Urban Myth Of The Neighbors Bad Kid

 
Every time I see this and the owner of  the home is present, I ask them why they put a lock on the main breaker box. I bet you can guess the answer. “Well somebody told me the kids in the neighborhood will shut off the main breaker.” And can you guess how many people I have asked ever had this happen to them? It’s a big fat ZERO. Someone just told them that this could happen. At todays home inspection the seller gave me a perfect example of why you should NEVER, EVER lock your main breaker panel.

Here’s what happened. I asked the seller where the keys were. She told “I knew some day someone would ask me that question. I think they are in here somewhere.” After a minute or so she found the keys. When I went to unlock the lock it was rusted shut. Now the problem is, what if the home is on fire and you need to find the keys, get out of the home and shut off  power to the home?

If you have your main breaker locked because of the urban myth of the neighbors bad kid, make a decision on which is more important to you, the bad kid that may never mess with your breaker or your families safety.

photo by Diego Cupolo

New Home Inspection Jacksonville Reveals Even Small Builders Oversites

Today I was inspecting a brand new home in Jacksonville and when I tried to turn on the dishwasher I discovered there was no power to it. I went to the garage and checked the circuit breaker, yep it was on.

After a little while an electrician showed up to replace a light bulb. I told him the dishwasher didn’t work. When he pulled it out he said “Whoever did this was an idiot and it wasn’t me!” What happened was whoever did the install hooked up a short power cable that wouldn’t reach the outlet unless the washing machine was pushed in all the way. The electrician then installed a new power cable. When he plugged it in and touched the unit he pulled his hand back really quick. If he had hair he would have looked like Don King, he got shocked.

After finishing the inspection the site supervisor came out, and I went over my findings with him. He said there wasn’t a problem with dishwasher before. He told me that it had been ran twice, once by him. The home buyer then asked “How could you run it if it was never plugged in?” The supe then responded “Well, maybe I missed that one.”

We are all human, and humans make mistakes. If something that easy to find was missed by the builder, what about the other not so easy to find items. That is why it is important to get a home inspection even on a new home in Jacksonville before closing.

If you or someone you know is need of a professional home inspector that is looking out for your best interest, make sure that you are making an Informed Decision every time you by a home by calling your Jacksonville Home Inspector at 904-891-6309 right now, which will allow you to get the best property inspection possible. 

Check out what some of our  Florida home inspection customers have to say at Jacksonville Florida Home Inspection Reviews.  Want to see what goes on during a home inspection in Jacksonville FL watch my Jacksonville Home Inspection Videos.

Property Inspector Jacksonville Finds Bad Skylight Part 1

There are only two kinds of skylights, those that leak and those that will leak. While performing the property inspection on this Jacksonville home one things I noticed before I even pulled my ladder out of the truck was all of the tar around the skylight. Anytime I see large amounts of tar on a roof I know there has been a leak and someone has tried to stop the leak, Roofing tar may be able to stop some leaks, however this is nothing more than a temporary fix. What really needs to be done to fix this issue is to have the flashing and or the entire skylight replaced by an appropriately licensed professional.

If you or someone you know is need of a professional home inspector that is looking out for your best interest, make sure that you are making an Informed Decision every time you by a home by calling your Jacksonville Home Inspector at 904-891-6309 right now, which will allow you to get the best property inspection possible. 

Check out what some of our  Florida home inspection customers have to say at Jacksonville Florida Home Inspection Reviews.  Want to see what goes on during a home inspection in Jacksonville FL watch my Jacksonville Home Inspection Videos.

Home Inspection Green Cove Springs Reveals Structural Damage

Almost every time someone buys a new home they here from the builders sales person and their real estate agent (if they use one) that “You don’t need a home inspection. The home comes with a one year warranty.” Once they move in and start to discover issues they start calling the builder with things they find and in most cases it takes them weeks or months to take care of the problems. You already own the home, and the builder is more concerned with people that still haven’t closed on their home yet, so you have to wait,because they already have your money. Unfortunately some of the builders have gone out of business and now people are stuck with the home and are forced to deal with the issues themselves.

At this home inspection in Green Cove Springs, FL, the builder was still in business and my clients called me to do a one year warranty inspection. Good thing they did! The man of the house wasn’t convinced they needed the inspection, but of course the boss, I mean wife insisted. They were glad they got the home inspected, because I found multiple issues. The worst of which was the fact that there was significant structural defects to the roof structure. Just watch the video.

