Category: Common defects

Common defects in most homes

buying a house
When buying a house check for this and other common defects!

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Common defects are those that appear in most home inspection reports.

10 of the most common home defects that I will typically identify:

    1. Poor drainage

      Lawns sloping towards the home, foliage against the walls and roofs, old gutters and downpipes allow stormwater ponding, seeping under the foundations and rising damp.

    2. Faulty electrical, plumbing and gas installations

      Older homes often need electrical and plumbing upgrades, new hot water geysers, plumbing pipes and sanitary ware.   If electrical wiring, geysers and gas lines are not properly installed a home may become a safety hazard.

    3. Leaking roofs 

      One of the most common defects are leaking roofs result from poor flashing, blocked gutters or deteriorating roof coverings.  Moreover, repairs can range from minor to extensive.

    4. Defective or non-existent insulation

      Most South African homes were built with no thought to insulation and energy efficiency.  As a result, many South African homes are freezing in the winter months. Far colder than equivalent homes in Europe or North America through our climate is much milder.

    5.  Poor maintenance

      Do-it-yourself seller or amateur repairs to plumbing, electrical and other problems.

    6. Structural damage

      Roof leaks or settling or foundation movement may cause roof structures,  doorways, walls and support beams to become unstable.  In addition, most South African homes are built on problem soils which move with the seasons.

    7. Water seepage through windows and doors.

      Faulty or cracked putty, badly maintained glazing beads and lack of weatherboards allow water into the structure around windows and doors.

    8. Rotten window and door frames, timber floors and roofing timbers. 

      Moisture and pests like borer beetles, termites and wood-destroying fungi attack timber components of a house.

    9. Poor ventilation.

      High humidity levels inside a home lead to structural damage and health hazards such as mould. Therefore, keep windows open to improve cross ventilation. Buyers may find they need to alter walls and other structural aspects of a home in order to improve light and ventilation.

    10. Hazardous materials.

      Older homes may contain lead-based paint and asbestos materials. In addition, homes may also contain unhealthy levels of potentially toxic moulds.

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Seller Tricks

10 Most Common Seller Tricks

 

sellers tricks and issues
The photo was taken of one of the seller tricks! Sellers try to hide issues under scatter mats!

Unfortunately, it can be difficult when unscrupulous sellers use tricks to hide defects. Here are the 10 most common seller tricks, and how you can recognise each one of the issues.

A home may be the biggest purchase you’ll ever make. So it makes sense to do everything possible to ensure you’re making a sound investment.

Painting over problem areas. 

Fresh paint itself is not a sign of dishonesty, but it can be used to cover water stains, mould and more. Many honest sellers use paint to update or freshen up walls. Take note if many areas were recently painted and mention that to the home inspector. You can also ask the seller for before-and-after photos.

Choosing to remain in the dark about potential problems are seller tricks. 

By law, a seller cannot be held liable for problems he or she didn’t know about. Thus, a seller trick is not to allow home inspections to be performed when it’s time to sell. Another seller trick is not to agree to a reasonable inspection contingency time period. Some will even tell potential buyers they don’t want to know what the home inspection reveals. This is all the more reason to get a thorough home inspection. It’s a small price to pay to ensure you’re making a sound investment.

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Plants Growing against Your House.

The Danger of Creeper Plants Growing Against Your House

Creeper Plants
Creeper and climbing plants can cause serious damage to brick and plastered walls

A while back, I inspected a house in an older part of Johannesburg. From the road, the house was very pretty with an ivy creeper growing on the house and boundary walls. However, having plants winding their way up your outside walls can cause actual damage to your house. Therefore, you should think twice before allowing creepers to grow on any wall in the first place.

In fact, the best advice is not to have any gardens within 1 metre of your home! Watering gardens against your home can cause uneven settlement of the foundation and cracks in your house.

The worst plants to plant against your house are destructive plants known as “self-clingers”.

Self-clinging creepers

Self-clinger creeper’s rootlets go into existing fine cracks and fissures, using them to enhance adhesion and occasionally penetrating the interiors of buildings through them. The mortar between bricks can be loosened through this activity and is often torn away from the wall when a creeper is removed. The same strong adhesion can result in chunks of plasterwork being pulled away, and attached to the creeper vines.

In addition, on roof structures, creeper tendrils and rootlets can work their way under roof tiles and other roofing materials. Unless you remove the creeper maintenance, like painting and roof repairs, is impossible.

Moreover, any plants and shrubs with their foliage against your home may even dislodge gutters and roof tiles and can hold damaging moisture against wall surfaces causing moisture to penetrate into the wall and roof structure of your home.

Some articles and posts claim not all climbing plants are bad for your house and some can provide “genuine benefits”. However, the detrimental effect of having these climbers on your walls far outweighs any benefits they may have. Moreover, some climbing plants are very aggressive in the way they attach themselves to your walls and, if left unchecked, can cause serious structural problems.

Which creepers to avoid?

Ivy is a prime example. The sort of plants to avoid having grown up on your wall is often the ones that have “suckers” or little mini branches like spikes, that burrow under the paint into the plastered walls and into the mortar joints of the face brick walls for a foothold.

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Efflorescence

WHAT ARE THOSE POWDERY WHITE AREAS ON MY BRICK WALLS?

efflorescence
The white staining is called efflorescence, blooming or flowering!

