• wood rot
• structural damage
• premature paint destruction
• tile damage

not to mention a host of health problems.

When you notice a musty odor in your house, it’s never too early to identify the source.

Water can seep unseen into your house in a variety of ways: a leak in the roofing material, small gaps around windows or doors, leaking indoor pipes in the walls or floors. High indoor humidity can be caused from basic activities such as taking a shower, boiling water, and drying wet clothing.

Finding the source of the water can be another problem entirely, but infrared cameras are uniquely suited to this task because they detect minute differences in temperature and can easily pinpoint problem areas.

Steps to reduce indoor humidity include:

1. Preventing moisture from entering the home with a vapor barrier. These may be necessary in the crawlspace, for example.
2. Installing and using ventilation fans in the kitchen and bathrooms to control moisture. In some cases, you may have a vent that’s operating but was improperly installed or has become blocked.
3. Ensuring drip pans are properly draining and drain lines are unobstructed and flowing properly. These can occur around air conditioning units, for example.

A young couple wanted to purchase a home, but during the inspection, they noticed water stains high on an outside-facing wall of the kitchen. The homeowner thought it might be due to a suspected leak in the flashing. A typical procedure at this point would require some level of destruction of the home to search for and repair the leak – a scenario that often kills the real estate deal, but both parties agreed that an infrared inspection would be a good idea. The infrared camera instantly detected cold patterns associated with moisture entry above the water stains instead. Upon further evaluation, the moisture problem was isolated to a section of the siding.

Without infrared thermal imaging technology, there may have been far more damage to the house as the leak was hunted down and repaired.

Anytime you are buying a home, there are several benefits to having an infrared home inspection, including:

• spotting plumbing leaks early – before major damage occurs
• locating wood destroying insect populations before damage is fatal
• locating roof leaks before serious damage occurs
• ensuring the home’s energy systems are running at their best
• and more

Very simply, an infrared home inspection gives the homeowner and the buyer far more information about the true condition of the home than a typical home inspection will and it reassures both parties.

In fact, an infrared home inspection just might seal the deal rather than having it die.

One of the easiest ways to make your home more energy efficient is to locate and seal attic air leaks. Most people think of their ceilings as solid surfaces, but the truth is that your ceiling leaks air into the attic spaces through gaps and openings like:

• light fixtures
• vents and pipes
• ceiling fans
• chimneys and chimney flues
• even the attic access hatch

All of these leak conditioned air – warm or cool – into the attic where it does nothing to keep you and your family more comfortable. This leaking air is essentially wasted energy and wasted energy costs you money.

Gaps around these attic opening point are much easier to find with an infrared home inspection because you’ll have a definitive answer as to which areas in your attic are the most vulnerable.

What homeowners should do with attic leaks

Finding the air leaks is just half the battle – an important part – but only half of the story. Once you’ve found the leaks, you have to seal them. Sealing the leaks with a number of products listed below can have a great impact on your in-home comfort and in reducing your utility bills.

In addition to ensuring that your attic is adequately insulated, your second job is to find and plug any air leaks. Here are some handy suggestions for accomplishing that task:

1. Low-expansion polyurethane foam is great for plugging openings that are 1/4 to 3 inches in size. These are typically leaks around plumbing pipes and vents.
2. Caulk makes a great gap-filler for openings smaller than 1/4″ in size, such as those around electrical boxes.
3. Gaps around the chimney and flue should be covered with aluminum flashing and sealed into place with high-temperature silicone caulk. Be sure to keep the insulation away from the flue and create a barrier between the heated flue and anything  that may be flammable by wrapping flashing around the flue, but leaving a one inch space between.
4. Last, but not least, weatherstrip your attic access hatch so that it doesn’t draw heated or cooled air from your home into the attic.

Tips for working safely in your attic

• Wear a lightweight coverall to protect yourself from the itchy insulation and keep it off your clothing and skin.
• Wear a dust mask to keep yourself from breathing in too much dust and particulates.
• Use a headlamp to boost visibility, even if you have an attic light.
• Watch where you step so that you are carefully positioned on the ceiling joists and consider carrying a small plywood rectangle to kneel upon when necessary.

Many electrical products cannot be truly turned off (and therefore stop hogging energy) unless they are unplugged.

Why? It’s because a growing number of electronic products that populate our homes draw standby power when they are turned off.  Standby power is electricity that is consumed by the circuits and sensors that need to receive a remote signal. While a single device will consumer very little overall power, the typical U.S. home has over forty of these products constantly draining power. Together, these amount to about 10% of residential electrical usage.

