Anthem Inspections

Did I happen to mention that I used to be a framer by trade...? That means I have an extra few tricks in my pocket to screw up your deal. Here, the framers forgot to put studs between the floor sheathing and cripple wall to transfer the point load. Missed by the city, not by me.

Incorrectly installed flashing will not prevent water migration behind the deck ledger, potentially leading to concealed water damage and deck failure. This flashing should have been installed directly on top of the deck ledger, below the deck board.

Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Blah blah GFI....blah blah weather resistant...blah blah blah...

I guess we're building on quicksand now....

The drip pan under your attic mounted furnace will prevent water damage to your ceiling if....and only if.... they plumb the drainpipe all the way to the exterior.

Sure, sewer gasses MIGHT not travel back into your dishwasher...

Guess where the pressure tank for the well system is...

Hey mountain people.... aww nevermind...

Hey mountain people that do your own plumbing... you can't have your sewer vent right next to an openable window.

Hey mountain people that do your own additions....your flooring should not stick outside past your siding.

Making it easy to wash the cobwebs off your outside light fixtures-

This old wood fired stove-

We have ways of knowing when you didn't hire a licensed contractor.

We have ways of knowing when you didn't hire a licensed contractor.....

Nope, not a good idea- Saddle valves should not be installed on plastic piping.

Do your homework when hiring a contractor to do work on your home. These siding installers removed all the existing roof flashing and installed continuous flashing incorrectly around the entire house. They actually CREATED potential for leaking at every roof/wall interface. They have even nailed through the flashing into the wall below the siding line in several areas. All contractors are not equal. Be careful out there-

Nope, that's not going to fly-

The purpose of the water heater drip pan is to prevent water damage to adjacent flooring areas if the water heater leaks. If you don't plumb the drip pan to the exterior, you're missing the point.

You're killing me people....

Building codes and oversight are quite scarce in our little mountain communities, and Do-It-Yourselfers can be pretty handy. Just because you CAN makeshift a roof out of trim material, doesn't mean you should.

Having your new-construction home inspected may not seem like a necessity, after all, the building officials are inspecting it before they give it a certificate of occupancy. However, they have limited time to be there, and they miss things all the time. Like this plumbing vent pipe for the laundry room, that was left capped off in the attic instead of extending through the roof to the exterior.

Shower pan tester + Thermal imaging camera = a big headache for the seller of this home.

Google clothes dryer fires and you will discover quickly how important it is to have your dryer vent duct cleaned regularly. If your duct hood is on an exterior wall, it is pretty easy to monitor lint discharge, and call a guy. If it vents vertically, and terminates on the roof, you may not notice it as easily unless you happen to be on the roof. Build a deck over it and put a screen on the hood.....you might just need some professional help.

One reason gutters are so important. Uncontrolled runoff will splash back onto the house wherever there is a lack of gutters. If you have composite wood siding, this can hasten water damage to the lowest courses. If there is splash back at a doorway, the wood trim and door jamb are going to suffer and deteriorate quickly. In addition, water from splash back will infiltrate the flooring under the threshold (especially if it has not been sealed properly), and concealed water damage to your flooring can occur. The cost for repairing this damage will always exceed the cost of that which would have prevented it.

Now THAT'S a drip leg......

Just to be clear....Idaho law forbids inspectors from removing a service panel cover to inspect it, but homeowners can freely do any of their own electrical work with no oversight.

This is trouble. The slab has cracked and settled more than an inch under this column. Highly likely that the concrete crew forgot to place a footing at this location.

The purpose of this brass valve (temperature pressure relief valve or TPRV) is to monitor the pressure and temperature of the water in your water heater, and open if either of these exceeds a dangerous threshold, allowing water to discharge and prevent a possible explosion. To do this properly, the valve must be mounted directly onto the water heater so the probe extends into the tank. The galvanized tee which this valve is now mounted in, prevents that probe from extending fully into the tank, and could fail to recognize a high temperature condition.