Atlantic Home Survey Incorporated

With regard to the complaint regarding the home inspection: # [redacted] I am sorry this client has experienced these problems and will try to address them from my perspectiveFirst, I try to take my time with all clients as I did with this oneI take my job seriously and realize that clients want good infoI have evaluated roofs and houses, many thousands of times with few complaintsI am a highly experienced inspector with over years of experienceI do not gloss over things or take short cutsI try to interact with my clients as much as possible.In the case of this complaint the problems mentioned were not detectable during a visual home inspection or were reported in the original reportMuch of the expense cited in the complaint is due to the fact that the client allowed a roofer to replace instead of repair the roof and did so at a very inflated priceFurthermore, contractors were not called in till after the house was purchasedThe fascia board issue would have come to light if anyone was doing the repairs that I called for in the report.Gas Leaks/Issues:In this case, the gas was turned off and locked at the meter during the original inspectionThe client and I spent about hours together in the house during the original inspectionWhen the gas had been turned on, several days later, I returned to start up the appliances, spent another minutes with the client present, and did so at no charge.Code ViolationThe code violation mentioned was that the gas entry pipe did not have a sleeve where it entered the houseThe lack of a sleeve may be a current code violation, but is not relevant except on new constructionA home inspector is not a code enforcement officer and can’t beThousands of older houses and most of the rest of the neighborhood have identical sleeveless conditionsCodes change over time, apply to new construction only, and must be enforced by a municipal officialDifferent municipalities can have completely different requirements and interpretations.LeaksThe discovery of gas leaks is almost always because of an odorIf the house was operational with enough time for small gas leaks to accumulate, maybe we would have noticed them during that extended time within the house during the original inspectionOnce the odor is present, plumbers can investigate using combustible gas detectors etcand finds other leaksDuring the return inspection, with the gas on, the client and I spent minutes together as I started up the boiler, water heater, and several wall space heatersThere were no obvious odorsThe client was with me for the minutes, but also present before I arrived as he was removing old carpet etcHe mentioned no odors and we noticed no odorsI can only assume a small leak accumulated enough gas to become noticeable eventuallyThere were certainly no obvious clues when I was present and the client did not mention question or complain about gas odors.Roof:The roof surface condition was reported to the client as “years old with a medium to high probability of replacement within years at a cost of approximately $(page 24)”I think that is accurate stillObviously since the client actually observed it leaking, the roof needs repairs, but not necessarily replacementIt is simply impossible to find leaks without flood testing the roofThis is impossible within a home inspectionSome roofs only leak with directional rains or wind from a certain directionMy best days are in heavy blowing rains98% of roof leaks are at flashingsFlashing repairs are usually simple caulking or the replacement of the plumbing boot(s)Sometimes a few shingles have to be removed and re-installedIn the case of the ridge vent, the nail heads need to be re-caulked and probably the joint between the metal and the top shinglesRoofers want to sell new roofs and many thousands of serviceable roofs are replaced when only repair is neededThe point is simply that this roof should have been repairable and given some more years of serviceThere were no missing shingles, the granular surface was not appreciably degraded and the seals were OKWhen to actually replace a roof is a very arbitrary decisionContractors advising replacements tend to give doomsday scenarios.Fascia boards:The fascia boards are the vertical boards at the lowest edge of the roofThey close off the soffit area and provide a place to mount the guttersIn the case of this house the gutter was bent and danglingThe soffit area was falling away from the underside of the roof framingThis was obvious and reported clearlyI do believe I did at least verbally discuss that the gutters would have to come off and then some soffit and fascia work would be neededI listed this as a major problem and I described this as a significant repair in the narrative (pages: 4(summary of major problems) and 25)When contractors get into jobs, they find more than anticipated and frequently write that into their estimatesIt doesn’t surprise me that some of the fascia is rottedThis is however a length of 1xor 1xand shouldn’t dramatically increase costsImportantly, estimates should have been obtained prior to settlement.The question is whether I should have been able to predict roof leaks and gas leaks based on what was reasonably visible on the day of inspection in a home inspection type walkthroughI think I did my job in a reasonable manner consistent with the standards of the industryI am sorry the client has experienced the problems, but all problems, especially roof leaks on dry days, cannot be found in all casesWhether to repair or replace the roof is an arbitrary decision.This client needs to investigate Real Estate arbitration or mediation with the sellers of the property as the defects present were latent and not readily discoverable in a home inspection.Don S Atlantic Home Survey Inc[redacted] ***@dstolt.com

With regard to the complaint regarding the home inspection: # ***
I am sorry this client has
