Jacksonville Home Inspector Answers The Question "Should I Use Gutter Guards?"

Stan asks "Do you have a contact and/or would refer a person (or company) who puts on "gutter guards"??? Or, do you have a recommendation on whether or not to use them??"

Well the short answers is that I do not personally have them installed on my home, nor will I have them installed. I have gutters installed on my home because occasionally it rains a little bit here in Florida (Tropical Storm Fay for instance), and I want the water running off my roof collected and disposed of away from the foundation of my home.

The reason for installing gutter guards is so you don't have to do any maintenance. Well there are several types of gutter guards. Some are nothing more than a screen. Some are perforated metal or plastic caps. Some are a cover that are designed to direct the water into a small opening at the front edge of the gutter.

I have yet to see any gutter guard systems that are truly maintenance free. The screens and the caps will still trap debris in the screen openings and perforations. So you will still need to get up there and clean them out. When debris bypasses (and it does) the guard system then you will need to remove the guard to clean it. That just makes more work for you. I figure, if I'm going to have to clean it, why make more work for myself.

I would never use a system that leaves only a small area open at the front. I have 6 inch seamless gutters on my home. Why? Because when we have large rain falls, I want all 6 inches collecting the LARGE amounts of water the pour off my roof. I have inspected several homes that have had solid cap systems in place during heavy rains, and the water ran off as if I were standing at Niagara Falls.

One thing that you can do to cut down on cleaning your gutters is to keep all trees trimmed back. This not only will help keep your gutters clean, it will prevent debris from collecting on your roof, and reducing the life of your roof. It will also help prevent damage caused by branches falling on the roof (this happens all too often).

If I could find a gutter guard system that 1) was truly maintenance free, and 2) collected all of the rain water from my roof I would buy them. Until that time I will be happy to clean my gutters the good old fashioned way.

Jacksonville Home Inspector Discovers A New Innovative Use For Bubble Wrap

About 2 years ago I did a home inspection on a Jacksonville home, and I will never forget what I found. I remember talking to the young lady buying the home, and she told me "If I can't fit through that small hole, you will never get in the attic." What she didn't know was that in addition to being a Jacksonville Home Inspector, I'm also a contortionist (just kidding). Anyway, when I squeezed through the hatch what I saw, or actually what I didn't see was any insulation. Instead what I saw was a layer of bubble wrap laid nicely between each ceiling joist. I am not sure if the owners were running some sort of pack & wrap shipping company out of their attic (watch out UPS store), or if they were seriously thinking bubble wrap would keep their home well insulated. Now I don't know the R-value of bubble wrap, but for some reason I don't think it acts as a good insulator. One of the things I enjoy about being a home inspector in Jacksonville, is that my job never gets old or boring. I always see new and exciting home owner innovations all the time. Watch out duct tape, there may be 101 uses for bubble wrap. This is another case in the "What Were They Thinking?" file.

Should You Get A Jacksonville Home Inspection If You Are Buying Your Home As Is?

With the state of the market there are a lot of foreclosed homes, and short sales out there. There are also a lot of For Sale By Owner properties. Recently I have received multiple calls from people who have purchased a home that fits one of these descriptions. Why would they call me now? After living in these homes for a short period of time, they all noticed that something wasn't rite.

After purchasing the home it's a little late to find out what repairs are needed and negotiate the the sales price based on what repairs, or even more imprtant, walk away from a nightmare.

Every time I get one of these phone calls, I ask if they had an inspection. The answer is always a "NO", followed by a "But I wish I did".

Some of the resons for not having an inspection are:

FSBO: My friend or family owned the home and gave me a deal, so I didn't think I needed an inspection.

FORECLOSURE/ SHORT SALE: I was buying the home as is. The home didn't look to bad and I thought I could fix what I saw.

If you are buying a home regardless of whether you are buying as is or you a repair contingency, do yourself a favor and get it inspected. You don't want to end up holding the bag for a laundry list of repairs.

If you would like more information or to schedule an inspection, go to our website http://www.inspectjacksonville.com/, or call (904) 891-6309.

Jacksonville Home Inspection Reveals Framing Issues In A NEW Home

Today I performed a builders warranty inspection, aka 11-month warranty inspection. One of the things I noticed was that there was a significant amount of decay on one of the trusses. The problem is that this will continue to get worse until the point f structural failure. Once compromised this can significantly affect the roof structure. The truss system was designed, assembled and then delivered to the site when the home was being built. The home owner was quite surprised... that I was unfazed by this blatant lack of pride in workmanship. And still so many people purchase new homes with out an inspection.

For more information or to schedule your inspection go to http://www.inspectjacksonville.com/ or CALL 904-891-6309.

Builder Tells Jacksonville Home Inspector "It's Good Enough"

I received a phone call from one of my clients today. I had performed a 1 Year Warranty home inspection on her new Jacksonville home back in May. The builder had finally made it to her home (2 months later) to make the required repairs.

When the client called she said that the gentleman making the repairs had a question about one of the items in the report. I agreed to speak with him and answer any questions that he had. When he got on the phone with me, he had more of a complaint about me writing one specific discrepancy that I had found.

What I had found was a brace for a gable end not properly installed. Braces are supposed to be attached to the bottom chord of the gable they are intended to brace. His contention was that I was being too nit picky and that the work done was "GOOD ENOUGH". I asked how it is supposed to be done. He answered correctly, but kept trying to argue his point "It's good enough man" and "There are literally thousands of homes just like it". I know that I am not always correct and I am willing to accept my mistakes. I told him that if he could produce, in writing, the code or other documentation to support his "It's good enough man" work, I would gladly remove the item from my report and let the client know I was wrong.

What was the final outcome? Here was his final response."Well it's good enough, but I guess I will go ahead and do it the right way." That was the only acceptable answer.

If you are in the process of buying a new home or have purchased a new home in the last 12 or less months, make sure you protect yourself from the workers who built your home "GOOD ENOUGH", and get your home inspected.

For more information or to schedule your inspection go to http://www.inspectjacksonville.com/ or CALL 904-891-6309.