minor issues but, look closely at the picture and you will see a much bigger problem than a disconnected heat duct. This crawl space was full of water. This was, honestly, one of the dry spots. An estimate, of pooled water, put that quantity of water at over 700 gallons. Think about it, 700 plus gallons to evaporate up into the crawl space and the interior of the home.
This is a problem you really want to catch going in because, and I say this from experience, builders usually do not point out that problem to buyers. In fact, some builders downplay it. I had a client say that the builder told him "there is water there but it never gets high enough to get up on the structural wood or to lead to water intrusion through the floor -- not that much of a problem, being a crawl space and not a basement." Boy, that is really bad coaching, but the builder had a big financial stake in selling the property.
A few of the Washington State home inspectors have asked that I post, here at rain, the upcoming board and sub-committee meetings that are associated with the newly appointed home inspector licensing board. I am, along with David Pioli and Deb Wenneman, on the licensing sub-committee.
The first sub-committee for licensing is this coming week, September 4, in Olympia. The licensing committee will establish proof of acceptable classroom instruction; acceptable proof of field training; determine reciprocal standards to apply to those from other states; and the committee will outline general licensing procddures.
As with all board meetings, and sub-committee meetings, the public (which seems to mean mainly interested home inspectors) are welcome to attend. The official word from Olympia is below. Anyone who wishes to attend, space can be limited, should call Jerry McDonald at licensing. 360-664-6524
Dear Board Members:
We are having our meeting on the 4th of September at 9:30 at 2000 4th Ave W, Olympia.
Directions: South on I 5 Take Exit 104 which is Hwy 101 exit to heading North- Take the 2nd exit - turning right on Black Lake Blvd Stay on Black Lake Blvd - Going past the Mall and turn left on 4th Street Turn right into the parking lot. We are in the bluish-gray building - 2nd floor
If you have any questions please call me. 360-664-6524
For some reason certain events out of the past stick in the mind. Not sure why this one did, but it did. I remember being in Parkview Elementary, Bellingham, in fifth grade. This was pre-Beatles and the girls -- much more music fans than we boys who were into boxing and wrestling -- were debating the merits of their favorite musical groups. Even though I was not into music at the time, I was into boxing and wrestling too, I remember who the girls were wrapped up in musically speaking. That was then, but a year later musical tastes sure changed after the Beatles. In no particular order, the groups they liked best in 1963 are at the links below. Can you say heavy influence by folk music?
The ultimate answer as to which group was best is still Blowin' in the Wind.
This one might surprise you. The Kingston Trio?
There was a green movement even back then.
Now, if anybody cares what the boys were listening to, that is easy to answer. When we were not boxing and wresting, we were into macho music. Macho music like this one from the future Sausage King of the USA.
In the next year, the musical horizons shifted drastically. For a glimpse into that future, click here.
Integral gutters go by different names. Yankee gutters is probably the best known of the terms, although in my area I also hear them called Dutch gutters.
The photo below gives a good example of what they look like.
Unfortunately, this photo also shows a common problem with them -- all clogged. These gutters, often nothing more than a curl in the eave with tar paper as a membrane, can be real problems. At some installations, the gutter is right above the wall of the home -- not out at the edge like with a normal gutter. When they get full, or leak for any other reason, that leads to water going down into the soffit, the wall or adjacent structure. The photo below is structural damage caused by rot around an overflowing integral gutter, same property shown above.
I would like to say that this is uncommon. Problem is, I almost always find damage, in varying degrees, when I find integral gutters. They might be fine in areas with light rain but they sure are not ideal in the Pacific NorthWET. A common repair, that makes sense, is to modify the roof and put in standard gutters that still require cleaning, but they keep leakage and water farther away from key parts of the home.
This photo, and the topic, will get you thinking. I guarantee it. To get things going, setting the stage so to speak, please take a look at the high deck, balcony if you prefer -- top right side of the photo. It is way up there, where the air is thin.
If you were standing on that deck, I bet you would want to think that it was safe. Is that a reasonable assumption on my part, that you would want to think that a parachute is not in order? Usually, unless people have an obvious clue to the contrary, they assume that decks are safe.
