How to House Hunt Like a Home Inspector -Plumbing

In this installment of “House Hunt Like a Home Inspector”, we’re looking at the home’s plumbing system. This series talks about how prospective home buyers can use the perspective of a home inspector to get to know the house better before they buy.  See other posts at www.http://goldeyehi.ca/blog/

When looking at the home’s plumbing system, we are really interested in three things: 1) Does the water supply provide the occupants with sufficient hot and cold water to satisfy their lifestyle? 2) Does the waste plumbing system remove waste water and human waste effectively? and 3) Does everything stay where it is supposed to? It can be hard to really assess these while house hunting. There are limits to what you can tell about the water supply and waste plumbing effectiveness during a walk-through. But there are some simple things you can do to get a sense of how the plumbing system is working.

Let’s start by considering whether the water supply and waste disposal systems are public or private. This is important to know before you buy the home because it will affect the how much work will be required to maintain both the water supply and the waste disposal systems. Typically, urban homes have public water supply and waste disposal systems that require very little in the way of maintenance for the home owner. But the more remote the property is, the more important it is to understand how you get your water and how you get rid of the waste. Private water supply systems (usually from wells) will have pumps, filters, pressure regulators and all will require some maintenance. Waste handling systems may be holding tanks or septic fields that allow much (but not all) of the waste to degrade and seep away into the ground. I can’t stress enough how important it is to have these systems inspected by qualified well and septic system inspectors. They are complex systems that can cause a lot of headaches if not working properly. You should also look for and read the maintenance guides to ensure you do all that you can to keep them working properly.

I said that urban homes require little in the way of maintenance of the water supply and waste removal systems outside the home. There is an exception that you can look out for before you enter the home. Large trees can be very desirable, providing shade and beauty to the neighborhood. But sometimes they can be problematic for sewer lines. Tree roots seem to be able to find their way into any little crack, and unfortunately sewer lines are not root-proof.  If you approach house hunting like a Home Inspector,  when you see a large tree in the yard you’ll want to know if it’s near the home’s main drain line. If so, you’ll want to be sure that the drain line is checked before you buy the house and periodically after you move in. This is done with a camera at the end of a long line fed into the main drain. Repair for a clogged sewer line can range from cleaning the pipe with a device that chops up the roots, to excavating the yard and replacing a badly damaged pipe.

Another piece of the plumbing puzzle that you should be aware of is the weeping tile and ground water disposal system. It’s not really part of the plumbing system, but deals with water and waste management, so I’ll mention it here. In newer homes, weeping tile collects ground water around the house and allows it to flow into a sump pit under the basement, or crawl space. The water is then pumped away, hopefully to a location that prevents flow back toward the house.  This system may or may not be present in older homes, or weeping tile may be present but just feed into the main sewer system. As you look at homes with a Home Inspector’s eye, you should try to get an understanding of the system present in the home so that you know what can go wrong and the consequences. The consequences can range from having rain water collect in your basement or crawl space, to having sewage from the municipal sewer back up into your home. Neither is pleasant.

So, we’ve talked about some serious issues and haven’t even mentioned the inside of the home yet. The previous points were more about being aware and asking the right questions. Let’s look at ways you can use a home inspector’s eye when looking inside the home. As I said in the opening comments, you really want to make sure 1) that you have adequate water supply- so, test the water flow. Open a faucet and see if the force and flow of water is what you expect. Does hot water come out in a reasonable time and at a reasonable temperature.  The second question we asked was “Does the waste water and human waste leave the building?”. When you test the water flow, watch how the drain operates- does the basin or kitchen sink fill up even when the stopper is not in place? Does it empty reasonably quickly? Flush the toilet- does it operate properly?

The waste venting system is something most people aren’t even aware of and fewer understand it. It allows waste flowing through the drains to push the air out of the way and continue flowing down to the sewer without any back pressure. You may have seen a pipe sticking through the roof of the average house. This is a vent that allows that air to escape and it is connected to all drains in some way. It also allows a release of suction above the waste, so that the water in the traps (U-shaped feature in drains below the sink or basin) is maintained and isn’t sucked down with the waste. This is important because it keeps a separation between the air in the drains and the house air, so that sewer gasses aren’t allowed into the home. I wouldn’t expect you to do any sort of inspection of the venting system, and even if you wanted to, most of it is hidden in the walls so you can’t see it. But you can use your nose and ears. If there is an issue with the venting system, you may be able to smell sewer gas and hear some distinctive sounds when water is flowing into the drains. Unusually loud gurgling or sucking sounds (like the sound that is normally heard when a toilet flushes) when the last of the water disappears, could mean that the suction caused by the waste flow is sucking the water out of the trap.

