What's Wrong With Your Home? The Inspector Is In The House

Don't wait until you sell your house to find out what's wrong with it or how to make it safer. How old is too old for a furnace? What should, or shouldn't, go down a garbage disposal? Should you have ductwork cleaned? Photoelectric or ionization smoke detector? What's an AFCI outlet?

It might take a home inspector to figure it out. So here's Frank Lesh, executive director of the American Society of Home Inspectors, an organization that, like the National Association of Home Inspectors, certifies home inspection professionals. (Lesh is not just an administrator: He owns Home Sweet Home Inspection of Indian Head Park, Ill.)

In Connecticut, don't hire inspectors without first checking at http://www.elicense.ct.gov that they're registered with the state.

TBL: A few things that might alarm people: Hairline cracks in the basement, horizontal or vertical. Or both. What exactly do they mean?

A: Just a small vertical, hairline crack is not a big deal. It's very common. But a horizontal crack, for sure. And if there are lot of cracks, it shows something wasn't done right. A floor crack, other than just a little unsettling, has no structural significance.

TBL: How about a crack on an interior wall?

A: Depends on the age of the home and whether you have plaster or drywall. Typically, interior cracks are not as significant as exterior.

TBL: If someone has a 20-year-old furnace, can he assume it will have to be replaced soon?

A: It depends on the heating climate, but between 15 and 25 years is a normal life for a furnace. Today's furnaces don't seem to last quite as long as furnaces did back in the '50s.

TBL: Should people drain their water heaters or leave them alone and wait until they self-destruct?

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What's Wrong With Your Home? The Inspector Is In The House