Skokie home inspection explains what to look for before booking your mold inspection

  As you probably can guess we get alot of calls for mold inspections here at Pinnacle Property Inspection Services.  This is obviously a business and needs to make money.  Luckily for all my clients I believe a home should be qualified before doing a full mold inspection.  That is exactly what I explained to my new client from the Skokie home inspection.  Just because you want a mold inspection does not mean you need one.  Mold inspections can be expensive because of all the lab fees and such. I explained to my client that I would have my mold testing  equipment on the truck if we needed it but I suggested letting me do my thermal home inspection before moving forward with the mold inspection.

While I was performing the home inspection in the Skokie, Illinois home I was looking for all type of tells that would lead me to informing my client that he might want to purchase a mold inspection.  The items that would alarm me would be ~

Mold comes in all types

• Mold like substance would be the biggest reason for purchasing a mold test.  Visually seeing any type of mold might be a good reason to purchase a mold test.
• Water infiltration in an attic, crawl space, basement or any other area in a home is a good reason for moving forward with a mold test.
• High relative humidity a.k.a. (RH) can be found in crawl spaces, attics, bathrooms and basements can be a a reason to get a mold inspection service.
• Musty or foul smells coming from areas in walls may be a good reason to purchase a mold inspection.

If you are very sensitive to mold or mildew and your eyes water or you begin to cough that is the best result that might be from mold or mildew in the home that will need to be identified.  The Skokie home inspection has some seapage from the foundation walls that was allowing moisture into the home.  The drywall in the basement had a mildew like substance that was dry and could be cleaned off with soap and water. 

The remedy of the mold removal to the areas that could be seen were  easy enough but the hidden made my client from the Skokie home inspection nervous and he wanted me to perform a mold inspection to give him as much information as we could.  Mold can hide in places that we cant see so I believe his choice was the right one. 

If you are wondering if you need a mold inspection follow this list prior to hiring a mold inspection service  to perform mold testing in your home.  Mold testing can cost anywhere from $100.00 to $750.00 depending on how many locations need testing.

If you need help with this issues any other issues pertaining to your home or building please contact me at ~ The Thermal Home Inspector or 312-961-4228.

Thanks for stopping by and stay safe.

Jim Kolke

Missing vapor barriers, moisture barriers and insulation can cause you to have costly issues in your home

  When a client calls to book a home inspection I ask many questions to determine how long the inspection will take.  One of these questions is does this home have a crawl space?  Almost every time I ask this question my soon to be clients don’t know the answer.  The point I’m getting to is that crawl spaces can bring a whole different dynamic to a homes structure and being.  There are many type of crawl spaces and all need to be inspected diligently to protect and educate the client about what is down there and how will it effect the home.  My client from the Bensenville home inspection knew there was a crawl space present in the home and wanted to know everything he could about the area.

  This particular crawl space did have portion of moisture barrier present but not a solid sheet that would prevent moisture to enter the living area above.  In fact the crawl looked pretty good overall.  A missing vapor barrier or moisture barrier can allow moisture to enter the crawlspace from the dirt or gravel base  which in turn will enter the living area above. Many issues can develop from moisture in your crawl.

• Mold and mildew are one of the biggest issues that can develop from moisture in a crawl space.  Mold and or mildew can develop on foundation walls, floor joist  and floor sheeting very easy.
• Hardwood floors can be ruined by crowning.  Crowning of hardwood floors happens when moisture enters the floor on a consistent basis.  Once this happens it can not be reversed.
• Allergens can develop and get into your living area of the home.  Once this happens it can be passed throughout the home through the duct work.  The only way to eliminate this issue is to have the heating ducts cleaned.

  Luckily for my client from the Bensenville home inspection there were no issues from the list above in his home.   That leads me to another list of items that you want to look for in your crawl space.  This is a list of items you want to find in your crawl space to keep it a healthy crawl space. 

