Michael's View: December 2007

As I was getting food ready for our "traditional" Christmas dinner of turkey, ham, and other traditional trimmings, I was walking by the door where I have this menu from the Original Maxwell House Hotel. The hotel became famous for its Christmas dinner, which featured such delicacies like some of the main entrée's on this original 1879 menu.

• Leg of Cumberland Mountain Black Bear, Sauce Pervade
• Tennessee Opossum with Sweet Potatoes, Old Virginia Style 
• Kentucky ‘Coon, Devil's Sauce
• Roasted Quail, au Natural
• Saddle of Minnesota Venison, with Red Currant Jelly
• Canvas-back and Red-head Ducks
• Blue-Wing and Wood Ducks
• Roasted Wild Turkeys, with Cranberry Sauce
• Wild Goose
• Young Prairie Chickens, Broiled, Stewards Sauce
• Broiled Pheasants, a la Maitre d'Hotel
• Roasted Mallard Duck

Yum! Yum! Quite interesting how our palette has changed over the years, isn't it?

Seven presidents stayed at the Maxwell House Hotel, including Theodore Roosevelt, whose comment that the coffee was "good to the last drop" launched the advertising slogan used for years to promote the nation's first blended coffee. Other visitors included Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, "Buffalo Bill" Cody, General Tom Thumb, Cornelius Vanderbilt, and George Westinghouse. The Maxwell House burned on Christmas night 1961.

Merry Christmas from my home to yours!  

Having been a licensed electrician and an electrical engineer in a previous life, I am always on the look-out for unsafe electrical practices. Occasionally, I come across an external panel that is locked. I really wish the homeowner knew how dangerous this situation really is. All electric panels must have free and unrestricted access at all times! Your property, life or that of a loved one could be at risk.

Here are some of the things that I encounter with locked panels.

• The home owner does not know the combo code.
• The owner has to rifle through a drawer for several minutes looking for the key!
• They cannot find the key.
• The lock is frozen.
• I wind up cutting the lock off with bolt cutters.

I understand that in some neighborhoods, kids play pranks by flipping the main breaker. Some feel that it adds to their security. If a crook wants to get into your property, most locks are no match for a good grade of bolt cutter!

If you feel you must lock your panel follow these simple guidelines:

• Use a high grade brass lock instead of a cheap steel one. Good brass locks are not as likely to seize or rust in the locked position.
• Periodically open and close the lock several times a year. This will ensure that it will operate properly.
• Keep the key in a readily accessible location by an entry door. In an emergency, seconds count!
• Keep access to the panel clear and unrestricted.

If you find this information helpful, feel free to pass it on to a friend or colleague.

This comment has been brought to you by Michael Thornton - Tennessee's Favorite Home Inspector. I am an ASHI certified inspector and president of Complete Home Inspections, Inc..  We are serving the greater Nashville Metro area one satisfied customer, one house at a time.  

I love my job! I keep telling myself that every day. I get an opportunity to see how other people live and the dumb thing that go on behind closed doors. I really cannot make this stuff up! Here are some of the more interesting things that I have encountered this week. I hope you enjoy.

Dan must have stayed in the dog house more often than not. The solution, carpet the attic - it's easier than going outside and it's closer to the fridge for that beer during change of possessions. There was a cable hook-up, lights, and power in one corner. Oh yeah, the fan must have been for those hot summer days.

What time is it when all 3 lights flash on your circuit tester? Elementary my dear Watson, Get a new electrician! I won't even begin to speculate as to what is going on here.

Henry the home handy man just finished installing the water heater in the attic for Paul but needed to extend the TPR overflow to the outside.  I bet he was glad he kept that old heater hose and vinyl garden hose left over from the last job in the back of his truck. 

Here's how to burn your house down without really trying. Ernie kept getting frustrated because the overloaded 20 amp circuit kept tripping the breaker. The fix was simple. Install a 60 amp breaker and just for good measure double it up!  Sniff, Sniff! Do I smell smoke?  

I could not help but notice the burning on the bottom of this water heater. I wonder if it might have something to do with the way it was vented? Nah! Just a fig Newton of my imagination.

Need to make a connection and the plumbing shop is out of the fitting you need? Ace's Handy-Dandy epoxy will work every time!

Looks like Pete the plumber flunked basic plumbing 101. The drain opening goes down dummy!

This is for people with more time on their hands than they know what to do with. Wouldn't it have been simpler to mount the box on the wall and run flex down to the junction box? Oh, you forgot the handle tie. Gotta give him E for effort!

