Scott Patterson - Middle TN Home Inspector

Well I'm sure we have all seen this type of statement on a brochure or on a listing before. Over the years I have learned that 75% of the time this is CODE for "Buyer beware" and it just makes me look a little harder to see what I can find that was covered up.

Today's inspection was on a 125 year old home in historic East Nashville, TN. I have looked at many homes in this area and for the most they are all in the 100 year old range and those that have been updated are really fine homes. But, I have also found many that the owners or agents claim that they have been updated when I'm sure they meant to say that they have been freshly painted!

The next few pictures are what I found in the basement of this updated home:

Sump pump not working

This is a 6x6 post newly installed!

New High Efficiency HVAC split system sitting in mud from being flooded because the sump pump was not working. Unit was distroyed and will need to be replaced.

If your siding, car, fence or any other surfaces around your house have broken out with a rash of black or dark-brown specks that do not want to come off, you are probably at war with something called Artillery fungus.

I have seen this on many homes over the years, but I have noticed a drastic increase in the number of homes that have been "shot"! The following picture is from a home that I just inspected, even the PVC plastic privacy fence had been shot!

The artillery fungus, cannon fungus or shotgun fungus resembles a tiny cream or orange-brown cup with one black egg. The cup is approximately 1/10 of an inch in diameter. Areas of mulch with artillery fungi may appear matted and lighter in color than the surrounding mulch. The fruiting body of this fungus orients itself towards bright surfaces, such as light-colored houses or parked automobiles. The artillery fungus "shoots" its black, sticky spore mass which can be windblown as high as the second story of a house.

After doing some research I think that I have discovered why we are seeing more homes with artillery fungus problems. It looks like the appearance of Artillery fungi has been associated with wood mulch (versus bark mulch) and the increased use of wood products in potting media. Mostly the use of ground-up wood pallets and unused pulp wood and the use of fallen trees from storms that have been ground into mulch .

The best way to limit your exposure is the composting of these products prior to incorporation into media is encouraged to prompt the growth of beneficial antagonistic organisms. Better yet, use only the bagged or prepackaged mulch from a garden center. Bulk mulch (not in bags) tends to be more of a raw material that could contain spores.

Also, the use of gravel mulch, stone, pea gravel, and black plastic next to buildings instead of using wood products will help reduce the problem. If wood products are used, the addition of about 3 cm of fresh mulch to cover old mulch each year may lessen the problem. Use of bark products, rather than wood products, may also lessen the fungal spread.

One word of warning to homeowners wishing to replace house siding splattered by Artillery fungi --- insurance companies may not cover claims of damage due to "molds".

I know that just about everyone has heard about companies that clean the air ducts in homes. The typical way to clean the air ducts is to place a round bristle brush about the same inside diameter as the pipe. It is either pushed or pulled through the pipe. Many times it also has a vacuum suction as part of the brush. Then after they have cleaned the duct they come back and spray various anti-bacterial and anti-fungal chemicals to aid in the cleaning of the ducts.

Is it a good idea or is it a bad idea to clean your air ducts?

It depends on what the air ducts are made of! If you have the strong sheet metal air ducts, then it might be a good idea to have a qualified company clean them. The key is a quality company that knows what they are doing!

But, if you have those flexible plastic air ducts that are in the majority of the homes that have been built in the past eight or so years then you might want to rethink having them cleaned. The flex-duct type plastic air ducting is like a sandwich. it is comprised of an inner layer of plastic like sheeting then a layer of fiberglass insulation and then an exterior layer of plastic. Most of the time the inner layer has a wire that is built into it so that the duct will have additional strength and flexibility to help keep the duct from crushing and closing up. This wire also gives the air duct a fan or accordion shape, that traps dirt and dust. The plastic flex- duct can not effectively be cleaned. Most of the time if cleaning is attempted the flex-duct will be damaged

This is a picture of a damaged duct as see from a floor register on a new construction home that I inspected. This is the result of an air duct cleaning company cleaning the construction debris out of the air supply ducts. The pink is the fiberglass insulation part of the flex-duct:

We also have fiberglass fiberboard air ducts. This type of air duct can not be cleaned either. The fiberboard has a protective covering that is easily damaged.

We really do not want fiberglass particles floating around in the air we are breathing every day!

So, if you have metal air ducts you can clean them. If you have flexible type of fiberboard air ducts you should not clean them. This type of air duct needs to be replaced and not cleaned.

After seeing in person several homes with Chinese drywall and seeing the Red Flags in those homes of what to look for I have compiled a simple list that will give you a good start in the search to see if your home has this problematic drywall in it:

1. Use you sense of smell. If you detect a sulfur like odor, you might have it.
2. Look at the soft reactive metals in your home. Copper and Silver seem to be the first to show signs of reacting to the corrosive off gassing of the drywall.
3. Copper wiring that is turning dark is a tell tail sign. It turns almost black when it is exposed to the drywall off gassing.
4. Most of us have pennies sitting in a jar, bowl or whatever. Take a look at that pocket change that has been sitting on the desk for a while. If the pennies on top are turning dark and the ones further down in the jar are not, then you might have it.
5. Silver plated picture frames are another good test. If they are turning dark, you might have a problem.
6. Silver jewelry is another good prospect to see if you might be at risk.
7. Looking for the Made in China or Knauf/Tianjin marks on the back of the drywall in black ink. This is a guarantee that you have it! This can be done form the attic or even an air return chase.

Note: If you find Made in China or Kanuf on the back of the drywall in Blue ink, this drywall seems to be OK.

Any of the above situations or items along with the smell of sulfur in the home is about the best way to tell if your home is at risk of having Chinese drywall or drywall that has been mixed with fly ash. After talking with individuals who's homes have had this drywall, they all said that it started after they had been in the home for more than a few months and some took as long as four years. A common thread was that they all started to notice their silver jewelry was turning or tarnishing more than it ever did as soon as they moved into their new home.

At this time we have no sure method of testing an entire home to see if it has Chinese drywall in it. The only way to test via a lab is to take a sample (1" round core) every 4 feet in every wall and on every ceiling that has drywall. Why every 4'? The drywall sheets are in 4'x8' sheets so you must test every sheet! It is cost prohibited and very destructive to do this type of testing. Visual is the best method we have at this time for identifying a home with Chinese drywall. Be careful of the testing scams that have popped up over the past few months.

This information is provided by Scott Patterson as a service. It may be reproduced with permission as long as credit is given to the author and it is not changed.

When the Obama Administration recently announced the Making Home Affordable Program it also opened the door to more mortgage scams! This was or is not the intent of this program. It is designed to assist up to nine million American families refinance or modify their loans to a monthly mortgage payment that is more affordable.

Due to the over¬whelming interest in the plan, homeowners are increasingly becoming the target of scammers trying to take advantage of families with false promises and steep fees to provide foreclosure assistance. With President Obama's plan, a homeowner NEVER has to pay to participate in the program. If you wish to obtain counseling assistance, HUD urges you to contact a local HUD-approved housing counseling agency to en¬sure they are receiving legitimate information.

Need some help?? Try the following listings, I bet that you might just find what you are looking for!

Making Home Affordable
www.makinghomeaffordable.gov

HUD Approved Counselor
www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/

HUD
www.hud.gov

HUD Housing Counseling
800-569-4287

Hope Now
888-995-4673

According to the HUD website the FTC is the lead agency in the fight against this type of fraud:

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission works for the consumer to pre¬vent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop and avoid them.

If you feel you have been a victim of a foreclosure scam, to file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, contact: www. ftc.gov or 877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382- 4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261