experienced these problems and will try to address them from my perspective
First, I try to take my time with all clients as I did with this oneI take my job seriously and realize that clients want good infoI have evaluated roofs and houses, many thousands of times with few complaintsI am a highly experienced inspector with over years of experienceI do not gloss over things or take short cutsI try to interact with my clients as much as possibleIn the case of this complaint the problems mentioned were not detectable during a visual home inspection or were reported in the original reportMuch of the expense cited in the complaint is due to the fact that the client allowed a roofer to replace instead of repair the roof and did so at a very inflated priceFurthermore, contractors were not called in till after the house was purchasedThe fascia board issue would have come to light if anyone was doing the repairs that I called for in the reportGas Leaks/Issues:In this case, the gas was turned off and locked at the meter during the original inspectionThe client and I spent about hours together in the house during the original inspectionWhen the gas had been turned on, several days later, I returned to start up the appliances, spent another minutes with the client present, and did so at no chargeCode ViolationThe code violation mentioned was that the gas entry pipe did not have a sleeve where it entered the houseThe lack of a sleeve may be a current code violation, but is not relevant except on new constructionA home inspector is not a code enforcement officer and can’t beThousands of older houses and most of the rest of the neighborhood have identical sleeveless conditionsCodes change over time, apply to new construction only, and must be enforced by a municipal officialDifferent municipalities can have completely different requirements and interpretationsLeaksThe discovery of gas leaks is almost always because of an odorIf the house was operational with enough time for small gas leaks to accumulate, maybe we would have noticed them during that extended time within the house during the original inspectionOnce the odor is present, plumbers can investigate using combustible gas detectors etcand finds other leaksDuring the return inspection, with the gas on, the client and I spent minutes together as I started up the boiler, water heater, and several wall space heatersThere were no obvious odorsThe client was with me for the minutes, but also present before I arrived as he was removing old carpet etcHe mentioned no odors and we noticed no odorsI can only assume a small leak accumulated enough gas to become noticeable eventuallyThere were certainly no obvious clues when I was present and the client did not mention question or complain about gas odorsRoof:The roof surface condition was reported to the client as “years old with a medium to high probability of replacement within years at a cost of approximately $(page 24)”I think that is accurate stillObviously since the client actually observed it leaking, the roof needs repairs, but not necessarily replacementIt is simply impossible to find leaks without flood testing the roofThis is impossible within a home inspectionSome roofs only leak with directional rains or wind from a certain directionMy best days are in heavy blowing rains98% of roof leaks are at flashingsFlashing repairs are usually simple caulking or the replacement of the plumbing boot(s)Sometimes a few shingles have to be removed and re-installedIn the case of the ridge vent, the nail heads need to be re-caulked and probably the joint between the metal and the top shinglesRoofers want to sell new roofs and many thousands of serviceable roofs are replaced when only repair is neededThe point is simply that this roof should have been repairable and given some more years of serviceThere were no missing shingles, the granular surface was not appreciably degraded and the seals were OKWhen to actually replace a roof is a very arbitrary decisionContractors advising replacements tend to give doomsday scenariosFascia boards:The fascia boards are the vertical boards at the lowest edge of the roofThey close off the soffit area and provide a place to mount the guttersIn the case of this house the gutter was bent and danglingThe soffit area was falling away from the underside of the roof framingThis was obvious and reported clearlyI do believe I did at least verbally discuss that the gutters would have to come off and then some soffit and fascia work would be neededI listed this as a major problem and I described this as a significant repair in the narrative (pages: 4(summary of major problems) and 25)When contractors get into jobs, they find more than anticipated and frequently write that into their estimatesIt doesn’t surprise me that some of the fascia is rottedThis is however a length of 1xor 1xand shouldn’t dramatically increase costsImportantly, estimates should have been obtained prior to settlementThe question is whether I should have been able to predict roof leaks and gas leaks based on what was reasonably visible on the day of inspection in a home inspection type walkthroughI think I did my job in a reasonable manner consistent with the standards of the industryI am sorry the client has experienced the problems, but all problems, especially roof leaks on dry days, cannot be found in all casesWhether to repair or replace the roof is an arbitrary decisionThis client needs to investigate Real Estate arbitration or mediation with the sellers of the property as the defects present were latent and not readily discoverable in a home inspectionDon S
Atlantic Home Survey Inc.*** ***@dstolt.com

With regard to the complaint regarding the home inspection: # [redacted]I am sorry this client has experienced these problems and will try to address them from my perspective. First, I try to take my time with all clients as I did with this one. I take my job seriously and realize that clients want...