 Photo by Mike Tigas

Duct Tape Fixes Everything, Well Not Really

I recently watched “Gran Torino” (excellent movie by the way), and in one of the scenes Walt gave Tao a can of WD-40, a pair of vice grips and a roll of duct tape. He then told Tao that with these 3 items you can fix just about anything in the home.  While performing this Jacksonville home inspection I found out that apparently the home owner here took that advice and used duct tape to hold the drain line together under the kitchen sink. I recommend that you use the duct tape sparingly, and if you can’t fix something properly call someone that can. Check out this video below to see how to properly install a p-trap.

If you or someone you know is need of a professional home inspector that is looking out for your best interest, make sure that you are making an Informed Decision every time you by a home by calling your Jacksonville Home Inspector at 904-891-6309 right now, which will allow you to get the best property inspection possible. 

Check out what some of our  Florida home inspection customers have to say at Jacksonville Florida Home Inspection Reviews.  Want to see what goes on during a home inspection in Jacksonville FL watch my Jacksonville Home Inspection Videos.

Water Intrusion Issue Found At Sliding Glass Door

 

While providing residential home inspection services in Jacksonville I use a Thermal Imaging camera to assist me in performing the best inspection I can. During this inspection I noticed that the threshold for the sliding glass door was allowing water intrusion into the home. A home inspection by a professional home inspector will identify maintenance issues as well as more serious issues.

 

Bad Plumbing Vents Roof Maintenance Issues

During routine residential home inspections in Jacksonville one of the things I look for while inspecting the roof is all of the penetrations. One of the common problems I find is that the plumbing boots (rubber seal around the plumbing vents) are often cracked or deteriorated. This is very typical on homes here in the sunshine state. The reason they crack is because the sun beats down on them dries them out and they become very brittle. When they crack and open up water can leak into the home. Many times most home owners aren’t even aware of this issue until there has been significant water intrusion into the home. Look at the picture below of a cracked plumbing vent from inside the attic. YES that is daylight. When daylight can come in so can the rain. This is just one example of why it is a good idea to have an annual home inspection, just like your annual physical or having routine maintenance checks on your car. If you are buying a home or even if you own a home and haven’t had an inspection you’re in the right place.

 

Danger Will Robinson! Electrical Fire Hazard

During this Jacksonville home inspection I found the following home inspection safety issue.  After pulling the cover off the main electrical panel I found that one of the circuit breakers was double tapped. Why is this an issue? If both of the wires do not have a good connection arcing can occur. This is a fire hazard and will be written up in the home inspection report. So if you want to make sure your family is safe you have come to the right website.

Photo by 111 Emergency

 

If you or someone you know is need of a professional home inspector that is looking out for your best interest, make sure that you are making an Informed Decision every time you by a home by calling your Jacksonville Home Inspector at 904-891-6309 right now, which will allow you to get the best property inspection possible. 

Check out what some of our  Florida home inspection customers have to say at Jacksonville Florida Home Inspection Reviews.  Want to see what goes on during a home inspection in Jacksonville FL watch my Jacksonville Home Inspection Videos.

Another Orange Park Home Buyer Making An Informed Decision

After this house inspection in Orange Park the clients was so happy that they knew what items needed to be addressed. She didn’t know what to say afterwords, so she asked her mom to interview her. So if you want the best house inspection available in Orange Park you are in the right place.

 

Photo by Traci Bunkers

Does Your Roof Leak?

One of the items that we look for during Home Inspections in Jacksonville is signs of water intrusion. At this Jacksonville home I noticed a large section wall sheathing that had wood decay. This was an ongoing problem. The Flashing where the wall and roof intersected was bad and that is what caused the problem.

To make the necessary repairs involved removing the stucco on the exterior and replacing the damaged wall sheathing. Some of the shingles also had to be removed to remove and properly install a new flashing. This repair cost in excess of $8000!

When I went back to do the re-inspection of repairs, you won’t believe what I saw. To see what I found check out this post “Does Your Roof Leak? Re-visited”. You will be shocked!!!

If you or someone you know is purchasing a home in the Jacksonville FL are, give us a CALL today 904-891-6309.

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