Michael's View: May 2008

As more and more home inspectors are going with computerized reports and importing digital pictures to help explain situations, keep in mind that even though a picture is worth a thousand words, they are worth ten thousand to an attorney. I strive to keep abreast of the trends in our industry and what is causing members of our industry a lot of grief. According to expert witnesses, pictures are one of them.

	If you import pictures in your reports, focus only on what is the problem. A good example of this is the questionable shimming of the girder. I focused only on the subject matter. You need to get as close as possible and do your best to fill the frame with only the subject. Otherwise reference the adjacent items as for clarity of reference or similar verbiage.
	Distant photos that show a lot of background or foreground are totally unacceptable. An example of this is the photo of the misaligned splash block. A photo like this should never be in your report. Attorneys for the opposing side will argue that you said nothing about other items in the photo. Remember the 10,000 words? And, they are winning costing a lot of home inspectors thousands of dollars.

Keep in mind that all pictures you take can be subpoenaed. So a good rule of thumb is take 2 cameras. One for pictures you want to use in your report and one for pictures you take for clarity or memory joggers. Any item that you can physically take and show your client should not be photographed for your final report picture collection. Only take photos of attic, roof, crawlspace or other areas where the client is not likely to be able to go.

One argument that opposing attorneys make is if you used this photo then why didn’t you use that photo or include all the photos in your report. It really seems as if attorneys are going to great lengths to make everyone’s life miserable.

If you have a friend who is a home inspector, or if you inspectors know others who would like to read this article please pass this on. I am making this public so others can read and comment.

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Needless to say, we all feel like the big oil companies are a real pain in our assets every time we have to fill the tank. And, with gasoline approaching the $3.759 per gallon for regular in my area, many wonder, where will it stop? There are several articles out on the Internet about an old technology called Brown’s Gas or HHO technology that seem to promise being an alternative or at least an augment for gasoline. Distilled water is being used as fuel source in welding and cutting machines so why not as a fuel source to power our vehicles?

In 1875, Jules Verne wrote in his book, The Mysterious Island, "Water decomposed into its primitive elements, and decomposed doubtless by electricity, which will then have become a powerful and manageable force. Yes, my friends, I believe that water will one day be employed as a fuel". Has that time come? Isn’t it time that the big auto makers and oil companies start developing this technology in earnest or is it all about corporate greed?

Forgive me if it sounds as if I am ranting, I am not. I am a concerned Republican and citizen of this community and planet seeking alternative solutions for our ever growing energy concerns. I don't want to have to take out a second mortgage on my house just to fill my tank. Wouldn't it be nice to leave something for our children and grandchildren instead of using it all up? What are your thoughts on this?

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The other day I was inspecting a $1.2M, 5 year old property in a gated community in Franklin, TN where most of the properties range from $850K - $3M. I told the man I was training to be a home inspector, that structurally, there was something dreadfully wrong with the property. A 5 year old property should not have large diagonal cracks in the walls and all the doors should operate smoothly. This was not the case. An inspection of the crawl space revealed that some of the girders were not resting on the foundation piers and the ends of some girders were not properly supported.

The buyers walked stating, "That there were this many structural issues, we wonder what else the builder missed." I talked with the agent a few days later and she told the builder, whom she knew if he wanted to see the inspection report that I had written. The builder said, “No that house was one of the earlier attempts.” That’s scary.

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It looks as if our ‘ol buddy Bubba has been hard at it again. While I was inspecting a house in the north east section of Nashville, TN today, I happened to notice this gas appliance venting on the house across the street that was also for sale. Yeah Buddy, with Bubba working his wizardry in the home disrepair business, I will never run out of things to write about. One just cannot photo shop this stuff.

Have you joined my birthday alarm? It is fast painless and the best part of all, you will be helping me out.

Thanks, Michael

In my line of work I get an opportunity to see a lot of interesting things. While inspecting a property in the Brentwood, TN area the other day, I came across this unique installation for a pair of water heaters. As these are natural vent water heaters, the stacks are supposed to be at an incline to allow spent gasses to rise and vent to the exterior. Also, the size of the pipe is supposed to increase in diameter when you connect two gas appliances to one vent.

This installation is wrong because the vents are run in a horizontal orientation and the stack size remains the same. This installation will allow CO to spill into the basement section of the property. Also the TPR valves are missing extensions but that is another blog.

Have you joined my birthday alarm? It is fast painless and the best part of all, you will be helping me out.

Thanks, Michael