This is the reason you want to make sure that your home inspector is going to get up on your roof. This is a two story house. The missing tiles cannot be seen from the ground.
Remember, when you are hiring a home inspector, always ask if they are going to walk the roof. If they say no, do yourself a favor and hire someone else. If they say they are, and they do not, do not pay them, and hire someone else.
Posted by Bill Siegel Florida Home Inspection Team Inc
Well, here we go again. Now the government is saying that there is no link between Chinese drywall and health problems. Maybe we should have someone from the government live in these houses for six months and see if they feel any different.
WASHINGTON - After months of investigation to the tune of $3.5 million, the government still can’t explain the cause of health problems found in homes built with imported Chinese drywall.
Federal officials say they sympathize with residents in Florida and other states who have fled their homes complaining of headaches, breathing disorders and corroded wiring. But to the disbelief and outrage of homeowners, officials could not confirm that tainted drywall is the culprit.
Initial tests of imported drywall and of air samples taken in Florida and Louisiana revealed high levels of sulfur and strontium. But they were not high enough to explain remarkably similar symptoms reported by nearly 1,900 households in 30 states.
“I’m not saying there’s not a health risk here,” Michael McGeehin, director of health effects at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said at a Capitol Hill briefing on Thursday. “But right now we do not see the levels that are normally associated with a health risk.”
South Florida residents couldn’t believe it.
“This is all the results they have for us?” said Holly Krulik, who moved her family out of their Parkland home six months ago but still pays the mortgage and maintenance fees. “I understand the scientists are all hopeful and encouraged and optimistic, but what about the homeowners who are losing hope daily?”
Drywall is gypsum pressed into sheets, used in almost all new homes.
Ted Field, whose four-bedroom Parkland house was tested in June by Florida health officials, said they found elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide and carbonyl sulfide. The state’s report said exposure for limited durations at these levels wasn’t enough to cause health problems.
“I’m thrilled it’s not going to pose a health risk,” said Field, a Boca Raton dentist. “But I’m also glad I moved out of my house. It reeks. I don’t think there’s any doubt that these homes need to be repaired. But no one knows the right way yet.”
Sen. Bill Nelson, a Florida Democrat, shook his head when McGeehin and leaders from three other federal agencies reported their initial findings.
“This is not an answer for the people who basically can’t live in their homes,” Nelson said.
“I’m sorry, I would love to be able to say the opposite,” McGeehin responded. He acknowledged that he had visited a house in Florida that made his eyes and throat irritated. “But all we can do is go with the data we currently have.”
“We understand that these problems have truly driven people from their homes,” added Christopher Day, director of congressional relations for the Consumer Product Safety Commission. “We are driving as hard as we can to find out what is causing these health and corrosion problems.”
The commission along with the CDC, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Housing and Urban Development plans to continue the probe. The $3.5 million pricetag already makes it one of the biggest investigations in the consumer commission’s history.
Officials promise to deliver results of more intense testing in 50 homes by Thanksgiving. These tests will study drywall under various temperatures and levels of humidity.
The initial tests were made of 10 homes in Florida and Louisiana and of pieces of new Chinese drywall.
Nelson is pressing for results before President Barack Obama visits China next month. The senator wants Obama to take up the issue with Chinese President Hu.
He also has urged the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide temporary housing for drywall victims.
Officials on Thursday focused on health effects and provided no plan for repairing these houses or providing financial help for homeowners.
Of the 1,900 complaints filed with the commission, Florida leads the way with 1,317.
While investigating, the commission plans to complete 800 in-depth telephone interviews with affected homeowners.
The agency also is working with customs officials and has contacted hundreds of warehouses to try to prevent the importation and spread of the suspect building supplies.
None of this made Nick DeSola happy.
“They gave us a whole lot of nothing,” DeSola said of the initial results. He has hired a contractor to remove drywall from his home in Cobblestone Creek west of Boynton Beach while he and his wife and two children live in a nearby rental.
He wondered, “When are we going to have real answers to move forward?”
William E. Gibson can be reached at wgibson@SunSentinel.com or 202-824-8256.
I cannot stress enough the importance of having the water and electric on for the home inspection. Without it your inspector cannot give you a detailed inspection. Having to return to the property further complicates things, takes twice a much time, and can result in additional charges.
It is the responsibility of the owner or agent to verify that the utilities are on. It is not up to the inspector to turn them on if they are off at the meters. If anything goes wrong, we know are held responsible. I realize that this is extra work, but this due diligence will result in a better inspection for you and help to keep everyone happy, as there will be no extra costs for the inspection.
Posted by Bill Siegel Florida Home Inspection Team Inc
Did you know that some of the old dishwashers can automatically close and lock by themselves. If you have small children, I urge you to check your dishwasher. A couple of years ago a small child climbed into one of these units (the interior trays had been removed) and the unit closed, locked, and turned on. Tragic ending, as the child did not survive.
Posted by Bill Siegel Florid Home Inspection Team Inc
Once again, I had a new construction walk through today. This was a three story town home that the developer was using as the model. Very nice unit, with the usual problems, until I got to the third floor. Two doors were out of square, both stall shower floors had sunk about one eight of an inch, and the window sills had separated. Someone did not do something right or did not follow the plans, and now they are going to have to do some investigation to figure what went wrong. In today’s economy, this is not an inexpensive piece of property. It appears to be a fixable problem, but at what cost? And will my client go through with the purchase? Do not know these answers.
It just proves once again the importance of getting a home inspection, whether it be on a resale or new construction.
