All Around The HOUSE
  • Home
  • Blog
  • About
  • Home
  • Blog
  • About
Search by typing & pressing enter

YOUR CART

 

All Appliances Buying And Selling Cooling Electrical Environmental Exterior Health And Safety Heating Home Improvement Home Inspection Insulation Insurance Interior Plumbing Roofing Special Structure

20/1/2023 0 Comments

flue season is here!

Picture
​
​​Furnace and boiler flues, and chimneys are often neglected. Many homeowners presume that the utility company or their fuel supplier is monitoring them, and don't realize this isn't necessarily true until something goes wrong. As a result, bird's nests and other debris sometimes cause soot and gases to drift back into the house, causing a potentially dangerous situation.

Read More
0 Comments

14/2/2022 0 Comments

​WETT Inspections Increasingly Difficult to Get

Picture

​While homeowners may require inspection of a woodburning stove, fireplace or furnace for personal safety and insurance purposes, increasing numbers of WETT Certified individuals are declining to provide this service for a variety of reasons.

Read More
0 Comments

2/8/2021 0 Comments

“The ESA cAme to my house today.”  PANIC?!

Picture

You’re a Realtor and shortly after closing, your buyer calls to tell you the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) was just at their door demanding to inspect the new basement wiring… ​

Read More
0 Comments

29/3/2021 0 Comments

Buying a pre-construction home?

Picture

(NC) When you buy a pre-construction house or condominium unit, you and your builder agree to a date by which you’ll be able to move in. For most homes, this date is referred to as the closing date. For others such as high-rise condominiums, it is known as the occupancy date.​

Read More
0 Comments

14/12/2020 0 Comments

Attention new homeowners: Don’t get your warranties mixed up

Picture

​(NC) One of the biggest sources of confusion among owners of newly built homes is their warranty coverage.

Read More
0 Comments

3/11/2020 0 Comments

What the heck is "Knob and tube?"

Picture
​
​Knob and tube, aka “open wiring” or “K&T”, was installed in most homes up to 1950.

Read More
0 Comments

24/10/2019 0 Comments

About pex piping (Hint: it's not all kitec)

Picture
Q: What’s the big hoopla about PEX plumbing?
A: In most cases, it’s much ado about nothing.

Read More
0 Comments

31/3/2019 0 Comments

​It’s A Hole in The Ground

Picture

​“We dig a hole in the ground, we call it a well - and we wish water would go into it.  We dig another hole in the ground, almost as deep and much wider - we call it a basement, and we wish water wouldn’t go into it.” 

Read More
0 Comments

27/3/2019 0 Comments

Electrical Systems: Insurance & Electrical

Picture

More and more frequently insurance companies are refusing to insure homes with 60 amp services, knob and tube wiring, and in some cases, even aluminum wiring.  Does this mean these types of components or systems are categorically dangerous?  

Read More
0 Comments

1/3/2019 0 Comments

grow houses

Picture
​​
​
Courtesy Carson Dunlop


Have you ever wondered why your neighbors never surface from their home, rarely have any garbage to pick up, always have the blinds down or windows covered, come and go at unusual hours and never invite you over for a barbecue? If this is the case, there is a possibility you are living beside a grow house. With an estimated 50,000 grow houses in Canada, there is growing concern about health, fire, safety, and structural implications for home buyers. But what risk is there in owning a grow home?

Read More
0 Comments
<<Previous

    Author

    Gil Strachan is a professional home inspector, representing Electrospec Home Inspection Services in east-central Ontario since 1994.

    View my profile on LinkedIn

    Categories

    All Appliances Buying And Selling Cooling Electrical Environmental Exterior Health And Safety Heating Home Improvement Home Inspection Insulation Insurance Interior Plumbing Roofing Special Structure

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    June 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019

Learn about home inspections at electrospec.ca