Should a Home Inspector Have Noted Thermal Tracking (Ghosting) on Ceilings ?

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Home inspector either missed thermal tracking areas on perimeter of ceiling at exterior walls or is thermal tracking not considered a defect?

House we bought has thermal tracking on the ceilings, quite a but actually. Ceilings are the usual crows foot or slap brush texture. When I touch where the shadowing is, it's cooler than the surrounding area. These are not rafters ghosting, they're spread out "blotches" or streaking. Previous owners burned scented candles and may have used the ventless gas fire place liberally, creating a source of soot particulates. Natural gas furnace is a vintage 2004 Tappan brand but passed tests for CO leakage, none noted. Very notable, the underside of the registers on the HVAC supply for each room have a lint build-up that is black instead of the usual gray or brown, and rolling a piece of this lint between your fingers leaves soot smudging on your finger. Or at least something resembling fine soot.

HVAC air filter is two inch depth media filter type 20 x 24 x 2 I think MERV 10 rated. Previous owner appears to have kept up with filter changes, they left a stack of brand new ones about 12 of them in garage they bought them in bulk. So the stuff on underside of the registers is curious but likely that soot particulate may be small enough to pass through the filters or bypass the filter if the filter housing is sloppy.
 
I've probably been on over 100+ home inspections and I don't even know what you're talking about. Usually they don't go on too much about cosmetic defects unless specially asked by the buyer. You should also read the disclaimer on their inspection. The home inspection is not an energy audit. In a few hours they can only inspect so many items. Usually they just focus on the major items like roofs, foundations, plumbing, heating and electrical.
 
No. They are an inspector not interior decorator. They inspect for problems not cosmetics. If the paint color is ugly they don't note it. Those problems mentioned are a cleaning problem. Also home inspection is sort of a scam. There is not licensing board or anything. Any one that can fake knowledge can be an inspector. Normally they check for wood rot and the water pressure, everything else is a show.
 
Oh. Ok. I thought the cause of thermal ghosting on ceiling at exterior wall perimeters was inadequate insulation over the ceiling in attic. Seems like that would be an inspection item. The cold spots cause airborne particulates to adhere in that spot.
 
Originally Posted by Wolf359
I've probably been on over 100+ home inspections and I don't even know what you're talking about.


Seriously? I guess 2strokeNorthstar is right?
 
Originally Posted by LoneRanger
Oh. Ok. I thought the cause of thermal ghosting on ceiling at exterior wall perimeters was inadequate insulation over the ceiling in attic. Seems like that would be an inspection item. The cold spots cause airborne particulates to adhere in that spot.



I guess it depends on your state, but I'm pretty sure that home inspectors don't do any kind of energy audit. Never saw one that went around checking insulation.

Also in my state, home inspectors are licensed by the state and have some minimum requirements. I suppose in other states they might not be licensed.

We don't have any licensing for mold inspectors though, anybody can basically call themselves a mold inspector.
 
Originally Posted by Wolf359


I guess it depends on your state, but I'm pretty sure that home inspectors don't do any kind of energy audit. Never saw one that went around checking insulation.

Also in my state, home inspectors are licensed by the state and have some minimum requirements. I suppose in other states they might not be licensed.

We don't have any licensing for mold inspectors though, anybody can basically call themselves a mold inspector.


Sounds reasonable enough. But it seems like when they're up in the attic, if they notice a spot bare of insulation (this can cause thermal ghosting in the living space) that for instance during the construction phase would fail to meet local building code, they would be obligated to at least make note it to the buyer WHO THEY ARE WORKING FOR.
 
""buyer WHO THEY ARE WORKING FOR. ""

Allegedly working for. If your Realtor recommended the home inspector, chances are the inspector works for referrals and to keep the referrals coming needs sales to go through.

I would never hire a inspector, but I would hire two. I would let both know I had another inspector coming- if it is worth hiring an inspector, it is worth a second opinon. Might make one or both do their job at the level a Buyer should receive.
 
I had a home inspector. As was in the listing the inspector checked off "gas heat functioning properly". Except the heat had been changed to a heat pump 6 months earlier and the gas pipe was caped. I complained after I bought the home and got back about $800 if I remember.
 
Even insulation is a temporary issue that you could resolve by paying a company or DIY for a few hundred bucks.

It's not a structural concern.
 
A furnace from '04 is "vintage" ?

To your question, a home inspector isn't going to catch everything. It's just not practical. It's no different than them giving a furnace the all-clear and it breaks down and dies 7 months later. You can't go back on them for any recourse.
 
Originally Posted by hallstevenson
A furnace from '04 is "vintage" ?

To your question, a home inspector isn't going to catch everything. It's just not practical. It's no different than them giving a furnace the all-clear and it breaks down and dies 7 months later. You can't go back on them for any recourse.


Around here, anything they miss is limited to the cost of the inspection. Basically they only inspect what they can see.

And also be careful about those inspectors that no realtor will recommend. There's a reason for those guys too, either they're lousy inspectors, or they're known as deal killers that will make a big deal about everything and you'll be making offers on several houses as the inspector gets multiple inspections out of one buyer. The inspectors I recommend is the same one I use when buying a house.
 
Yeap, they are limited primarily to visual inspections. They can't see faulty wiring connections behind a wall, a water heater that's internals are 75% rusted out, etc.

You're definitely right about realtors and inspector's relationships. You have to to be careful as too good of an inspector will point out every little thing and some buyers can be intimidated by that even though many are minor, easy to resolve, etc.
 
The realtor will never recommend an inspector that will potentially kill the deal.
 
Originally Posted by dishdude
The realtor will never recommend an inspector that will potentially kill the deal.


It's not the inspector that kills the deal, it's the house.

There's a difference. Some buyers want fixer uppers and don't care that the house needs a lot of work. Other buyers want pristine ones. The inspector's job is just to point out items about the house. I like it when inspectors point out everything wrong with the house, you use that to beat up the seller.
 
Originally Posted by Wolf359
I like it when inspectors point out everything wrong with the house, you use that to beat up the seller.


Except when you're the selling agent
shocked.gif
 
Well, this thread has been informative. Thing is, the particular inspector that inspected the place has a rep for being a stickler, i.e nit picker, who calls out lots of stuff other inspectors don't. I guess that's why we were surprised he didn't say anything about the thermal ghosting.
 
You can get an IR heat gun to see if the thermal loss is significant.
 
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