Tag archive: plumbing

Anytime House Maintenance | Small, Preventive Repairs Always Help

Anytime house maintenance explains a few of the house components that do not necessarily depend on seasonal preventive repairs. Of course, based on your observation of those components, and their quality, you can implement some kind of a schedule that will help in monitoring and servicing.
1. Change or clean your forced air heating / AC system filter every 1-4 months based on type and usage.
2. Replace caulking / silicon around your tub, shower stall and sink whenever it starts separating from surfaces.
3. Inspect your bathroom tiled walls for cracks and missing grout – fill the gaps as soon as possible to prevent water penetration and tile backing wall damage.
4. Periodically check the main water shutoff valve and individual plumbing fixtures valves – might leak if left untouched for several years, might not operate at all and start leaking if you force them to turn. If it turns freely, open it all the way, and then back up a little – this helps to prevent the valve from being stack.

Attic Air Conditioner Drip Pan Installation | HVAC Coil Catch Pan

Following industry standards apply to the attic air conditioner drip pan installation and locations where leaking condensate could damage building components.

Top Ten New Condo Safety Issues & Defects

Fitting New Condo Safety Issues and defects into the Top 10 list is going to be a little tight, but you can find out about many other bad things from the Chicago condos by checking entire Chicago Condo Inspection Manual. You would think that after such a spectacular real estate meltdown, something would change in…

New Water Heater Installation | Chicago Condo Inspection

New Water Heater Installation in a Condominium -  Chicago Inspection Tips
To start your inspection of a new water heater installation in a Chicago condominium you have to determine what type of a water heater you actually have.
The following water heater installation guidelines will most likely apply in any jurisdiction (please double check). The only difference or rather an addition would be water heater strapping and flexible gas connectors that are required in seismic areas.
Below are 4 most common types of water heater installation in Chicago new condos:

Tank type /natural draft water heater with a metal vent pipe (galvanized steel – make sure there is no aluminum [...]

Chicago Condo Inspection & Combustion Air Requirements

This part will cover Chicago condo inspection combustion air requirements for the gas furnace and water heater installed inside your condo closet / utility room (not in the building common areas) – this is an extremely important section and you may need measuring tape.
All gas burning appliances require oxygen for a proper, complete and safe combustion process / without creating measurable and dangerous amounts of  Carbon Monoxide.
Because Carbon Monoxide has no taste, smell or color you must have a CO detector installed in your condo to alert you about any unsafe levels (check Chicago smoke and Carbon Monoxide detector requirements).
First [...]

Furnace, Water Heater Vent Pipe Clearances and Locations

Gas burning appliances vent pipes produce heat when discharging exhaust gases to exterior.
Temperature of the vent pipe is transferred to the surrounding area and all the materials that are in the vent pipe vicinity. Problems start arising if those materials are combustible and located to close to the furnace, water heater vent pipe. If you apply heat to a combustible material for some period of time (that varies between materials), its point of ignition will gradually get lower and eventually little heat will be required to start a fire – that’s why you need a clearance between the vent pipe and a combustible material.

Gas Water Heater PVC Vent Pipe and WH Power Vent

WH PVC vent pipes can be used only with power-vent /exhaust motor equipped hot water heaters also known as an induced draft gas water heaters (also CPVC and ABS but some manufacturer and local restriction may apply to all 3 types).

Bathroom GFCI Receptacles and Electrical Components

Bathroom GFCI receptacle protection is required by the NEC (National Electrical Code), and of course by the common sense – why would you risk getting electrocuted if you can secure your safety by installing GFCI outlet.
Since some bathrooms are currently equipped with many electrical current hungry devices, power supply requirements had to be slightly adjusted. We used to have a bathroom sharing an electrical circuit with exterior outlets, the kitchen, and a garage – not anymore.
Of course, the minimum requirement listed below is not going to work if you add a steam shower, heated electric floor, hydro-spa heater, several light [...]

Saddle Valve Installation

If the saddle valve installation is your first plumbing job, don’t worry, it’s very simple. Just follow these instructions carefully:
Even if the saddle valve came with some appliance installation kit, it may not be permitted in your area. You may want to check if such installation complies with your local plumbing code.
Need a Plumber? Find local unbiased reviews on the best plumbers – Try Angie’s List
This How to Install Saddle Valve Guide covers copper pipe installation. However, you can also use it for plastic and galvanized pipes since most steps are almost identical, and I will explain the difference whenever [...]

House Sump Pump – Have You Checked Yours Lately?

House Sump Pump
Pump in the hole / house sump pump, is just another component of our precious home that we tend to forget about. I know that for a fact because it’s a very popular item in the “servicing required” section of my inspection reports. Wake-up call from a broken house sump pump in your basement or crawlspace may be sometimes very painful (wet and expensive), so bare with me for a few minutes.
How an entire drainage system around and inside your property is designed will go into another post, for now I’m assuming that you don’t care what’s [...]

House Water Heater Vent Pipe, How To Do It Right

Improper house gas water heater venting could be hazardous for you. Have a look at the pictures, and get it right, get it now – it’s easy and it can save your life.