good info. I have evaluated roofs and houses, many thousands of times with few complaints. I am a highly experienced inspector with over 25 years of experience. I do not gloss over things or take short cuts. I try to interact with my clients as much as possible.In the case of this complaint the problems mentioned were not detectable during a visual home inspection or were reported in the original report. Much of the expense cited in the complaint is due to the fact that the client allowed a roofer to replace instead of repair the roof and did so at a very inflated price. Furthermore, contractors were not called in till after the house was purchased. The fascia board issue would have come to light if anyone was doing the repairs that I called for in the report.Gas Leaks/Issues:In this case, the gas was turned off and locked at the meter during the original inspection. The client and I spent about 2.5 hours together in the house during the original inspection. When the gas had been turned on, several days later, I returned to start up the appliances, spent another 45 minutes with the client present, and did so at no charge.Code ViolationThe code violation mentioned was that the gas entry pipe did not have a sleeve where it entered the house. The lack of a sleeve may be a current code violation, but is not relevant except on new construction. A home inspector is not a code enforcement officer and can’t be. Thousands of older houses and most of the rest of the neighborhood have identical sleeveless conditions. Codes change over time, apply to new construction only, and must be enforced by a municipal official. Different municipalities can have completely different requirements and interpretations.LeaksThe discovery of gas leaks is almost always because of an odor. If the house was operational with enough time for small gas leaks to accumulate, maybe we would have noticed them during that extended time within the house during the original inspection. Once the odor is present, plumbers can investigate using combustible gas detectors etc. and finds other leaks. During the return inspection, with the gas on, the client and I spent 45 minutes together as I started up the boiler, water heater, and several wall space heaters. There were no obvious odors. The client was with me for the 45 minutes, but also present before I arrived as he was removing old carpet etc. He mentioned no odors and we noticed no odors. I can only assume a small leak accumulated enough gas to become noticeable eventually. There were certainly no obvious clues when I was present and the client did not mention question or complain about gas odors.Roof:The roof surface condition was reported to the client as “20 years old with a medium to high probability of replacement within 5 years at a cost of approximately $5000. (page 24)”. I think that is accurate still. Obviously since the client actually observed it leaking, the roof needs repairs, but not necessarily replacement. It is simply impossible to find leaks without flood testing the roof. This is impossible within a home inspection. Some roofs only leak with directional rains or wind from a certain direction. My best days are in heavy blowing rains. 98% of roof leaks are at flashings. Flashing repairs are usually simple caulking or the replacement of the plumbing boot(s). Sometimes a few shingles have to be removed and re-installed. In the case of the ridge vent, the nail heads need to be re-caulked and probably the joint between the metal and the top shingles. Roofers want to sell new roofs and many thousands of serviceable roofs are replaced when only repair is needed. The point is simply that this roof should have been repairable and given some more years of service. There were no missing shingles, the granular surface was not appreciably degraded and the seals were OK. When to actually replace a roof is a very arbitrary decision. Contractors advising replacements tend to give doomsday scenarios.Fascia boards:The fascia boards are the vertical boards at the lowest edge of the roof. They close off the soffit area and provide a place to mount the gutters. In the case of this house the gutter was bent and dangling. The soffit area was falling away from the underside of the roof framing. This was obvious and reported clearly. I do believe I did at least verbally discuss that the gutters would have to come off and then some soffit and fascia work would be needed. I listed this as a major problem and I described this as a significant repair in the narrative (pages: 4(summary of major problems) and 25). When contractors get into jobs, they find more than anticipated and frequently write that into their estimates. It doesn’t surprise me that some of the fascia is rotted. This is however a length of 1x6 or 1x8 and shouldn’t dramatically increase costs. Importantly, estimates should have been obtained prior to settlement.The question is whether I should have been able to predict roof leaks and gas leaks based on what was reasonably visible on the day of inspection in a home inspection type walkthrough. I think I did my job in a reasonable manner consistent with the standards of the industry. I am sorry the client has experienced the problems, but all problems, especially roof leaks on dry days, cannot be found in all cases. Whether to repair or replace the roof is an arbitrary decision.This client needs to investigate Real Estate arbitration or mediation with the sellers of the property as the defects present were latent and not readily discoverable in a home inspection.Don S Atlantic Home Survey Inc.[redacted]@dstolt.com