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What is a standard home inspection?

Our standard home inspection is anything but standard. We review all major systems of the home from top to bottom. Our inspections include inspecting the roof, exterior, windows, electrical systems, plumbing, HVAC units, garages, attics, basements, crawl spaces, chimneys, fireplaces, foundation, structure and more!

Surprise, surprise…different home inspection companies have different standards. Sure, the basics are the same as we all follow the corresponding state’s Standard of Practice (SOPs.) At CH Inspections our standard is far beyond the basic requirements and you should not have to settle for the base minimum.There are a few key questions you must explore to ensure you are getting a top notch services beyond the obvious pleasantries. Just remember that inspectors do not have to go out of their way to inspect every inch of your property or access difficult or unpleasant areas of your home. Here’s the service you should be getting:

Sample Report

Roof Inspection/Attic

When you are shopping around for an inspector (and you should as we are not all the same) make sure to ask the important questions. How is my roof going to be inspected? Most inspectors would observe from the ground as best as they can, but that’s frequently not enough. Our standard includes walking on the roof if the weather and slope permit, using tall ladders to properly access the eves of the roof and flying our drone to ensure every shingle is right where it needs to be.

Foundation/ Basement/ Crawl Space

Thoroughly inspecting the foundation, basement and any available crawlspaces is paramount to your safety and the health of the home. Most inspectors come and leave the inspection day in their clean and neatly pressed clothes, not ours. Our home inspectors make an impression when they arrive at inspection day, but leave much less impressive as they actually get into your crawlspace, your attic, the roof and anywhere else they are likely to find an issue. Making sure that your inspector is willing to do that is going to make a huge difference in your understanding of the home and avoiding a money pit.

Electrical and Plumbing

These two systems are like the arteries and veins of the home. Light and water at you fingertips in your own home brought in a huge leap in the human evolution. Imagine having to live 3-4 days without water or electricity…in this day and age it sounds impossible. Do not let that happen to you and your family. Most inspectors will check a few outlets and run your water in the home and conclude their inspection of these systems. Our standard includes opening and checking your electrical panel, water tanks for proper installation, availability of GFCI outlets in areas where water may be frequently present, and performing a thermal imaging scan to find moisture problems hidden behind walls.

Interior/ Exterior

Your windows, doors, fireplaces, chimneys you name it we inspect it.

Let us ask you this, what’s more important for your family than their safety, health and peace of mind? When it comes to your home and your family, don’t settle for standard, go for the industry’s best and you will be glad you did when your neighbors are spending their weekends bringing in contractors to fix the picture perfect home they just purchased. No home is perfect, but we educate you on issues that need immediate attention and pose a safety concern. During your inspection you will also learn how to maintain your property in top shape to avoid major issues in the future.

Garages

We understand that Ferrari you are gonna be keeping in your garage better be safe! But more importantly, we inspect the garage for any improper installations that can lead to fire propagation, physical dangers to children, pets and adults. We are also inspecting to observe if any combustion gases could be drawn up into habitable areas as they can be hazardous to anybody inhaling CO2.

Insulation and ventilation

We do our best to inspect for presence of insulation and vapor barriers

See our detailed list of items inspected:

Roof and Attic

  • We walk roofs to inspect them. Some common-sense exceptions would be unsafe roofs, roofs not accessible with ladders, snow-covered, etc. If we cannot walk the roof, we will attempt to use our drones
  • Gutters and roof drainage systems. Gutters can literally take your money down the drain
  • Roof Flashing and Valley flashing- we check for physical damage, corrosion and proper installation
  • Skylights, roof caps, roof vents, plumbing vents, and other roof penetrations are inspected
  • Framing and sheathing
  • Appropriate Insulation and ventilation looking for signs of moisture intrusion

Interior/Exterior (Thermal Inspection as a Standard)

  • Ceilings, Walls, Floors, Doors
  • Windows and Skylights, decks, balconies, patios and porches
  • Stairs, handrails, and guards indoors and outdoors
  • Counters and cabinets
  • Vents, fans, kitchen exhaust hoods
  • Kitchen appliances
  • Drainage and grading that is likely to affect the building
  • Retaining walls and foundation walls
  • Outdoor vegetation that can impact the structure
  • Walkways and Driveways
  • Exterior and interior faucets

Chimney/ Fireplaces

  • Chimney crowns, walls and flashing
  • Gas and Wood-burning fireplaces, stoves, and fireplace inserts
  • Gas and Wood-burning accessories installed in fireplaces, such as gas logs

Basement / Foundation / Structure

  • Foundation walls and Basement floor and structural components
  • Crawl spaces
  • Sump Systems, including the sump basket, sump pump, sump cover, and extension piping as well as any back up sump pumps available

Electrical and Plumbing

  • Exterior electrical components, including the service drop, service entrance conductors, cables, and raceways
  • The main panel and any sub panels for proper wiring and signs of potential issues
  • Service grounding
  • Interior electrical components, including the majority of outlets, switches, and lights and Ground fault circuit interrupters
  • Arc fault circuit interrupters
  • Smoke and CO alarms are recommended when not present (Safety 1st!)
  • Water distribution pipes, drain, waste, and vent pipes
  • Water heaters and tank-less water heaters
  • Water heater vents and floor drains where present
  • Washers and dryers installation
  • Sinks, Toilets, Tubs (including jet tubs and Jacuzzi) and Showers
  • We will also educate you on how your electrical and plumbing system work and show you the main shut off valves in the event of emergency

Heating and cooling

  • Heating and cooling equipment such as furnaces, split furnaces, boilers, water heaters and space heaters. We inspect both the indoor and outdoor components, including units mounted on the roof
  • Furnace and vent filters. We show you how to change them. We thoroughly inspect all vent

Garages and Outbuildings

  • Garage/outbuilding door openers, including auto-reverse features
  • Detailed indoor and outdoor inspection of all major components and systems such as doors, windows, roof, walls, floor, electrical, etc.

