GOOOOOD MORNING, A.I.I.....
It's another day of medical struggle here in Orem, Utah! My Mother is currently laying in a hospital bed awaiting the verdict of doctors who were too busy to care over the weekend. It is a helpless feeling waiting for the verdict after taking Mom into the emergency room Friday night and having her admitted, yet we still don't know what course of action will be taken. We believe that some major surgery will be required, but we will have to wait.
Waiting on medical issues has become pretty common place around our home, but it is difficult in our profession to arrange our work schedules around the unknown. While it is important to be at every family event of this type, it is tough to know what daytime time slots to keep open if the medical profession doesn't give you a heads up. The last thing that I like to do is to call a client and tell them that I cannot do the inspection. As most of you realize, we are in a contract sensitive workplace. When we can't do an inspection as promised, then we are putting many people into a bind.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Nikon Inc., of Melville, N.Y., is voluntarily recalling about 9,100 Coolpix 2000-model digital cameras imported into the United States. A short circuit can occur in the battery compartment, creating a possible thermal burn hazard to consumers if the battery compartment lid is touched.
Nikon has received 14 reports of these cameras shorting, but none occurred in the United States. No injuries have been reported. Minor heat damage to the battery compartment has been reported.
The recall includes the Nikon Coolpix 2000-model digital cameras with serial numbers 3010001 to 3060980 and 3510001 to 3561916. The brand name and model number are located on the front of the camera, and the serial number is on the bottom of the camera. The camera is mostly silver-colored with lavender around the lens.
Department, electronic, computer and camera stores, as well as mail-order and Web retailers sold these cameras nationwide from July 30, 2002 through August 2002 for about $250.
Consumers with a recalled Nikon Coolpix 2000 camera should immediately remove the batteries and contact Nikon to receive a free replacement Coolpix 2000 digital camera. For more information, contact Nikon at (800) 645-6687 between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, or go to Nikon's web site at www.nikonusa.com
No other Nikon products are involved in this recall.
This past week I found a good article about home playgrounds at Realty Times. I subscribe to their free daily articles and occasionally find a good story to share. The playground story can be found at http://realtytimes.com/rtnews/rtcpages/20020916_playground.htm
As kids head back to school, you're bound to notice the kindergartner whose wrist is in a cast after falling from the monkey bars. But it's not just on the schoolyard and neighborhood park that injuries occur - in fact, more deaths to children occur in backyard playgrounds than on public play equipment.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that from 1990 to August 2000 there were 150 deaths to children 15 and under stemming from unsafe playground equipment. Ninety of those deaths occurred at home. About 75 percent of the home deaths resulted from hangings from ropes, cords, homemade rope swings, and similar items.
And when it comes to injuries, there were more than 200,000 playground-related injuries in 1999 - almost 47,000 of those incidents occurred on home playgrounds to kids under 15.
The CPSC and KaBoom! - a nonprofit organization devoted to building safe playgrounds - encourage parents to install and maintain protective surfacing, eliminate unsafe ropes, and check for potentially hazardous hooks and edges on swings and slides.
Many parents place playground equipment on dirt or grass, which doesn't protect children from serious head injuries. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says more than one-third of all playground-related injuries are severe - fractures, internal injuries, concussions, dislocations, and amputations.
The CPSC offers a number of tips to prevent your kids from hurting themselves on your backyard play equipment:
Install and maintain at least 9 inches of wood chips, mulch, or shredded rubber for play equipment that reaches up to 7 feet high. If you use sand or pea gravel, you'll want at least 9 inches for play structures up to 5 feet high. Or, you can use surface mats made of safety-tested rubber or rubber-like materials.
Install protective surfacing at least 6 feet in all directions from play equipment. For swings, the surface should extend, in back and front, twice the height of the suspending bar.
Don't attach anything to the playground equipment that can be a potential strangulation hazard - ropes, jump ropes, clotheslines, or pet leashes.
Smooth out any sharp edges or points.
Cover open "s" hooks or protruding bolts. Better yet, don't use "s" hooks at all.
Check for openings in guardrails and between ladder rungs. Spaces should be less than 3.5 inches or more than 9 inches so that they don't present an entrapment hazard.
Make sure you have enough spacing between swings. There should be at least 8 inches between suspended swings and between a swing and the support frame, and at least 16 inches from the swing support frame to a pendulum seesaw.
There should be at least 8 inches between the ground and the underside of the swing seat.
Swing seats should be securely anchored.
"Children should be out on the playground where they belong, not in the hospital emergency room," said CPSC Chairman Ann Brown. "We believe that by sharing our simple safety tips with parents, home playgrounds can be a place where kids have fun and play safely."
