Paul Duffau

Quoting the webpage for the Appaloosa Museum,

The Appaloosa Museum is a non-profit organization established in 1975 to collect, preserve, study, and exhibit objects and information that illustrate the history of the Appaloosa horse.

The Appaloosa is a breed of horse known for its spotted coat pattern and other distinctive physical characteristics. The Nez Perce people of the American Pacific Northwest are credited with developing the breed. They were once referred to by white settlers as the "Palouse horse", possibly after the Palouse River, which ran through the heart of Nez Perce country. Gradually, the name evolved into "Appaloosa".

The Museum has annouced that the State of Idaho will be offerring a license plate to celebrate this uniquesly American breed. The Appaloosa plate is the first United States license plate to prominently feature a state horse along with the name of the breed, according to their press release.

While Idaho residents have the advantage of displaying their enthusiasm for the breed on their bumper, anyone in the world can purchase a souvenir plate. Getting asouvenir plate couldn't be easier. Visit http://www.accessidaho.org, click "DMV," then "Vehicle Services," followed by "Special Plates" and, finally, click on the rotating license plate graphic.

The ApHC receives $20 for each souvenir plate sold; and $25 for each initial registration, $15 for each yearly renewal of the Idaho license plate. These funds are exclusively used for youth education programs, including the Appaloosa Museum and Heritage Center.

It seems a worthy cause.

You can visit the Appaloosa Museum online at http://www.appaloosamuseum.org/cms/default.asp?contentID=1 or in beautiful Moscow ID at 2720 W Pullman Rd.

I have agents ask me whether they should have a new home inspected. We're a little more trusting out here - everybody knows everybody else and new homes are supposed to be "inspected" by the local building departments. I always tell them yes and tell them the story of a home that I did the forensics on - this one is still in litigation.

Now this is a bit extreme - I don't normally cut into walls to see what's happening but in this case, the homeowner was paying to have the structural components checked so we were intrusive.

This picture with the wood studs is indicative of what we found. There was supposed to be a steel post in the corner supporting the beam. In all, 4 steel posts were replace with wood. Two steel beams were replaced.

the client even asked the contractor if he could add another second story bedroom - and he did. Without re-engineering the plans. The walls below the new room are already bowing since they weren't designed to take that load.

The dining room, which cantilevered out about 15 feet was was originally designed to be supported on 5 10-inch diameter concrete pilasters. Instead, there were 3 6x6 wood posts.

As you can see in the picture, these posts aren't below the frost line, don't have the proper footing ( we did more excavation later) and are going to ROT because the contractor buried them in earth - which was going to take the entire room down with it.

I ended up with pages of defects just like this - and worse.

So when anybody asks about inspecting a new home, my answer is an unequivical "Yes!"

I did a home inspection not long ago on a home that was completely off the electrical grid. It was one of the more fascinating homes I've done. In addition to the solar panels, wind turbine and assorted other advanced renewable energy technologies, it had a bank of industrial batteries.

Now these are not part of your everyday home inspection.

Since I was a certified Home Performance Specialist for the state of Idaho, I have a fair amount of experience with alternative energy and energy efficient housing, so I got the job. That's one of the advantages of being the nerdiest of the inspectors in the area - I get alot of the fun projects.

Anyway, I had to inspect and test these batteries. My client was concerned (rightfully) that the batteries may have issues adn he didn't want to get left in the dark if they failed ocmmpletely.

I contacted the manufacturer, Trojan Batery and they were kind enough to work with us to get voltage tables and specifiactions to make sure we got accurate answers. The inspection process is pretty simple:

• Examine the outside appearance of the battery. The tops of the batteries andterminal connections should be clean, free of dirt and corrosion, and dry.

• I f fluids are on the top of a flooded/wet battery this may mean that the battery is being over-watered. If fluid is on the top of a battery this means that the battery is being overcharged and the performance and life will be reduced

• Check battery cables and connections. Replace any damaged cables. We did have several cables that were damaged.

Then it was time to test the batteries. This is actually an easier process than you might think but you need to have the right tools and the training to handle these batteries safely.

1) Get a voltmeter and a graduated hydrometer

2) Charge the battery set fully

3) Wait 1-2 hours after charge is completed (or knock the surface charge off by turning on a light bulb for 2-3 seconds - which is what we did)

4) Measure and record individual battery voltages (w/ voltmeter - I used my multimeter) and/or individual cell "specific gravities" (w/ hydrometer). Batteries connected in series do not need to be disconnected from each other to record battery voltages.

