Hi All
New Inspector on the loose here and I’ve asked for and received great help…Asking for more now…Can anyone give me a few pointers on how a furnace inspection goes/ What to look at , etc etc… Do inspectors look for code?
Any help is greatly appreciated…Thanks
Harold
Not trying to be rude did you attend any home inspection school. If not you need to because furnace inspection is a high liability.
As Eral is stating, Turn it on by
the t-stat. I fit runs, O.K.
If not have someone look at it.
This may help some:
Harold, like they said, check it for operation. But you will also need to disclaim the heat exchanger, because if it shows a crack later you could be liable.
Heating systems cannot be dismantled to thoroughly examine interior components. Heat exchangers and burner areas are limited in what can be inspected in a visual inspection. The heating system should be inspected and serviced on an annual basis by a qualified HVAC technician.
The filters should be changed on a regular basis according to the instructions included with the filter.
Filter is {20”X20”} and located in the duct on the [lower right] of the furnace.
Recommendation: Obtain from seller well before close of escrow any documents concerning regular maintenance and service and/or a safety check by public utility, or a complete system evaluation by a qualified heating specialist, especially if the heating system cannot be proven to have been inspected within the past twelve months.
Utility companies typically provide a free safety check of all gas-using appliances.
Always defer to an HVAC tech to inspect…it should be checked every year.
Same goes for the air conditioner.
But… CYA!!
You might even wish to disclaim variable temperatures between floors…
Typically, in a multi-level structure the temperature on the second floor may be noticeably warmer than on the first floor. Adjustment of the dampers, either in the duct pipes or in the registers, may frequently help to achieve an equal balance in temperature. This process, however, is mostly “trial and error” and may need to take place over an extended period of time.
Harold, you really need to spend the $$ and attend some sort of home inspection training course. If you try to go out and learn the profession on the job, you’re going to only hurt yourself and give home inspection a bad rap. This is not the type of profession where you can hang your shingle and get by on your wits.
make sure you understand condensate drains, traps, secondary drain methods, pans, float switches. Problems here can cause damage to the house, mold etc. Lots of electrical issues with hvac and its not all found in the main panel either.
Harold -
Like several others have said already, this is a high liability business. Twenty years ago guys that had years of experience in the trades or as builders or as remodelers got into HI and simply started walking and talking about the 1st thing that fell out of their mouths. A$HI was the only national HI association out there and most inspectors, realtors, lenders and the general public had never heard of them or their SOP. There were almost no state associations for HI’s because there wasn’t enough of us to pee on. The only state that had any regulation on HI’s was Texas’s Registration Act. The internet and its vast ability to provide knowledge across the country was not up and swinging. **AND **attorneys didn’t have full page add’s in the yellow pages.
Therefore buyers, sellers, realtors, lenders, etc. had no idea what to expect out of a HI. That meant that most of the time if something went wrong they bit their lip and said “oh well, better luck next time - no house is perfect” and you never heard a peep out of them.
Thats obviously not the case today. Today there are people that will complain or try to sue an inspector 2-3 years or more after he/she has done an inspection for some perceived wrong OR in many cases simply because they’re sleezebags and trying to get someone else to pay for their problems.
Bottom line today - don’t just read a book on home inspection, pick up a clipboard and start inspecting. If you’re serious about this business go to somebody’s HI Training Course somewhere or look at some other type of work. Otherwise you stand a real great chance of hurting yourself or others.