Alliston Home Inspections
Choose the Alliston Home Inspector for your next purchase.
Buying a new home is probably one of a families biggest investments. Protect your investment with a home inspection conducted by a seasoned veteran with over 5,000 paid residential inspections. Roger Frost is also a Certified Building Code Official with the Ontario Building Officials Association, Certified Master Inspector, Member of NACHI, Member of NACBI and WETT Certified for wood burning appliance inspections.
Every new inspector has to get his start somewhere, we all are faced with that daunting task, you probably just don’t want the “new guy” practicing on your home. There are many new Home Inspectors who have recently opened up shop and they are easy to spot, they don’t have any qualifications listed on their web site.
With over ten years of residential home inspection experience we have the confidence to offer a 100% Money Back Guarantee on everyone of our home inspections. Our company also performs Commercial Property Inspections for an area covering most of Southern Ontario. We have inspected residential apartment buildings for multi-national investors and plaza’s valued in excess of 30 million dollars.
Free Thermal Imaging is offered with every home inspection. The Alliston Home Inspector was the first home inspector in Simcoe County to offer Thermal Imaging. We have been offering Thermal Imaging for the past 7 years. Infrared Camera can help find missing insulation, moisture issues, hot spots in electrical systems and areas of heat loss.
We offer a WETT inspection of one appliance for $50.00 when included as part of home inspection. Most insurance companies now require a WETT Inspection on any wood stove, fireplace or pellet stove prior to insuring your home. Many older stove and fireplaces will not meet current WETT requirements. Having a Site Basic Insurance inspection may save you money and needless stress.
Buying a Century Home? We are known throughout Simcoe County for our expertise in inspecting older homes. Many times we have found knob and tube wiring, aluminum wiring, asbestos wrapped on heat ducts, vermiculite insulation and galvanized plumbing, which have been missed on previous inspections. Many insurance companies will not insure homes with some or any of these issues.
Your home inspection includes a complete review of home at time of the inspection followed up with a Computerized Report detailing every aspect of your home inspection. Every deficiency and maintenance issue is documented with picture and details. Enjoy a Risk Free home inspection by choosing the Alliston Home inspector for your next home purchase.
Century Home Inspections – Buyer Information
Over the last ten years I have inspected a lot of Century Homes and it still amazes me how little a buyer will know about the construction and costs of repairs when it comes to fixing up some of these Victorian Homes. Not every older home is a “Money Pit” and many are well maintained and very comfortable to live in. Today we are going to address some of the common issues I have encountered while inspecting these unique properties.
The exterior of most century homes is typically brick. As can be expected there will be some deterioration of the brick surface and many older brick homes have been sandblasted to restore some of the visual beauty to the brick surface. The main focus on the exterior is looking for large cracks which will indicate structural movement or failure. A visual check of the exterior will often give me a clue to some issues that need to be addressed inside. There were no requirements for soffit venting when these home were built and unless someone has added some, there is usually no soffit venting present. Exterior mounted plumbing vents are also another sign of poor workmanship and again is a clue what to look for on the inside. Many older homes also have visible roof lines where part of a structure was removed and attention has to be given to ensure any openings were properly sealed. Masonry chimneys are the last area we inspect on the exterior, many older homes had more than one and many times they are removed at the attic level.
Porches are another desirable feature of Century Homes and can be a great feature of the home. The structural supports of porches are very important due to size of porches and the overhanging roof. Many homes may have multiple porches attached to home and have to all individually inspected. Some porches have been built over cisterns which were a common feature in Century Homes.
The basement is the heart and soul of your new home. This small area will usually be the deciding factor in purchasing your Century Home. The foundation walls are the first item on the agenda and we carefully look for signs of water penetration and failing walls. It is not unusual to find small trenches formed around the exterior walls to drain back into a sump pit. Century homes do not have weeping tile for drainage so improper landscaping or downspout maintenance is very important.
The supporting structure of the basement is the next item up for inspection. I visually look at every beam and probe any suspect beams looking for dry rot etc. In a poorly renovated home you can expect to find beams that have been compromised by installation of plumbing, heating or electrical equipment. Many times temporary screw jacks are being used as permanent structural supports or wood posts have been added while not being secured.