Paul the plumber forgot to install the extension on this valve. I have to give him a T for thinking though, he did turn the valve towards the block wall. This will give the super heated water ricocheting off the wall about 10 nano-seconds to cool down before it scalds you.

Up-sizing may work for fries but electric circuits?  Bernie was tired of the 15 amp fuses on the overloaded circuit constantly blowing. The solution was as easy as falling off a log. Keep up-sizing until you find one that works. It worked so well, that he decided to do it on the other circuit too! At least he did not use pennies!

This one always makes my head hurt! Erik the electrician forgot that when you tap off the bottom of a 200 amp main, the wire going to the NEW panel must also be able to handle 200 amps even though you are installing a 100 amp service. UG! (8305)

This post has been brought to you by Michael Thornton - Tennessee's Favorite Home Inspector. I am an ASHI certified inspector and president of Complete Home Inspections, Inc..  We are serving the greater Nashville Metro area one satisfied customer, one house at a time.  

Although I joined AR in mid-September, I really did not get active with this community for about 2 months. Starting Mid-November I really got active and have been able to move onward and upward. I want to take this time to thank all of you for keeping me inspired and responding to my posts. I would not have been able to reach my goal of 20,000 points by years end without all of your wonderful information, inspiration, tips and support. 

Merry Christmas to all.  I hope that all of you have a Blessed New Year. Seasons Greetings from Nashville - the heart of Middle Tennessee.

It is not uncommon to have real estate agents or my clients follow me through the property that I am inspecting and ask questions about my findings. While inspecting an older property, I noticed that the water volume coming out of the basin faucet reduce to a trickle when I flushed the toilet.

I was asked, "What's Happening?"

I'll explain.

Some real estate agents and my clients seem to have some confusion differentiating between functional flow and water pressure. First of all, let's address water pressure. If you attached a pressure gauge to a spigot on your house, you would record the amount of force or pressure being supplied by the utility company or well pump. Legal water pressure being supplied by a municipality must be a minimum 40 PSI. If the plumbing system is designed right, this pressure will supply adequate functional flow in most properties.

Functional flow is the amount of volume flowing through your plumbing system. A good way to test this during your initial walk through is to turn the faucets on at the basin, flush the toilet and then turn the water on to the tub or shower. Some decrease in volume is normal. A very noticeable decrease in volume is not. This is an indication that there is a plumbing issue which may need to be further investigated by a licensed plumber.

Some of the causes for weak functional flow are:

• Galvanized pipe systems. Generally these have about a 50 year life expectancy and like your arteries - they get sclerosis. They rust from the inside out. Although the lines may be ½ or ¾ inches in diameter, due to sclerosis, the functional diameter may be ¼ inch or less. This restriction in the lines reduces the amount of volume that they pipe system can deliver even if you have 100 PSI of water pressure. The horizontal lines are the ones that are affected most. The vertical lines can last longer, but will need eventual age replacement and will be more costly to replace as more invasive measures will be needed.
• Calcium or lime build-up on the internal walls of the pipes in hard water areas act in a similar fashion to that of the conditions for galvanized pipes.
• Poor plumbing techniques. Most municipalities now require a minimum of ¾ inch supply line from the main to the water heater. Often times, I see the supply reduced to ½ inch supply lines at the entry point of the property. This adds more restriction to the system and can adversely affect water volume in a larger property with more than 2 baths.
• Another poor plumbing technique is the use of too many fittings such as tees and ells. Each time water goes through a bend, some restriction is encountered. Generally, there is enough pressure to overcome this small amount of restriction. However; too many bends can lead to too many restrictions and start to impede water volume.

If you live in a property where you are experiencing water volume issues, consider having your plumbing system further reviewed by a licensed plumbing contractor.

If you find this information helpful, feel free to pass it on to a friend or colleague.

This comment has been brought to you by Michael Thornton - Tennessee's Favorite Home Inspector. Michael is an ASHI certified inspector and president of Complete Home Inspections, Inc..  We are serving the greater Nashville Metro area one satisfied customer, one house at a time.  

I really seems as if the spammers are sinking to new lows. I just received a spam message in my personal email account from MOHAMED. Not only is he spamming me, but he is also phishing. !!&^%^$^&^$% spammers! 

I don't know about you but I am really getting tired of the constant drivelthese people send. I recon that there are some gullible people that buy into this crap! I guess Have any of you out there received such spam from outside sources such as this?

Email was sent from IP: 41.207.16.16

I do not know if the brains behind AR can do anything but -- Is no place sacred any more?

Have a great Monday!!