Charles Buell, Seattle, WA, Home Inspector

     If you have sent your kids to public school you know what I am talking about.  Sooner or later parents become nit pickers.  So----sooner or later----as an inspector, I am going to be a "nit picker" as well----well not the same kind----hopefully.

     I don't go out of my way to be a nit picker----sometimes it just happens.  I think the kind of nit picker that most agents have a problem with is when those seemingly unimportant items end up in the "Summary of Significant Findings" section of the report.  This is "bad form"----as Captain Hook would say.  While this stuff should be mentioned in the context of general "information" about the home, placing it in the Summary gives it "weight" that it doesn't deserve.

     Take for example this P-trap connection on a Garbage disposal.

     At first glance it looks sort of normal.  But actually it is installed backwards. 

     The next couple of pictures will help explain what is wrong with this installation.  Traps are engineered to be self scouring (cleaning) by virtue of their shape.  Note how in the top picture the flow of water enters from the sink (disposal in this case) at Point C and the blue arrow.  The force of the flow of water accelerates when it hits the bottom helping it flow up and over the hill and down the drain at the left blue arrow.  In the bottom picture we can see that when the trap is installed "backwards" the distance labeled "B" is much greater than distance "A"-----a much higher hill for the water to get over.  It also doesn't have the help of acceleration provided by its being installed the other way.  The flow of water is actually reduced because the flow of water runs into a more vertical wall in the lower installation.

     So what will happen if this is not fixed?  Well eventually the trap will clog up with debris and water will just not drain properly.  It isn't a difficult fix---something any plumber can do when they are at the home for other reasons or something that even a knowledgeable homeowner or other qualified repair person can fix.

     I think I won't be putting this on the summary.

Charles Buell

     I can still remember that "pained" look on my grandfather's face as he would ask where the heck my "commons sense" went to----whenever I did something "stupid."

     I have wrestled with this notion ever since----perhaps not consciously, until recently----especially since the mantle of "grandfather" has been passed to me.  Nonetheless, the idea of living life in a "common sense" way was implanted in me when I was very young, even though today it has----for all intents and purposes----NO MEANING----at least not in the way my grandfather meant it.  What he was saying was, "why the heck would you not think of doing that the way I would have done it?"

     There are entire books dedicated to the notion of "common sense."  Our founding fathers even justified separation from the British by appealing to "common sense."  (Common Sense-by Thomas Paine) 

     I think in the good old days, common sense actually made     more      sense.  Back when everyone's background and life experiences were more similar than they are today, the idea of common sense probably did make more sense. 

     When the world was HUGE people didn't run into people with different ideas about how to do things as often----and common sense flourished.  When different people came into your world you either killed them or worshiped them----or at least had them for dinner (hopefully not literally).  As the world became smaller and smaller----especially with the advent of the internet----common sense became nearly impossible.  I think this loss of "common sense" is what drives some people to pull back into themselves and their immediate environment in an attempt to find that "old-school" common sense again----or perhaps merely to justify their inability and/or unwillingness to embrace change----to learn new things.

     I think what is really happening is a "TRANSFORMATION" of common sense. 

     No longer do we have the comfortable "luxury" of exclusivity----of a pared down existence that will allow us to exclude other ideas from being added to our repertoire.

     Not only does the Internet, and the general improvement of education, allow us to "know" more----we MUST know more.  We seem to act as if there is some sort of limit to the amount of information that can be crammed into our brains.  People who study the brain say that there are some limits to the "storage" of readily available information (like what you do to the brain when you try to cram for a final exam) as opposed to what you can absorb over an extended period of time.  I am sure we have all experienced that feeling of being overwhelmed when entering a new framework of information (Take ActiveRain for example) and the next thing you know we are giving advice to the next batch of overwhelmed newbies.  It almost becomes irresponsible to not strive to know more.  What constitutes "common sense" has expanded astronomically----to an "enlightened" version of common sense if you will.  For survival of the planet it is now desirable for the older version of common sense to become less common----"endarkened" if you will.  Reversions can still be seen in the greed and selfishness that has resulted in the bailout, the predictable US auto maker fiasco, and in the fanaticism of terrorists & religions zealots all around the world.  So while old-school common sense becomes less common it can still create a lot of havoc----a sort of tyranny of "common sense."  This is the true cost of exclusivity.

     I think what is important is to set your own pace of learning----some are sprinters, some are marathoners, and some are turtles----embrace change at your own pace---but do embrace it. 

     Unlike the old-school common sense, the new common sense takes a lifetime----perhaps even longer.  It is not a place to arrive at, but a place always on the horizon----a place to strive for----it can actually keep us alive, as opposed to limiting our possibilities and killing us.  Not having "common sense" can be seen as an opportunity----as opposed to being seen as something missing.

     What version of common sense makes sense to you?

Charles Buell

     Everyone knows that every home should have proper functioning Smoke Alarm/Detectors.  The required location of these devices has evolved over the years to the current standards that call for them being installed in every room that can be used for sleeping and on every floor level.  In new construction, they also have to be "hard-wired" and have a battery back-up.  They should be tested frequently and replaced every 10 years.  How often does that get done?  Not very often I would guess.

