Damaged electrical receptacles and light sockets! This is some I have seen a lot of lately broken electrical receptacles and light sockets. These type of defects seem to show up in waves, you will see a few here and there and then you inspect a few homes and they are thought the house. Broken electrical [...]
Common Electrical Conductor Types by Nick Gromicko, Rob London and Kenton Shepard Poorly installed and maintained electrical cables are a common cause of electrical fires in homes. Many older homes contain wiring that is now considered obsolete or dangerous. InterNACHI inspectors should understand the basic distinctions between the different types of cable systems so that [...]
Knob-and-Tube Wiring By Nick Gromicko, Rob London and Kenton Shepard Knob-and-tube (K&T) wiring was an early standardized method of electrical wiring in buildings, in common use in North America from about 1880 to the 1940s. The system is considered obsolete and can be a safety hazard, although some of the fear associated with it is [...]
How Your System Works A septic system has two major components: a septic tank and a drainfield. Septic Tank: Waste water flows from the house to the septic tank. The tank is designed to retain waste water and allow heavy solids to settle to the bottom. These solids are partially decomposed by bacteria to form [...]
Electrical Safety Electricity is an essential part of our lives. However, it has the potential to cause great harm. Electrical systems will function almost indefinitely if properly installed and not overloaded or physically abused. Electrical fires in our homes claim the lives of 485 Americans each year and injure 2,305 more. Some of these fires [...]
Plumbing Plumbing may be defined as practice, materials, and fixtures used in the installation, maintenance, and alteration of all piping, fixtures, appliances, and appurtenances in connection with sanitary or storm drainage facilities, the venting system, and the public or private water supply systems. Plumbing does not include the trade of drilling water wells, installing water [...]
Private water wells If your family gets drinking water from a private well, do you know if your water is safe to drink? What health risks could you and your family face? Where can you go for help or advice? EPA regulates public water systems; it does not have the authority to regulate private drinking [...]
Water quality Drinking water The United States has one of the safest water supplies in the world. However, national statistics don’t tell you specifically about the quality and safety of the water coming out of your tap. That’s because drinking water quality varies from place to place, depending on the condition of the source water [...]
