Oh. So we don’t make a recommendation that self closing hinges or a self closing mechanism be installed for increased safety, because even though it may be safer for our buying client and their family, a contractor may tell our client that it wasn’t required when the house was built?
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I don’t mention it because I’m not there to do a safety inspection, in which I would presumably mention every safety upgrade that I could think of. I am there do a home inspection to find amongst other kinds of defects, safety defects. I don’t mention safety upgrades. If I started this ancillary service, my recommendations would be in a separate report, because in my opinion, they don’t belong in a home inspection report.
There is actually a lot of stuff I don’t put in my reports that I have seen in other reports. It’s different, not wrong.
I understand what you are saying Eric. Your suggesting a proper way of wording your recommendation. I’m with you.
I’m not talking about semantics. I’m wondering why someone wouldn’t make a safety recommendation, regardless of local code. Personally, I couldn’t care less what local code says about most things. I’m a home inspector that is being paid by an individual buyer (in most cases) who wants my opinion of whether his new home will be safe for his family to live in and if it may stand long enough for him to get it paid for or re-sold.
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I understand Juan. So, you don’t recommend an upgrade for kitchen or bath outlets to be GFCI protected, if the house was built in the 1950’s?
Remember, a home built to code is the least expensive home that can be legally built.
Codes are a minimum, but are the basis that most of us use for making recommendations. If a new code is developed as a result of changing laws or information, I recommend the item be upgraded. It could be a safety issue or just a modernization. I just want my client to have the most recent information. If the client chooses to make the issue a matter of negotiations in their purchase, that is none of my business. But they can do so with the knowledge that a new home would not “pass code” if the same issue was present.
Give the best information, let the client decide.
As I say, the wording is key. To your client, Recommend means, it has to be done, do it.
Let’s take another issue, FPE panels. Recommend replacement, right?
What evidence do you have to support that “recommendation”? An electrician or two comes out and takes the thing apart, checks everything, says it is OK. Meanwhile, your “recommendation” has already convinced your client it has to be changed.
On the other hand, you can write in the report a bunch of stuff about the FPE panel, and the fact that you may not be able to get insurance with that panel present, and then they can determine after a little research, that either they want it replaced, or they know, at some point, it will need to be replaced.
I don’t think a lot of inspectors really know just what kind of power they have.
And, if you are going to start recommending things be replaced, to “meet the existing code” you had better be sure of the code. Not doing so, if you have a license, may get you in trouble for operating out of the scope of your license, by effectively enforcing a code that isn’t relevant to the situation.
That’s not what I said. I use current codes. In this case, I wouldn’t call it a defect. I write it similar to what Eric said. By today’s standards, a self closing door hinge is only required on fire rated doors. If the door is not fire rated, and no self closing hinge exists, it’s not a defect by any standard and doesn’t go in my report.
Thanks everyone… It was a fire rated door. The home was built 8 years ago and I recommended self closing hinges be installed.
Regardless of local codes, I still call it out.
about 1/2 of the 92 local municipalities that I inspect in reagure spring hinges and fire rated (1 hour) doors to attached garages. Two houses, across the street, have two totally different local code requirements.
I always call it out because it is in the National Fire Safety Code.
If someone wants to save $20 and put their family in danger, that is their problem, I call it out.
I say screw code when common sense says otherwise. Plus, it can save lives.
Nuff Said!
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So, the questions is who does the client, a member of the house buying public and a person who is paying you good money to inform and protect them, going to believe. Some builder who wants to get by dointg the bare minimum required by the local code, or a professional, certified and (many times) state licensed inspector who will spend at least 10 times more time on site looking at things than the local codie, who (at least in this area) is usually just some clown that got the code inspector job through his brother-in-law who is the local precienct captain and who has to “inspect” 20 - 30 houses a day and who is protected (in Illinois) from any type and kind of civil and criminal liability based upon Appealate Court rulings.
Seriously? Over a $20 hinge? Seriously???
Sorry, Juan, but I have to disagree.
When the house burns down and the family (AND THEIR SHARK LAWYER) want to “make someone pay”, they will bring up the National Fire Safety Code and ask you all sorts of “have you stopped beating your wife yet” questions and make you look like a fool on the witness stand. Then you will wind up paying a huge damage award while the local codies get complete immunity.
But, the important part is that the family will still be dead because you didn’t inform them of the danger, which is what they paid you to do.
Hope this helps;
Well you are entitled to your opinion.
Worth repeating.
C’mon Juan. Don’t be a bare minimum inspector 
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Hahaha.
Lol! 
And you have hundreds of cases, or maybe one, to back up this scenario?
I am sure when the home burns down that the absence of the self closing hinge is going to be the culprit. let’s get real
Some of you guys are funny. We are not code inspectors although much of what we do does overlap with code, A self closing hinges on the garage door is a safety issue and should be noted whether it is code in your local area or not. Just my opinion it’s the same thing as even Eric said regarding informing your clients of upgrading to GFCI outlets in wet locations. Some inspectors even tell their clients about appliance recalls and defects and those are not even required to be inspected. Nor are even a part of the structure of the home. Whereas a garage door and it’s ability to self close is a permanently affixed part of a home and if not correct should be called out to your client.
Just my opinions
Jim
Oh come on Keilson, you know as well as I do that recalled microwaves and toaster ovens bursting into flames is a leading cause of death in the US. Offering recall information on appliances is far more important that suggesting that a self closing hinge be installed on a garage ped door. Jeez…