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Inspector's Viewpoint
"Your Source For Independent Inspection Information"

Winter 1999 - By Dennis R. Robitaille, President Able Home Inspection, Inc.
Mailing Address PMB 155 - 643 Bway Saugus, MA 01906 - Phone 781-231-0236

Chimney Fire Starts blaze
In Revere, MA Home:

The fire started in the basement fireplace and spread upward through the first and second floors into the attic, according to the Deputy Fire Chief. "The fire followed the chimney right through the home". The damage was estimated to be between $30,000 and $40,000.

While the major fire and water damage was confined to only a corner of the house, smoke damage was apparent throughout. The exact cause of the blaze was not determined.

Safety Tips- Fireplace:

Before using any fireplace, have the interior areas, smoke chamber, throat and flue checked for obstructions, defects and creosote build up. (Creosote is a combustible material produced by incomplete combustion of wood or coal.) A flue liner if not present should be installed. The liner can be made of clay, cement or metal.

Another concern with fireplaces
is combustion air, especially with fireplaces in basements. In the basement there is likely to be competition for air (oxygen) from air consuming appliances, such as boilers/furnaces and oil or gas fired water heaters.

If unsure whether there is enough air available for the fireplace, open a basement window up a few inches whenever you use the fireplace and keep the window open until the fireplace fire is completely out.

An IHINA home inspector can help determine the ventilation needs of your house systems.
For the IHINA inspector nearest you, click on this link Independent Home Inspectors of North America

Homebuyer's Horrors: New Law Will Make It Harder To Uncover Dirt In Massachusetts:

The house up for sale seemed a gem, tucked into a charming Worcester, MA neighborhood. There was just one major drawback: the murder of the Clark University genetics professor who lived there in 1992.

"The listing broker didn't tell us," said real estate broker Nick Rioux, who told his clients about the home's history. "They shuddered and said, "No thank you," and "that's creepy, I don't want to get near it."

Effective November 9, 1998, a new law makes it even harder for potential Massachusetts homeowners to learn details about a property's history. The state law protects brokers and sellers from lawsuits for failing to tell buyers about murders, rapes, suicides or other crimes that happened on the property. They're even protected from failing to mention alleged ghost sightings.

"Sellers or agents can't go out of their way to tell you something that's not true-they can't lie," said Anne Collins, deputy director for enforcement at the state's Division of Registration, which oversees the real estate industry. "But if they're silent about something, they're probably within their rights."

The Massachusetts Association of Realtors, however, says brokers don't always know detailed information about a home's past, and it's unfair to hold them accountable. The organization lobbied for the so-called "stigma law" that protects brokers who don't mention tawdry details of a property's past.

Safety Alert:
Recent Gas Fireplace Recall / Warning.

U.S Consumer Product Safety Commission

Ask The Inspector:        

"I live in New Hampshire, the garrison colonial home I own is fairly new and has a walk up full attic. During the winter I  sometimes find water dripping down from the inside of the roof, even when there is no snow on the roof or it's not raining out, what's going on?"

This sounds like a classic attic ventilation problem, but one that is usually not found with newer homes. What you are finding in your attic is the warm moist air from the living area rising up to the roof condensing on the cold roof sheathing. Older homes that have had insulation added to them are usually the ones to have a ventilation problem. Most new homes will have both ridge and soffit vent openings.

Proper ventilation of the attic will prevent condensation problems. If your roof has a ridge and soffit vent system, check to make sure that the insulation is not blocking the soffit vents (which would be installed at the roof overhang,) you should be able to see daylight from inside the attic. A situation I've found on a couple of inspections is that the roof sheathing under the ridge vent has not been cut away, (this would make the ridge vent useless.)

Aside from the water dripping down from the condensation, poor attic ventilation can cause damage to the roof sheathing especially if it constructed of plywood or particle board, (which most newer homes will have.) It will also shorten the service life of asphalt based roof shingles, (it could also void out the roof shingle warranty.)

IHINA home inspectors are qualified to evaluate attic ventilation needs.
For the IHINA inspector nearest you, click on this link Independent Home Inspectors of North America

Send your home related questions, news articles or lighthearted quips to:
Dennis Robitaille



Thoughts For The Day: 

How come the TV superman could stop bullets with his chest,
but he always ducked when someone threw a gun at him?

If "con" is the opposite of "pro", what is the opposite of progress?

Newsletter Archives - From Winter 1999

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Reference 		Past Client
Comments 		Special
Investigations 		About The Inspector
Inspection & Fees
Expert Witness Asbestos Carbon Monoxide Radon Gas

Truth About Real Estate Agent
Referred Home Inspectors 		Do You Need An Engineer
Or A Home Inspector?		 Difference Between Appraisals
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Prospective Home Inspector 		Top Of Page Able Home Inspection, Inc.
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