A Northern Virginia Home Inspector's Perspective

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Home Inspector - Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - 3380-000723

ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS

2014 

The same principle has held forever - if you don't keep water out with kick-out flashing, you kick it in.  Proper flashing is always a Best Practice. Flashing is simple, but has to be done right. Skipping any part of it will admit water. Water does what water does - it is dynamically fluid! Flash...
04/29/2014
The Power Of Free Markets To Do Good   "Those of us who believe in the power of markets to do good must also believe in the power of markets to reduce harms - including the harms of pollution and climate change.  That work of market-driven harm reduction is being done right here." David Frum   Wh...
04/28/2014
I love watching the athletes do their performances on the trapeze, but this sink guy was no trap-ease artist. Water can't be expected to flow up.  It will with pressure from one end when forced.  But not in a drain situation.  Drainage will only go down to the level the weight of the water will s...
04/27/2014
One of the most common things seen on older homes is the installation of new windows and this is how to tell the new windows weren't insulated properly when installed. The Best Practice on new construction is to foam around windows and doors with a minimally-expansive, open-cell foam. This provid...
04/25/2014
It is always interesting to see how things are done in former times and I found the 1850 structure of a house resting on a single point. The house was built in a way I have never seen. Literally the foundation and supportive locations were carved out of rock! A cellar revealed that around the ori...
04/24/2014
Gee, doesn't he know it isn't Tuesday?  Yes, yes he does.  But Tuesday "he" was so busy he only had time to post this on his other blog, Jay's Free Enterpise Blog... So many people contacted me about not posting this here, I decided to.    A Recipe For Disaster    "In the early stages of the stat...
04/23/2014
Not much more saddening in new construction could be the discovery of footprints in the hardwood flooring finish coat. Silly and disconcerting.  Uncaring and disappointing.  Unbelievable and dishonorable. DISPLAYING THIS AS THE "REVEAL" TO BUYERS SHOULD EMBARRASS ANY BUILDER.  BUT IT APPARENTLY D...
04/22/2014
This is brand new construction - is pre-drilling screw holes on doors really that important? Most of the doors in the house were like this.  They are cracked at the strike plate. On the door of a double door, and on the side wall of the door framing, the wood was cracked at the strike plates. Why...
04/20/2014
Just driving up to a house, even from a distance, I can often look and say to myself - cedar shake roof - was it repaired or not? This particular roof was said by the seller to have been inspected, had dozens of bad shakes replaced, other shakes repaired, and stained all over.  I have no doubt th...
04/18/2014
If spaces are impossible to get to and not visible to the home inspector, a camera can sometimes see where the home inspector can't! On a recent flip I noticed the upper room of a Cape Cod, which in this house was divided into two "bedrooms," looked different. You know the space - each room is ba...
04/17/2014
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Jay Markanich

Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia
local_phone(703) 330-6388
smartphone(703) 585-7560
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An experienced home inspector's look at current home inspection events and conditions along with his useful recommendations.