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When Should You Schedule Your Home Inspection?
So you are buying a house and you think you found the perfect one! Well to start, Congratulations! Although your Realtor will be guiding you through the process as well, we want to give you a quick rundown on when you should schedule your home inspection. The buying process seems like a long period of time, but with everything you need to do, it can fly by and there will likely be a ton of questions throughout the process. When To Schedule Your Home Inspection: Everything happens once your offer is accepted on a house. At this point, you are officially under contract and can start the inspection process. We typically do not perform inspections prior to a buyer being under contract. However, once you are under contract it is time to look at all your deadlines and get your inspection scheduled! Often, one of the first deadlines is called [...]
What’s Included in a Home Inspection?
One of the most common questions we get from our customers is: What exactly is included in a home inspection. That is a tricky question to answer because it varies from home to home, and by the type of inspection. However, when we provide a general home inspection, we usually do just that. Give you a general, but thorough overview of a home. The informational video will give you a brief summary of the different sections included in a home inspection, in the most basic scenario. As we explain in the video, there are a lot of things to cover in a home, so we break it down into a few major sections. This list is pulled straight from our home inspection template. Exterior - Ground Foundation - Basement - Crawlspace Roofing - Attic - Ventilation Plumbing System Electrical System Heating Systems Cooling System Interior Built-In Appliances Garage From [...]
Do home inspectors give repair estimates?
Ask Your Inspector Series: Question: After a home inspection is performed, do home inspectors give repair estimates to the buyer? Answer: Home inspector's are an independent 3rd party and typically do not quote repairs and these numbers can be inaccurate. It is best that you and your real estate agent receive quotes from the recommended repair professionals. Think of a home inspector as a general physician performing a physical exam for a patient. The role of the general physician is to assess the overall health of the patient. If specific concerns are noted that need further action or review, a referral to a specialist is done. The same is true for home inspectors. Our role isn't to provide repair estimates for all the things we find during our inspection, but instead, we make you aware of all the issues observed, and where we can give [...]
How Do Solar Panels Work? (Understanding Photovoltaic Systems)
At Scott Home Inspection, we cover a broad amount of information during a home inspection. This means we can't always go into specific detail about each system a home has installed. In the last few years, we have seen a large increase in the amount of homes that have a Photovoltaic (PV) or solar system installed. This is great for the environment and your energy bill, but it begs the question: How do solar panels work? To answer this, our guest writer, Kyle P from the solar company PowerScout, is going to break down the technical aspects for you: The PV Effect: Solar panels cover the roofs of houses and businesses across the country. They convert sunlight into electricity through a process called the photovoltaic effect (PVs). The PV effect is the process of generating voltage or electric current in a PV cell when it is exposed to sunlight. It [...]
GFCI Outlets Explained – The Un-Shocking Truth
We've all seen those outlets with the little "test" and "reset" buttons on the face of the outlet. These are called "GFCI" outlets. The "GFCI" stands for Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter. But what does that mean? And why are these types of outlets necessary? The Shocking Details Perhaps at some point in your life you have experienced a mild shock from an outlet while plugging in a cord. Or at some point in your childhood, you pushed something metallic into an outlet, possibly at a devious sibling's prompting. When this happens, the electricity travels quickly through your body, looking for a path to ground. You essentially become the wire that the electricity travels through. These types of shocks can be very jarring. Thankfully, most of the time minor shocks don't result in injury or death. However, there is a real possibility that a person could suffer burns, tissue injury, [...]
My Main Electrical Panel Is At Capacity: What Does That Mean?
The main electrical panel is one of the most important aspects of any home. It is responsible for gathering electricity from the local provider, and distributing it safely to the active circuits throughout the house. Each panel is designed with a maximum limit of breakers or branch circuits that can be added. When performing a home inspection, we note when panels are completely full of breakers and they are "At Capacity." So what happens when the panel reaches its capacity? What Happens When My Electrical Panel Is At Full Capacity? When a panel is at full capacity, there simply aren't any more slots left in the panel to add any more circuits. The more appliances and devices that are in use in the house, the more power is being drawn from the panel, and the more circuits are needed. Most modern residential panels are designed to draw 100 - [...]