In addition, the American Academy of Pediatrics says that swing seats should be made of a soft material and that you should always check metal surfaces, like slides, when it heats up outside to avoid burns. You should also make sure your kids don't twist the swings, swing empty seats, or walk in front of moving swings.
Also, always assemble the equipment according to the instructions and cap all screws and bolts.
And, most importantly, always supervise young children while they are playing.
Written by Michele Dawson
How many of you have had to deal with this type of agent approach?
Hello fellow inspectors, Have any of you ever been approached by a Realtor who wants to make a deal? To make a long story short, I received a call from a Realtor who is just starting out. He has taken an interest in the inspection process and it appears he wants to learn, so I have taken some time to meet with him a couple of times to explain what it is we do and have had a few phone conversations whenever he may have a question or two. Basically I have done what I think any of us would do to try and keep the inspections coming in. Then I receive a call last week. He tells me he is moving into a rental home with the option to purchase and wants to know what kind of a deal I would be willing to make on an inspection. Already feeling a little uneasy about this I asked him what he had in mind. "Well, how about you give me a free inspection and I send you my business for the next year." He answered. Feeling very insulted I explained to him that I was not comfortable with that situation and that is not how I intend to operate my business. He then apologized and told me he was working on a deal right now and would pass my business card onto his client.
I guess my question here would be, Is it worth working with an agent like this? I am still early in my inspection career (about 5 months) and could use any business he may send my way but my worry is he will always want something in return. Am I better off telling him I am booked when he calls? Has anyone run into a similar situation? Jason Balzer Innovative Inspections - Aloha, OR
Jason;
This is a great scenario to learn from. It looks like you have already identified this agent as lacking integrity, or he may just be ignorant of the perception that his request presents. He is obviously wanting to take advantage of you.
One simple answer to his request for a free inspection is that the Code of Ethics of A.I.I., (and Oregon standards? . . I am from California), prohibit you from giving an agent anything of that value. To do so is a clear conflict of interest.
If I were a State official trying to uncover unscrupulous Home Inspectors I might set up a sting operation where I posed as a Realtor and asked for a free inspection.
Find a nice way to decline the free inspection. Offer to do it at your regular fee, but explain that you are prohibited from doing the freebie. If he goes elsewhere to find a free inspection, then you have flushed him out as unethical and you may well want to start a list of agents you don't want to work for, with his name being the first.
Good Luck, Scott Merritt - Grass Valley, CA
Jason, Scott has good points to offer. Also the agent is offering you nothing in return, he cannot guarantee his clients will use you only that he will refer them to you. I would offer to do the inspection at the full fee, so he can see the quality of your work, then give he a certificate for 10% off on an inspection that he may offer to one of his clients. Being a new agent he may not be aware of our standards of practice and code of ethics. All agents and clients that I see get a copy. He may just need some education about the workings of his career. I have dealt with a lot of new agents and I try to educate them on what to look for in a good home inspector ( first being AII Cert.) I had a realtor who wanted a $25.00 dollar CASH kickback for every inspection I did for him. I explained that would be giving and inducement to acquire inspections and I will not do that nor am I allowed to by law (CA). I never heard from him again. He probably found an inspector who was willing. John Rebenstorff - Orangevale CA
I did offer to do the inspection for my normal fee with nothing more expected from him. I thought this would be a chance for him to see the quality of my work. However he declined citing the reason he wanted to make a deal was because he did not have the funds to pay the fee. I did tell him I considered this unethical however I did not mention the Sandards of Practice assuming the Realtors board has similar Standards and he just didn't wish to abide by them.
Scott, I gotta say that I had the exact same thoughts about a State Official conducting some sort of sting operation. Jason Balzer
Michael, the bear was actually friendlier than some dogs I've run across. He seemed accustomed to humans and probably eats out of the neighborhood garbage cans on a regular basis. This was my 2nd encounter with bears during inspections this summer! Pesty dogs and cats don't seem so bad after all! I didn't need that 2nd change of clothes (the bear was too small), but it's always good to them have with you. Bill Bergstedt - S. Lake Tahoe, CA
Last week's Photo Challenge was a hoot. It made me smile, giggle, and feel sorry for the inspector all at the same time.
I think I looked at this place last week. Rick Stewart - Corvallis,Oregon
Here's a story about a man named jed..What I really like is the custom anchor at front of cruise ship. Tom Pittman - Roseburg, Or
Several, No welcome mat, no door bell, no federal panel, Insulated windows fog. No plumbing vents. has a dryer but no washer. Still floats. Looks like a California fixer upper. About $495.000 As is..... Rolland Pruner - Livermore, CA
Is this allowable?
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