Jayme Clarke

During our Raleigh Home Inspection a few weeks ago, we found radon levels at approximately 8 picocuries per liter. The EPA safe limit for indoor air is 4.0. All is not lost as the levels can be reduced through ventilation installed by a radon mitigation company. And, remember that radon levels vary from home to home (most houses we test are below the 4.0 limit). As a home buyer, it is much better to test for radon now rather than after the sale. If the Raleigh home has high radon levels, you can generally negotiate with the seller. However, if you buy now, then you sell the house later and that buyer finds high radon levels, you will have to deal with the issue. Testing services with a home inspection only cost about $100. For more information about radon testing in the Raleigh NC area (and other towns), please visit our site.

We inspected a 1997 home in Clayton NC (close to Raleigh NC) and noted a lack of flashing between the deck and siding early in the inspection. The very last thing we check is the crawl space. The lack of flashing allowed water to travel behind the siding and attack the wood foundation wall and framing. This Clayton NC home inspector found that the wall and framing components were wet and soft to probing. The rear deck and siding will have to be removed to assess the damage - a major repair. This is why a home inspection on a new house is so important. This could have been caught years ago before much, if any, damage had been done.

Inspected a 1980's home today and found the usual items and one a little more exciting. This Raleigh home inspection revealed a corroded and partially disconnected flue pipe from the gas water heater. The water heater was located in the interior of the home. The exhaust by-products could enter the home - potentially creating a dangerous situation. The buyer was very happy that I discovered this during his home inspection. For additional information, please visit www.clearchoicehi.com.

This poor house. Only 7 years old and due to the poor location of gutter downspouts (at least it had gutters), a large amount of water has been entering the crawl space at the right font of the house. Our Raleigh home inspection noted that this water ran toward the right rear corner. At the right rear, we have a nice foundation crack on the outside foundation wall (pictured) and the inside wall. Additional cracks were noted at the right front and right side. The water undermined the foundation and the right side dropped. Swimming pools belong outside of the house, not in the crawl space. A structural engineer was recommended by this Raleigh home inspector. For more information about our company, or if you are looking for a home inspector 27610, visit http://www.clearchoicehi.com