The third item on our list was to make sure that everything stays where it is supposed to. That means that all connections must be made properly and pipes are secured and supported. You probably won’t do an in-depth inspection of the connections- a home inspector would be more thorough. But you can make sure to handle all of the faucets and fixtures to ensure they are fitted tightly in place and secure. You can look under sinks and bathroom vanities to see if there are any signs of leaks. Especially look around all the edges and corners of shower enclosures, tubs and below toilets to see if there are any signs of water damage. If you are able to go into the basement or crawl space, look for signs of water stains, rust, or anything that indicates that water has had an effect on the building components.

Finally, you should take a good look at the water heater if you can. Look at the general condition, but especially look at the top and bottom of the unit. If the tank is gas or oil heated, there will be a venting system that takes the combustion gases out of the house. Look for signs that these vents are damaged, corroded or scorched. The damage you see at the top of the tank could be an indication of related issues where the flame hits the tank at the bottom. Another feature near the top is the Temperature/Pressure relief valve. This is a valve, usually on the side near the top, that will release pressure if the temperature controls fail and the tank overheats. It’s not unusual for these valves to leak and/or corrode. There should be a plastic tube connected to this valve that discharges near the floor (so that if the valve releases steam or hot water it will blast it at the floor, not at someone standing beside it). Look for corrosion on the valve and a water stain near the bottom of the tube. Both are signs that the valve may be leaking.  You’ll want to have it checked carefully so that you can replace it (or the entire tank) before it fails and causes a flood. But DO NOT TEST THE VALVE.  We encourage home owners to test it regularly to ensure it works. But these valves are notorious for sticking because people don’t test them regularly. I was mentioning this to a client once and he reached over and tested it. We spent the next 15 minutes trying to stop it from leaking and then cleaning up the water.

At the bottom of the tank there should be a valve or faucet that can be used to flush the tank periodically, which can help to make it last longer. Look for signs of leaks here as well. Any other rust or signs of water damage around the tank should raise alarm bells. The failure of a water heater creates an unexpected expense at a time when home buyers are already spending a lot. But since failure can mean the release of a lot of hot water into the area, the possibility of secondary damage and additional expenses is heightened. The water heater is something every home owner should consider a high priority for ”keeping an eye on”.

We’ve talked about a number of things that you can be aware of and can look for as you walk through a home with the approach of a home inspector. But hopefully this discussion has also impressed on you that the parts of a plumbing system are complex and have to work together for everything to work properly.  A Home Inspector will be trained to understand the details of those components, how they fit together, how they typically fail, and signs that indicate failure or the potential for failure. For example, there are details about how a trap in the waste plumbing is configured that ensure that the flow and vents will allow the waste to leave smoothly, but will also end up with water remaining in the trap. Poor design can result in the trap being siphoned out and sewer gases getting into the home, or conversely the trap could clog and result in the back up of water/waste into the home.

When there are signs that the systems aren’t working properly, a good Home Inspector will call for further evaluation or repair by a qualified plumber. Codes have changed over time, and materials and methods also change. A qualified professional plumber knows the details of these changes and the best solution to correct a problem. They will work with the proper permits to ensure that the work is not only done right, but that it is documented to satisfy the municipality and avoid issues later.

Water has a way of getting into areas you wouldn’t think possible. A home’s plumbing systems are mostly hidden, so damage can occur over time and multiply without the occupants knowing about it. By being aware of the issues and looking at a house with the approach of a Home Inspector, you may be able to spot issues and assess their implications (and associated costs) before you decide to make it your home.

