My topic was doing damage to a home during your inspection.
After reading the article I have a new take on something that happened to me during an inspection.
While inspecting an attic (with buyer in tow) I stepped on a loose piece of flooring and it slid out from under my foot and my foot when through the ceiling. I accepted the blame and I paid to have the ceiling repaired and painted—the ceiling was one of those continuous kinds, I paid to have painted almost the entire ceilings downstairs.
After reading this article I realize that the loose floor board was the problem, not my clumsiness.
An example of Duty to the public rule #7 is one I’ve experienced first-hand. While doing an inspection with my instructor, we had the seller’s present during a “buyer’s” inspection. It made it very difficult for him to concentrate on the inspection with them in tow, as well as discuss training opportunities with me. When it came time to discuss deficiencies with the buyer, the seller’s felt somewhat entitled to the information the buyer paid to receive. And it made it awkward for us to have to ask them to leave the room for ethics purposes.
Essay; hypothetical conflict of interest or violation of the Code of Ethics
Off grade home, built 1972.
During inspection, it is discovered a large area of the sub floor and several floor joists are rotted and deteriorating. The damage is due to numerous years of leaking from a blocked condensate line at the furnace. This defect is noted and reported properly to the client, in this case the selling agent for a bank owned property. Upon reading the report the agent makes contact to see if the damage is really “that bad” and if it could be patched up to get the property sold. The inspector is then offered $200.00 if they can patch up the damage to make sure the soft spot in the floor is gone, and edit the report for final submission. The realtor also mentions that if this could be taken care of he could make sure the next few good jobs are given to that inspector and could have a “tip” included.
Hypothetical conflict of interest or violation of the Code of Ethics:
A.) A home inspector partners with agents to receive inspection referrals in exchange for any sort of compensation.
B.) A home inspector offers to correct issues found during the inspection for compensation.
Barn inspection carries high emphasis on fire prevention, animal / livestock and personal injury prevention, as well as air quality consciousness. Due to the nature of a barn, there is more room for error in these areas and they should be inspected thoroughly to insure the safety of their inhabitants regardless of the buildings past, present, or future use.
Essay; Library Article.
“Carpeted Bathrooms”
The article very clearly points out some pros and cons of a carpeted bathroom, I chose to focus on the cons from an inspection point of view. In a home with a carpeted bathroom it would be an area to pay close attention to so no problems are overlooked. There may be subfloor damage that is being masked by the carpet, mold or odor that may be covered up temporarily by recent cleaning or air freshener. The carpeted bathroom could also hide a leaking toilet at the base due to the water not being easily visible or being soaked into the surrounding carpet and padding. Disclosing these issues properly would be very important when completing an inspection report, as well as passing on recommendations to the client.
Hi everyone.
When I do my inspections I’m truthful with my services regardless
of the situation. I am beyond glad that I took and studied the Code of Ethics Course.
Essay; Gallery Illustration
Rigid Metal Conduit
The illustration clearly shows that the locking ring must be fully engaged and the tangs must have a good “bite” to ensure grounding continuity for the electrical system it is connected to. A loose ring or conduit would not guarantee a solid connection and grounding could be lost creating an electrical hazard.
Adam Brokaw
Dear Mr. Reader,
In my opinion a common hypothetical conflict of interest in the field would intell, You (home inspector) explain to a home buyer how simple it would be to change a furnace plenum filter. They respond with “ Hey for 20 dollars would you mind doing it for me i have no idea how to do that?”
Now some people may think that was okay but i would consider this a conflict because it did not state in your inspection contract that was part of the service they paid you for and signed and agreed upon.
Code of ethics essay:
As a inspector your priority is to the client. I have seen instances of were the realtor has tried to influence the report without regards to the best interests of the client. Do not let outside influences compromise your task at hand. Our job is to observe and report every issue to our client. Not to “sugarcoat” in order to keep the realtor happy.
Ice dams
Ice dams are a ridge of ice formed on the edge of a roof. They are caused by three variables, snow, heat loss through the roof, and outside temperature. One of the problems it can cause is a leaky roof caused by water trapped behind the ice.
Violation of the code of ethics.
After completing an inspection for a customer. I was asked by the realtor to withhold some of the information from the inspection report.The realtor said that to much information might scare off the buyer and less information is better. This would be a code of ethics violation.
How to roughly determine age of building:
To help determine the age when a building has been constructed multiple methods can be used.The building’s materials, components,local records, and styles are some of the ways to determine the age.
Hypothetical Conflict of Interest
A prospective client calls my company and requestsinformation about my credentials. Theyask if I hold certain certifications that I don’t. If I answered that I did (IE MasterInterNACHI Inspector Certification) to get “the sale”, this would not betruthful and in violation of the Code of Ethics.
While inspecting a home I noticed a reverse grade condition (grade sloping towards foundation) on the back side of the house. I pointed this out to my client and their real estate agent this would be a deficiency noted on my report. Both the client and agent asked why that would be a deficiency and I stated ‘because if water slopes back toward the foundation and the water accumulates and ponds near the slab, this condition has the potential to impact the performance of the foundation’. The agent didn’t like the sound of that comment and when my client was distracted the agent asked if I could re-word my statement to not say anything about the foundation.
To accommodate the request of this real estate agent would be a clear violation of our Code of Ethics as Home Inspectors.
Research Essay
My article that I have chosen to summarize deals with BackflowPrevention. Backflow can be a seriousproblem in homes if contaminated water pollutes the incoming water supply. Generally two conditions cause this contamination;back pressure or the reversal of normal water flow or back siphonage which isnegative pressure on the piping system. Thisproblem can be avoided by the use of a backflow preventers such as anatmospheric vacuum breaker or AVB for short. There are a number of organizations that offer further education andcertification on this topic.
ETHICS ESSAY :
A realtor comes to an inspector with a few request on a certain home to be inspected . The biggest request is that the bank wants to close as soon as possible , and that if the inspector could overlook certain minor issues that it would guarantee him future inspections .
I just read an article about inspecting Barns. What I learned is there is not a black and white procedure to go about inspecting a barn but rather it requires the inspector to utilize all their knowledge of related fields and apply it accordingly. This type of inspection requires you to think outside the box to some degree by helping your client identify potential fire/safety hazards that may not be readily apparent to them and may also not be normal observations for us as inspectors that we normally make.
Essay; hypothetical conflict of interest or violation of the Code of Ethics
Sample essay
During inspection of receptacles, it was noted that 3 prong receptacles were installed on an ungrounded system. The realtor asked if he could pay the inspector an additional $100 to “forget to check the plugs”.
Code of Ethics course.
In the Inspection library I found and article about mold and mold abrasive blasting, this article caught my eye due to the recent remodel i had to do in my basement and the rapid growth of mold from standing water. When i noticed the amount of water in my basement I knew it was only a matter of time mold would be growing on the drywall. The article went over topics of remediation by abrasive blasting. Which is a machine that blows high pressure air or minerals at mold and is especially beneficial for hard to reach places under decks or crawl spaces. This would be great for large spreads of mold and i myself wouldn’t do this for the lack of experience in the remediation field and not having the proper ppe and machine.