The electrical system in most Century Homes has usually been updated once if not twice. Most insurance companies will not insure a property unless it has a minimum 100 amp service. The first wiring in older homes is Knob and Tube, which is easily identified by the use of porcelain knobs and wiring looks similar to a railroad track. Most insurance companies will not insure a home with knob and tube wiring. Part of the electrical inspection includes ensuring there is a proper ground, identify any aluminum wiring and also note any older two wire circuits, which has no ground wire attached.
The heating system in a Century Home depends on service available and personal preference of who ever installed the system. After ensuring proper operation of installed system I also perform a detailed inspection of the duct work looking for signs of asbestos. Usually on older homes the asbestos has been removed on all the accessible ducts but I often find asbestos insulation left in place on the vertical ducts between floors. Asbestos is a Class Two Hazard and can be very expensive to remove.
Galvanized plumbing was also very prevalent in older homes. Many insurance companies will not insure a home with galvanized plumbing installed as it has already exceeded its life expectancy. Galvanized iron pipes are actually steel pipes that are covered with a protective layer of zinc. Galvanized pipes were installed in many homes that were built before the 1960s. During my inspections I find many times all the easily accessible pipes have been replaced except for the pipes which vertically extend to the upper floors.
Moving through the house I typically carry a level in my back pocket when inspecting Century Homes, to identify floors that are not level due to movement and / or renovations. I check all the outlets to identify any issues with polarity or lack of grounds. Plaster or drywall is carefully looked at for cracks or water stains. Lack of heat source is noted if none is present. Many older homes used a heat transfer grille to allow warm air to rise naturally to upper rooms.
Plumbing fixtures are all operated and again checked for presence of galvanized pipe. Traps are inspected and S traps are noted if not converted to P traps. Some bathrooms may use an air admittance valve if installing typical plumbing vents is not practical.
The rest of the inspection is pretty typical of any home inspection until we reach the attic. The items that can be problems are: plumbing vents not penetrating roof allowing sewer gas to enter attic; vermiculite insulation (know n to potentially contain asbestos); added insulation but no soffit venting installed, bat or rodent excrement in attic (can be expensive to remove due to health hazard) and last but not least is the presence of knob and tube wiring. This is a fairly common problem in a Century Home where either due to laziness or simple cost cutting, knob and tube wiring maybe still be present.
As a potential purchaser of a Century Home you need to educate yourself and hopefully engage the services of an experienced Realtor who will put your interests ahead of the expected commission fee. There is nothing more frustrating to a Professional Home Inspector than listening to a Realtor trying to make light of a potentially expensive repair such as Asbestos Abatement. Even if you are willing to gamble on your own health the affect on your resale value will be enormous. An educated consumer is an smart consumer and with purchasing it is Caveat Emptor – Buyer Beware.
Common Problems Found During Home Inspections
Century Home Inspections
Oil Tanks and Your Home Inspection
Electrical Panels in Bathrooms
Common Issues Found During Home Inspections
Common Issues Found During Home Inspections
This is a list of problems, in random order, that I have encountered during a home inspection and some are important enough to change a buyers mind.
Visible signs of water running through a basement. Although most new home buyers will not encounter this problem, you would be surprised at how many older homes may have this problem. Personally I think this problem would prevent me from buying that home every time.
Visible structural movement of masonry or poured concrete walls. Unless the structural movement was caused by being hit by a vehicle, this is again one of those deficiencies that would make me walk away. If there are problems with a home’s foundation then it will cause problems with the whole house.
Galvanized plumbing is mainly found in century type homes and can be a major headache. The biggest problem is that many insurance companies will not insure a home which has galvanized plumbing installed. One reason is the it is already long past its life expectancy and could fail at any time. Some home owners have all visible galvanized replaced but leave it in place in service chases up to first and second floor fixtures.
No Building Permit for Renovations can be very detrimental to the sale of a home. Depending on the size of the renovation and the amount of plumbing, electrical and HVAC work done, the financial implications can be quite daunting to a home buyer. No permit indicates that none of the home systems were inspected prior to covering with finished product. The cost of removing drywall and / or flooring to replace or repair any of the systems would probably be greater than the cost of the original renovation.