Steven Schroeder 2016-11-27

How to House Hunt Like a Home Inspector Heating Part 2

In the series House Hunt Like a Home Inspector, we’re looking at how prospective home buyers can use the perspective of a home inspector to get to know the house better.  See other posts at www.http://goldeyehi.ca/blog/

We’ve already started by splitting heating into two groups of systems: Those that generate heat and distribute it throughout a home, and those that generate and deliver heat in the same location. In the previous installment, we looked at the first group. See that post here http://goldeyehi.ca/2016/10/17/house-hunt-like-a-home-inspector_heating-1/

We’ll consider the second group today. But this is still a big discussion topic because there are a wide variety of heaters. We’ll discuss everything from electric baseboard heaters to various configurations of space heaters to wood burning fireplaces and stoves

As indicated in the first heating discussion, when you’re looking for a house the first thing you should do is to simply think about the heating needs for a home in the region you are moving to. We talked about considering the size of the house, the typical weather conditions and your lifestyle. The costs of different energy sources and greenhouse gas emissions are becoming increasingly important as well. The key point is that you want a heating system that will be sufficient to keep you and your family warm on the coldest day of the year.

We said that you should look for a heat supply to every part of the house. If all your heat source is one that produces and delivers heat at the same location in the home, there are two questions to think about.

1) Are there heat generating devices in every room of the home? These could be electric baseboards, electric fireplaces or stoves for example.

Or, If not

2) Will the heat produced by the unit in question push the heat out to the entire home. This could be a wall or floor “furnace” with a blower fan, or a centrally located wood burning stove or fireplace.  The larger the home, and the more rooms to be heated, the less likely a centrally located system will serve the whole house.

Often there is a combination of centrally located wood burning device with supplemental perimeter electric heaters in other rooms. In any case, you should think about whether the system in place will keep you comfortable. If you are looking for a house during the winter season, be aware of the temperature of different rooms and you’ll likely have your answer. Cold floors near the exterior walls are another problem to look for. This is often related to the insulation and vapour barrier rather than the heating system, but placement of the perimeter heaters along the exterior walls near windows can help alleviate this issue.

Digging a little deeper, you can look at the source of the heat, the heater or the fireplace. The first thing you should be looking for is the condition of the unit. Let’s consider electric systems first and apply some of the same measures as we did in the previous post.

Is it dirty, damaged, rusted, or scorched? Does it look new or old? Does it appear to have been maintained well. The reliability of electric heating systems can be very good, but depends on how well they have been treated. If dirty or dusty, they will be less efficient and can be a fire hazard. If damaged or rusted, they will likely have a shorter lifespan.  If it’s a system with a blower fan, there may also be a filter and there is usually a grille. These should be cleaned regularly to maintain efficiency and safety as well.

In wood burning units, whether fireplaces or stoves, we think about the elements of combustion just as we did for gas and oil. Fuel, fire and oxygen combine to produce heat and combustion gases including carbon monoxide and water (in the form of steam). Forced air furnaces separate the house air from the combustion gases and transfer the heat through a heat exchanger. But fireplaces and stoves are often open to the home so it is even more important to have a good venting system to remove the toxic combustion gases from the house. The chimney or stove pipes must draw the hot gases away from the house and use the home’s oxygen supply for the fire (newer systems may be set up to draw in outside air for combustion). Note that this fresh air must come from somewhere, so good ventilation of the home is a must.

When looking at wood stoves, look for vents (stove pipes) above the units that are poorly supported, disconnected, damaged or rusted. These will require repair or replacement. Look at fireplace chimney masonry or damage or crumbling. These could be signs of a problem with the chimney liner and potential for combustion gases to enter the home. Also, look for a white or yellow residue on the surface. This could be efflorescence, a mineral deposit caused by moisture migrating through the masonry. This could be a sign of a leak at the roof or a damaged chimney liner.

Look for signs of soot on walls or ceilings near the fire chamber or pipes. This is a sign that smoke is entering the home, rather than passing up the vent pipes or chimney. It’s not uncommon for a little smoke to enter the home as a fire catches hold, but as the venting system warms it should draw better. Extensive soot stains may indicate a problem with the venting system or even a plugged chimney.

Finally, with wood burning systems there is a greater need to ensure that all components from the unit itself to the vent pipes have sufficient clearance from any flammable materials. Scorched floors and walls near improperly installed wood stoves are not uncommon and always scary. Look for wood floors that extend all the way up to the fireplace or under the stove. Installation of non-flammable heath may be required.

