School Days -- Washington State Home Inspector Licensing

Today, at Bellingham Technical College, students spent the whole day focusing on learning about the various wood destroying organisms that are found in this state. The primary culprits are carpenter ants, termites, wood boring beetles, moisture ants and wood decay fungi or rot.

Under the new home inspector licensing law, a home inspector inspects for rot and conducive conditions (things that cause rot or attract pests) but the inspector does not inspect for wood destroying insects. However, many home inspectors are also licensed structural pest inspectors and they do inspect for wood destroying insects.

The purpose of this class, an add on to basic home inspector training, is to teach students about the role of the inspector and the structural pest inspector. In a few weeks each student will have to make a determination as to whether or not he wishes to get that add-on license or not. The structural pest inspections are regulated by the Washington State Department of Agriculture.

Steven L. Smith

Bellingham WA Home Inspections