Reading Portion of "How to Perform Residential Electrical Inspections"
The service panel is one of the largest components of any home inspection. A faulty service panel can make a home extremely dangerous and even be a fire hazard. Electricians have been seriously injured and even killed when attending to a service plane because of the amps which is live in the panel. A service panel is in a home to distribute current though the houses’ different devices. Its important for home owners to know where their main shut off is encase of emergencies. Circuit breakers trip because of many reasons, but the main reason a breaker will flip is because there is to much power trying to go through the circuit which can cause the wire to overheat and melt. So the breaker will flip and not allow electricity to travel through the wire that is connected. Which in most cases will prevent further damage to the system and allow the home owner time to fix the problem which flipped the breaker in the first place.
I inspected an electrical panel, it was in a closet that met the dimension requirements. I did not find any defects or safety concerns. I checked for double lugged breakers, and didn’t find any. I checked the GFCI breaker to make sure it still worked as it should. I didn’t find any missing bushings/grommets. all the Knock outs were correct. over all this breaker panel was in good shape and did not have any major defects.
I chose to read about “ introductions to foreclosures” and “Pull down attic access”
Introduction to foreclosures-
I know I have seen several foreclosures around the area I live and I thought this article was interesting, because not only can you get a foreclosure for mortgage payments but for HOA’s and failing to pay bills due to a contractor. Ultimately I found that being foreclosed on could be as simple as forgetting to pay HOA dues or not paying a plumber for work performed.
Pull down Attic access-
Pull down attic accesses are very common where I live and will be doing inspections so I learned what kind of fasteners to use. I also learned what to look for when inspecting such as insulation around the access, weather stripping, or a cap to cover the access. I can also make sure my clients know that there is a good opportunity for children to get hurt around them and that they should either keep the cable out of their reach or lock the access so that undesired people cannot enter.
After removing the dead panel I found two double taps and some oversizebreakers as shown. One breaker was not seated properly. Recommend electricianinspect and correct as needed. The main breaker and the panel were labeled 200amps. There were no markings on any wiring inside the panel box. Themain service amperage could not be verified because there were no identifyingmarks or access to the underground cable insulation.
Receptacle in downstairs bedroom is loose. Wires could be live and cover plate need install. Recommend qualified license electrician for further evaluation and repair.
Buying a Foreclosure
Purchasing foreclosed homes at below-market values can be a sound investment strategy, and buying foreclosed rental properties can provide cash flow and tax deduction. The basic ways to buying foreclosed properties is through presale, public auction, real estate-owned(REO) sale, and HUD homes.
Ceiling Fan Inspections
Ceiling fans were first introduced in the 1860s, and provides comfort for occupants by circulating air. A ceiling fan is composed of an electric motor, blades and blades iron, flywheel, safety cable, and motor housing. Some common defects are they may fall, wobble, and inadequate blade clearance floor-to-ceiling.
This breaker panel has unused openings that is a safety hazard. It also has improper openings at surface of panel cover that is not flush with box. Also improper panel cover fasteners were used.
Electrical panels must have sufficient clearance on all sides. 3 ft per side, 30 " width and a minimum if 6’ head clearance. A few things to look for are, aluminum branch wiring, unused openings, circuit breaker size compared with wire gauge, burned components and improper bonding.
Arc fault circuit interrupter (AFCI) are required on 15 and 20 amp circuits in new homes in most living areas not protected by GFCI’s. Occurrences of an arc fault can be caused by, wire insulation damage, loose connections or conductive liquids.
The picture above is of a 200AMP 120/240V Cuttler-Hammer service panel. All of the circuit breakers are labeled next to each one as well as on the circuit directory in legible handwriting. The AC, dryer and oven are linked together. The outside of the panel looks good so far but behind the dead front is where we should look in the inspection.
This light fixture was in a closet and did not have its protective globe. This is a safety hazard as the heat from the bulbs could potentially ignite combustible items in the closet. The light fixture did not have a 12" clearance to shelving in the closet either.
In response to the article: “Electrical Service from Hell”
I enjoyed this article which was also in the electrical panel defects section of the course. This was a great addition to the video because it gives close up shots pinpointing the problems. This helped me take the information I learned in the class and apply it to the pictures to see if I could recognize the issues.
In response to the article: “Electrical Service Panels”
An inspector first and foremost needs to have the correct safety equipment.
He also should asses the panel and the surrounding area before and after opening the dead front to a service panel. Once the inside panel is visible the inspector should observe any signs of water, damage by rodents, exposed wires or signs of burns and arcing.
Solid strand aluminum wiring has proven to be much more problematic than copper wiring as expansion and contraction of aluminum wiring can cause loose connections which may lead to arcing and fire. If an inspector finds solid strand aluminum wiring in a home he should recommend that a qualified electrician evaluate the electrical system and make any repairs that are necessary.
An AFCI circuit breaker has a test button that an inspector can use to test the AFCI circuit breaker, but this button cannot test for arc faults within individual portions of the branch circuit. An AFCI indicator can test any individual receptacle within the branch.
Exterior porch roof. On day of rain there is a notice of water protrusion between roof and brick siding. Recommend further evaluation by licensed contractor.
Many people and experienced electricians, have been killed and can even be seriously injured while opening electrical panels. Inspectors should check for defective conditions during an electrical panel inspection. Electrical panels are potentially dangerous and should be inspected with care.
Electrical Safety
Some safety tips to remember:
Never use anything but the proper fuse to protect a circuit.
Find and correct overloaded circuits.
Never place extension cords under rugs.
Outlets near water should be GFCI-type outlets.
Don’t allow trees near power lines to be climbed.
Keep ladders, kites, equipment and anything else away from overhead power lines.
This image shows one of many problems with this double wide roof. The roof is approximately 18 years old. It has lost a significant amount of granules across the entire roof. The most apparent problem with the roof is the growing moss. The moss appears at several locations across the roof with the largest area as shown in the photo. The amount of moss is so heavy in this area it has lifted and separated the shingles from each other. The shingles have a wave appearance because of the different concentrations of moss under the shingles. Because of the overall condition of the roofing material, replacement of the shingles is the only option. The condition of the roof deck will be a consideration after the shingles are remove and upon further inspection.
In this photo, you are looking at a 125 amp Square-D type sub panel, which is providing the power requirements to an addition of this structure. There are the appropriate plastic insulation rings on all of the conduit chases entering the panel box. There is no evidence of the protective fluid on the aluminum load lines where they attach to the buss. Being a newer renovation , there are Afci breakers for the two bedrooms indicated. Being a sub panel , the ground buss and the neutral bus are not bonded together. There does appear to be two white conductors being used as the 2nd phase of 220v out to the a/c unit and the air handler that do not have black tape on them to designate them as “Hot” leads.
During a recent inspection of an older home, i took this picture of an attic exhaust fan that was missing the control cover, no junction box, tapped into the light fixture adjacent. This particular home had serious electrical issues and a i performed my inspection it became obvious that the home was in serious need of a licensed electrician to perform a more through inspection. In almost every room there was a defect with the electrical from missing cover plates, scorched receptacles, open junction boxes and the list goes on. I also noted that this home had a Zinsco panel and advised my client as to the history of this type system.
The home also included additions to the main structure that included subpanels that were not installed by a licensed electrician.