Be careful making any assumptions about wood burning stoves and fireplaces. They are complicated and may be designed in ways that are hard to understand completely. Look for the signs, and if you see anything that causes concern, find someone with more expertise to investigate further

A home inspector will take the visual inspection done by an astute home buyer and raise it to a higher level. Details about position and support of vents and ducts, clearances from flammable materials, and appropriateness of the materials themselves are items the home inspector should have studied and learned through experience. The home inspector will look at as much of the inside of the heating chamber and venting system as they can. They’ll look at the blower fan and elements of electric heaters for signs of any issues. If the data plate is accessible, they may be able to determine the age of the unit.

But as I said in the previous post, heating systems are complicated, variable and changing all the time. Codes relating to how they are configured are also changing. It’s hard to keep up with all the details, so wherever something is questionable, a good home inspector will defer to HVAC (Heating ventilation air conditioning) specialists. A trained HVAC technician will go much farther than a home inspector can. The HVAC technician has the specialized knowledge to completely dismantle the system and assess all the parts. They are trained in the design of air distribution systems. They know when a vent or a duct system is not configured properly and how to correct it to make the home safer or to make sure the system is operating efficiently and providing the best comfort to the occupants.

I’ll add a note about WETT inspections here. Wood Energy Technology Transfer is a designation for those trained specifically in the design, installation, maintenance, and inspection of wood burning products. You can read more about the organization here. http://www.wettinc.ca/what.html If you want a full assessment of the wood burning system in a home, please be sure that you contact a company with WETT certified personnel.

Steven Schroeder 2016-10-28

How to House Hunt Like a Home Inspector Heating Part 1

In this series we’re looking at how prospective home buyers can look at the home’s systems with the eyes, or at least the approach of a home inspector to learn more about the house. In this installment, we’ll start looking at heating systems. But this is a huge topic because there are so many types of heating systems. We’ll discuss everything from electric space heaters to fireplaces and wood stoves to furnaces and boilers, but not all today.

Let’s consider heating as two groups of systems: Those that generate heat and distribute it throughout a home, and those that generate and deliver heat in the same location. We’ll consider the first group today. This group includes furnaces that deliver heated air through ducts and registers, and boilers that deliver hot water or steam through pipes to radiators, baseboards or convectors (wall mounted units similar to radiators that can serve heating and/or cooling systems) or through radiant heating pipes. The energy source for the furnace or boiler can be gas, oil, electricity or even wood. We’ll skip wood for the time being.

When you’re looking for a house there are some things you can do to assess these kinds of heating systems. The first is to simply determine the heating needs in the region you are moving to. In Canada, where I live, all houses need to be heated part of the year. The size of the house, the typical weather conditions and your lifestyle all play a part in the size and type of heating system you will want. The costs of different energy sources and greenhouse gas emissions are becoming increasingly important as well. In general, although you won’t need it every day, you want a heating system that will be sufficient to keep you and your family warm on the coldest day of the year.

As you’re walking through a house, look for a heat supply to every part of the house. You’ll look for registers for forced air systems or radiators, convectors or baseboards for water or steam systems. If the furnace or boiler isn’t delivering heat to a room, the occupants of the room won’t be comfortable, especially in the cold Canadian Prairie winters where I grew up. When a furnace supplies warm air through registers, be sure that there is an opportunity for air to escape the room as well.  This is usually a cold air return grille that returns to the furnace through the return ducts. But if this is absent in room in an older home, be sure that the door has a gap at the bottom to allow air to be pushed out into the rest of the home. If there is no way for air to get out of the room, air pressure inside the room can increase and prevent the warm air from getting into the room.

If you are looking for a house during the winter season, be aware of the temperature of different rooms. If heat is being delivered to some parts of the house but not others, you can often tell, depending on how severe your winter is.  This can be due to a poorly designed duct system, or damaged or disconnected ducts or plugged pipes. Cold floors near the exterior walls are another problem to look for, but this is often related to the insulation and vapour barrier rather than the heating system.

Where hot water or steam heat is used, especially in an old home, it is not uncommon to find rooms that are not served through a radiator, convector or baseboard unit. In these rooms be sure to look for a thermostat or an indication that another heat supply like radiant (in-floor or ceiling) or electric baseboard heat is present. If there is no heat supply to the room, you may want to consider the cost of adding it when you consider the purchase price, or invest heavily in some warm quilts.

