Home Inspection report "double taps"

Status
Not open for further replies.
mbrooke said:
Being on HI sites for over 10 years I can truly say training needs to be overhauled.
Click to expand...

They are getting better. They don't run around with the Ideal Sure Test doing voltage drop measurements anymore.

I have seen inspection reports that were a joke and others that were pretty darn good.

You would think the good guys would get all the business but I think many prefer the joke version.

I remember when pet rocks were for sale. A friend of mine decided to adopt a stray and picked his up off the side of the road.
 
growler said:
They are getting better. They don't run around with the Ideal Sure Test doing voltage drop measurements anymore.

I have seen inspection reports that were a joke and others that were pretty darn good.

You would think the good guys would get all the business but I think many prefer the joke version.

I remember when pet rocks were for sale. A friend of mine decided to adopt a stray and picked his up off the side of the road.
Click to expand...


I see a 50/50, both get good business but the joke inspector are tainting the system.
 
mbrooke said:
I see a 50/50, both get good business but the joke inspector are tainting the system.
Click to expand...
There are questionable people in every trade. There are conditions that still allow those not so good to remain in place as well. When economy turns south, some of those not so good end up folding, when times are good more pop up if demand for their trade increases.
 
mbrooke said:
Either way, Id rather HIs call out any and all defects correctly. The whole concept of this trade and all that surrounds is to improve safety for those using electricity.
Click to expand...

So let me see if I can follow this.

You are for safety in this trade.

You know as well as I do HIs do find safety issues and cause them to be fixed.

But you would toss that aside because once in a while they point things out that are not unsafe.


Sorry, I don't see the logic.
 
iwire said:
So let me see if I can follow this.

You are for safety in this trade.

You know as well as I do HIs do find safety issues and cause them to be fixed.

But you would toss that aside because once in a while they point things out that are not unsafe.


Sorry, I don't see the logic.
Click to expand...


But my point is HI also miss safety issues. I never said we should toss the system out altogether.
 
mbrooke said:
Being on HI sites for over 10 years I can truly say training needs to be overhauled.
Click to expand...

mbrooke said:
But my point is HI also miss safety issue.
Click to expand...


What would make you think that a home inspection is a "safety inspection" ? After 10 years on HI sites you should start to get the idea of the limited scope of a home inspection.


In many areas if the power to a house or business is off for 6 month or a year (depending on jurisdiction) there is a safety inspection required. A home inspector can't perform this type of inspection.
 
growler said:
What would make you think that a home inspection is a "safety inspection" ? After 10 years on HI sites you should start to get the idea of the limited scope of a home inspection.
Click to expand...

So a condition of property does not involve safety? I guess HIs should not call out a gas water heater venting into a basement?



In many areas if the power to a house or business is off for 6 month or a year (depending on jurisdiction) there is a safety inspection required. A home inspector can't perform this type of inspection.
Click to expand...


Sure, but a knowledgeable HI knows what to look for.
 
growler said:
In many areas if the power to a house or business is off for 6 month or a year (depending on jurisdiction) there is a safety inspection required. A home inspector can't perform this type of inspection.
Click to expand...

mbrooke said:
Sure, but a knowledgeable HI knows what to look for.
Click to expand...


I doubt that. it really depends on the jurisdiction as to what is considered safe and will be required to turn the power back on.
 
growler said:
What would make you think that a home inspection is a "safety inspection" ? After 10 years on HI sites you should start to get the idea of the limited scope of a home inspection.
Click to expand...

mbrooke said:
So a condition of property does not involve safety? I guess HIs should not call out a gas water heater venting into a basement.
Click to expand...


Gas water heater venting is on the list of items to be checked so they would have to write up any material defect they find.

Material defect...Significant adverse impact on property value or poses unreasonable risk to people.

If it was a safety inspection they would call it a safety inspection.
 
growler said:
Gas water heater venting is on the list of items to be checked so they would have to write up any material defect they find.

Material defect...Significant adverse impact on property value or poses unreasonable risk to people.

If it was a safety inspection they would call it a safety inspection.
Click to expand...

And electrical is on the list of terms also. :thumbsup: An HI should be able to know something is up when a panel full of tandems has red and black on the same tandem.
 
infinity said:
Let's not make this a bash the HI thread or it's a goner. Just like electricians, inspectors and engineers there are good and not so good. We're here to share ideas and learn not bash one particular trade. HI's have a place in the inspection industry and often make recommendations that puts money in the pockets of electricians. :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

mbrooke said:
Question. Why does this forum oppress free speech? I have nothing against the HI industry, but its a known fact from personal experience that a high number of them miss defects and/or call out code complaint installations. This should be changed for a number of reasons.
Click to expand...


First of all I made a general statement about keeping this thread from going south and I made no mention of any particular post, just a reminder to keep it civil.

Secondly, like it or not there is no such thing as freedom of speech on this forum. It's privately owned and is moderated based on the guidelines put forth by the forum owner. We consider this to be a place for good conversation between gentlemen and we should treat each other as such.


Now to some of the other points in this thread, yes many HI's lack the experience to perform a full inspection of the complicated electrical systems present in a dwelling, but that doesn't mean they all do. In fact I would bet that there are some master electricians who have pivoted into the Hi industry that are highly qualified to inspect a dwelling electrical system, so the lumping together of all HI's as being bad just isn't correct.

Many Hi's freely admit that doing the electrical portion of a home inspection is not their strongest suit and they seek further education in places like this forum. So if the consensus is that a large number of HI's need to brush up on their electrical chops then we should ensure that they feel welcome here. That doesn't mean we cannot critique their work (I have done so in the past), it's just that in doing so we need to keep in mind why they're here in the first place.

OK I'm putting the soap box away now. :angel:
 
mbrooke said:
And electrical is on the list of terms also. :thumbsup: An HI should be able to know something is up when a panel full of tandems has red and black on the same tandem.
Click to expand...

What rule is being broke by having a red and black on the same tandem ? It's not good practice but there is no rule that says A phase is black and B phase is red.

You are thinking that the red and black are in the same cable assembly and sharing a neutral but maybe not.

If the panel is filled with tandems I would think the bigger question but be the number of circuits allowed in this panel. Easy to count without getting invasive.
 
growler said:
What rule is being broke by having a red and black on the same tandem ? It's not good practice but there is no rule that says A phase is black and B phase is red.

You are thinking that the red and black are in the same cable assembly and sharing a neutral but maybe not.

If the panel is filled with tandems I would think the bigger question but be the number of circuits allowed in this panel. Easy to count without getting invasive.
Click to expand...


But there is a rule that A and B can not be on the same tandem with access to only phase A instead of both. I have seen HIs miss that more then once.

A panel full of tandems is not an immediate issue, especially when 20/40 panels exist.
 
mbrooke said:
I have seen HIs miss that more then once.
Click to expand...


If you see it what's the problem, you write it up and correct it.

I have seen city and county inspectors miss things and they are supposed to be electrical experts. Then again I have missed things and I'm supposed to be an electrical expert. Perhaps no one is really smart enough to do electrical work or inspections. :dunce:
 
growler said:
If you see it what's the problem, you write it up and correct it.

I have seen city and county inspectors miss things and they are supposed to be electrical experts. Then again I have missed things and I'm supposed to be an electrical expert. Perhaps no one is really smart enough to do electrical work or inspections. :dunce:
Click to expand...

But thats just it, many dont write it up. Outside of double taps I see so much missed that may never see experty attention. An HI is the only chance to correct it.

The level of training electricians get compared to that of HI is very different both in time and quality. HIs need better education no matter what.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top