Posted by Bill Siegel Florida Home Inspection Team Inc.
The Sabre Companies have a long history of safe and effective applications of chlorine dioxide in a wide variety of industries, including water treatment, food processing and oil and gas. That expertise and technology is now been applied to the problems plaguing homeowners and builders related to contaminated drywall, providing a permanent solution.
The Sabre Process
Sabre’s patented chlorine dioxide technology was used to eliminate anthrax contamination from the Hart Senate Office Building, the two contaminated Post Office Distribution Centers and several other buildings. In 2005, chlorine dioxide, as applied using Sabre’s propriety process, was determined to be “the standard for the decontamination of buildings” by the National Academy of Sciences.
Since that time, Sabre has successfully treated hundreds of large structures for pervasive mold, pathogens, viruses and other conditions, including an 8 million cubic foot pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, a 1760-room, 400,000 cubic foot hospital in southern California, which was repopulated with patients and staff three days after the completion of the treatment, as well as shopping centers, office buildings, restaurants, churches, condominiums and individual homes, providing a permanent solution to the critical problems plaguing those structures.
Chlorine Dioxide as a Solution to Problem Drywall
In certain homes and structures, particularly those exposed to temperature and relative humidity conditions common to the southeastern US, drywall has been identified as the source of problematic gases which give off a characteristic “rotten egg” smell and cause blackening and corrosion of copper. This wallboard has been shown in a study funded by the Florida Department of Health to release a variety of reduced sulfur gases, including hydrogen sulfide, carbonyl sulfide and carbon disulfide.
Chlorine dioxide is a highly penetrating gas that seeps into building materials and wall cavities, reacting with reduced sulfur compounds instantaneously, converting them to safe, inert, non-odorous compounds.
Recognizing that the Sabre process, which has been perfected through the treatment of hundreds of structures for contaminants, could be used as a permanent solution to the problem drywall challenges, Sabre has re-sized and automated its equipment to address individual residences and smaller buildings.
Affected structures are fully encapsulated in polyethylene sheeting to maintain temperature and humidity parameters inside the building and to contain the chlorine dioxide gas throughout the process.
he chlorine dioxide gas is introduced to the building using Sabre’s patented technology processes and immediately begins to react with the reduced sulfur compounds. Process variables are monitored throughput the treatment process. After treatment parameters are achieved in approximately 8 to 10 hours, remaining chlorine dioxide gas is “scrubbed” from the building. This process allows residents to reoccupy their homes in less than one week from start to finish.
The Sabre chlorine dioxide treatment process is extremely efficient from both a time and cost perspective and provides a permanent solution to problem drywall.
Sabre Environmental Services LLC
1891 New Scotland Road
Slingerlands, NY 12159
518-514-1572 Tel.
518-439-1567 Fax.
All homeowners should do periodic checks on their dryer vents to see that they are clean. I just came from a town house today that was built in 2007. The vent was clogged, and there was lint all over the attic. Lint is very flammable. If there is ever a fire it will spread rapidly. In this particular home the transition pipe was not fully attached. I am guessing the owner did this because his dryer was not drying properly (which is one indication that your pipe is clogged). The cost to have a vent cleaned is about $175.00, which is far less than the cost of a new dryer or making repairs after a fire.
Posted by Bill Siegel Florida Home Inspection Team Inc
I get asked the question all the time – do i need a home inspection on a new property. The answer is yes. Most of the time we get called after the home is built do do the walk through. Not only do we look for our normal items, but we also look for cosmetic issues. Just as an example, on a condo I just did we found the following:
A missing shelf in the kitchen cabinet.
Two loose toilets.
A shower head not working properly.
A faulty arc fault breaker in the panel box.
The shower handle plate was not caulked to the wall.
The air conditioner was not functioning.
Both bathroom mirrors were incorrectly hung.
All of this was found in a decorator ready unit, which means the floors have not been installed and the wall have not been painted.
Posted by Bill Siegel Florida Home Inspection Team Inc.
Well, the four stakeholder meetings are over. I was able to attend the one in Margate, Florida. The big issue was grandfathering. The state has made it clear that their aim is not to put us out of business. They were taking suggestions on who should be considered for the grandfathering. Many people spoke and most of them had their own agenda. This is what I took away:
The contractors think only they should be grandfathered.
There was discussion as to grandfathering inspectors who have a certain amount of years experience or completed inspections, although specific numbers were not decided upon.
Very importantly, it was brought upt that there is some wording in the bill that contractors / repair trades would be able to work on a home once it has closed. This goes against all of the code of ethics of all of the home inspector trade associations, as now inspectors would have a financial interest in the home.
FABI was represented as an educational organization and has the strictest entrance requirements.
The room was filled with INACHI members, who acted like this was more of a pep rally for them than stakeholder meeting. They think that because a member has to take a test before they can become a member that every member of their organization should be grandfathered. What they failed to mention is that both FABI, ASHI, and NAHI also have entrance examinations, and that their test can be taken on line with no proctoring involved. Anyone can open up their exam, open another browser and look up the answers and pass the test. What is scary is that their membership has doubled in the last year and they now have over 1000 inspectors in the state of Florida. How many of these inspectors are really qualified?
Now it is up to the DBPR to shape this bill. We will have to wait to see what happens.
Posted by Bill Siegel Florida Home Inspection Team Inc
This is the reason you want to make sure that your home inspector is going to get up on your roof. This is a two story house. The missing tiles cannot be seen from the ground.