Interior Systems

<What a gas!- This gas clothes dryer has had it's exhaust vent disconnected and could be venting carbon monoxide into the home. It is prefered that all gas dryers use metal exhaust vents because the plastic ones can melt, rip and crimp more easily.

>Here the dryer vent and bath vent are routed together before being routed to the outside.  Problem was, when the dryer was running and the bath fan wasn't, fumes from the dryer entered into the bathroom. 

<The dryer vent is metal foil, which is okay, but it winds around so much that it's choking off air flow and has gotten kinked almost closed.  Lint can build up with all the turns and cause a fire concern.

 VBelow- Photo on left shows lint buildup inside the dryer vent, which is a fire concern. Photo on the right is a box that allows the hot dryer exhaust to help heat the house.  Nice idea for electric dryers, but this dryer is gas.  A carbon monoxide poisioning hazard.

V Below- When a basement bath vents into the basement, mold can develop.  I could tell when I looked up through the floor joists, that the bath discharge used to be routed into the area pictured on the right.  Sometime before the inspection, someone re-routed the bath vent to a new room pictured left.

<Stairway to Heaven- This broken ladder is considered a safety hazard.

>Bakers oven?- Believe it or not, this is an old abandoned boiler in the home.  Generally not a problem except that the doors could not be opened from the inside and a child could play inside and not get out.  We recommended the unit be removed or sealed.  About six months after our inspection the buyer called us to inform us that their cat got trapped inside somehow, and must have been there for days.

V Elderly people or children need handrails and in some cases guard railings to provent falling off the stairs.

<I'm falling for you Baby!-  If you are thinking these stairs look too steep, you're right they are.  Even more concerning is that there is no side protection to a dropoff and a child could fall under the handrailing.  Below, even steeper!

V Below- An 8' drop off behind the chair.  This is a concerning safety hazard.

<Selling Crack-  Most hairline cracks are due to normal settling or a tape joints poping loose.  This homeowner informed us that this crack (and several others) had been there for a long time and he tried to sell us on it being "no problem".  The floor was out of level and the structural components in the basement were sagging, improperly supported with rotting and undersized columns, unsupported floor joists plus some dry-rotting. We discribe cracks has; stess cracks (cosmetic in nature), settling cracks, structural cracks (stretching, varied, or deflected).  The structural cracks are the type to pay attention to and get further evaluation from a structural contractor or engineer.  Below are three pictures that show the basement support of this house.

Dry rotted girder on the left and joists that don't go far enough to be supported by the girder on the right.

<The 3x3 column in the photo to the left is supporting the beam in the photo above it. Note that the clogged floor drain is rotting out the board under the 3x3.  In essence, much of the house is being supported by this 3x3 column, which was beginning to bow under the stress.  I'm surprised the floor concrete hadn't cracked yet.

V Vehicle door safety- Garage door tension springs (pictured left) can develop metal fatigue over time and break.  When under tension they have been known to snap back and injure someone.  The right photo someone improperly installed the sensors, so that the vehicle door will not stop closing when a child or animal is under it. Sometimes we see them installed at the ceiling.  Could cause an injury.

V Here are some more of the same.  It looks like the sensors are taped together so they don't get out of alignment, more concerning is that they are above the door opener motor at the ceiling.

<Asbestos tiles?- Many older 9 inch floor tiles contained asbestos.  If they are in good condition, not cracking, fraying, or heavily worn, they shouldn't be a problem.  Many people just cover them up with other types of flooring, but be careful not to sand on them or cut them.  Keep in mind that some flooring installation companies will not install over them. 

V Mold- although not common, is becoming a big concern for some people.  The effect of mold depends mostly on each persons physiology.  Mold has not been determined as the definative cause of death for anyone we know about.  But it can cause unpleasant health symptoms.  Attic mold is the most common location we find it, and this may or may not affect the occupants of the home.  If we inspect your home and you are concerned about some dark staining we see, we can perform a mold test for you at an additional cost.

In this picture note the vent putting moisture into the attic.  The cold roof sheathing in the winter and warm moist air in the attic are a

great incubator for condensation on the sheathing and thus mold growth.

All the above concerns are repairable. Although it may not have effected the buying decision, all our clients really appreciated just knowing about these concerns.  We realize you have a choice in home inspectors, we hope you make a wise choice in hiring Home Check America.   Because your peace of mind matters.