This upper deck is of a cantilevered design. That means that joists, which are also a structural part of the home, extend out past the exterior wall and they support the deck. Sounds pretty solid and safe, right! Think again -- rain water gets on the joists and, over time, that causes rot or decay.
The photo above is one joist that is "supporting" that high deck. There were other joists holding it up, including the one behind this joist. Problem is that several of them are rotted too.
If this was a rarity, I would say so. I am afraid that it is not. It is a real worry and a huge safety concern. In my climate, around Bellingham and Whatcom County, I see this over and over again. When a deck is cantilevered it is not always easy to repair, especially if the joists end up rotted near the exterior wall. A fix might include having to go into the wall, or coming up with a totally different design.
Check your decks, or have a home inspector do it for you. The life you save might be your own.
In my party etiquette book, being the life of the party does not include spilling the guests into the yard 20 feet below.
This is not a political statement, it refers to plumbing.
When it comes to plumbing, I repeat, equality is not always good. Case in point -- I see this minor plumbing concern at bathtub/showers and at kitchen sinks. The problem is subtle and few people, other than inspectors or plumbers, seem to notice it. Here is the deal, inside a faucet assembly there is a diverter valve.
This valve moves up and down and has a simple and specific purpose. When the water is coming out the spout or the tap, then no water should be coming from the shower head or the hose sprayer at the sink. Let's reverse that. When the shower head is on, or the hose sprayer is being used, then the diverter should block any water that would come out of the tap or the tub spout.
The photo below, quite clearly, shows that the diverter is not functioning at this sink. In this case, equal is not good. Mr Valve, please choose one side or the other, not both. These diverter valves are normally easy to replace but having the tools to access the diverter can be a problem for some homeowners. A plumber can fix it no problem at all. Does this little and common problem have to be fixed? Well, no it does not! You will live for years even if it is ignored.
However, especially with the shower scenario, an awful lot of hot water and energy is wasted and runs down the drain, when both the shower head and the spout are running.
In this state, accessible is defined as having 12" clearance under beams and 18" under joists. This crawl space did not cut it. Post and block construction, no foundation around the perimeter of the home, is still quite common in my area. Now, I would not call it real common but maybe it is the case in 5% of houses -- all older ones.
A problem, I am finding with this construction, often has less to do with the state of the crawl space but more to do with lack of access to determine the condition of the crawl space. While some post and block foundations have aqmple access, the photo below is par for the course. Pulling these sticks of firewood back, reveals a small hole that a person can "peak" inside. Even if the hole was bigger, clearances are so low an inspector still could not crawl the area.
Again, in this state, accessible is defined as having 12" clearance under beams and 18" under joists. This crawl space did not even come close. All an inspector can do, in such a case, is to gtive it a valiant try. That entails putting the camera down there and doing a panorama of photos.
While not even approaching a real inspection, the photos reveal many problems -- no vapor barrier on soil, scrap lumber left all through the crawl space and wood to earth contact. An inspector then knows that there are a number of problems. In this state, despite knowing that basic information, the law says that the inspector must warn the client that lack of access impedes the inspection, is conducive to attracting or concealing wood destroying organisms, and that the crawl space should be made accessible and then given a real inspection by a qualified party.
While I guess I should give the builders credit for trying, one thing that always makes me cringe at a home inspection is when I find a homemade wood stove or fireplace insert. To begin with, in this day of air pollution worries, such a stove which has no engineering or research done on it at all is not likely to be efficient. Will it be safe? What are the safe clearances to flammables? That is hard to impossible to figure as well.
More often than not these homemade stoves or inserts consist of steel welded together by a hobbyist. Sometimes the design or modifications, to remedy unexpected problems, are down right frightening. In the photo below the builder decided that the unit was not receiving adequate combustion air. He put a blower outside under the soffit. A wall switch turns on a fan that blows air back through this ABS pipe (photos) to the inside of the stove.