What are these energy hogging devices?

A few of them include:

• Notebook computers
• Inkjet and multi-function fax machines
• DVDs/VCRs/DVRs
• Cable modems
• Cordless phones with answering machines
• Desktop computers

Many homeowners find that it pays to have a home inspection expert show them where their home leaks. If that’s you, give me a call at 847.431.8800 or fill in this form to schedule a home energy audit.

Here are some tips to help you understand the basics on caulking.

What is caulking exactly?

Caulking is the process of applying a pliable sealant called caulk to gaps, cracks, or spaces at the joints, sills, and connections around your home to stop air leaks. Caulking gaps and cracks is one of those basic maintenance projects that has to be repeated every year or two. It saves on energy  bills and even prevents moisture and insects from entering your home.

Where do I caulk?

That’s the tricky part – you need to know where you have leaks and these may be less-than-easy to find. If your heat is on, and it probably is this season, you may be able to feel a draft in some parts of your home – often near a window or door. Don’t stop there, however. You’ll want to examine wall and roof vents, skylights, and the places where gas pipes and electrical lines enter your home. Check the joints where siding joins at the corners, and where it meets the roof or fireplace chimney too.

What are the steps?

Caulking is relatively simple. The caulk itself comes in long tubes that can be bought at just about any big box or hardware store. Depending on where your leaks are, you’ll want to buy the caulk appropriate for the surface – wood, brick, metal and so on. Get a caulking gun while you’re at it – that helps you apply the stuff. Fill the cracks you’ve discovered with the caulk with the caulking gun. If you want a smoother appearance, you can use a tool with a flat surface to smooth over the surface, but it’s not necessary.

Choose your Infrared Home Inspector with Caution!

The ‘IR’ services most home inspectors are advertising are really a gimmick rather than providing you with any real information about the condition of your home. The typical home inspector may have purchased an infrared camera, but without the right training you won’t be getting anything more from an infrared home inspection. The fact is that a quality infrared home inspection requires the right equipment and the right training.

How do I know my home inspector can do an infrared home inspection?

Those home inspectors advertising ‘IR’ services without adequate equipment or training are giving the entire profession a bad name. Please look for these warning signs that the home inspector does not have the right experience and training:

• The home inspector says they need just a couple hours to do the inspection. (Not true. A real home inspection requires at least 4-6 hours to do it right.)
• The home inspector says it will be easy to identify water leaks. (Even the most experienced IR inspector knows that finding moisture problems is difficult – even with the aid of an infrared camera. This investigation will take time, a very thorough knowledge of local building techniques, and preparation and still it may not be conclusive. That’s the nature of the beast, unfortunately.)
• The home inspector says they’ll do the infrared inspection during daylight hours. (Not a good idea. Most real home infrared home inspectors will want to see the home’s exterior prior to sunrise or after sunset to look for temperature differences.)
• The home inspector says they can do only an interior or exterior scan and get you all the detail you need. (Any home inspector worth their salt will scan both the inside and outside of a property to compare the differences between the surfaces and better understand the property’s condition.)

Given that news, how does a homeowner choose the right extension cord for their holiday display?

First let’s do a quick review of electrical extension cord capacity:

1. The length of your extension cord directly affects voltage at the end.
2. Extension cords are designed for indoor and outdoor usage, so choose and use the right one depending on your display.

Just because the extension cord can reach both ends of your display doesn’t mean it’s the RIGHT cord for the job. If the holiday display is drawing more current than your extension cord can carry, it can cause the cord – and more importantly, whatever it is connected to, to overheat and start a fire.

How to know you have the right extension cord

Luckily, all cords are labeled with wattage restrictions to help you choose the right one. Following these steps will make sure your extension cord is right for your holiday display:

1. Read the info on your extension cord. The label has valuable information as to the use (indoor or outdoor), size, and wattage.
2. Read the info that came with your display. These labels will tell you whether the items are suitable for outdoor use and indicate how much wattage is consumed when in use.
3. Determine how long your cord has to be. The cord can provide power up to a certain wattage up to a specific distance. Any longer, and the capacity gets lower.

If you’ve got a cord with the right wattage up to the distance you need it, then that’s a good cord.

Before you install everything!

Be sure to place your extension cords correctly. They should NOT be:

• coiled or bent
• left where people can trip over them
• tacked in place
• running under rugs or heavy furniture

Never keep the cord plugged in when it’s not in use. A cord will still conduct electricity until it’s unplugged from the outlet.