Best house inspection articles


Home Inspection - Deck

In many situations, a home with a deck issafety concerns can quickly convert what was
considered a huge plus point. And sadly theresupposed to be a valued asset into a
are times when a deck can drag a house valuedemolition  cost.
down like a boat anchor. A home inspector
will be looking for two major areas. They areTechnology has improved many things, and the
about safety and second the condition of thedeck is no exception. There is now deck
deck.material that is a mix of synthetic materials
with real wood that last longer, with less
All too often, a deck is build and oftenmaintenance. Gudrun has recent experience
added to a home, shall we say homebrew style.with this, and is delighted to share her
While the person(s) who originally put theexperience.
deck up might not be familiar with technical
terms such as "static load", it does not meanThe best insurance for a long life deck is a
it will be overlooked during a homeunderground support and construction. Have a
inspection. Moreover, the sad reality is evensolid drainage for water and rain/snow to
good builders are human and make mistakes.prevent rotting from the underside. An
This showed up very recently in Tcat's life,annually deep cleaning is mandatory for all
when his old friends decided to add a deckwooden structures. Most of the hardwood
late in the construction of their newrequires oiling or painting on a regular
custom-built home. The deck itself wasbasis. If you are prepared to spend some
structurally fine. It was the railing of thisadditional bucks on the initial setup
second-floor deck that was at best, subconsider synthetic material which looks like
optimal. Only a home inspection undertakenwood. Of course, this needs cleaning to,
before final acceptance of the house revealedhowever it will save you the painting/oiling,
the safety support from the railing wasand the artificial material is not decaying.
little  more  than  a  visual  warning.From the appearance, the newer material is
hard  to  distinguish  from  wood.
Of course, even the best built decks do have
a finite lifespan. In the Pacific NorthwestCome on! It's dark, stuffy and hot inside
of the United States, decks made of cedarthis little box of electronics. Not only
(including the structural support) are quitethat, we cannot hear you when you talk to us.
common. If the deck did not receive regularSend us an e-mail to tell us what topics you
maintenance with water seal treatment, woodwould like to hear about.
rot, UV sunlight, temperature changes and



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