You read that right --the pipe that is connected to the hot metal at the front of the stove is plastic ABS pipe, such as is used for drains and vents in plumbing. When an inspector sees this sort of thing, strong language must go in the report. An inspector should state that it is a non-conforming device, a safety issue and recommend a complete evaluation of the entire system, including the stove, combustion air, chimney, etc. This should be done before anyone uses the device and this evaluation must be performed by a licensed professional, such as a certified chimney sweep.
Raging fires and carbon monoxide are two issues a home inspector does not wish to, after the fact, be liable for. The builder might have confidence in his concoction but the inspector does not.
Being an old radio guy, I am acutely aware of an interesting anomaly with music that most people are probably not aware of. Since it has been about a month since I have written anything specifically for the Beatles Group, I will explain.
The top markets in the English speaking world, as far as popular music, are Great Britain and the United States (Canada too). Most of us, knowing that the USA loved the Beatles and the Stones and that the UK loved Motown and our top American bands, would think that those of us in the English speaking world all like the same tunes to the same degree.
That just is not true. Even many of the Beatles songs that were the big hits in the USA and Canada WERE NOT the hit sides in Great Britain. Often when a new single, or an album, came out different cuts would be released on opposite sides of the ocean. A new Beatles #1 in the USA, was often not the same song they were grooving to in Europe.
Many songs by artists,that were huge in the UK never made it here. There was a 60's group over in the UK -- Dave, Dee, Beaky, Mick and Tich. Ever hear of them? Probably not but Bend It was one of the biggest hits of the 1960's over there. Also, in the UK they had their own Elvis -- a guy named Cliff Richard. He never did anything much over here. And, of course, some popular groups here never scored in Great Britain either.
Now it is time to give you a glaring example of what I am talking about. I will state a fact that will surprise you. Fact: A song by Paul McCartney and Wings, that you never even heard in the USA, is the biggest selling non-charity single in the history of the UK. This Wings song sold more copies in the UK than any Beatles song. The Wings song held that position, as the top selling single in the history of the UK, for seven years but eventually two songs, produced and sold for charitable causes, eclipsed those sales. Wing's song still holds that position as the largest selling non-charity song in the history of the UK charts.
The title is Mull of Kintyre.....starting to ring a bell? Probably not. McCartney owned a farm in Scotland. He recorded this song in his barn and he brought in seven bag pipers and ten drummers from a nearby town.
This song spent a Christmas, and nine weeks, at number one. What song did it bump as the, previously, all time number one tune in the UK? Answer: She Loves You by the Beatles! Read that again. This novelty song, unheard of in the USA, was bigger than any of the Beatles releases in the UK. McCartney does not even play it in US concerts. He does perform it in Europe and Canada.
So, what was the biggest McCartney and Wings song in the USA? This all time #25 rated song on the Billboard record charts is pure pop. Two legends teamed up for this one --McCartney and Stevie Wonder. In 1982 Ebony and Ivory, spent 12 weeks in the top ten in the USA.
That was the biggest McCartney hit in the USA, but it was not my favorite. Of all the songs released by Wings, my favorite is one that I think rivaled the Beatles at their best. In 1974, McCartney and his band were on the run.
This is another in my series on Pacific Northwest Music Legends. Of all of the artists featured in the series, this artist has to be the most mystical and immortal in that select group. When promoter and top KJR Seattle radio deejay, Pat O'Day, first met Jimi, he described the future guitar god as a skinny kid with a guitar. O'Day would, eventually, work with Jimi the star through O'Day's company Concerts West.
Hendrix was first discovered not in the USA, but after he went to Europe. Over there, the bombastic way that he played guitar immediately drew the attention and admiration of fans. Like so many of the superstars of that era, Hendrix died young. Today, a visit to Paul Allen's Experience Music Project in Seattle will bring back many thoughts and memories of Hendrix and his life.
Fact is, in this country, because his career was so short, Jimi Hendrix did not have very many singles, or pop hits. He is better known for his Woodstock appearance and his albums. One single I played on the radio, in my radio days, was this song that is probably Jimi's single biggest hit.