Vermiculite insulation is present in many older homes and may or may not contain traces of asbestos. Although there was only one mine in Libby, Montana, which produced the contaminated insulation, it was sold under many Trade names. You cannot tell if a particular batch of vermiculite has asbestos without laboratory testing. An attic full of asbestos would be considered a Class Two hazard and is expense to have removed. Read more …..
Aluminum wiring was commonly used in place of copper in the early 1980’s due to high price of copper. Many insurance companies will not insure a home that has aluminum wiring due to its susceptibility to corrosion which causes heat and could potentially cause a fire. Many home owners go to great lengths to try and hide the fact that there is aluminum wiring. Usually any accessible aluminum wire is replaced with copper. Read more…..
60 amp Services are not acceptable to most insurance companies in Canada. Many older homes, especially cottages which have been turned into four season homes, will often have a 60 amp service unless it has been upgraded. I have inspected many homes that have a 100 amp service panel but are supplied by a 60 amp switch. The size of the panel on the wall is not the governing factor, the size of switch controlling the power coming in determines what amperage is available.
Pony Panels connected to bus bars in main panel . You are not allowed to take a electrical feed directly off the bus bar in the main panel. The feed for the sub panel must come from a breaker to provide protection for the feed. Many older panels are found to have had one or two pony or service panels hooked directly to the bus bar which is not permitted.
Sump pumps are sometimes hooked directly into municipal drains. This may be permitted by the municipality in exceptional circumstances but is typically not allowed. Some municipalities have hefty fines if they find someone discharging sump pump into municipal drain.
Reversed polarity on wall outlets is quite common when homeowners do their own electrical wiring. Since electrical outlet now have holes in back of outlet where you can just insert the bare electrical cable the amount of reversed polarity deficiencies has increased dramatically. When using the outlet screws to secure the wire most people figured out that the black wire went on the dark screw and the white wire went on the light screw, but when using the push in the hole method, it became a 50/50 crap hoot. Unless you have a electrical tester you would never know the difference. When a circuit has reversed polarity the light fixture socket where the bulb screws in would now become live and if you touched it while screwing in a light bulb you would get a shock.
Basement stairs not protected on open side. Most people are completely un-aware that when your basement is un-finished your basement stairs is allowed to have an open side. Technacally as soon as you finish part of your basement you are required to protect the open stairs with wall, partial wall or guards to within 600 mm of floor. Height of guards or wall is to be a minimum of 900 mm. Also when basement is finished you should have a 3 way light switch which can be operated from either the top or bottom of stairs.
Extension Cords used as permanent wiring. The electrical code does not allow extension cords to be used as permanent wiring. 70% of garages I go into have an extension cord powering the auto door opener. Recent changes in Ontario requires outlets to be installed for each door for new construction, which makes sense and you have to wonder why it took so long, it’s not like they just invented the auto door opener.
Electrical Service Boxes
DIY Electrical Problems in Home
Self Test GFCI Receptacles
Aluminum Wiring in your Home
Electrical Panels in Bathrooms
Century Home Inspections
Oil Tanks and Your Home Inspection
Common Problems Found During Home Inspections
Buying a Home vs Renting
Truss Uplift and Causes
Common Home Inspection Deficiencies
Common Home Inspection Deficiencies
Double Taps in Panel – A double tap in an electrical panel refers to added wires at fuse connections so as to increase the number of circuits that are available to the electrical system. This is accomplished by connecting two conductors (electrical cables) to one terminal of a circuit breaker, and or two neutral conductors under one screw at the neutral bar. Cutler Hammer and Square D both make a circuit breaker on which it is permitted to attach two connectors, these types of circuit breaker are clearly identified on their labels. The best solution to this problem is to have a licensed electrician install another circuit breaker and remove the double tap connection.