Digging a little deeper, you can look at the source of the heat, the furnace or boiler. The first thing you should be looking for is the condition of the unit. Is it dirty, damaged, rusted, or scorched? Does it look new or old? Consider how the energy source is getting to the furnace or boiler. If gas, take a look at the gas pipes for any obvious issues or damage. If oil, you must consider the delivery pipe and the storage tank (in a few areas municipal oil supply pipes supply the oil but this is not usually the case). Oil tank removal can be a big environment concern if buried outside, but still carries some cost if inside the home. There is also a risk of leaks if inside the house. Any sign of damage, leaks, corrosion, or even just poor support are things you should be concerned about.

If it’s an electric furnace, the condition of the cabinet doesn’t always tell you everything. It is generally better (and safer) if a furnace has been maintained and cleaned regularly. But, electric furnaces are a bit tricky to predict. There can be reduced capacity (less heat produced) if individual elements fail but total failure can occur without warning signs. They generally last until they don’t. If it looks quite old, you can factor that into the cost of buying and living in the home. But you might, maybe, perhaps get many more years out of the furnace. But there is no heat exchanger in an electric unit as there is in a combustion (gas, oil or wood) furnaces or boilers, so you don’t have to worry about poor performance having the same health risks.

In combustion based units, we have to think about the elements of combustion. Fuel, fire and oxygen combine to produce heat and combustion gases including carbon monoxide and water (in the form of steam). If the unit is igniting, there is fire and probably a good fuel source. Furnaces are designed to separate the house air that circulates to warm the house, from the hot combustion gases. They transfer the heat through a heat exchanger that separates the two. This is often a coated metal sheet that is shaped to make the air on either side flow along passages that transfer as much heat as possible. In boilers, the heat is transferred to water that distributes the heat. In either case, there must be a good venting system to remove the toxic combustion gases from the house. Look for vents above the units that are poorly supported, disconnected, damaged or rusted. These will require improvement and may be a sign that furnace or boiler replacement is required. In newer high efficiency units there may only be plastic pipes that bring fresh air from outside and take the combustion gases (which are typically not as hot as in conventional units) out.

Looking for a scorched cabinet was mentioned earlier. This could be a sign that the heat exchanger has developed a hole and hot combustion gas is escaping. Or it could be a sign that there is a problem at the burner and the flames are directed where they shouldn’t be. Air supply can also be an issue if it draws house air to supply the flame (newer high efficiency sealed combustion units bring outside air to supply the flame). If there is insufficient house air getting to the flame the result will be poor, inefficient combustion. But worse, it can cause low pressure in the house resulting in combustion gases being directed into the house instead of up the chimney. This can be dangerous. Look for older units in small spaces with no grilles allowing air in.

But be careful making any assumptions about furnaces and boilers, especially combustion based units. These are complicated devices that have intricate designs that the layperson won’t be able to understand completely. Look for the warning signs, but always get someone with more expertise to evaluate before you make any definite judgements. Some units in situations that look questionable are designed to operate under those conditions and perform very well. Other units that look beautiful may not be functioning correctly for a variety of reasons that only a specialist will be able to identify.

A home inspector will take the visual inspection done by an astute home buyer and raise it to a higher level. Details about position and support of vents and ducts, clearances from flammable materials, appropriateness of the materials themselves are items the home inspector should have studied and learned through experience. Looking at the furnace or boiler itself, the home inspector will remove the covers to look at as much of the burners and heat exchanger as they can. They’ll look at the blower fan, belts and motor for signs of any issues. They’ll assess the performance of the venting system and look for signs that the chimney liner is in distress or has failed. They’ll usually be able to determine the age of the unit and provide some advice about how long the unit will typically last. They probably won’t give a very precise number of years though. No one can predict the future with heating systems.

Finally, they will usually be able to determine the capacity of the system and may make a comment on whether the unit is considered sufficient for climatic conditions typically seen in the region.

But heating systems are complicated, variable and changing all the time. Codes relating to how they are configured are also changing. It’s hard to keep up with all the details, so wherever something is questionable, a good home inspector will defer to HVAC (Heating ventilation air conditioning) specialists. A trained HVAC technician will go much farther than a home inspector can. The HVAC technician has the specialized knowledge to completely dismantle the system and assess all the parts. They are trained in the design of air distribution systems. They know when a vent or a duct system is not configured properly and how to correct it to make the home safer or to make sure the system is operating efficiently and providing the best comfort to the occupants.

Steven Schroeder 2016-10-16