ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS
2010
Of all the components in a home the electrical system has to be the most mysterious and to some degree menacing. Electricity should be respected because it can kill you. One of the major parts of the system is the ground wire. This is usually a single wire found inside the main service panel on ...
01/30/2010
13
Comments
When running the sink or flushing the toilet not much thought is given to how the "stuff" going down the drain leaves the house. Most folks know there is a set of pipes that the "stuff" travels through on its way to destinations unknown. The one significant difference between the pipes that bring...
01/25/2010
9
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Homes have been constructed using pretty much the same design and methods for hundreds of years. "Stick built" is a common term used to describe the way house are constructed. After all 2x4s are nothing more than nicely shaped sticks. As with all designs there are inherent flaws. These imperfecti...
01/23/2010
No matter what the window manufactures may say the fact is a window is a hole in the wall bleeding out conditioned air. Undoubtedly this is part of the reason why windows are rated in U factor instead of the more recognized R value. The U factor is the inverse of the R value. An Energy Star rated...
01/19/2010
13
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The most valuable and certainly the most impressive instrument in my tool belt is the infrared (IR) or thermal imaging camera. The IR camera doesn't see through walls or objects all though the images from a thermal imaging camera may appear X-ray like. In reality the IR camera does have a very li...
01/14/2010
21
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When you stop and think electricity hasn't been inside homes all that long, about 100 years. In the beginning wiring was what might best be termed experimental. Safe was not a word anyone would use to describe the first wiring methods in homes. Of course wiring methods progressively became safer ...
01/09/2010
8
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As everyone is well aware the cost of energy has gone significantly higher in the last couple of years. This has spurred an interest in energy conservation. A little late in my opinion, kind of like closing the door after the dog gets out, but I digress. Because higher energy costs hit everyone w...
01/08/2010
11
Comments
Yesterday I talked about saws and the damage they can be used to inflict on a home when put into the hands of the moderately skilled. To further expound on this topic saws can also cause great damage in the hands of the highly skilled licensed and trained professional. It would appear that when t...
01/07/2010
True certification is rare to find in any industry. The American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) recently accomplished third party independent certification. This blog by Scott Patterson explains the significance of this milestone in the home inspection industry. American Society of Home Inspe...
01/06/2010
5
Comments
If you have seen any of the Saw series of horror films then you know they are gruesome, gut wrenching movies definitely not for the faint of heart. The saw itself does have quite a long and grisly history in and out of fiction, but where would civilization be without this humble and very useful t...
01/06/2010
Rainmaker
691,620
691,620
James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector