I have an inspection on Saturday, I pulled up the house online and seen it was sold 6 months ago for really cheap because of Chinese drywall, since then repairs and drywall have been replaced. Anything I should due prior to the inspection or put any notes in the report, I only visually inspect for chinese drywall and I do not due any lab tests or anything like that. Just looking for any tips prior to the inspection.
Besides drywall being replaced, and I believe all recepticals, smoke detectors. Anything else that is a must replace? They kept the same air handler if it looks clean is that okay? And what about the hardware behind the walls.
Check the copper lines (if any) for blackening. Open a few receptacles and check the wiring as well. I have only run into it twice here and both times the homes needed to be gutted to repair all the damage.
Go to the consumer product safety website and direct your clients there.
http://www.cpsc.gov/Safety-Education/Safety-Education-Centers/Drywall/
Check the ground wires in the electric panel. I have found many times they do not cut the blackened section off. Also, plumbing in walls should have been replaced and verifieable by a finaled plumbing permit. If the copper plumbing was not replaced then the buyers are purchasing an uncertain plumbing system that has been effected by contamination. Check the center wire in a cable tv connection to see if it is still blackening new wires. The A coil should have been replaced in the air handler. New ice maker line should not be blackened. Are the new mirrors blackening along the edges. Even if one piece was left in one section it will have an impact. Be careful you are not substantiating something that has been hidden just to make a buck.
The CPSC is not recommending removing all copper, it recommends removing all electronic components
Just curious, like in the training video, if you do come across a home with black corrosion on say the evap coil, or on fixtures, will the dust wipe off onto your finger? or are there times when the corrosion will not come off with your finger? Just curious, I have a water supply line going to my toliet that is copper and right next to the shower and is a lot of green corrosion, but also some black spots that will not come off, I do live on well water and strong strong sulfer smell so I do not have chinese drywall, but for reference when I see that on a home if it was a symptom of bad drywall would that black corrosion come off with a finger swipe?
Steven my tip would be to exclude the drywall inspection without question. Neither you or I are qualified to provide the homeowner with the documentation and assurances they need on this one. From your post it sounds like the buyers know they’re buying a home that contained defective drywall. What they need is actual certified documentation that the home was remediated, not an after-the-fact initial threshold inspection that you would perform. If I’m not mistaken the buyers should request the Post Remediation Verification that is typically certified by an Engineer and documents 3rd party inspections that were performed to properly document the remediation. Personally, I would offer to perform the full home inspection but steer well clear of the drywall issue and refer it to a company that’s more qualified for a situation like this - someone like Chinese Drywall Screening, LLC here in FL.
In my experience, yes. It will not be clean after the wipe though. The only true way to know is lab testing and sometimes label identification.
Had one the other day with exactly the same scenario., Buyer knew what they were buying . After arrival I found that the investor put all corroded fixtures back in the house. Here is what I wrote:
REMEDIATED CONTAMINATED DRYWALL STRUCTURE: This is a remediated contaminated drywall structure. A building permit was pulled with the local building official in (INSERT YEAR) to remove and replace the drywall. There is no universal standard protocol for the remediation of contaminated drywall structures. In some cases investors/contractors do not remove, replace and or clean mechanical devices such as but not limited to; mirrors, hardware, fixtures, wiring, devices, appliances, HVAC equipment, electrical devices and or other mechanicals components which may still have the physical effects of off gassing. These conditions puts the inspector in a neutral position in regards to making any comments about whether in his or her opinion the structure is free of contaminated drywall. Our suggestion would be to consult with the seller to confirm in writing the protocol used to mitigate the structure and to verify that all the contaminated drywall has been completely removed or consult with your real estate attorney. For more information on this matter please visit this U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPCSC) web site: http://www.cpsc.gov/Safety-Education/Safety-Education-Centers/Drywall/ and/ or in particular the CPSC and the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development’s, Remediation Guidelines for affected homes at this web site: http://www.cpsc.gov//Global/Safety%20Education/Safety-Information-Centers/Drywall/remediation031513.pdf
Feel free to copy and paste and or if anyone has any comments on how this can be improved I am all ears.
Thanks Fred for a very well written CYA. Will keep in my CYA folder
So I did add on to the Florida standards of practice that I use, to show how I do a visual defective drywall inspection, and then how I do not do lab work and invasive testing. Should I add anything to my inspection agreement for added protection?
Nice comment Fred. I’m including this with your permission. Thanks.
Bert
Absolutely…feel free to Bert