Fred Hernden's Blog

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Home Inspector - Superior Home Inspections - Greater Albuquerque Area - InterNACHI 10041206

ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS

2013 

45 Comments
Everybody knows that when you are cooking, you can turn on the range hood exhaust fan or the microwave vent fan to get all that moisture, food odors, grease vapors, etc... out of the kitchen. Some hoods or microwaves merely recirculate the air and it exits out of the top of the unit. Exhausting t...
10/27/2013
8 Comments
Plumbing vents are necessary. The purpose of venting the system is to allow the system to breathe and to maintain the water seal of the traps in your home. Without them, sewer gasses would be allowed to enter back up through the drain pipes and enter the home. There should be at least one vent pi...
10/24/2013
18 Comments
Sometimes I run into things that I haven't seen for a while, then it seems like they run in streaks. This past week has been bad roof week! I have seen a bunch of bad roofs. I say bad but what I mean by that is used up, finished, spent, done, or my favorite; "Gone past it's useful life" On this d...
10/21/2013
If you have a flat roof, or a low sloped roof, shingles are not an option for a roofing material. Low sloped roofs usually have a rolled roofing material, or a bitumen type material. There are a couple grades, roofers use a "torch down" technique where they use hot asphalt materials to glue it do...
10/19/2013
Today we are talking about "Unpermitted Additions" to a property. You see it every day, homeowners adding a room to their house, replacing water heaters, HVAC units, re-roofing their homes, building sheds or decks... you name it. It happens a lot, no permits pulled for the project, no county insp...
10/19/2013
I wrote a blog yesterday about Peek a Boo siding and the rotted wood I found behind it. Well, behind that house was a detached apartment, or as advertised, "Mother-In-Law" suite. It was connected to the main house by a covered walkway and a carport. The main house was covered with aluminum siding...
10/19/2013
32 Comments
Aluminum or vinyl siding can make a huge different to the appearance of a home, even change the way it looks. When it is installed, there are special flashings that are used around windows and doors to keep them from allowing water and moisture from getting behind it and just sitting there, trapp...
10/17/2013
3 Comments
I had an inspection on a Fannie Mae owned home in Port Richey, Florida the other day, I know you all know what that means... no disclosure! So off I went on my appointed rounds. When I got there I must say there was quite the mess, but I will leave you to decide that. I was going to post these pi...
10/17/2013
38 Comments
Doors that separate the garage and living area are required by the IRC (International Residential Code) to be a fire rated door. Gasoline, paint, chemicals, and other flammable items are typically stored in garages and can pose a fire hazard. This is what the IRC says about them: R309.1 Opening P...
10/05/2013
I wish I had a dollar for every time I recommended that my clients install gutters on the house they were buying! I really do. I think it is part of the roof system and should be included by builders when they are constructing their homes. The idea is to channel rain water away from the structure...
10/04/2013
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Fred Hernden, CMI

Albuquerque area Master Inspector
local_phone(505) 588-9559
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