Vermiculite Insulation – Many older homes have had vermiculite insulation added to their existing insulation. The vermiculite insulation that originated from Libby Montana was found to have traces of asbestos present. The only way to determine if vermiculite has asbestos is by sending samples to a lab for testing. Having vermiculite insulation removed can cost a home owner of an average house between 8 and 15 thousand dollars. Having your home properly inspected can prevent you from having an expensive asbestos removal bill after taking possession of your new home.
Window Sill Mortar Cracks – This is one of the most common deficiencies found during a home inspection, concrete split window sills with cracked or missing mortar. On newer homes the builder will typically put caulking over the mortar seam between two pieces of concrete sill. Over time the caulking shrinks and allows water and moisture to start attacking the mortar seam. Once the mortar is cracked the natural thawing and freezing action in winter starts to break up the mortar and the moisture proceeds down to the brick below the sill. Even on fairly newer homes it is common to see the brick mortar under a window sill starting to crack, and in some cases the moisture causes damage to the brick by spalling. Spalling is when the brick (typically clay brick) absorbs moisture and then freezes, the freezing action causes the moisture to expand, blowing of part of the brick finish.
Chimney Caps – New homes have to have a one piece cap installed, no more mortar chimney caps which usually have many gaps and cracks. The requirements for a chimney cap are to be one piece and they must have a drip edge installed. The top of the cap is required to slope away from the liner. Jointed precast chimney caps are also required to have flashing installed extending from liner to the drip edge. A bond break is required between liner and cap which is comprised of a non-bonding sealant that can expand and contract with the liner. Older caps usually had two piece caps which were then sealed with mortar. Unfortunately the mortar tends to easily crack and allow water to penetrate. Failing to keep the chimney properly sealed can lead to damage to flue tile and eventual repair of some or all of the flue liner. Most people opt to insert a stainless steel chimney liner when water damage has affected their clay flue tiles.
Leaking Thermal Seals – Energy saving windows and doors have thermal sealed glass units installed which provide an air gap for insulation. Signs of a leaking seal are foggy or moisture droplets on the inside portion of the thermal unit. Most window units leak from the bottom section of the window where the support blocks are located. Cheaper builders grade windows have smaller and less support which can lead to a puncture of the sealant material causing the leak. Some people, usually sellers, will call in a company to drill holes in exterior glass unit and then clean the window interior with alcohol type product which will easily evaporate or be absorbed by the desiccant material most windows have in the bottom section. This is not a great fix as you lose your thermal seal and you might as well just break the outer glass and remove it and save yourself some money. The recommended way to repair a leaking thermal seal unit would be to remove the glass unit, slider or casement etc., and take it to a local glass repair shop. Some companies will repair the existing thermal unit while others will replace unit with a new one.
Attic Insulation – Telling potential home buyers that there is rodent trails in their attic insulation is not a pleasant experience. Women are especially concerned about the thoughts of sharing their home with some mice. Unfortunately almost 95% of brick homes that have fiberglass insulation will have mice running around in their attic. Mice can walk up a brick wall as easily as we walk on a sidewalk. They can also compress their heads allowing them to access the attic through any small hole or crack. Vinyl clad homes do not have this problem as mice are unable to climb on the vinyl material. Cellulose insulation, which is re-cycled paper treated with fire retardant chemicals, does not attract mice and when an attic is inspected there is no visible signs of rodents in the insulation. My solution on my own home was to blow in approximately 6 inches of cellulose insulation over the existing fiberglass. I have not seen a mouse since then but I would not guarantee that there was no mice living under the cellulose in the existing fiberglass insulation. Rodent trails have also been found during inspections in attics with Roxul and Rock Wool insulation types.
Reversed Polarity – Many times when a home owner has done their own renovation of a basement there are a lot of electrical outlets with reversed polarity or open grounds. This creates an immediate problem which has to be explained to the potential home buyer. When the electrical work was not done properly it indicates that there was not permit taken out for the work and it was never inspected or passed by the approving electrical authority. If this was found in a renovated basement then it usually is a safe bet that there was never any permits taken out for any work including plumbing and framing etc. When buying properties for myself I always assume that if there are visible defects in workmanship found then there will be others that are hidden by drywall, paneling and ceilings. A buyer has to weight the benefits of ignoring the fact that there was no permits or inspections performed against the possible liabilities.