In this detached garage it was noted that there is 1/2" sheet on the exterior wall of the building that is within three feet of the main house. The whole garage has 1/2" sheetrock installed with a pull down stairs installed.
Dryer Vent Safety
The dryer vents are used to exhaust water vapor and lint to the exterior of the house. The dryer blows hot air through the cloths and expels the air through a metal pipe. The water vapor can collect on the inside wall of the pipe collecting lint along the way. The lint can build up in the pipe and cause a restriction and reduce the flow of air and reduce the efficiency of the dryer. The particles of the lint is flammable and could cause a house fire if ignited. It is recommended to have the vent cleaned to prevent any problems.
These water heaters appear to be connected in parallel configuration. It is unclear whether they supply separate systems/fixtures or supply the same system together. Further investigation recommended. There is a copper line connected to, and joining together, their drain spouts. This line connects behind the drain valves and extends upward to some other location of the building. This seems very unusual and is likely not an ideal configuration. Both tanks are sitting directly on the concrete floor which is not ideal. Recommend they be placed on pads and/or leak trays. They should be secured with seismic straps for safety. The water lines should be covered with pipe insulation for increased thermal efficiency. Recommend consulting a licensed plumbing contractor for further evaluation.
Wood and water are a bad combination. Any structure made of wood or combined with wood in some way should be protected from water. All sources of water should be configured in a way that minimized or eliminates the potential to apply water to any wooden or wood coupled components of a structure. If you have a deck and you have any irrigation system, like a lawn sprinkler, make sure it is not getting water on the deck structure. Try to keep your wood dry.
Carports are open on at least two sides, if a livable space is above, a fire rated material such as 5/8" x type drywall is needed for fire protection. Fewer code restrictions apply for carport inspections. It is still a good standard of practice to slope the parking space away from the home for liquids to flow from parking space and home.
The fire rated ceiling image is on a more commercial scale, but even in a commercial setting fire protection on ceilings is crucial. In the image displayed the framing is metal. Below the framing a metal lath and dry wall was installed. Their must be a rated burn time for all ceilings with habitable spaces. In this case a roof deck was immidiately above. In a residential home it would not be required but it is always a good practice to contain possible fires.
Garage doors are the largest moving object in the home. They have caused many injuries and even death. Garage door inspection is very important. When inspecting you should look for door panel defects such as cracks, dents and poor mounting. Make sure all roller shafts and attachment brackets are installed and operating properly. The door should move without binding and should open and close without difficulty. All springs should be intact, with all safety cables and warning tags in place. There should be a manual release handle, colored red, no more than 6 feet above the floor. Photoelectric eyes and pressure sensors should be operating properly.
This is a picture of a detached three car garage. It has two doors, an 8 ft. and a 16 ft. insulated sectional type. The 8 ft. door and opener were properly attached, with no signs of damage or fatigue.The door would not stay closed when operated to the down position. It would automatically reopen upon contact with the floor. The 16 ft. door and opener had no signs of damage or fatigue. All opener connections on this door were loose and had missing fasteners. Both doors operated smoothly and the photoelectric eyes functioned properly. Recommend further evaluation by a qualified garage door contractor.
The garage can be considered as not being as important as other parts of the house when performing a home inspection. This actually is not true because of the safety issues that are inherent in garages. Remember, garages are the storage space for vehicles, lawn mowers and associated gasoline storage containers. For our discussion we will focus on garages and not carports. The carport has to be identified and inspected but has fewer possible areas of concern as compared to a garage
Fire separation between the garage and the living space above is also something that should be noted. In older homes the drive-under garage ceiling is looking at the floor framing and insulation for the floor above it. There is no fire separation or burn through barrier between the two spaces. As building codes evolved some type of fire protection was mandated between these spaces
The garage door has wood areas that are exposed and have insect damage present. These areas should be repaired and new vinyl siding or metal trim should be used to cover exposed wood. The exposed areas should be sealed as needed.
Garage doors are spring-supported doors. Garage door openers control the opening and closing of garage doors through a wall-mounted switch or a radio transmitter. The garage door components and openers are used often and they may become defective over time and need to be fixed or replaced.
The photo provided is that of the photo eye beam for the garage door. This device has been a federal law requirement since 1992. All residential garage door openers manufactured after 1992 must be equipped with this or another safety reverse feature that complies with UL 325 Standards. As you can see in the picture the center of the eye beam sits nearly twice as high as it should at 10 inches from the ground. The rule for this is that it should not sit any higher than 6 inches from the floor so this is considered to be a default. You can also notice a defect in the cement on the inside. A chunk of cement is actually missing. The garage framing that is right next to it is now more susceptible to water damage, and could possibly be the reason why the wooden trim for the garage framing is bowing out slightly at the bottom. You will definitely want to make note of these two defects in your report.
Dust, or solid airborne particles are relatively harmless, but they can still cause sickness and can definitely fuel a fire. When you are aware of a lot of dust during an inspection its best to be prepared with respirators as it should help with breathing. Wood dust and grain can trigger asthma attacks or even allergic reactions so this is just another reason to be prepped with a respirator for any inspection. During your inspection be sure to be on the lookout for vents or electrical boxes and a major buildup of dust can cause damage to both. Suggest to your client that the best way to try and avoid a major dust problem is to clean routinely; vacuum, sweep, shopvac, change air filters, etc. This will definitely help prevent a dust buildup and any other defects that come with it.
Studied and researched and article on garage doors and openers. It stated that annually garage doors account for 20,000 visits to the emergency room. Since 1982 the number of deaths to children is in the range of 60. The numbers support the strong need for a proper inspection of all the components and safety features as well as calling out defective nature of any component.
Photo is of window well northwest front of building. Window well cavity appears to have vegetation along with tree base with root system. Tree at widest point is approximately 1 1/2 inches in diameter.Recommending tree be removed and checked for damage done by root system to well barrier along with surrounding soil and then re-inspected.
When I inspect a garage door, I start on the inside and check the door itself for damage or missing panels. I check to make sure that all warning labels are in place. Then I will detach it from the opener (if present) by pulling the manual release and open it manually. It should open easily.
When i inspect electrical in a garage, I check that all outlets are GFCI protected. I also make sure that there is at least one lighting fixture installed inside and one installed outside the walk in entry door. I also make sure that the garage door opener(s) are not plugged into an extension cord.
The garage door in this inspection was equipped with a photo electric eye. This is a safety device which will auto-reverse the door when an obstruction passes under it when it is closing. The photo electric eye did function properly on this unit.
It is not allowed to have an HVAC system that services both the residence and the garage. This could potentially lead to harmful fumes or gases being spread from the garage to the living area of the residence. This should be written up as a defect.