Inspector SnapShots

You’ve seen them… those small chrome cylinders with open slots attached to your kitchen sink deck or counter top. Have you ever wondered what that silver thingy is? It’s called an air-gap device that’s installed between the dishwasher drain line and the garbage disposer. The purpose is to prevent...

  A partially disconnected duct was discovered in a very moist crawlspace under a 30 year old San Ramon, CA house. The non-professional installation was evidenced by the amount of grey duct tape used and the absence of support straps. Grey duct tape was never intended for heating and cooling duct...

    The purpose of a plumbing trap under your house sinks is to prevent odorous sewer gases from entering the house back through the sink and tub drains... By having water sit in the trap, it effectively blocks sewer gas. There are two basic types of traps: P and S configurations. Both configurat...

As a home inspector at Pacific Coast Inspections, I encounter grey duct tape being used all the time - mainly on heating and cooling ducts - which turns out to be a non-compliant use of the tape. It's probably true, that duct tape has a 1001 uses. There's even a book about duct tape that you can ...

  That U shaped piece of pipe under your sink is called a P-trap. The purpose is to create a water seal and keep sewer gas from entering the household. A requirement of a properly installed P-trap is that it has a water seal of not less than 2 inches and not more than 4 inches (between the two ho...

  The story of Santa Claus in America begins with the history of St Nicholas.   In America the history of Santa goes back four centuries.   The evolution of the character as we know him today is a remarkable one with world-wide implications... enjoy reading. Seasons Greetings, from Glenn Stewart...

  Learn about:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asbestos Home inspectors routinely encounter asbestos materials installed in older houses. What is asbestos? It’s a mineral fiber. It can be positively identified only with a special type of microscope. In the past, asbestos was added to a variety of p...

  During a recent Walnut Creek home inspection, it was discovered that a homeowner had plugged in 5 extension cords and a washing machine into a power strip located in a Walnut Creek garage. Every year, thousands of fires result from surge protectors, power strips and electrical cords. The U.S. C...

Disconnect… to terminate a connection.  Ask any home inspector, disconnected heating and cooling ducts in the attics are a common occurrence. Why?  Because standard gray duct tape was used… It says ‘duct tape’ right on the label… It must be the right tape for ducts.  Right? Wrong!  During World ...

Just when the seasoned home inspector thinks he’s seen it all… a new photo op presents itself. To connect electrical service to a house...the non-insulated electrical service cable is secured to the house service mast with a wire holder clamped to the mast. In this photo, someone used a rope ins...