If you are not willing to walk into a money pit and spend thousands of dollars within the first couple of years on roofs, repairing leaks or the foundation- you need to hire a home inspector. Now that you have put your money on the table, it’s time to protect your investment. While having a home inspection performed is not mandatory, it has become an integral step of the home buying process for many good reasons and all of them very important to your pocket. We will discuss in detail a few of the main reasons why indeed you should hire a home inspector to help you ensure your money is well spent.

​Seller Disclosures

You should not trust the seller to disclose issues with the property as most claim ignorance when putting their property on the market. Most sellers do not disclose known issues such as previous leaks, repairs of the roof that may not have been executed correctly and even recurring plumbing issues among many others. Would you risk your investment to a seller whose primary objective is to sell you their product (house)? Of course they will be advertising and hiding the fine print, how else would they get you to buy it? In the recent years, some of the more honest sellers have began completing sellers’ inspections in an effort to be upfront with the buyers and resolve any issues prior to the negotiation process. Once negotiations begin, emotions run high and it becomes all the more difficult to feel like the process is going in your favor.

Repairs/ Credit at Closing

Another good reason to get a home inspection is that you can most likely negotiate with the seller and have them complete some of the repairs needed prior to moving in so your move is hassle free. Usually, this is the preferred option for most buyers but the least favorable option for the seller. Sellers usually are not willing to go through the trouble of getting quotes and completing repairs while they are still living in the property. If that happens in your case, you can still get money from the seller in the form of credit at closing so you can make those repairs yourself.

​Change your mind

Once you have a home inspection completed on the property, you are able to walk away if your seller did not disclose major issues or is not willing to complete repairs or give you enough of credit at closing that will make the deal favorable for you. Once you are under contract there are very few reasons that allow you to back out from the deal and the home inspection is one of them. There is a lot to think about in a high emotions situation and having to worry about your likely biggest investment yet should not be one of them.

Quality home Inspections are not cheap but now it’s not the time to be cheap just make sure you are getting the most paying for your buck. To perform a thorough and detailed inspection and provide you the protections you need, our home inspectors usually spend an average 2-4 hours on your inspection and report writing which can give you an idea why the average inspection charge is around $400 dollars depending on the size of the property, age, type and location. Getting an inspection is as important as getting a yearly physical, you never know what you will find but any issue uncovered needs to be addressed as soon as possible. Should you need a list of home inspection companies that charge less than us? We can pass along their information.

No it can’t see through walls! Thermal imaging is a simple but effective method of measuring surface temperatures; it is not an X-ray and does not allow you to see through walls. Why do you need it then? The thermal imaging camera allows the skillful and trained inspector to see areas of temperature discrepancies not visible to the naked eye which can be indicative of moisture intrusion or other anomalies. We believe every home owner should be aware of unwanted intruders such as water, critters etc. behind their walls.

We are not the kind of home inspectors that show up to the property turn on the infrared camera and begin to walk around pretending to know how to use this instrument. There are many inspectors out there who have not undergone proper training and this can greatly affect the integrity of the home inspection. It’s sort of like asking a pharmacist to perform your annual physical. Do not risk your home and safety to amateurs as it will cost you in the long run.

We are trained and certified, and can prove it. We have gone through rigorous training with the industry’s best course materials and this is what sets us apart from the competition. Understanding how to utilize the infrared camera requires understanding of building science. These cameras not only require making objective observations, but it also requires making connections between what we know about the building structure and what the camera is displaying on the screen. The camera is not the one finding moisture intrusion, the inspector does. The camera can’t detect moisture, nor does it guarantee that an anomaly indicates that water intrusion is present. It is simply an instrument to be controlled and utilized by a qualified professional in order for it to serve our purpose.

Thermal imaging is an integral part of our standard inspection because it gives you a step up in your understanding of the property in which you are about to invest emotions, money and the family’s future. Our standards are high and so should be yours.

After the inspection has been completed usually you receive your report and never see your home inspector again.We are different! We would like to continue the relationship and help you out in the future.

Your inner peace is important to us and we like to keep it where it belongs- with your loved ones! If you need a re-inspection of repaired items we will be happy to help you out for a minimal fee. You can also call us, text us or otherwise get our attention and we will always be a resource to you and your new home

It is our goal to offer the highest quality inspections in the market at an affordable rate. Our lead inspector has found a way to perform the inspection as efficiently and thoroughly as possible, ensuring that no corners are being cut. Our approach reinvents the wheel in the home inspection industry and will soon be modeled by the competition. We do things differently because we have made an enormous effort to think outside the box. Experience for yourself and allow us to impress you with how diligent and thorough we are.

 

 

“Don’t cry about money, it never cries for you.” Kevin O’ Leary

 

 

We are more than happy to assist you via phone call, text message, or email, whichever you prefer. Some weeks are going to be busier than others but generally speaking we always work our schedule around yours. Also, don’t be afraid to reach out to us even if you need a last minute home inspection. Remember that we always look out for our client’s and we understand there are situations in life where we just need services ASAP. Our friendly staff will assist you and answer all of your questions. To us, customer satisfaction is success and we won’t let you down!

Questions? We Can Help! Contact Us Today!