I get leak detection requests occasionally from prospective clients, most often in conjunction with a home they already own. I tell them leak detection is not an explicit part of a home inspection, though in the course of tracking down excess moisture accumulation leaks and their causes are sometimes obvious. The person is usually not interested in a home inspection, just someone who can detect leaks. But it raises an interesting question of how responsible a home inspector is for hunting down leaks.

To my knowledge, leak detection is not offered by any home inspector, even as a specialized service. I am aware of companies that detect leaks in swimming pools. And, of course, plumbers are well equipped to trace a pipe leak, and roofers a roof leak, back to its source. So there are experts in other fields that one can turn to. Still, though some practitioners of my trade expand their business by providing additional inspection services, such as radon testing, mold inspecting, or air pollutant sampling, there seems to be no inherent reason why leak detection couldn't be one of them.

Mold symptoms are rather prevalent in the Pacific Northwest, there being long stretches of rain or air high in relative humidity without much sun to dry things out. I see symptoms of mold all the time in my home inspections and customers sometimes shrug it off as if mold is a necessary evil in our neck of the woods. However, for clients who have respiratory problems, the presence of mold is a serious concern and even a deal breaker.

How do we deal with mold symptoms? Are they indeed a way of life for us Washingtonians, or can they actually be prevented from developing? More importantly, once mold growth becomes apparent, either from neglect or failing prophylactic techniques, can we expect to have any success in eliminating it through therapeutic approaches? Trying to answer these questions is the subject of this blog.

Faucet parts come in so many categories, styles, colors, materials, and mounting characteristics that I as a home inspector get lost in the maze. What the many faucet parts mean to the average homeowner I can only imagine. Fortunately, on my inspections, I only have to concern myself with operating faucets. This is usually easy, although in some cases it is not immediately intuitive.

Replacing faucet parts is another story. It isn't that often that a homeowner has to do this, but when it becomes necessary it pays to know what one is up against. I half believe that there is a conspiracy between plumbers and manufacturers of faucet parts to make it as difficult as possible for the do-it-yourself owner. I'm not talking about replacing worn out washers but about replacing the faucets themselves.

Inspecting drain pipe is thorny because so much of it is hidden from view. Furthermore, drain pipe leaks can go unnoticed for a long time, whereas leaks in a service or supply line will show up quickly as an increased water bill. Some of my customers express concern about the inaccessibility of their efflux plumbing and their inability to know whether or not they have a problem. And their concerns are not unfounded; outdoor pipe in particular is susceptible to corrosion, cracking, and vegetative invasion. Yet, though I have some insight into leak detection, there are limitations to how much I can help them because so much of the pipe is buried.

Drain pipe terminology is also confusing. It is used in a host of applications, including storm systems, sewer or septic lines outside the home, plumbing that empties fixtures inside the home, and special functions such as French drains. As a whole, output house plumbing is called the drain-waste-vent (DWV) system, which adds to the confusion. Some people insist that drain piping doesn't carry any solids while waste piping does, but others claim that the two are equivalent. Then the vent piping, the purpose of which is to equalize air pressure as a deterrent to siphoning and backflow, connects directly to the drain piping and in some cases doubles as drain pipe itself. Hence, distinguishing the three sets of pipes from each other is not straightforward.

Plumber jokes abound, usually centering around their exorbitant fees or making fun of do-it-yourself homeowners whose ineptness worsens the situation and requires calling a plumber to save the day. But, though the plumber is in fact highly skilled and generally worth his fee, the homeowner doesn't have to bemoan his inaccessibility to arcane plumber secrets. He doesn't have to remain clueless nor does he have to fear ineptness. He can do quite successfully a number of plumbing-related tasks himself.

The plumber is frankly more interested in focusing on major problems for which he has been extensively trained to solve and is usually content to leave minor issues to the homeowner. So in the rest of this blog, let's get a better understanding of how all the plumbing in your house functions and see what jobs are safe for you to tackle and what are better left to the plumber.

House inspection businesses are suffering along with the real estate industry. With the upheaval, house inspection will have to adapt to changing times and trends. One noticeable trend is the Green Building movement, aimed primarily at reducing carbon footprint, striving for sustainability, and better husbanding of the earth. This trend's side effects are mostly beneficial to homeowners, but there are some red flags to be aware of from a house inspection viewpoint.

Consider a house inspection as an evaluation of heat flow, airflow, and moisture flow. Other items are involved, such as the condition of roofs and siding and the operability of electrical and plumbing systems. But in terms of an inspection of a house's livability, the key elements are heat flow, airflow, and moisture. Many of the green trends are strictly economic, such as energy home affordability, neighborhood-negotiated group discounts, close-in homes with an eye to shortening or eliminating commutes, and Accessory Dwelling Units or the Tiny House movement, which focus on energy saving and sustainability. These items may affect house inspection peripherally in terms of location and inspection cost, but let's talk about the trends that impinge on house inspection more directly, such as changes in heating & cooling, changes that affect indoor health, and changes in regulation.

Carpenter ants and Pacific dampwood termites are two of Washington State's most important infesting insect pests. Both carpenter ants and dampwood termites send out reproductive members to spawn new colonies when existing colonies become large and mature. Today we'll draw on pest inspection training to compare and contrast these two pests and to discuss when and how to be alert to potential infestations.

Most species of carpenter ants establish nests in decayed wood outdoors. They will usually not infest a structure with a satellite colony unless (a) the parent colony is within three hundred feet and (b) there is decayed wood present. However, once established indoors carpenter ants will expand their tunneling into sound wood.