Efflorescence is an eyesore! This is the presence of the white powder that forms on the face or surface of concrete, plasterwork and brickwork. Blooming or flowering are other names for efflorescence.

It is a cause for concern!

Efflorescence is a build-up of minerals and salts staining the surface of the concrete, brick and plasterwork due to repeated bouts of excess water in the material. The minerals and salts that naturally occur in the material are dissolved when the brickwork, plasterwork or concrete is waterlogged with water.

Concrete, pavers, brickwork and plasterwork are porous and can absorb or wick water and draw salts to it like a tree transports water from its roots to its leaves. This is capillary action. When efflorescence or blooming happens, it can indicate a moisture issue that could potentially damage the structure.

When water reaches a building material’s surface, evaporation will occur. Water absorption and wicking will continue after the water evaporates and the salt is left behind looking like flowering or blooming. This eventually creates a high salt concentration, leading to osmosis.

What is Osmosis

Simply put, osmosis in building materials is the movement of water from a region of low salt concentration to a region of high salt concentration in the material.

During osmosis, water moves toward salts and minerals to reduce its concentration. It can cause large hydrostatic pressures within the porous building material. As a result, these pressures can damage or destroy the material.

Osmosis can cause pressure that ranges up to 200 bar, exceeding the structural strength of concrete or brickwork. As a result, osmosis may result in porous building material staining, cracking, flaking or falling apart.

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Walkthrough Inspections

walkthrough inspection

Walkthrough Inspections

walkthrough inspection without a written report

Walkthrough Inspections are comprehensive inspections without a written report but with a checklist. A Walkthrough Inspection is for clients who require the physical inspection but don’t need a detailed report.

Usually, their reasons are one of the following:

  • Sometimes homebuyers don’t want or need a comprehensive inspection and report of the property they want to buy because they are on a tight budget.
  • Clients sometimes shortlist interesting homes. All they require, at this point, is the walkthrough inspection assurance that there is not something seriously wrong with one or more of the shortlisted houses before committing to signing an “Offer to Purchase” and having a home inspection.
  • Because of circumstances, some buyers will need an inspection of a house they found on the internet. In this instance, they need the assurance that the house they are interested in is worth the effort to inspect for themselves. Obviously, on these occasions, they are either too busy or have to travel some distance to view the house.
  • Other clients have done their inspection of the house. However, requires only the assurance that there are no serious and/or expensive defects or maintenance issues.

For example, I’ve had times when clients have contacted me from far away places, like Cape Town, to give them an idea of the condition of a house in Randburg.

In these instances, this type of inspection is handy and ideal for those clients.

Furthermore, a Walkthrough Inspection fee is normally half that of a Comprehensive Inspection.

This type of inspection is informal

However, a walkthrough inspection is not a formal home inspection. It is an informal inspection. As a result, I perform a visual walkthrough inspection of the home and provide you with a checklist summarising my observations. Furthermore, my comments will be nothing more than a subjective summary of my initial observations during the walk-through.

What is involved in a walkthrough inspection?

The walkthrough requires the same time as a comprehensive inspection. On average, this is about 1½ to 3 hours depending on the condition of the property. You can ask questions and take notes while I explain the defects.

Because a walkthrough is less formal, I do not adhere to the InterNACHI Standards of Practice which requires me to produce a written report with photos. If you are present at the walkthrough, I do not generate a written report but provide a checklist. I communicate my observations orally to you. You can make your own notes during the inspection. In this way, you save time and money because there is no written report to produce after the inspection.

However, if you can’t attend the walkthrough, I will communicate my observations to you in the form of a checklist.

In addition, because it is an informal inspection, an inspection of this type is also very affordable!

However, you will need to sign an InterNACHI Walk-Though Inspection Agreement before the walkthrough. This is to protect me against liability as a result of deviating from the requirements of the InterNACHI Standards of Practice for Home Inspections by not producing a formal report.

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THE HOME DETECTIVE » Homebuyer » Common defects

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Sealing at Windows and Door Frames

Detecting Leaks Around Your Windows

seal leaking

Seals that are broken, pulling away, missing or which are damaged as a result of ageing or long-term weather exposure will cause windows and doors to leak. Furthermore, the sealant or window putty used to seal the glazing beads on wooden windows may crack and allow moisture into the gazed areas of your windows. In addition, when the glazing putty on your steel windows cracks or a section falls out moisture will corrode the steel window frame.

These are the most obvious areas where leakages occur!

However, the most undetected area for leaks at windows is the junction between the window frame and the brickwork, plasterwork and window sill. As a matter of fact, it is one of the most common defects that I have found in both new and older homes.

There are multiple ways to detect leaks around your windows and doors:

  • On the outside of your home, check the areas where two different materials meet. This includes your door and window corners and frame.
  • Look for cracks in the door itself and in window panes.
  • Examine the existing caulking (sealing) and window weather stripping and weatherboards on doors. Make sure both are in good condition. In addition, leave no gaps or cracks.
  • If you can see daylight around a window or door frame, there will be a leak.
  • Shut a window and check for gaps in which you can insert the paint scraper. If you can easily insert the scraper under the closing part of the window, it is probably not watertight!
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