Inspector's in the house |
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Divergent home inspection reports |
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By Barry Stone |
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Dear Barry, When I bought my home, two years ago, I hired a home inspector to find all the defects. Now that I'm selling the property, the buyers hired their own inspector, and the new report contains information not disclosed by my inspector. One item in particular in the new report is the fireplace chimney is touching the wood framing in the attic. The new inspector says this is a fire hazard. Before investing in costly repairs, I want to be sure the new report, rather than the old one, is correct. What can you tell me about metal chimneys in attics? -Woody Dear Woody, Metal chimneys should never be in direct contact with combustible materials. In most cases, the clearance requirements are listed plainly on the chimney itself. Standard clearances are usually one or two inches. These specifications may be stamped into the sheet metal chimney or printed on an attached label. When a hot metal chimney touches a wood surface, the kindling temperature of the wood is lowered, owing to a process known as pyrolysis. Gradually, over a period of years, the temperature at which the wood will ignite is reduced. Eventually, the heat of the chimney itself can kindle the wood, causing an attic fire. To ensure adequate fire clearance in your attic, have the chimney evaluated by a certified chimney sweep. A qualified sweep can make sure your chimney complies with all pertinent fire safety requirements. Dear Barry, The home I'm buying has a bootlegged drain pipe at the laundry, as discovered by my home inspector. Instead of draining into the septic system, the pipe extends to a garden area in the back yard. The seller says he's been draining his washer this way for years and that all his neighbors do the same. I called the local building department, and they say it's illegal to drain gray water onto the ground. Should I continue to drain the washer to the back yard or connect it to the septic? -Geoff Dear Geoff, Homeowners with septic systems often drain their laundry gray water into their gardens. This is usually done to protect the continued performance of the septic. Laundry detergents and bleach are commonly known to have damaging effects on the ecology of septic systems. "Friendly" bacteria in septic tanks are necessary for the decomposition of solid waste matter. Laundry chemicals can kill these bacteria, causing the system to congest with undissolved solids. Clandestine drainage to the landscaping is a simple way to avoid sewage problems. An added advantage to this illegal practice is that plants generally respond favorably to detergents: The phosphates seem to work well as fertilizers. However, in order to be code compliant, this alternative drainage method must meet specific standards:
These are the main requirements only. To ensure compliance with other details in the code, inspection and approval by your local building department are recommended. Barry Stone can be reached at barry@housedetective.com *** Do you have a comment about this story? |
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