I read the article about plywood vs. OSB. It seems that both have merits as well as negatives. OSB weighs more, is not as good on floors and tends to lose its shape more when wet. Plywood is more expensive, is less “green” of a product and is less uniform than OSB
The second article I read was on stairway inspections. Many people get injured on stairways, especially the elderly due to vision problems. There was also a list of things to watch out for or that could be wrong with a stairway.
Here we have a very messy job done on the counter flashing, the step flashing was installed but not only looked bad but the chimney did have a leak that was very difficult to find. The chimney also needed to be repointed.
Re : Reading and Writing assignment: Mastering Roof Inspections: Asphalt Composition Shingles, Part 1-1
I have to say, this is a good article. asphalt shingle being so widely used. It educates readers with a better understanding of shingles make up and how they are properly installed. Well done.
Re Reading and Writing assignment "Mastering Roof Inspections: Asphalt Composition Shingles, Part 2-2
This article offers a wide array of images displaying evident signs of aging when organic composite shingle were used. Not something that I have seen often, but certainly something that I look for. Great quality of pictures by the way.
Tile roof which has had tiles slip out of place. Roof was inspected from the eves however from the ground displacement could clearly be seen. A bonded and insured roofer (note: in Texas roofers do not have to be licensed) should be consulted.
This is a photo of a roof I inspected. In the case of this home, this roof covering had been installed in the last 5 years. I noted that while all flashing was installed as expected, it was done re-using the old flashing and done in a manner that showed more interest is saving cost than in quality of workmanship. the Shingle in the foreground is buckling further reinforcing this observation. There are no active leaks in this roof currently but my report suggested further evaluation to ensure long life of the roofing materials.
For someone with a back ground in the roofing industry but, over 20yrs ago this course was a great refresher!
There is a pipe penetration flashing that is not waterproof. Apron flashing is visibly rusting, and apron flashing is nailed with two exposed nails. No nails should be installed in the exposed area of the flashing. Flashing is also broken at the bottom edge, between the two nails. Flashing replacement is needed, and follow roof manufacturer installation practices is advised. A failed or not proper installed flashing is a roof week area where leaks can appear at any moment with further and costly damage. Inspecting the attic was not possible due low pitch. Replace by licensed roofing contractor is recommended. Inspect other flashings for a similar condition is recommended.
Cool roofs:
technology is always finding better ways to do things, and construction industry is one of the areas where more applications and innovations are done. Although the concept of reflecting solar UV rays has been a practice, beginning with the simply application of a white coat, it is evolving to more efficient practices.
Single Ply and coatings are used today to obtain cooler roofing applications with higher emissivity and higher reflectance. Those applications have benefits not only for the direct installer (owner) but also for the society in having a greener application.
Inspectors should read and understand those systems, and let buyers know about the existing system.
Four year old water heater installed. Trp valve missing discharge tub. Need to contact qualified plumber for installation of discharge tube.
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X-ray fluorescence is a wonderful tool used to detect the presence of specific elements. X-ray fluorescence, also known as XRF, has been used in detecting the presence of strontium in drywall. Although it is effective in this discovery, the discover alone does not mean that the drywall is without doubt the culprit. Since there are other elements, more than likely present, like white paint, wall paper glue and others that also contain strontium, it alone can produce a false positive. Therefore, when testing to determine if strontium is a problem with the drywall in question be sure to employ more than one method of diagnosis. The use of other drywall tests as well as trained visual inspections will help determine the validity of the XRF’s findings.
Condensation in double pane windows:
Double pane windows are gaining in popularity to the point that is unusual today to find a new construction installing single pane windows. Vinyl windows are also used very often in residential construction.
Inspectors are exposed to fogged windows, a condition where a misty appearance is visible. Recommendation to repair or replace the affected windows should be included in the inspector report. Windows can fail due exposed weather conditions, or even due batch issues, from factory.
Recognition of a failed window is not always easy or visible, so inspector should also disclaim in the report that finding condensation issues are not always feasible.
p { margin-bottom: 0.1in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 10); line-height: 120%; text-align: left; }p.western { font-family: “Liberation Serif”,serif; font-size: 12pt; }p.cjk { font-family: “Droid Sans Fallback”; font-size: 12pt; }p.ctl { font-family: “FreeSans”; font-size: 12pt; } Abrasive blasting for mold remediation
No homeowner wants a moldy home. Besides the unsightly appearance of mold, it can also be a health hazard. Exposure to mold can trigger allergic reactions to those that are allergic to mold and those that are not.
If mold remediation is necessary, there are several abrasive blasting methods that can be employed. The most notable benefit of abrasive blasting is the reduced labor, blasting vs. scrubbing by hand. Some types of abrasive blasting include, soda and dry ice blasting. Soda blasting enjoyed the limelight in the restoration of the Statue of Liberty in the 1980’s. Soda blasting uses sodium bicarbonate as its medium. The properties of this medium minimizes damage to the surface being cleaned.
Here is a picture of newly installed roofing. The roofing material is architectural shingles and they have been installed according to the manufactures installation instruction, local building codes and best practices. Underlayment, flashing and drip edge have also been properly installed.
Two articles:
How to Inspect the Skylight Shaft Wall Insulation:
This was a very informative article driving home the need for continuity in the insulation. This is true for the shafts of skylight areas which need to be viewed as if exterior walls since they border the unconditioned attic area.
Electrical Terms:
This is an area that I need frequent refresher courses in. While I retain most any mechanical principal with little effort, electrical items are not so easily remembered. The safety reminders are always helpful as well!
This was an inspection of a 25 year old Architectural shingle roof covering. The roof appeared to be at or near the end of its useful life.
There was several damaged shingles and severe granule loss. A licensed roofing contractor should be contacted for repair.
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This roof has several issues. As the picture shows the recent winds had tore off some cap shingles from a hip. That revealed that no underlayment had been used. The porch and 3 rooms in the house had fresh water stains on the ceilings. Each valley had been shingled in a different method . Oh what you could learn by reading the information placed on one bundle of shingles.
The Roof is a laminated shingle. The shingles appear to be in fair condition. There do not appear to be any loose or damaged shingles. The ridge appears to be in adequate condition. The roof appears to be in adequate condition.
The attic pull down ladder is a safety concern for a number of reasons. Often the ladder is too long or too short causing the ladder to be weakened at the joints. I have sometimes seen the home owner use a prop to complete the ladder. Like bricks or another ladder rung. An over stressed ladder due to use with cracked steps also comes to mind. Sometimes the ease of using the ladder is not worth the risk.
