It's a great day here in Orem, Utah! There is 5"-8" of snow on the yard and the sun is out. The weatherman says that starting tomorrow we will get lots more of the white fluffy stuff. Shelly and I were not here for most of the snow since we were in Portland, Oregon, for the American Institute of Inspector's Annual Meeting. The details of the Annual Meeting will be a memory that we will all look back on as one of the funnest and most informative events in our history.
My lovely wife, Shelly, gave an excellent presentation on setting up and organizing your office. This training was geared towards both the Inspectors and their spouses, of which many spouses were present at the conference. It was great to watch Shelly control the flow of the discussion while keeping the large group of Inspectors in check. Those of you that have met Shelly know that she is very quick witted and reacts quickly in conversation. She was funny, informative, and charming all at the same time. She also put a lot of the Michael Leavitt & Co myths to rest, while at the same time she showed how vital spousal support is to the success of the individual Inspector.
More details of the AII Portland Annual Meeting will be shared in next week's MMM due to our late arrival back in Orem, Utah, at midnight on Sunday. We will also post information about the Board Meeting and Officer Election results. If you can't wait a week and were not present, give our Executive Director, Betty Buckley a call at 1-800-877-4770. If you are wondering what great fun you missed..... The names "Inspector Billy Bob" and "Vanity" sum it all up!
Last week I shared some information on San Joaquin Valley Fever and the whole time that I was putting it together I thought that it was a very "off" topic to be covering in the MMM. At the same time I kept feeling a prompting to go ahead and present the information. It wasn't until I received the following feedback that I realized why I was feeling prompted. It is great when people feel comfortable enough to open up and share difficult events in their lives
Greg Justice shared the following....... I actually contracted valley fever in the late 70's while working with a Boy Scout Troop camping in the desert outside of El Paso, Texas. I wound up in the "complications" class with a lesion in my lung which would bleed and caused an infection of the lining around the lung. I had to go through a bronchoscopy (sp). This went on for about 1.5 years with bi-monthly x-rays to monitor the growth of the lesion. This was so surgery could be performed if it appeared near dissemenation.
The end of the story is on the supernatural side. I wound up praying and asking God to heal the problem (there was a lot of fear and anxiety about this) and then one evening around Thanksgiving of 1978 while praying out in a field among some trees behind my grandparents home, I experienced a real touch from God and coughed the whole lesion out. When I went in for my regular x-ray the doctor said he wished he had lungs that looked that good. The whole lesion was gone. I have got to say, God does make His presence known. Greg Justice
Greg's experience was not unique to our forum. Steve Bradley shared his experience......
Michael, This MMM really hit home. I have personal knowledge of Valley Fever and am happy to share this with everyone.
In August of 1985 I lived in a rural area of Vacaville, CA, in Solano County. I had taken a couple of weeks off to build a new fence at the rear of my property. This fence ran through a seasonal creek bed that no longer ran in the winter. The majority of the soils were river run rocks with sand and/or light soil predominately. I drilled all of my holes, but due to the nature of the soils they collapsed in on themselves.
So to set my posts I had to widen the tops of the holes to about 3 feet in diameter and use a coffee can and garden trowel to reach 4 feet down. Think of a large funnel. All during this hand excavation I was breathing the dust, (who would have thought of a respirator) but thought nothing of it. This hand work was begun on a Tuesday. On Friday mourning I was feeling lightheaded and slightly dizzy and still had another 12 holes to go. By Friday afternoon I had difficulty breathing and my equilibrium had deteriorated. I called my neighbor and he took me to the hospital.
The hospital admitted me at a little after 5:00 pm. They put me in observation and about 10:00 pm I was rushed to ICU isolation. They called my family and said I was in very serious condition and that they should come immediately. The medical staff didn't think I would last until the morning. There was no diagnosis and the questions they asked had me upset. I did not respond to any treatments they were giving me.
Remember this was the beginning of the ''AIDS'' epidemic and they mistakenly assumed that this is what they were dealing with. I remember telling the nurse that I was not going to die, nor had I done anything to expose myself to AIDS. I also told her that I was going to live and I said a prayer and then I promptly passed out. The next morning the new nurse told me that it had been touch and go during the night, but I had made it that far and that I should hang in there and continue to fight. The hospital brought in several specialists and kept testing me, still with no diagnosis and no improvement......... They even did a spinal tap.
That evening they brought in a pulmonary doctor from the Army who had been stationed recently in the Fresno area (San Joaquin Valley). He ordered for tissue samples from my lungs and told me to be prepared to have a tracheotomy. By this time the hospital had to suck out the massive fluid buildup in my lungs. I went through that procedure 4 or 5 times as I remember.
First thing in the morning they were waking me up and I was surrounded by Doctors. The Army Doctor was saying he knew what is wrong and that I could be treated. He told me I had classic symptoms of San Joaquin Valley Fever.
The specialists did not think of testing for San Joaquin Valley Fever due to the fact Solano County is considered to be in the San Francisco Bay Area and Valley Fever had never been reported in this area. Solano County is on the Western fringe of the Sacramento Valley. I was to further learn that the California Department of Health tracks all reported cases of Valley Fever that result in hospitalization and/or death.
