The complete book of home inspection

The

Complete Book of

Home Inspection

For Renée, Jeffrey, and Piper

The

Complete Book of

Home Inspection

Third Edition

Norman Becker, P.E.

McGraw-Hill

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Contents

Introduction xii

1 Tools and procedure 1

Tools needed 1

Inspection procedure 2

Exterior inspection 2

Interior inspection 3

Electromechanical systems 4

Final inspection 4

EXTERIOR INSPECTION

2 Roofs 6

Pitched roofs 6

Shingles 8

Flat roofs 14

Built-up roofs (BURs) 16

Single-ply membrane 17

Roll roofing 17

Metal roofing 17

Checkpoint summary 18

3 Roof-mounted structures and projections 19

Chimneys 19

Vent stacks 22

Roof vents 24

Contents v

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vi Contents

Roof hatch 24

Skylights 25

TV antennas 25

Lightning protection 25

Gutters and downspouts 26

Built-in gutters 26

Exterior-mounted gutters 26

Downspouts 28

Checkpoint summary 29

4 Paved areas around the structure 31

Sidewalks 31

Street-level/driveway-level steps 31

Front and side paths 32

Entry steps 32

Patio 33

Driveway 33

Checkpoint summary 35

5 Walls, windows, and doors 36

Exterior walls 37

Exterior siding 38

Masonry wall 45

Trim 45

Windows 46

Inspection 48

Exterior doors 49

Storm windows, screens, and storm doors 51

Storm windows 51

Screens 51

Storm doors 52

Inspection 52

Caulking 52

Checkpoint summary 53

6 Lot and landscaping 55

Drainage 55

Groundwater, water table 58

Inspection 60

Retaining walls 63

Inspection 64

Landscaping 65

Lawn 65

Shrubs 67

Trees 67

Contents vii

Decks 68

Fences 70

Checkpoint summary 71

7 Garage 73

Attached garage 73

Fire and health hazards 73

Plumbing check 75

Flood potential 76

Doors 76

General considerations 77

Detached garage 77

Exterior 78

Interior 78

Heat and electricity 80

Checkpoint summary 80

8 Wood-destroying insects and rot 82

Termites 82

Subterranean termites 85

Dry-wood termites 91

Formosan termites 92

Other wood-destroying insects 92

Carpenter ants 92

Powder-post beetles 94

Rot 95

Inspection 97

Checkpoint summary 97

INTERIOR INSPECTION

9 Attic 99

Insulation 99

Violations 101

Leakage 101

Fire hazards 102

Ventilation 103

Attic fans 105

Structural 105

Checkpoint summary 105

10 Interior rooms 107

Walls and ceilings 108

Floors 111

Heat 112

viii Contents

Windows 112

Electrical outlets 114

Fireplace 115

Bedrooms 116

Bathrooms 117

Water pressure and flow 118

Kitchen 121

Hallway and staircase 121

Checkpoint summary 122

11 Basement and crawl space 125

Foundation 125

Settlement 126

Inspection 127

Dampness 131

Water seepage—causes and control 132

High groundwater level 132

Hydrostatic pressure—walls 133

Inspection 134

Furnace room 140

Ventilation 141

Crawl space 142

Checkpoint summary 144

ELECTROMECHANICALS

12 Electrical system 146

Inlet electrical service 146

Electrical capacity 147

Fuses and circuit breakers 150

Inlet service panel box 151

Panel-box interior 151

Aluminum wiring 152

Grounding 152

Improper ground connections 152

Interior electrical inspection 153

Electrical outlets 153

Knob-and-tube wiring 155

Low-voltage switching systems 155

Violations 156

Checkpoint summary 156

13 Plumbing 158

Water supply and distribution 159

Fixtures 159

Contents ix

Drainage system 159

Waste-disposal system 161

Cesspool 162

Septic system 162

Exterior inspection 165

Vent stack 165

Fresh-air vent 166

Lawn sprinkler systems 166

Septic system 166

Interior inspection 167

Fixtures 167

Water pressure, flow 167

Plumbing wall hatch 168

Pipes 168

Basement inspection 169

Water-supply pipes 169

Distribution piping 171

Drainage pipes 172

Well-pumping systems 174

Wells 174

Well pumps 174

Accessory equipment 176

General considerations 178

Checkpoint summary 179

14 Heating systems I 181

Central heating systems 182

Heating outlets: registers and radiators 183

Thermostat and master shutoff 183

Warm-air systems 184

Advantages 185

Disadvantages 185

Gravity warm air 185

Forced warm air 187

Heat pump 190

Hot-water systems 190

Gravity hot water 191

Forced hot water 192

Steam heating systems 199

Distribution piping 199

Controls 200

Domestic water heater 202

Advantages and disadvantages 202

Hybrid heating systems 202

Steam–hot water 202

Hot water–warm air 203

x Contents

15 Heating systems II 204

Oil-fired systems 204

Gas-fired systems 206

Electrical systems 207

Area heaters 207

Gas-fired units 207

Electrical units 208

Heating system inspection procedure 208

Warm-air systems 210

Hot-water systems 212

Steam systems 213

Oil burners 214

Gas burners 214

Checkpoint summary 215

16 Domestic water heaters 218

Tank water heaters 219

Reversed connection 219

Relief valve 220

Rumbling noise 222

Exhaust stack 222

Operational inspection 223

Water heater replacement 224

Water heater capacity and recovery 225

Tankless coil water heaters 226

Inspection procedure 228