5) Run equipment until the battery performance drops (hopefully this only takes 0-15 minutes)

6) Turn off all equipment.

7) Measure and record individual battery voltages (w/ voltmeter) and/or individual cell "specific gravities" (w/ hydrometer) again

8) Reference the voltage/gravity chart

9) Identify any battery(s) that are significantly lower on the chart AND drastically different than other batteries in the set

It turns out that the batteries were pretty well done. since these are industrial batteries, the were quite expensive to replace but absolutely necessary for this house.

If you live in a hot climate, you've probably spent a significant amount of energy fighting the effects of the sun. In some parts of the country, air conditioning is as essential as water during the summer months, sucking the humidity out of the air and cooling things down enough so that you actually feel like moving around. Isn't it about time you started taking advantage of the sun's rays instead of feeling like one of their prime targets?

Solar power is a technology which has come way down in price over the past decade or so. This type of system uses the sun's energy to generate electricity that can power your home, heat your hot water or even be sold back to the local electrical utility. How does it work? In the simplest system, a solar panel is mounted in a high location on your property - usually your roof - and small photovoltaic cells on the panel are stimulated by the sun's light. This stimulation causes them to generate electron activity, creating a direct current that can be stored in batteries, or converted to alternating current in order to mesh with your home's electrical system. You can even use a combination system, so that during the day the panels are powering your home and simultaneously charging batteries that you can use during the night when the panels are no longer operational.

Solar panels are not nearly as fragile as they look, and their simple design sees many of them under warranty for decades. While the initial investment for a large number of panels can be pricey, the panels pay for themselves very quickly if you go for a full system that can virtually eliminate your home's dependence on the electrical grid. Many people instead opt to use solar energy as an additional source of power, only installing a small number of panels to provide them with a percentage of their daily electrical needs. This strategy also works well for those who want to build up their solar generating capacity slowly over time. Since the price of the technology decreases with each passing year, distributing your costs over a longer period can lead to significant savings by the time you are finished.

Of course, as with any form of power generation that is dependent on the environment, solar power does have its downsides. For one, the panels require unfettered sightlines to the sun in order to operate at maximum efficiency, and if your home is surrounded by trees or frequently under cloud cover, you might have some difficulty running a full system. However, the misconception that northern climates cannot take advantage of this type of energy is simply not true, as the dark coloring of most panels melts snow accumulation quickly in the presence of the sun. The only real downside to using solar power in the winter season is the shorter daytime and the previously mentioned cloud cover.

You don't have to jump into solar power with both feet in order to take advantage of this essentially free resource. Research your options and consider starting out small to supplement your current power consumption. You will be surprised at how much of a difference solar power can make in your life.

Coming up next - the low down on using batteries off the grid

I recieved the following email from the ASHI of Western Washington-

Well, it didn't take long! We have just received word that the first attempt to change the new Home Inspector Law has been brought forth in the Legislature. It is Senate Bill 5644, which you can review at: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/billdocs/2009-10/Pdf/Bills/Senate%20Bills/5644.pdf Basically, the bill attempts to allow on-line learning and inserts the word MOLD into the requirements for a Home Inspection. We would expect the DOL to fight the on line learning change, as all Real Estate classes are currently required to be instructor lead courses. Both the Real Estate Licensees and Home Inspectors are under the Real Estate Division of the DOL. Of course, inserting the word MOLD into the Home Inspection requirements is contrary to industry standards and raises serious questions about insurability.

The following is the letter that I sent to my local representative:

Honorable Senator Schoesler, The above referenced bill has been placed on the agenda of the legislature for consideration by Senators Parlette and Kohl-Welles. A substantial change is the requirement to perform a home inspection with the express purpose of identifying mold. This is outside the Standards of Practice of all the major certifying bodies and I am not aware of any state in the nation that makes this requirement. There is no nationally recognized standard for sample collection, sampling methodolgy, chain of custody and reporting for mold. It would, however,. lead to tremendous litigation and would be detrimental to my profession and the consumer that the current licensing law seeks to protect. Further, it seeks to substantially undermine and weaken the protection of a well trained inspector workforce by watering down the education requirements. I urge you to reject the changes proposed in SENATE BILL 5644. Thank you, Paul Duffau

I know that MOLD is GOLD for some inspectors but I think that it is often a way to increase revenues rather than provide quality service. The testing that a home inspector does is radically different than that of a licensed and certified testing laboratory - and I used to work in one in the field of materials testing. If they really wanted to make a change that benefits the consumer, requiring E&O of all inspectors would be a more effective protection.