• Ventilation in a crawl is a must.  If your crawl space does get moisture it will be able to be vented out easily.  You always want at least 2 vents in your crawl space.  The crawlspace at the Bensenville home inspection had 5 vents.  I believe that is why the gravel crawl space did not have high humidity.
• Vapor barrier or moisture barrier is a must also.  I prefer to see the floor of a crawl space to be concrete.  In  my opinion that is the best moisture barrier but plastic will get the job done.  The vapor and moisture barrier prevent moisture from entering the home causing havoc on the structure.
• Heating ducts in a crawl space should be insulated to prevent heat loss from the furnace to the vent in the room where the vent is going.  You can lose up to 20 degrees by not having insulated ducts in your crawl space.
• Plumbing pipes will need to be insulated to prevent cracks in piping in the long Midwest winters.
• Insulation should be installed in the floor joists of the ceiling of the crawl space to keep the heat and cool air in the room above the crawl space.

 The Bensenville home inspection was missing insulation and had other issues to deal with in the crawl space.   The property had water entry into the block foundation due to poor grading around the home.  This is a simple and reasonably cheap repair that can be done by any homeowner.  As you can see there are many questions you need to ask when looking at your crawl space.  If you have further questions about crawl spaces then please contact me at ~ The Thermal Home Inspector or 312-961-4228.

Thanks for stopping by and stay safe.

Jim Kolke

Fluke thermal imagers should be used on every home inspection. PERIOD!

  Yesterday I was hired to inspect a foreclosure town home that had windows that were cracked in a transom.  A transom is a window above another window that allows sunlight to fill th room.  I personally really like the fact that this home had these transoms.  I found out at the Chicago home inspection in Greek town that my clients hired me because we use a Fluke thermal imager on every home inspection.  They saw water stains and paint bubbling on the ceiling of a bay window area in the living room.

 On my arrival to the Chicago home inspectionI found water coming through a ceiling in the living rooms bay window.  Obviously there was issues with the roof and the flashing’s that would need attention, roofing contractor. There were also issues with windows that were cracked and possible lack of headers above windows.  My clients from the Chicago home inspection were very concerned that there were structural issues with the lack of headers above windows.  That is when I took up my fluke thermal imager and we began scanning the walls.

The fluke thermal imager has many uses and I will explain many of them in this article.

• Structural issues are sometimes filed with the use of a fluke thermal imager. These issues can be seen only when a temperature differential is available in the the fluke thermal imager is not an x-ray machine it is a temperature tool.  Because the exterior temperature of a home is different than interior temperature of the home we are able to the see the actual wall joists and headers.
• Water intrusion in walls and ceilings of the home is easily seen with the use of a fluke thermal imager. The use of a fluke thermal imager by itself is never done.  Tramex moisture meters are also used as another tool to document the fact that there is water or moisture in a wall.  The use of either tool by their self is never done because checks and balances are a must in any home inspection.
• Electrical breaker boxes are  scanned for overheated breakers.  If a breaker is overloaded or double tapped the fluke thermal imager will see it as an overheated breaker.  Overheated breakers can cause fires and homes.  It is pertinent that a fluke thermal imager is used to scan your electrical breaker box your home inspection is being done.
• Insulation voids are found with the use of a fluke thermal imager. Fluke thermal imager’sare able to tell that insulation is missing or compromised in a wall or an attic with the use of temperature differential.

If you are a home  owner or a home buyer and you have questions about this process them please contact me at ~ The Thermal Home Inspector or 312-961-4228.

Thanks for stopping by and stay safe.

Jim Kolke

  We are now in March and the snow is almost gone and we can see the remains of the long Midwestern winter.  The spring rains will soon be here.  So i decided I would write an article for my readers that came up while I was with a client at their home inspection in Hawthorn Woods, Illinois.  We were walking around the home and I was showing him hose bibs .  The hose bibs were all shut off for the winter.  I found  other systems at the Hawthorn Woods home inspection in need of attention that would be on this list.

• Hose bibs will need to be turned back on. Most home owners turn their hose bibs off from within the home to prevent broken piping and such.

