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Mold
Attention
Home Inspectors!
The
new critical issue in your town is MOLD.
Mold, mildew and allergens are the rapidly emerging environmental
issues affecting residents, the housing industry and home inspectors.
Everyday you don't have mold training, you are incurring tremendous
liability with each home inspection. There are numerous lawsuits
being filed against home inspectors by homeowners finding mold
after the inspection. We can prevent this!
No license or certificate is required to test for mold, just training.
Mold Training includes: Types of mold Causes of mold Why mold
is a problem Health issues involved Red flags as to possible existing
mold problems When to test How to test Appropriate testing procedures
After training you will know: How to make more money by testing
for mold How to market and what to charge for this service How
mold testing helps with risk management
Click here
for complete catalog of inspection courses offered by ITA.
Water
Heater Inspection
Court Orders FREE Water Heater Repairs Nationwide
14 million water heaters made between 1993 and 1997 may have
a defective part called a dip tube. This part can cause unwanted
particles in your drinking water, clogged plumbing, loss of hot
water, and high utility bills. If your client�s water heater has
this part, it could cost them plenty.
Typical Questions and Their Answers About Hot Water Safety...
Q: What causes a hot water storage tanks to explode?
The basic cause of a hot water storage tank explosion is, first,
overheating or excessive temperature. A physical cause is corrosion
and service weaknesses. With the superheated water, the heat weakening
and corrosion factors combined can cause a "pressure-heat rupture".
This causes a sudden reduction of the pressure within the tank
by exposing its contents to the atmospheric pressure, and the
superheated water immediately flashes into steam. This combination
of circumstances is the explosion itself. To comment further about
what "pressure-heat rupture" means, let us suppose a heater under
212 degrees can satisfactorily withstand its service pressure
of say 75 lbs. However, the same tank when overheated above 212
degrees may only be able to stand a ressure of 50 lbs or less,
because of the heat weakening effects. Therefore, what was normal
pressure can become excessive pressure and cause the rupture of
a superheated tank.
Q: Why is it temperature and not pressure that causes a hot
water explosion?
It has been illustrated and proven in the film, "Explosion Danger
Lurks", that it is not water pressure that causes an explosion.
Tank pressure was built-up to over 500 lbs and even when a rupture
was caused, nothing happened except a squirt of high pressure
water. Water pressure is simply the weight of water and water
is practically an incompressible solid. Therefore, unless it is
superheated, it has no latent heat energy in itself to expand
when released. Consequently, there can be conditions of a perfectly
normal pressure right up to the time of an explosion. On the other
hand, at the time of a heat weakened pressure rupture, the force
and energy of the explosion is steam pressure, as a result of
the superheated water flashing into steam under the atmospheric
pressure condition.
Q: Is a pressure relief valve necessary on the cold water
line when a T & P valve is installed on the tank or heater?
Pressure is common to all parts of a system and since the combination
T & P valve gives protection against both excessive temperature
and excessive pressure, there is no need for a separate pressure
relief valve on the cold water line.
Recall
Directory
Recalls can be
a valuable and informative tool when relayed by the home inspector
to the client. Duane Roundy of AAA Inspection Services in Kent,
Washington researched recent recalls and contact information. They
are listed below for your reference.
Premier/Consolidated Furnaces Present a Substantial Risk of Fire
A typical consolidated furnace installation.
This one is an HBA model. Adding to the fire hazard is the
attraction to use the attic for storage. In the fire service
this is referred to as "fuel load" Once open flame erupts
from the furnace, the fire spreads rapidly involving the entire
attic. |
If you
inspect a house that was built between 1983 and 1995 and
the furnace is in the attic, there is a very good chance
that Consolidated Industries manufactured this furnace.
They were sold through many different brand names but most
of the furnaces were manufactured under the Premier and
Consolidated labels.
According
to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, these furnaces
present a substantial risk of fire. As of September 27th,
2000, there have been about 30 reports of fires and damage
to homes associated with these furnaces as well as failures
of burners and heat exchangers that can lead to fires.
|
For more information
visit www.consolidatedfurnaces.com
Questions & Answers with ITA Instructors
List the proper
dimensions for these items:
A. Attachment of electrical wire near any enclosure - 12"
B. Attachment of wire through walls - every 4.5 feet
C. Gaps in the wall around boxes - 1/8"
D. Amount of sheathed cable allowed inside a box - no more than
1", no less than 1/4"
Why are steam boilers long lived?
The older boilers were constructed of thick cast iron, with few
moving parts. The body of the boilers rarely failed to wear. Items
like seals, gauges and burners could easily be replaced, sometimes
the older units were so heavy it seemed impossible to remove the
boiler so they would opt to repair it and keep it going.
Do you verify a firewall between the garage and the house?
Professional standards do not require identification of the rating
of the materials on the wall between the house and the garage. Typical
wall coverings with an approved fire rating would be 5/8" dry wall
with type X rating or stucco, plaster or other similar materials.
Although standards do not require that we identify the fire rating,
we do however, identify any damage, holes or openings in that wall.
Many areas of the country do not require fire rated materials on
that wall. But in areas where this requirement exists we believe
the inspection is an important part of overall safety.
If you have a specific question for ITA's instructors please
email
[email protected]
or send to
ITA Att: Instructor, 1016 South Tremont Street, Oceanside, CA 92054
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