They began treatment and after 5 days in ICU and another 4 days in the hospital, I was released. I was unable to go to work for another month and did not fully recover my strength for some time thereafter. No, I did not finish the fence; my neighbors completed it for me.
The scarring of my lungs due to the severeness of this illness is permanent. They told me I would be highly susceptible to pneumonia in the future. That last statement I know is true as I suffered with pneunma almost every year for the next 7 years, some years twice. The good news is that I have not had pneumonia since 1992. In 1985, they said there was no known inoculation to prevent anyone from contacting this fungal infection. Most who are exposed have flu-like symptoms or no symptoms at all.
Seeing this subject in the MMM brought back many memories and I share these with you now so a first hand account may make you think about the importance of using your respirator. Steve Bradley - WA
Noel McShane shared some interesting observations on the Photo Challenge feedback from the Plumbing Mess photo from two weeks ago that displayed a very strange combination of pipes and fittings.
Michael, Fun reading your Mag. Couldn't resist the plumbing picture with copper waste pipe with rubber boots between the the PVC and copper.
John Lueck from the Great White North took the plumbing picture and he shared the following insights about the installation........ Michael, This installation was not done by a plumber. It was a homeowner fix. He probably couldn't figure out how to use the proper pieces to bridge the ABS to copper. The boots are legal (I finally got an opinion from a Master Plumber and the OPIA), but the installation is not. If you notice, the pipes reduce as they go downstream. This is not allowed (both by common sense and the Ont. Building Code). If the proper sizing had been adhered to, the installation would have been ok. The only other problem however, and I could not find a restriction in the code is that the weight of the stack on those rubber boots is a little excessive. I don't know how long they will last. That was the major concern I expressed to my client on that inspection. You may note from the photo that they are a little bulged as is. John Lueck - Canada
Now on to this past week's photo challenge......
This is a no brainer. It is an obvious condition that needs to be addressed, evaluated and corrected by a qualified licensed plumber. The cause is a faulty burner. I would be careful in removing the cover for further examination if the heater was operating unless I was fire protected or had my personal insurance paid up. TLB, RVHI
That is a good safe recommendation, but what is the cause of the condition (Not that we are hired to know the cause, because we aren't). However, knowing the cause and the hazards associated with the condition better justifies the firmness in our reporting comments and directional guidance that we provide to our clients.
Michael: Wish I could give you lots of good information and recommendations for this, but the embarrasing fact is that I've never seen a water heater with this kind of inspection cover. Looks like not enough air being supplied for combustion, but I really just do not know. Illuminate me!! Richard Grisham - Las Vegas, NV
Good guess, Richard.......
The water heater is currently set at the highest possible temperature, but this still should not justify the charring on the exterior of the unit. "Abnormal charing of the gas water heater. Recommend repair/replacement by a licensed plumber." Nathan Buckley - Klammath Falls, OR
Good response, Nathan, but what is the source of this condition???
The most common reason for a water heater to char like this is a lack of cumbustion venting. The flame is not adaquately supplied and thus is searching for an oxygen source. Ken Ives - Sacramento, CA
This seems to be the answer of the day and it was my response before my combustion air training at Questar (our regional gas provider).
Photo Challenge Response = Possible causes could be:
What I look for:
Then I do my best just to report what I see, such as:
I see this in my area quite a bit. Many times there is not adequate ventilation to the exterior which can create a negative air flow. This can result in a lack of air in a room and cause the units to actually back draft into the interior of the structure. This is a Potential Hazard and should be reported. I think it is very important to get this message to your client if it exists. Mark S. Daughtry - WA
Great step-by-step rules of thumb for looking at gas water heaters, Mark.
I look at the color of the flame. It must need at least adjustment. I would recommend repair or replacement of the water heater. When asked, I tell people for the cost of a water heater I would just replace it. Ken Jones ....Accurate Home Inspections
It needed more than that..... Here is a picture inside the burn chamber
Right out of the A.I.I. training manual. Suspect the draft diveter, check the vent for proper rise and run. Then check the exterior vent cap for irregularities. Turn the thermostat down. Will Etherington
Great source for information, Will. I know that it is not part of our job description to find the source of each Reportable Condition that we identify. I also know that we are General Practitioners and that it is not our duty to find the cause of the conditions. I know that it is my duty to alert my clients to the Reportable Conditions without being responsible to identify the complete source of the issue because I may miss a contributing factor. With that said, I also am quite aware of how beneficial it is to learn the possible sources or causes of the Reportable Conditions that we identify.....
Soooo..... If a client asked you for the main reasons that the pictured water heater should be replaced, the general consensus is because of inadequate combustion air. If the flue pipe above the draft divertor was obstructed with a bird's nest would it cause these signs?...... Or would exhaust gases just spill out from the draft hood? If the flame was incorrectly tuned and was set too large, would we get this type of exterior case charring? If the burner plate was rusted out would we get this kind of charring? These are great questions, so we asked our Questar officials and they told us exactly what the cause is from. Lou Jerome was present at the Questar seminar and he shared........