     Now the reality is that the "actual" functionality of these units will vary and most likely they will continue to work long after the manufacturer's recommendations.  Welcome to the world of conservative engineering, and planned obsolescence.  To protect themselves----the manufacturers are going to be as conservative as possible when "predicting" the life of units that save people's lives.  We could call this "well justified planned obsolescence" or "CYA Engineering."

     Wouldn't it be nice if there was a way to easily test these units----beside standing on a chair and pushing the test button----or poking it with a broom handle?

     While not designed with this function in mind-----this toaster I found in a recent kitchen would also function as a smoke alarm tester.

     There is no way that a toaster located under wood kitchen cabinets is ever going to be safe.  Sooner or later the bottom of the cabinet will catch on fire.  There was some overheating/discoloration on the bottom of these cabinets----the occupants have gotten away with this installation for 8 years.

     This unit is apparently much older than the kitchen and has been recycled from days gone by----perhaps from the 50's when all kinds of built-in kitchen gadgets were created.  While it was an interesting idea and might be acceptable in a different location----there may be a good reason no manufacturer seems to make these recessed wall toasters anymore.

     Even a regular toaster will function as a smoke alarm tester if so desired-----it ruins the toast though!

Charles Buell

     Everyone is familiar, no doubt, with the practice of placing air fresheners around the home when the home is for sale.  Some people apparently like to have these things around even when the house isn't for sale.  Bathrooms are a common place for them.  I often see the ones that are a night light with oil in them.  The heat of the bulb warms up the oil so that it gives off the desired odors. 

     I HATE these things----and that puts it mildly.  I am one of those people that are bothered by all kinds of perfumes.  As an inspector, I don't remark on how nice they smell but want to know what someone is trying to cover up.  I often find them in every room in the house when there have been pets---smoking----or the "M" word. 

     The other day I inspected a commercial property where one of the "rustic" potties once had one of these plug-in oil-filled air fresheners.  The lamp was gone, but there were signs of where the genie had left the bottle.  Maybe he moved into the paper dispenser above? My guess is that these devices are not UL Listed as cigarette holders to be used while one whizzes or washes one's hands.

      As it turns out there is a fair amount of "anecdotal" information on the web as to the safety of these devices but even more "scientific" evidence to support that they actually contribute to worsening the indoor air quality as opposed to improving it. 

     My nose----feels quite validated.

Charles Buell

  What is the most unusual chore you had when you were a kid?

     Well, I grew up on a farm so there was no shortage of chores.  Most of them were pretty normal for a farm in the 50's.  Collecting the eggs was one----which reminds me of, "candling" the eggs.  How many people out there in the Rain know what egg candling is?  (This is kind of a "severe" tangent from what my post is about but what the heck, it is my blog----I can wander where I like.)  

     Once you collect the eggs, you always wanted to know whether there were any anomalies "inside" the eggs like blood spots, hairline cracks, half grown baby chicks or whatever.  We used to have this little wooden box with about a 1" hole in the top.  Inside of this box was a light bulb----I suspect before electricity it would have been a candle (hence candling).  By placing an egg over the hole, you could see right through the egg----well not exactly, but anything in the egg that shouldn't be there, would show up and the egg would become pig food.  Another thing that would show up is double (and sometimes even triple) yokes----but we didn't feed those to the pigs. 

     This reminds me of another thing about eggs.  At the market I have noticed there are only large eggs and extra large eggs----what is up with that?  When we raised chickens there were many "other" sizes, what happened to all those other sizes of eggs?  How do they get modern chickens to lay eggs in only two sizes?  The smallest sized eggs were called Pullets (that is the name of a young chicken when it lays its first egg----the eggs were all small, so we called them Pullet eggs).  You could actually buy boxes of Pullet eggs.  Then there were Small, Medium, Large, Extra Large, and Jumbo eggs----a size for every occasion.

     This reminds me of "How many chickens will fit inside a cow?"-----but that was the subject of a previous post which I am chicken to repeat now.  

     Oh, and by the way chickens CAN and do lay eggs without shells. 

     Lets get back to unusual chores.

     How many of you are old enough to remember snow on Christmas?  Not the kind on the ground---the kind on the television.  Well back in 1955 if you watched television you watched a lot of snow.  Somebody always had to stand behind the television and adjust the rabbit ears while everyone in the room voted on when the antenna was in the best position to "reduce" the snow the most.  Sometimes there would be an antenna somewhere else---like up in the attic or up on the roof.  The antenna would have to be rotated by hand until the station would come in.  Well it was not very convenient to go up on the roof or up in the attic to adjust the antenna so sometimes people would run the antenna all the way down through the roof and into the house so that it could be rotated from inside the house.

    On a recent inspection everyone wanted to know what the heck this thing sticking down through the closet ceiling was. 

    I had to admit that I had no clue, and said I would have to investigate further when I was in the attic.  Once in the attic I remembered 1955----and the chore of adjusting the antenna. Quite a difference from High-Def wouldn't you say?

I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you that play with me in the Rain, the Happiest of Holidays. May you only have the kind of snow that you want----not the TV kind,

may some of your eggs be in eggnog,

and may all your eggs not be in one basket in the coming year.

     Raven is in the spirit of the Holidays and would like to quote Monte Python: 

Charles Buell