Indirect-fired storage water heaters 228

Checkpoint summary 229

17 Air-conditioning 230

Air-conditioning capacity 231

Air-conditioning systems 232

Integral system 232

Split system 232

Heat pump 240

Evaporative cooler 241

Checkpoint summary 241

18 Swimming pools 243

Concrete pools 243

Vinyl-lined pools 244

Preformed fiberglass pools 245

Pool equipment 246

Pool accessories 248

Inspection procedure 248

Checkpoint summary 250

Contents xi

OTHER ISSUES

19 Energy considerations 251

Energy audit 251

Insulation 252

Attic ventilation 255

Storm windows 256

Caulking and weatherstripping 257

Fireplaces and wood-burning stoves 257

Heating and air-conditioning systems 258

20 Environmental concerns 260

Radon 260

Asbestos 263

Drinking water 265

Lead 266

Formaldehyde 268

Leaky oil tanks 268

Electromagnetic fields 269

Mold 270

21 Conclusion 272

Professional home inspection 272

Home inspection limitations 272

Real estate warranty program 273

Private home inspection warranty programs 274

Manufacturers’ warranties 274

Contract 274

Glossary 276

Inspection worksheets 278

Index 285

When I started my home inspection com￾pany in 1971, there were very few inspectors

in the United States. Most of them were indi￾vidual consultants working in and around

large metropolitan areas. There were no spe￾cific qualifications to be an inspector and no

specific requirements covering the items to

be inspected. In those days, probably no

more than 1 to 2 percent of the homes sold in

the United States had an inspection.

On a very cold night in January 1976 I

met with eight other home inspectors in the

Connecticut office of Ron Passaro. Ron is

the president of Res-I-Tec Home Inspection.

We discussed the need to form a professional

organization. Although home inspection is a

consumer protection service, we recognized

that in order for inspectors to be accepted by

the public as professionals, it would be neces￾sary to establish an organization that has a set

of standards regarding those items to be

inspected, a code of ethics, and membership

requirements. That night we formed the

American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI).

As of this writing there are thousands of

home inspectors servicing large and small com￾munities throughout the United States and

Canada. A combined study by ASHI and the

National Association of Realtors estimated that

in the year 2000, 77 percent of all homes sold in

the United States had an inspection.

What does the above have to do with you?

Well, over the years I’ve had many clients tell

me that they know so little about a house that

they don’t even know what questions to ask

and exactly what is it that I do. If you plan on

hiring a home inspector for your existing or

future home this book will explain what an

inspection covers and what to expect from

your inspector. Even if you plan on hiring an

inspector, you might want to consider doing a

preliminary inspection yourself. This book is

written in sufficient detail that you can do a

fairly extensive preliminary inspection yourself.

Introduction

xii Introduction

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Introduction xiii

There are also worksheets at the back of the

book to help. An inspection is important in

that it will help you determine the true condi￾tion of a house. This will enable you to deter￾mine the actual cost of buying the house. As I

mentioned in the first edition, “The true cost

of buying a house is its purchase price plus the

cost for upgrading substandard, deteriorated,

or malfunctioning components.”

In the second edition I added a chapter on

environmental concerns as they relate to home

ownership. Since then another item has been

added to the list of concerns—mold. A discus￾sion about mold in a house is included in this

third edition. The rotting problems caused by

synthetic stucco (EIFS) as an exterior wall sid￾ing has also become a concern since the last

edition. EIFS, the acronym for exterior insu￾lation and finish system, and its associated

problems are discussed in this edition. Since

swimming pools are becoming fairly common

in all sections of the country, a separate chap￾ter on swimming pools has been added. Most

of the chapters have been expanded to include

additional items that should be checked dur￾ing an inspection. Some of these topics are

cracks in ceiling caused by truss uplift, sag￾ging sections in plaster ceiling, garage door

restraining cables, sewage ejector systems,

lightning protection, chimney-top dampers,

the swing of an exterior entry door over a

landing platform, termite bait systems, heat￾ing or air conditioning ducts in an attic, whirl￾pool bathtubs, dripping water heater relief

valves, and ventilation requirements for heat￾ing equipment.

By following the procedures outlined in

this book, you will be making an informed

decision and not an emotional one, which can

in the long run be quite costly.

Norman Becker, P.E.