Routine Maintenance Is the Homeowner’s Responsibility

Question: Since purchasing my home, I’ve had an endless stream of maintenance problems. The house is only about 5 years old, but everything seems to be going wrong. First, two of the faucets started leaking. Then one of the toilets became clogged. After that, the front door began rubbing against the jamb, making it hard to close.

Last week, I noticed a number of cracks in the stucco at the rear wall of the house. And finally, this morning, the dishwasher started making a weird noise.

This is the first home I’ve ever owned. I hired an inspector before buying it, but none of these problems was disclosed in the report. What can I do, now that I’m stuck with this lemon?

Answer: A common misconception among first-time home buyers is the expectation that homeownership is a turnkey operation, that a house that is well built and in good condition will tend to remain that way without concerted offerings of focused effort.

Actually, homeownership is a part-time hobby, one that requires ongoing participation and weekly contributions of time, money and sweat.

Although a home may appear to be an inert and inanimate object, it often assumes the character of a demanding beast, persistently requiring attention to sundry squeaks and leaks, aches and breaks and intermittent surprises of various sizes.

Judging by the symptoms you’ve listed, I’d say your home sounds as normal as mine. If common complaints from faucets, doors and windows didn’t require periodic attention, that would be a noteworthy abnormality, which might be construed as an ominous sign of impending calamity.

As a newly initiated homeowner, you should buy yourself a set of handyman tools and a Sunset book on routine property maintenance. I wouldn’t try to tackle any serious projects such as electrical problems or conditions involving gas-burning fixtures. Items of that nature should be strictly delegated to licensed experts. But simple repairs, those that do not involve general safety, are skills worth learning.

Code Usually Requires Just One Exterior Door

Q: The home I just purchased has a hollow-core front entry door and no other doors to the exterior. I thought that front doors are supposed to be solid-core and that a back door is required. Our home inspector mentioned nothing about this. Do these conditions sound like building code violations?

A: A single-family dwelling is required to have one exterior door only, as long as this door has a minimum width of 36 inches. Additional doors are needed only if the home is designed for occupancy by 10 or more people. If your home is intended for normal occupancy, then no back door is stipulated.

There is also no requirement that the door be solid-core. The use of solid doors has become typical for most homes to provide added security, but this is not a building code requirement.

Drainage Woes Often Afflict Flat Roofs

Q: I am trying to sell my house, and a home inspector has faulted my garage roof for lack of drainage. This is a flat roof, and the joists have sagged, allowing rainwater to pond at the center rather than drain toward the roof edges.

Fortunately, a new layer of hot mopped roofing was installed less than one year ago, and no leakage occurred during the last rains. Still, the home inspector regards the lack of drainage as a substandard condition. Is it possible that this home, which was built in 1979, predates the current requirement for roof drainage?

A: Lack of adequate drainage is a common problem, affecting nearly half of all so-called flat roofs. Insufficient roof slope promotes standing pools of rainwater, a condition known as ponding, and this increases the likelihood of eventual leakage as a roof becomes older.

A home constructed in 1979 would be subject to the 1976 Uniform Building Code. According to that code, “Unless roofs are sloped to drain over roof edges or are designed to support accumulated water, roof drains shall be installed at each low point of the roof.”

Since the roof joists on your home have sagged, it would seem that they were not designed to support accumulated water. Therefore, the addition of drains at the low points of the roof would appear to be in order.

Inspection Usually Excludes Septic System

Q: We purchased a home in a rural area and hired an inspector to find all the defects. After moving in, we had a sewage backup at the toilets. When the plumbing was checked, we learned that the septic system is substandard and replacement could cost nearly $5,000. We think the home inspector should have found this problem, but he says that septic systems are not included in a home inspection. Why was something so basic omitted?

A: Disputes over home inspections often involve misunderstandings about the scope of the inspection process. To avoid disagreements, it’s important to read every word of the inspector’s report. Most inspection contracts specifically outline the scope of the inspection while listing common limitations.

Home inspections are basically defined as visual inspections only. This means that the inspector evaluates conditions that are exposed to view. Property components that are concealed within the construction, below ground or in other inaccessible areas are not included.

This limitation directly affects septic systems because the tank and leach lines are buried below grade and must be excavated to enable proper evaluation.

Even after excavation, septic systems require far more than visual inspection. To determine quality and condition, the tank must be drained, and this can be done only by a contractor in the business of servicing and maintaining sewage treatment systems.

Septic systems are complex in nature. They require specialized knowledge and equipment to provide competent diagnosis. Basically, they are sewage treatment plants in miniature and require expertise well beyond that of a general inspector.

Even when septic systems are approved and trouble-free, an evaluation is imperative. Problems sometimes occur with systems that are relatively new, well-designed and properly installed.

Contamination can result from common household chemicals such as drain cleaners, detergents, solvents and bleach. These can kill the bacteria in a septic tank, causing excess solids to clog the pipes in the leach field. Once this happens, repairs can be costly.

In most transactions, a seller will pay for a septic inspection during the course of escrow. Apparently, no one advised you to request this service from your seller. Purchasing rural property without a professional septic inspection is a gamble and can have costly results.

If you have questions or comments, contact Barry Stone through his Web site at https://www.housedetective.com. Distributed by Access Media Group.