It was so nice to take a drive out to Ocean Park, WA this morning. It is a two hour drive out to the coast and up the Long Beach Penninsula. The air was really cool and filled with the smells of salt water, a nice change from the temperatures lately in the Willamette Valley! I got to inspect
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09/08/2011
I have had the opportunity to realize yet again how much I enjoy the very early morning in the past two days. Circumstances have had me up before 5am two days in a row. It is a paradox that on the one hand I enjoy so much the morning time, yet have such difficulty regularly getting up so early.
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09/08/2011
A leisurly day after Labor day puts me in Washougal, WA this morning on a beautiful 1994 home, and into rural Battle Ground, WA this afternoon for an inspection on a manufactured home. The weather is moderate, not too hot and not too cool, so this is pretty much perfect working weather. Clients
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09/06/2011
"Mold" "Mildew" "Fungal growth" "Mold like substance" "Mildew like substance" "mildew-fungalophucus" "harry" "scotty" Whatever you want to call it: mold. There are a lot of types of mold. They are all around you: right now. Some you see, some you don't. Sometimes it smells, sometimes it doesn
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09/05/2011
Sometimes a little thought can go a long way: if you put the turn-out elbow from the downspout behind the lower edge of the dormer, you are going to be directing water onto the wood. Water+wood=wood decay. Simply using a larger turn-out elbow, or putting an extension on it could have prevented
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09/05/2011
Most of the homes that I will inspect will have, from one degree to another, leaking air in the heating/cooling system, which means that air is getting out where it shouldn't be: air that you are paying for. Think of it the like putting gas into a car that you know leaks gas. Perhaps the leak i
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09/05/2011
One of the (one... of... the...) complaints that people (well, usually contractors and realtors... well... usually realtors...) have with inspectors is mentioning things that seem petty or otherwise not really significant, especially considering that most Standards of Practice and home inspector
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09/04/2011
Well, I adamently do not work on Sundays. That is my one day that I give completely to my family and faith. Well, ok... it means that I don't do "inspections" on Sundays (and, really, I am only asked to do inspections on Sundays a couple times a year anyway...). Every now and then I have to do
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09/04/2011
September has come and we, in the home inspection industry, will be having our final "big push" of the year: after September, things start to slow down through Christmas and the New Year. It is a beautiful time of year to work (September and October, being my favorite), and a great time to purch
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09/04/2011
Contemporary standards generally say that an attic space needs 1:300 (http://www.buildingscience.com/documents/digests/bsd-102-understanding-attic-ventilation/) (among other variables). The majority of the time, this is sufficient. That said, the placement of attic vents is also important. For
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09/03/2011
