Whole house home inspection

Basement:

• Foundation cracks on the walls and floor cracks can be filled in with a concrete grouting compound.

• Basement flooding and seepage can show stains, visible watermarks and mold on wood and drywall. These are telltale signs from taking on water. To eliminate buyer panic from hints of old water marks and past seepage problems, cover the area a few times with a moisture retardant such as Kilz. Then repaint the surface.

• The majority of basement leakage results from poor control of storm water around the base of a home. Does the immediate area on the outside of a home slope toward the house, inviting in water? The only way to resolve this is to divert gutter water away from the house, build up this area with more dirt or install drainage tiles around the perimeter. This last option is very expensive and should only be considered as a last resort.

• The flames in the furnace will be observed--blue flame is good, yellow indicates a cleaning is necessary. With the furnace off, a flashlight can reveal a cracked heat exchanger. This allows carbon monoxide into your home, and the buyers will request a new furnace. It’s impossible to duck this one. Consider having your furnace cleaned and inspected before putting your home for sale.

• This visual furnace observation is easily performed unless you have a newer high efficiency furnace. These can require a partial dismantling of the furnace, a task usually outside the scope of a home inspector. The high efficiency furnaces are easily spotted since most of them use PVC plastic pipe for expelling the spent gasses.   

• Have a clean (new) air filter in the furnace. If an electric air filter is present, clean the filter cells per the manufacture’s instructions.

• Replace the water panel inside your humidifier if it hasn’t been done in the last year.

• Leaky exhaust vents from hot water heaters and furnaces are always noticed. Silver tape made specifically for such purposes and available at the hardware store can address poor or loose vent fittings.

• Hot water heaters always look dirty. If given a decent exterior cleaning, the inspector may pass an old one as acceptable, despite the fact that the manufacture date is included on the front cover.

• Inspectors always open the electric box, removing the face cover, to observe any irregularity of the circuits and connections. If you know of any abnormalities, (common in older, underpowered homes), have these corrected in advance.

• Plumbing concerns include observing the water supply lines for corrosion areas, vent and waste lines for leaky openings, and gas lines for leaks. Dryer vents, if bent, can cause lint buildup and become a potential fire hazard.

• Floor structure and sub flooring are inspected for proper span and spacing. Squeaky floors may be sited and are caused when flooring boards become loose and rub together or a loose nail moves up and down on wood. An inexpensive fix is to pour baby powder into the noisy area on the top surface and push it down between the boards. Also, try forcing shims between the sub floor and floor joist in the floor below to eliminate movement. Hardware stores sell kits for eliminating this nuisance.

Roof:

• The roof will be combed for adequate flashing plus loose and damaged shingles. Curled shingles are a tip-off of impending age problems.

• Loose chimney bricks from old mortar deterioration are not uncommon. The average homeowner using a small bag of mortar mix can tackle a small tuck-pointing job.

• Debris in the gutters causes them to overflow and creates foundation erosion and leakage into the basement. Have them cleaned prior to a home inspection.

• Downspouts will be observed for clogged or broken conditions. Also, they should drain away from the house for at least six to ten feet. Add inexpensive extensions if necessary. These two items cause a lot of basement leakage problems.

Attic:

• The attic is a key area because of the potential of water entry and expensive damage. Attic leakage is easily observable on sheathing and rafters since it takes a long time to dry out from water infiltration. Adding flashing around the base of the chimney, where a lower roof structure butts up against the side of your home (as an attached garage could), and where vents protrude on the outside of the roof area should stop leaking there.

• Inadequate attic venting is common and creates problems since moisture content rises through the ceilings. Too many vents are much better than too few. An attic fan on a thermostat is a smart addition. If you’re flagged for this, vents and fans are relatively inexpensive for a professional to install.

• Inspectors will usually recommend that the buyer have attic insulation brought up to R-30 if it is much lower than R-20. That should be rebuffed as an upgrade choice for the next owner and not a repair problem.

• The attic/roof structure will be observed for sagging, cracked or broken trusses. Replacement or attachment of cross beams can often eliminate the problem.

Exterior:

• Inspectors usually look for 4 inches of space to show between the top of the outside dirt or mulch and the bottom of the siding exterior (brick, wood, etc.). In addition, do not have any shrubs or tree branches within a foot of the house, especially the roof.

• Central air conditioners should have at least two feet of distance from any plantings and be mounted on a level pad. These units will probably not be tested unless the exterior air temperature has been above 50 degrees for at least two or three consecutive days, otherwise this could result in damage to the compressor. However, a pressure check on the Freon can be performed.

• Further outside inspection will include the exterior (brick, wood, stone, etc.), windows, doors, steps, railings, retaining walls, patio, deck and faucets.

Garage:

• The inspected areas of the garage usually include the slab floor, interior walls, framing, exterior door, interior door, and electric door(s). They can have problems, but most buyers focus on the other areas of the home.

Kitchen:

• The inspector usually starts here by putting the dishwasher through a cycle. The range, oven, garbage disposal, sink plumbing, vent fan, trash compactor and refrigerator will be inspected.

• Most local codes call for GFI electrical outlets to be within six feet of any water source, here as well as bathrooms.

Interior:

• Windows and storm windows will be checked for cracked or missing glazing and if the seals are broken on thermo-pane windows. Doors and windows will all be observed for ease of opening and closing. Spraying a silicone lubricant on the tracks can solve most sticking problems.

• The presence of working smoke detectors (including one for each bedroom) is recommended by most local housing codes.

• Floors, drywall, and ceilings will be observed for structural problems and past water leakage.

• Most, if not all, electrical outlets and wall switches will be tested.

• Fireplaces are inspected for a properly working damper and a working gas starter (if present) and hearths are observed for cracks. Flue liners are checked for cracks unless the inspector’s view is obscured due to a heavy accumulation of creosote and soot.

• Bathroom plumbing will be checked as will proper operation of toilets. Rust around the sink drain will catch the inspector’s eye and he’ll recommend a replacement. A rust remover solvent such as CLR should eliminate this condition. If bathroom fans are never cleaned they’ll get noisy. Clean the blades and/or spray some silicone lubricant like WD40 in them to cut noise problems.

• Bathrooms are often in need of calk around the tub. If time doesn't permit recalking, carefully apply a thin coat around the tub and fill in cracks. This often provides a revitalized look.

If you can’t see it, you can’t inspect it.

Most inspectors make notes on their report that no observation was made for this or that simply because the inspector’s view is blocked. These include things under furniture and behind stored material, low crawl spaces, behind finished walls in the basement, etc. But don’t think you can easily hide problems. They will still be there when the buyers do their walk through, of any house .