Air Duct installation issue

[Duke M. Pham]

Air ducts were installed first (on the ceiling, subfloor) and then the Electrical wires came after. The electrical wires run across and compressed the ducts very bad (please see the photos).

Would anyone please tell me these air ducts installation and Electrical Wires Installation are violate the building code (a new house was built in Cypress, Texas)?
1. Air Duct issue 1
2. Air Duct issue 2

Please advice and help!

Best regards,
Duke

[James H. Bushart]

Have you referred to the installation instructions by the manufacturer of the air ducts?

[Charley L. Bottger]

I know of no building codes that would be in violation. Perhaps a common sense rule don't kink the ducts, restricts air flow. If the pic is what it appears to be a vertical rise on an unfinished wall personally IF I was paying for the job there would never be flex duct enclosed in a wall no way to ever make repairs if needed. As you can tell I am not an advocate of flex duct.

[Brian A. MacNeish]

Originally Posted by Duke M. Pham

Air ducts was installed first and then the Electrical wires came after. The electrical wires run across and compressed the ducts very bad (please see the photos).

Would anyone please tell me these air ducts installation and Electrical Wires Installation are violate the building code?
1. Air Duct issue 1
2. Air Duct issue 2

Please advice and help!

Best regards,
Duke

Write it up as "Poor Practice: The duct cross-sectional area has been reduced and may reduce design air flows to rooms. Insulation has been compressed reducing effective R values."

Yes, what are they doing installing flex duct in inaccessible wall cavities. The best asnwer: "It's cheaper and faster. To hell with quality installations. We gotta get the bids by low prices......and, hey, no one set any specs for the job...so who cares!!!"

[Jeffrey R. Pope]

Based on your posts (here and the structural forum), you need to hire an attorney and a competent, independent inspector.

The practices shown by this "builder" are completely substandard - at best.

[Barry Adair]

Duke,

Here is a duct install guide to pass on to your builder/inspector/attorney...
http://www.flexibleduct.org/download/ADC~Inst.pdf

[Dennis R. Goudreau]

Originally Posted by jpope

Based on your posts (here and the structural forum), you need to hire an attorney and a competent, independent inspector.

The practices shown by this "builder" are completely substandard - at best.

good advice Jeff

[Brian A. MacNeish]

Originally Posted by badair

Duke,

Here is a duct install guide to pass on to your builder/inspector/attorney...
http://www.flexibleduct.org/download/ADC~Inst.pdf

Looks pretty good in a book, Barry. Got any matching pictures from the field?

[Greg Veal]

Duke,

If your pics are not an optical illusion, IMHO, there is no way that installation meets flexduct manufacturers installation specifications, and in most cases our local County Code Inspectors would make the installing contractor rip out and start over. If your local jurisdiction has inspectors, I can't believe they would OK this installation, as shown. With all of the above said, I can also say with a certainty that the airflow will be grossly affected by this absurd design and installation.
Do yourself a favor, jump on this asap, before the builder covers this up. Let us know (with pics) if /how the contractor corrected. I'd be interested.

[Barry Adair]

Originally Posted by Brian A. MacNeish

Looks pretty good in a book, Barry. Got any matching pictures from the field?

BAM,

Tall Order! That's like asking where's the Holy Grail?
I'd have to go out to one that my HVAC referral crew installed. They do mostly repair and maintenence, but I'll ask and try to get you some.

[bdoles2]

Nice work.

Probably not as bad as this one. This is one of my new construction inspections, the HVAC guys installed the ductwork in the floor where the roof was not built on the bay yet. Guess what that flex is full of.

[Duke M. Pham]

Thank you very much for all your advices and responds.
My sincere apology for a missing information: the flex ducts were installed under the subfloor (on the ceiling before covered up by sheetrock).
I don't know about the "Reference Manufacture's Installation Instructions" of this flex duct, but I have found and referred to the ADC Flex Ducts Performance & Installation Guidelines before I knew and joined this forum. I feel regret that I have not know this forum earlier. The inspector I've hired is a Texas License Inspector; however, I believed I've hired a wrong guy even though he also has P.E. license (construction P.E., not Mech P.E.). He told me that this flex ducts installation is "no problem", and he said because of the thick jacket then the core won't get "hurt" by the compression (?!?!).
Beside this matter, I was back out of this house due to many other construction defects, specially, foundation issue is one of them along with other customer service satisfactory matters.


Cosntruction issues

[Charley L. Bottger]

[quote=Duke M. Pham]Thank you very much for all your advices and responds.
My sincere apology for a missing information: the flex ducts were installed under the subfloor (on the ceiling before covered up by sheetrock).
I don't know about the "Reference Manufacture's Installation Instructions" of this flex duct, but I have found and referred to the ADC Flex Ducts Performance & Installation Guidelines before I knew and joined this forum. I feel regret that I have not know this forum earlier. The inspector I've hired is a Texas License Inspector; however, I believed I've hired a wrong guy even though he also has P.E. license (construction P.E., not Mech P.E.). He told me that this flex ducts installation is "no problem", and he said because of the thick jacket then the core won't get "hurt" by the compression (?!?!).
Beside this matter, I was back out of this house due to many other construction defects, specially, foundation issue is one of them along with other customer service satisfactory matters. (quote)


The informed person is the one ahead of the game to many choices in homes available to just blindly purchase.

I have installed miles and miles of duct in my career and if someone had asked me to install flex duct within an concealed wall or floor cavity I would have declined the job.

[Emmanuel J. Scanlan]

Originally Posted by Duke M. Pham

Thank you very much for all your advices and responds.
My sincere apology for a missing information: the flex ducts were installed under the subfloor (on the ceiling before covered up by sheetrock).
I don't know about the "Reference Manufacture's Installation Instructions" of this flex duct, but I have found and referred to the ADC Flex Ducts Performance & Installation Guidelines before I knew and joined this forum. I feel regret that I have not know this forum earlier. The inspector I've hired is a Texas License Inspector; however, I believed I've hired a wrong guy even though he also has P.E. license (construction P.E., not Mech P.E.). He told me that this flex ducts installation is "no problem", and he said because of the thick jacket then the core won't get "hurt" by the compression (?!?!).
Beside this matter, I was back out of this house due to many other construction defects, specially, foundation issue is one of them along with other customer service satisfactory matters.


Cosntruction issues

The sad part about this is that there are no readily available records for inspections (i.e. municipal code inspection records) for this build. Quite possibly the issues might be covered over and some unsuspecting future buyer will not know and be stuck with the home.

The Texas Residential Construction Commission's new "County Inspections" program will start 1 September 2008. This program is intended to provide "Code Compliance" inspections by third party Inspectors for municipalities that do not have inspection programs in place. There is one (of many) major flaw(s) I have brought to the attention of TRCC. The inspections that are performed are not all logged with TRCC such as would occur with a municipal code department. The only time an inspector logs the results of an inspection is when the inspection finally passes. None of the failed inspections are logged or noted with the State Of Texas in any way, shape or form. The independent Inspector will maintain their failed inspection reports and the builder will also receive a copy. However, it will never be known if, how many and for what reason an inspection failed unless the buyer literally subpoenas the builder's records and the builder maintained those reports.

[rramsey]

"properly protected by nail plates in appropriate locations.

•

Adequate access to the machinery should be provided. Duct work should not be encumbered by other building materials, punctured, crimped, curshed or otherwise compromised. Ducts are installed per the applicable building code. Return air grills are in the locations required by the plans."



From TRCC new County Program guidelines


Ralph Ramsey
1st Choice Home Inspections
512-785-6856
www.1stChoiceHomeInspections.biz
www.MoveInCertifiedAustin.com