I am no big fan of flat roofs.In dense cities, designers and builders wrestling with height restrictions will often opt of flat roofs in order to gain another floor level that would otherwise be the roof structure of the building. It is only logical that someone would then want to turn that roof
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05/31/2011
As a Seattle Home Inspector I sometimes get to play fortune teller as well inspector.I don't get to tell anyone how rich they are going to be or how poor they are going to be---but I can on occasion get a glimpse into their future. (Sometimes, based on the house they are buying, I actually do kn
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05/29/2011
In the NW I occasionally get asked if I inspect swimming pools. First of all I have to get clear on exactly what a swimming pool is---and then I politely say no. While not quite as rare as chicken's teeth, swimming pools are indeed pretty rare in my neck of the woods. On the rare occasion
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05/27/2011
In the big picture, this "defect" is pretty little. In fact some would say that even mentioning it on the inspection report is not necessary. For me, I don't try to figure out what my client dose or does not want to know about regarding the home. I simply do my best to record everything I notice.
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05/25/2011
Hindsight is an amazing thing. After the fact---things may seem obvious.Obvious to the point one might have foreseen them. In the middle of thingswe are blinded by the distractions necessary to fulfill the script.Sometimes what we see so clearlyis nothing more than a mirage.I would love to have
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05/24/2011
Since 1991 in Washington State, some means of bringing fresh air into the home has been required by the Washington State Energy Code. This requirement is for new construction as well as significant remodels. So, as an inspector, I am always looking for these systems.On remodels it is common to
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05/23/2011
As a builder I always hated to have to wear a hard hat. Being the boss it was pretty rare that I would actually wear one. Employees were a different story and for the most part they are a pretty good idea---hard hats that is. Employees I can do without. They are especially important when yo
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05/21/2011
What the heck is an inspector to do with this? This structure had so many problems with it, that what do do with it was not very difficult. Just a matter of which version of taking it down is going to be more interesting. Wind, Water, Fire----chainsaw?While in its day, it was probably a hoot f
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05/16/2011
There was a song from 1970 (when else) that had a line something like, “When you can’t be with the one you love, honey love the one you’re with.” Now while this approach to relationships might be ethically questionable, (and under the right conditions get you hit with a frying pan) I could never
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05/14/2011