Site Drainage

It's been a couple years since Southern California has experienced significant rain fall. You knew it would rain eventually but delayed that site drainage project one more season.

Now you wake up in the morning and find standing water all over your property. Maybe you've noticed damp interior walls, stains, blistering or separation at flooring and baseboard surfaces. Chances are, you've got an exterior drainage issue....

• Do you have a serviceable full perimeter rain gutter system with down spout discharge away from the foundation? 
• Do you have a serviceable full perimeter yard surface drainage system with discharge termination at the street side curb? 
• Are your perimeter yard planters at or near the structure improperly configured so as to trap water against the foundation and or exterior wall?
• Do you have negative slope/grade at perimeter yard areas which cause water to flow towards the structure foundation?
• Do you have faulty grade conditions at or above the foundation and or exterior wall sill plate framing?

These are just a few conditions that indicate inadequate site drainage conditions. Not only can water intrusion cause damage to the wood frame/plaster surfaces of your structure but your foundation doesn't like excessive moisture either. Excessive moisture conditions can cause damage to your structure's post tension foundation cables and or rebar. Abnormal cracks, degradation, displacement and or failure of the foundation system can occur.

Remember, always use licensed contractors when working on your property, pull those permits when required and when in doubt, error on the side of safety.

Call us today - we perform home and commercial inspections throughout Southern California including Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, Irvine, San Clemente, Mission Viejo, Aliso Viejo and a community near you!

www.progressiveinspection.com

Saving Energy

In today's home ownership environment, energy consumption is a daily battle. Although green energy providers and sources are expanding, the costs of energy sources are rising as well. Indoor air quality has a significant impact on the performance, efficiency and cost of operating your central air systems for example.

We've attached a great article from Realty Times on these very issues...

http://alturl.com/ib9bd

Remember, always use licensed contractors when working on your property, pull those permits when required and when in doubt, error on the side of safety.

Call us today - we perform home and commercial inspections throughout Southern California including Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, Irvine, San Clemente, Mission Viejo, Aliso Viejo and a community near you!

www.progressiveinspection.com

Tile Roof System

Let's talk about tile roof systems for a moment. Contrary to what you might think most leaks don't occur in the field. Look to the flashing detail including but not limited to valley's, changes in exterior elevation and or the penetrations. Tight valley tile installation and poor flashing detail is a "roof leak" waiting to happen. The tight valley configuration can and will restrict run off during heavy inclement weather conditions, this allows water flow to migrate off the valley flashing onto the paper and or to the interior of the structure.

Today's recommendation.... Refer to an independent licensed roofing contractor for further evaluation/service as needed to ensure roof systems integrity prior to close of escrow.

Remember, always use licensed contractors when working on your property, pull those permits when required and when in doubt, error on the side of safety.

Call us today - we perform home and commercial inspections throughout Southern California including Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, Irvine, San Clemente, Mission Viejo, Aliso Viejo and a community near you!

www.progressiveinspection.com

Window Leak?

Today's topic is the dreaded window leak... But is your window actually leaking. On a recent inspection the Owner was kind enough to disclose that she had a leak at the living room corner window during inclement weather conditions. Indeed there was water damaged plaster and stains at the lower sill, wall surfaces and baseboard below the window. Once we removed the vertical blind, additional water damage, black discoloring and possible mold growth were noted at the upper header and plaster surfaces. A tight crawl in the attic revealed that the source of moisture was not the window but rather a roof leak coming from the fireplace chimney flashing.

Today's recommendation.... Refer to an independent licensed roofing contractor for further evaluation/service as needed to ensure roof systems integrity prior to close of escrow.

Remember, always use licensed contractors when working on your property, pull those permits when required and when in doubt, error on the side of safety.

Call us today - we perform home and commercial inspections throughout Southern California including Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, Irvine, San Clemente, Mission Viejo, Aliso Viejo and a community near you!

www.progressiveinspection.com

The Sub Area

"The Sub Area", often forgotten or at least ignored by many homeowners. If you're home is constructed on a concrete slab foundation, this article won't apply to you directly.

