On this Nampa Idaho home inspection improper venting of the furnace and water heater was noted. No 45 degree elbow was installed when the line bent and tape was installed to seal the area. Over time this was damaged and exhaust gas is venting into the attic.

One this home in Meridian Idaho the plumbing lines had been secured up higher in the middle so someone could crawl through. They forgot to put it back down when they were done. With the middle being pulled up, the master bathroom and laundry room were not draining properly. The supports need to be lowered back down and proper drainage established.

There was no signs of damage to the sheetrock besides a very small amount of bubbling on the paint. The leak was likely coming from the tub, because it was up against the outer wall. Water was leaking and running down the outer wall, hitting the concrete floor of the basement and soaking into carpet. A small amount of microbial contamination was noted under carpet, and likely more damage and microbial contamination behind the wall.

Recommend repairs to leak and examination of wall to clean up any possible damage. Watch the video for more information.

This is why you need a home inspection on your next purchase.

Watch the video to see what I mean.

On a recent Boise Home Inspection I came across a leaking pipe in the crawl space. The home had Polybutylene piping for the pluming. This leak had been going for some time. It was on the hot water line which is the typical place Polybutylene piping has issues. Not only was there leaking water causing damage to the wood in the crawl space, the hot steam was working its way up into the home causing microbial contamination in, under and behind carpet and sheetrock.

Polybutylene plumbing was installed in a lot of homes in the late 1970’s through the 1980’s and lot’s of law suits due to this plumbing. Although Polybutylene has a bad name and should be inspected the plumbing with aluminum fittings, such as in this house, and usually on the hot water line, is usually the culprit.

What happens is the Aluminum bands on the connection points expand on the hot water lines and does not allow for a tight fitting anymore. As this goes on the water stats leaking. Usually in a place that is not noticed or when the home owner is away. This has caused lot’s of damage.

Furnace issues and a carbon monoxide leak was noted on this Boise home inspection through the water heater vent. When the furnace was running, carbon monoxide was blowing back out the water heater vent, usually indicating a cracked/damaged heat exchanger, or plugged vent. Also notice the scorching marks on the top of the water heater, this is caused by the blow back of the furnace exhaust.