  

  Turn your hose bib on

• Gutters will need to be inspected and cleaned if needed.   Removal of winter leaves and debris is a must before the spring rains come.  If the gutters overflow because they are blocked may cause water to enter the home through the soffits if the apron flashing is missing.
• Drains around the home should be cleaned of all debris that may block water from entering.  Basement stairwell drains must get special attention or the possibility of water entry to basement may be the result.  If your basement is finished this may be a costly mistake.
• Window flashing’s should be inspected for gaps or missing caulking that will allow water to enter the building components.
• Chimney crowns should be investigated by you or a roofing cont actor to make sure there are no cracks in the crown or the actual chimney component.  Water will enter the home if there any cracks in this location.  The crown at the Hawthorn Woods home inspection was cracked and would need repairs.
• Electrical covers should be in good condition.   Make sure your Gfci type outlets are working also.
• Make sure your leaders from your gutter system are in good condition and were not moved from the snow.   This easily happens with the winds and the snow.  secure your leaders and make sure the splash guards are installed pointing away from the home.
• Patios and driveways should be cleaned and seal all cracks in the surface that may be an issues in the future.

As you can see this list can be a little overwhelming but can easily be completed in a Sunday afternoon with the kids.  My client from the Hawthorn Woods home inspection will definitely be using this list to prepare his home for spring and summer.  These items that you see on the list were considered marginal or defective issues like you might see on our home inspection report.  There are items that would be considered maintenance issues that would need to be done on an annual basis.  All of these items can be done if your home inspector shows you were these items are in your home.

If you are like my client from the Hawthorn Woods home inspection and don’t know anything about home and have questions then please contact me at ~ The Thermal Home Inspector or 312-961-4228.

Thanks for stopping by and stay safe.

Jim Kolke

A sealed deck can last a very long time.

  A deck is a great place to spend the day with your family.   It can be a great selling point when selling your home.  It also can be a hindrance when trying to find a buyer that will be interested in your home if it has not been taken care of.  The huge deck was definitely the buying point for my clients that hired me for a home inspection in Long Grove, Illinois.  The home sat on a huge piece of property that had a lot of trees that made the home hard to see from the road.  We are now in the tale end of a Midwestern winter when the trees have no leaves on them.  The leaves from these trees are one of the issues I had at the Long Grove home inspection.  Leaves can cause a lot of maintenance issues around a home.  If leaves sit on any type of  construction material they will start to deteriorate the material.  There are a couple things you want to look for when inspecting your deck. 

• The sizing and spanning of the floor joists are very important.  The easy way to tell if your deck is structurally sound is by basically moving around on it and if displacement happens then there may be issues.  Some of these issues can be rotten columns, missing footings, cracked or undersized floor joists, missing header plate or ledger board (that would be installed to the home for support), poor grading could cause you deck to prematurely fall apart.
• Decking is the area that you walk on and generally needs to be painted or sealed bi-annually.  If you do not seal this area and stay on top of the care of the decking the boards will start to absorb water and start to rot.  There are new products you can replace your wood decking with.  It is made of plastic and wood composite that has zero maintenance.  They even offer this product in many colors to accent your homes design.
• Railings can be a big issue if not installed right.  The span between the balusters should be no more than 4″.  This number was designed to keep small children’s heads from getting stuck in between these balusters. Make sure the railing posts are secured.  How you would do that is by giving the railings a little shove.  Not really hard but enough to see if there is any integrity behind the railing.
• Stairs should be secured at the base of a deck.  Many times I find that the stair stringer is rotten on the base of the stair case because the stairs we not set onto a concrete pad. The concrete pad allows the stringer to have a place to dry out after water has found it.  Most times the base of the stair case is set in the dirt.  There is no stability and a chance for the staircase to deteriorate quickly.  The stairs at the Long Grove home inspection were going to nee to be replaced.  I estimated that the replacement costs for these stairs would cost $600.00.

The article was written about sealing and painting your deck but I figured I would educate you on other important items that may come up in your home inspection on the deck .  To replace a older deck may cost you thousands but doing standard maintenance will only cost you hundreds.   My client from the Long Grove home inspection learned what to look for and how to take care of his deck from his home inspection. 

Hopefully you found some information here you can use.  If you have further questions about decks then please contact me at ~ The Thermal Home Inspector or 312-961-4228. 

Thanks for stopping by and stay safe. 

Jim Kolke