Hi all, I’m new to inspection and going through the training. I inspected my own water heater and the tpr valve has several sharkbite connectors and 90 degree bends. Is this in need of correction? I cannot find the termination point once it enters the wall and I understand that is bad, but what about all of the 90s? Thank you for the help!
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Before you head towards an installation “gotcha moment,” consider the ramifications of what you are witnessing. What are your concerns, and what would you consider the consequences?
Here is IPC 2018 with GA amendments. What were the rules when that was installed? I suspect it was 10+ years ago based on the looks of that CPVC.
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There’s nothing wrong with that install. When you start inspecting just report that you are unable to locate TPRV pipe discharge location.
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To me #6 in that list is the fall safe needed to detect a problem with the TPR valve. In my area hard water will leave deposits on any valve or leaking pipe joint. The hidden deposits inside a leaking TPR valve could prevent it from working. I always make a point to tell clients water should NEVER drip out of the pipe, if it does call a plumber.
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That is to much to read!
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What is the defect?
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Based on the photo, you’re not wrong but there is more to consider in my opinion.
The discharge could be exterior on the other side of that wall, six inches from the ground in plain site. The air gap is only needed when discharging to a drain system. It’s the job of the inspector to locate the discharge location or disclaim it. (Possibly for further evaluation) Just my two cents.
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Connor says it did not drain to the exterior.
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So it’s discharging into the crawl or basement or maybe wall cavity?
This is certainly something that needs to be ascertained.
It is his house, so he needs to make an effort to figure it out. Since it’s not “outside” it would be a defect no matter how you look at it. Although if this room is on piers, it could qualify as outside.
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It might be tied into a drain pipe in the wall. If it is, it is likely a direct connection (no air gap), which is also a bad idea.
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Yeah. Since he’s doing it for himself, this is a good time to truly figure it out. He’s doing the schoolwork right now, it’s a perfect example of a problematic install that requires some effort to figure out.
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Not exactly what he stated:
This install looks like a condo utility closet, and I’m sure the other end of that pipe is locatable.
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I would write it up as unable to view or locate termination point to verify required air gap, unable to verify unseen sections of pipe diameter or how many more elbos may be installed. Have a qualified plumber make corrections as needed.
The simple fix is to terminate it 6 inches above the drip pan.
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This is a rabbit hole. Is it a defect? 
How many components in a home can we NOT see?
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True. I made the assumption that he looked outside. I could be wrong on that. good catch.
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Kevin and I work in licensed states. We have a list of things we must check, and if we cannot verify it, we state our limitation, such as “it was not visible”.
Water shut offs, sewer clean outs, electric shut offs, gas shutoffs, plumbing vents, and many more.
In manufactured houses often we can not access the water heater because they are built into a hidden cavity between the laundry room and a bedroom. And we can’t access the attic to view insulation because a hatch is not present. Floor framing and ductwork are not visible because of the “belly wrap”.
So for all these items that are on our SOP to identify, we state our limitation.
For the many parts of a house that are not visible and not part of our SOP, we do not have to comment on those things being not visible.
If it is on the SOP, we need to inspect it or state why we didn’t.
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Words of wisdom!
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Bert has it right. 
Not only are we required to document what we can see, but there are instances where we are also required to document what we can’t see.
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