Electrical fires can be caused by a variety of factors, but one common cause is the use of portable space heaters. These heaters, which are often used as a primary or supplementary source of heat in a room or area, can be a fire hazard if not used properly. Often Read more…
When evaluating older homes often you will find remnants of electrical systems past. On this home inspection it was just that case. Here is an example of a old fused panel with what is referred to as “Edison” style fuses. The issue with “Edison” style fuses is they cannot be Read more…
With composite architectural roof shingles designed to last upwards of 50 years and cost more it seems just silly that we often rely on the old traditional plumbing vent boot that is designed to last about 12 to 15 years.We still use those traditional boots have a thin rubber collar Read more…
Stairs, they are everywhere, yet for so many they never give it much of thought…till. We all seem to have this little built in stair-o-meter when we climb or descend a flight of stairs. We seem to be able to feel, very quickly, if the stairs are not built correctly Read more…
One of the great myths of home inspectors and the home inspection industry is – “we are home inspectors and not code inspectors”. That is a bit of a myth, we should all be using codes and industry standards in our observations to try to provide the very best information Read more…
There was a period of time that you will find electrical service panels that do not have a single main service disconnect on them. By code it is required to have a means to disconnect the power to a building or home which can be a single breaker (or disconnect) Read more…
Many of us as home inspectors know building codes, whether you actually know you know building codes or not. Almost all of the home inspection courses and instruction that I have seen will have code information in them. Many times they may be the most common practices, but much of Read more…
This is a question that come up from time time. For aluminum conductors is Anti-Oxidant grease required on the terminations? A- Yes B- No For the answer we refer to section 110.14 of the NEC 110.14 – Electrical Connections Because of different characteristics of dissimilar metals, devices such as pressure Read more…
We do not think about it, but cooking is a major contributor to indoor air contamination. Cooking produces odor, moisture, and air pollutants in homes. Indoor air contaminants from cooking can exceed suggested guidelines for some some contaminants such as ultra-fine particles, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, and aldehydes. (Pollutant Exposures Read more…
“Building Code Of The Day”Question: Manufactured Home Exterior Doors, must they have a Landing?A) Yes B) No C) All exterior doors D) Only two doors E) I do not know Answer: http://www.ncwhomeinspections.com/Building+code+of+the+Day+Manufactured+Home+Exterior+Doors+must+they+have+a+Landing