Author Archives: mikew
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More creative home repairs
Posted on November 16, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItI appreciate the Do-It-Yourselfer! After all, I am one of them. However, there is a time when it is time to call in someone more knowledgeable to do the job. After a recent home inspection, I’m looking for that creative contractor who demonstrated his/her ability to think outside of the box and fix problems in a […]
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I’m not a fan of gutter guards
Posted on October 17, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItI’ve stopped at the display kiosk at Costco showing innovative gutter designs. I’ve seen the Youtube videos and heard the commercials for gutter guards and helmets and screens. More than that I’ve performed inspections of homes with many of these designs. It is important to see how they work years with maintenance by regular home owners like you […]
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A wood pecker’s sore little beak
Posted on October 3, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItI saw this interesting thing on an inspection this summer. A bright shiny flue pipe from a wood stove was covered with hundreds of little dents on all sides. As I looked at it I was reminded of a pesky little wood pecker who would peck away on a transformer on a power pole in […]
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You might have dirty clean dishes
Posted on September 26, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItEver wondered what that little cylinder is for next to the kitchen faucet? Are you wondering about it because you don’t have one of these little decorations? This is called an air gap and it is associated with the proper plumbing for your dishwasher. Quite often dishwasher drain lines are connected directly to your garbage […]
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What’s a stud?
Posted on September 19, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItNot who, but what is a stud? A stud is part of the framing of our home. Underneath the wall sheeting called gypsum or sheetrock are the vertical wood beams. They are usually 2 inches wide and stand from the floor to the ceiling. There are hundreds and even thousands of these used in the construction […]
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A feature for the cultured and well-to-do
Posted on September 12, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItI was at an inspection today and came across this in the master bathroom. I tested it (not by using it!). It is not something you see very often in homes. In all the fun bantering with my client and his realtor I forgot to tease him about the special feature in the house. In case you […]
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The insulation everyone is scared of
Posted on September 5, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItLast year I entered a home built in 1962. The furnishings and finishes did not appear to have changed since the year the house was built. As I walked in there was a planter present with a welcome sign from the listing agent. At hand level filling the planter were small pebble-like crystals. It startled me […]
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Not the best storage idea
Posted on August 29, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItLike gold fish we grow as big as our aquarium. As our milk crates are upgraded to real chairs and head boards get added to beds and Christmas ornaments fill totes needing year round storage our houses fill up with stuff! Closets are soon not enough and garages brim to the safety sensor on the automatic […]
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They’ll go out on a limb for your house
Posted on August 22, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItI’ve talked a lot about rodents recently. While they are not structurally destructive they give home owners the willies more than anything else! We love to plant vegetation around our houses to beautify our yards. New construction rarely has this problem because everything planted is immature. After about ten years trees have grown tall, vines have […]
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What’s the black plastic for?
Posted on August 15, 2016 by mikew in Fix It & Use ItThe black plastic in crawlspaces are called vapor barriers. Vapor barriers have two purposes for a home. First, they reduce ground moisture from entering the crawlspace. Our goal is to keep moisture less than 20%. Second, they provide a timeline of crawlspace activity. Plumbing leaks, rodent activity, ground water issues, repairs, and previous inspectors all […]
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