Hi Michael: Well what I would do is to remove the vent hood and see if the internal flue is moveable. If it is, then I would think that we need a burner adjustment. If it is not, then the chances are very high that the internal flue has collapsed. If this is the case, then the hot water heater will need to be replaced as this will not vent properly and CO and other exhaust gases will exhaust into the room where the hot water heater is located. Of course, I had a heads-up on this just like you at the Questar training class. This is a great picture, Michael! Lou Jerome, UT
Here is a photo of Chris Burkhardt pointing at the crushed flue inside a Questar cutaway failed water heater. The crushed interior flue is a condition that I had never before considered...... There is an internal flue pipe that runs up the middle of the water heater tank. This discharges at the top of the unit at the point of the draft hood which then takes the exhaust on up the exhaust flue. Inside most gas fired units is a spiraled piece of flat stock metal that could be pulled up and out of the water heater if the draft hood was removed. Questar said that they would attempt to remove this inner metal and if it could not move, then you would know that the internal flue was crushed.
I was unaware that the internal flue could crush. Questar said that sometimes they collapse completely and cause a total restriction, while other times it is only a partial blockage. If you relook at the extreme amount of rust inside the burn chamber of this water heater it is obvious that there has been a total collapse of the flue..... Did you ever wonder where the large mounds of rust come from...... When Questar showed us the cutaway view of the water heater with the collapsed flue it all made perfect sense. Is there any question that the water heater needs replaced because it is a current Hazard????? None.... Replace the unit immediately.
SURVEY - Were you already aware of the crushed internal water heater flue condition?
Name, City & State: Please include your name or else I don't know who it is from.
HELP WITH DRUM TRAPS
I asked for feedback on your experiences or explanations of Drum Traps, to which came the replies....... What might be interesting to you is that in the "Uniform Plumbing Code Training Manual" there is an illustration of a drum trap under the heading of "Prohibited Traps." Dan McLeary
and...... Well, from what I have learned and been told, the canister or drum traps are a great item. They stop the chugging you get when the tub or sink drains. How they do this is because the canister can hold a larger amount of water over the S or P style drain, so when one fixture drains and the water passes by another drain line the suction is not strong enough to pull the water out of the drum, keeping the water seal in the canister where it belongs. Tom Skrodzki
ATTIC MOLD CONTINUED
Looks like dryrot to me. What do the pest inspectors say? Is dryrot in the attic an environmental concern or simply a pest control issue? Jon Gudnason - CA
Interesting question, Jon, because even if a Pest Inspection had been performed on this Utah home it would not have even touched on this condition. Many states place the burden of wood destroying insects and wood destroying organisms clearly upon the backs of the Pest Inspector, but Utah does not. Lenders, too, only require Wood Destroying Insect Inspections to be performed and that is only with some lending programs and usually only on older homes. Here in Utah, the Pest Inspectors (like myself) are only responsible for Wood Destroying Insects. They do not deal in identifying Wood Destroying Organisms, unless specifically hired to do so. This means that a Pest Inspector does not even look in the attic because we only have Subterranean Termites to deal with and they attack from below. This leaves the burden of discovery entirely upon the back of the Home Inspector.
I also invited a fellow Home Inspector and previous Rocket Scientist, Pete Engle, who is also well versed in the molds and environmental sick house conditions, to share his thoughts.......
Michael, I've seen a teaser issue of the MMM before, and once again, I'm impressed. That's quite a bit of work to do every week.
As far as your mold pic of the week, yep, its mold. The suggestion that it's salt stains is crazy. When there's white stains on wood high up, its generally mold. The only salts available in any attics are if you've got FRP, and then you have other problems. Although mold growth can look like salt stains early on, it is still mold, the wood just hasn't rotted yet. Also, somebody mentioned it was "dry rot".
First, there's no such thing. All molds require moisture. Some can just take it from the air better than others. In this case, its most definitely wet rot. There are obvious water stains there as well. Did the intrepid inspector actually go on top of the roof to see what's going on? Is there a cupola mounted to the roof, or a decorative spire, or something similar that might be leaking?
On the subject of mold hazards, the likelihood is low, but its always possible. As mold goes, this is not a major amount of it. Also, most brown molds growing on wood are not known human sensitizers or allergens, and most do not produce any significant quantities of mycotoxins. Of course, some do.
The best advice to a buyer is: "Some molds can be toxic or unhealthy for sensitivie individuals. If you are concerned, you should engage a specialist in the field to identify the mold and provide recommendations for remediation." Pete Engle - NJ
Great response, Pete. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the mold as well as your advice vernacular for reporting the condition.... I had to go pull out the Websters and see what the meaning of "Intrepid" was because it didn't mean what I previously thought it meant. Webster's defined our intrepid inspector as being "bold; fearless; dauntless; and very brave."
Today's photo challenge comes directly from a unique condition identified in Portland, Oregon. I have since learned that it is a much more common occurence in the Sacramento, CA, area. Is it a strange new mold growth? Should we call in a microbiologist? Is it possibly lethal? From what I understand, Ron Cloyd, Gary Holzbauer, Nathan Buckley, and Scott Merritt have all been up close and personal with this new strain of possible man killer.......... What in the world is it and what has been your experience with it???
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