If however your home is constructed on a raised foundation with accessible crawl space, please continue. On a recent inspection in San Diego, CA our subject property was an original 1930's vintage craftsman cottage. It's on a perimeter masonry stem wall foundation with interior post and pier foundations. Myself, the termite inspector and a plumbing contractor who is performing a video camera inspection of the 80+ year old waste line system will all access the sub area during the course of our respective duties.

I'm looking for general condition of the foundation and components, moisture, drainage and bracing of the existing structure. First, the sub area is damp with muddy soil conditions at multiple locations, (Poor perimeter yard drainage is responsible for same). The isolated post/pier foundations show visible degradation, newer post/pier foundations have been added but lack pressure treated material and are prefabricated resting directly on grade rather than poured in place. The perimeter sill plate framing is not braced and or anchored at the stem wall foundation to resist movement during an earthquake. As we continue to crawl the perimeter we discover multiple foundation cracks ranging is size from hairline to 1.25" in width with visible deflection.

After crawling the interior perimeter we begin the interior field area of the sub area. Next up, fire damage was discovered directly under the interior hallway off the bedrooms. Further review of the interior structure revealed deflection of interior floors, plaster cracking at wall/ceiling surfaces and doors being out of square.

Our recommendation.... Time to enlist the services of an independent licensed foundation contractor for further evaluation and service as needed to ensure structural systems integrity prior to close of escrow.

Remember, always use licensed contractors when working on your property, pull those permits when required and when in doubt, error on the side of safety.

Call us today - we perform home and commercial inspections throughout Southern California including Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, Irvine, San Clemente, Mission Viejo, Aliso Viejo and a community near you!

www.progressiveinspection.com

Air Conditioning

Let's talk central air systems! More specifically let's think about the air conditioning side of your system. In basic terms everything about your AC system has to do with air flow.

Better air flow at the air filter, evaporator coil, condenser coil and ducting all lead to an efficient system. As you can see in today's picture the condenser coil is in substantial disrepair with damage to the cooling fins and housing. Time to get the HVAC Contractor out for a visit as this coil is in need of replacement.

Remember, always use licensed contractors when working on your property, pull those permits when required and when in doubt, error on the side of safety.

Call us today - we perform home and commercial inspections throughout Southern California including Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, Irvine, San Clemente, Mission Viejo, Aliso Viejo and a community near you!

www.progressiveinspection.com

RHIS - Rental Housing Inspection Service

The goal of our "Rental Housing Inspection Service" (RHIS) is to identify and document substandard conditions in rental properties,
promote greater compliance with basic health and safety standards and preserve neighborhood quality and property values.

My service focuses on identification and documenting health and safety issues in residential rental properties that are:

• Issues regarding occupant safety - (Unsafe Conditions)
• Threats to structural integrity of the building - (Unsafe Conditions)
• Items having a negative impact on the surrounding neighborhoods

Our "Rental Housing Inspection Service" (RHIS) for single family dwellings, duplexes, and apartments. The inspection objective is to identify, report and correct substandard housing conditions through voluntary compliance from landlords and property owners. This will ensure that residential properties meet minimum health and safety standards.

It is our intent to educate property owners of the need for preventative maintenance to ensure residential properties meet minimum health and safety standards. In many instances, the owner/tenant may be unaware of the property conditions and issues.

Inspections identify inadequate sanitation, structural hazardous, hazardous electrical, plumbing, or heating systems, faulty weather protection, fire hazards, inadequate exits, and unhealthy or unsanitary premises. The identification and correction of substandard housing helps property owners improve their property and neighborhood. This will help to ensure that families are living in a safe property and also benefit the property owner through improved tenant relations and revenue metrics.

Remember, always use licensed contractors when working on your property, pull those permits when required and when in doubt, error on the side of safety.

Call us today - we perform home and commercial inspections throughout Southern California including Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, Irvine, San Clemente, Mission Viejo, Aliso Viejo and a community near you!

www.progressiveinspection.com