Utah Home Inspections » home

Preparing/inspecting home for winter part 1

inspector — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 18:58:31 +0000

It’s that time of year again, and here in Utah we are begining to feel the change. Thats right, old man winter is at our door step. Having had some new snow in the mountains and cold temperatures at night and during the day, it’s time to start thinking of home winter preparation.

What is home winter preparation, you ask? It is the things that need to be done, to, and around your home to help protect it from the elements. First off, lets talk about the trees close to the structure. Any overhanging branches that are close to the roof need to be trimed or removed. Wind will do wonders with these branches and the effects of branches blowing and making contact with the shingles can be costly.

Next it’s time to remove all leaves, dirt and branches from the gutters. Any debris in the gutters will weigh it down. It prevents all of the water from reaching the downspouts. Also take time to make sure the downspouts are clean as well and that all of the water, coming from the downspouts, runs away from the foundation. Check to make sure the gutters are in good shape and not sagging or falling away from the structure. Make any repairs needed.

Now that the trees are trimmed and the gutters are clean, it’s time to inspect the roof for missing, cracked, or deteriorated shingles. Areas with missing shingles, obviously need to be fixed. The idea is to keep all the water on top of the shingles and not let it get under them. Replace any broken or missing shingles. Now if you notice a few cracked shingles, it is a good idea to buy a tube of roofers caulk and fill these cracks in. Also check the caulking around any flashing, vents, sky lights, and chiminey. These are the most common areas for water entry. If you are not a DIY type of person, then you may need to find a roofing contractor or handyman to do this for you.

Any exposed wood, for example, the fascia and rake boards, needs to be sealed. A fresh coat of paint or stain will do the trick. One way to tell if your are in need of paint is to look for peeling or cracked paint. If the fascia or rake boards have been stained, check for discoloration or fading. These are signs of needing to be stained or sealed again.

Your roof is now ready for what winter has in store. A little work will save you a lot in the long run. My next blog will tackle the rest of the home, excluding the roof.

Home Inspector Utah Tip #3

inspector — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 07:49:22 +0000

The home buying season is upon us and there are many people looking into moving, up-grading, downsizing, or purchasing their first home. There is a lot to do to prepare yourself and family for this transition. The financing is the first big hurdle. After you find out how much of a home you can buy you now find yourself busy searching and looking at many different homes in your price range. Once you find a home that fits your needs you make an offer. Your offer is accepted. You are excited and start preparing for the day you sign and get to move into your new home. There is one last step that sometimes gets glossed over in all the happiness and paperwork. That is the inspection. A date will be given to you that will allow you to have the home inspected and allow you to change some of the terms of the agreement should anything be found. This leads to my next tip.

Inspection Tip #3

You’ve seen the home inside and out and have noticed a few things you will change. But did you notice that there is no power at some of the outlets, or that the insulation is only at an R-19 rating? There are so many things that make up a house. As a buyer, you tend to assume everything is ok and works. This is the problem. The most cost effective part of purchasing a home is the valuable inspection done by a professional home inspector. It is their job to look/inspect every aspect of the home you are purchasing. There can be no worse feeling than having skipped the inspection and signed the papers to find out after moving in that there is a major problem and that its going to cost you thousands of dollars to repair.

Again, A home inspection will be the best few hundred dollars you will ever spend.

Utah Home Inspector Tip #2

inspector — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 12:44:05 +0000

New homes have issues too. Many people fall victim to the idea
that a new home won’t have any issues. What gets forgotten
is the fact that most contractors don’t thoroughly inspect their sub-
contractors work. This is where the issues come into play. Their
are many sub-contractors that will cut corners where ever they
can. This in turn can leave you, the buyer, with possible future
problems. Some of these issues may not surface until after your
home warranty has expired.
For example, on the last new home that I inspected, I found 6
entry points for water to get into the exterior wall cavity. This
becomes an issue for mold to grow, on top of the fact, that during
the freeze/thaw cycle, the stucco will be damaged.
The buyer never noticed these entry points. This could have
possibly cost her thousands of dollars to repair a few years
down the road.

Inspection tip: A new home is just as much in need of an inspection
as an older home. There are many issues that get overlooked in
new construction. Most importantly, the structural caulking on the
exterior. An inspection on a new home is money well spent.

Utah Home Inspection Tip #1

inspector — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 10:56:35 +0000

In these tight economic times you might be thinking that you could forgo the home inspection and save a couple hundred dollars. This is a dangerous route. Banks are desperate to unload these homes and it is in your best interest to make sure you are buying a home without major issues.

Inspection tip: Find a quality home inspector that has your interest at heart. An inspector that takes time for you will also take time to do a complete inspection of your future home.