rocknhorse's blog

house: inspection

 abuse

*whimper* I had this blog all typed out and ready to post, hit the wrong key and lost it.  *sigh*

Long story short, we had our rough-in inspection and exterior inspection yesterday.  We knew before hand that the framing inspection would not pass.  But we scheduled it anyway so we'd know exactly what else we needed to do.  The plumbing passed with flying colors!  (YAY CHRIS MASSEY!!!).  The electrical had only one minor ding.  We have to have a light switch in the garage as well as inside the house since our stair risers are 6 or higher. (YAY GARY PRICE ELECTRIC!).  Mechanical only had 1 minor ding b/c we had the duct work for the bathroom fans and we had the bathroom fans installed, but they were not attached.  That's probably our fault since the duct work was there before we bought the fans.  (YAY WALL MECHANICAL!).

As far as framing and exterior.  They failed us b/c not all windows were taped.  We were told that taping was only required if the window manufacturer stated it in installation instructions, which our windows do not.  We intend to do it anyway b/c it's just that much more secure.  We taped the windows that we could easily reach as far as the tape we had lasted.  We planned to have the siding installer tape the rest since he'd be at those windows installing anyway and the tape would be delivered with the siding.  So we have to finish taping and have a re-inspection before we can begin siding. 

Otherwise, the interior framing had minor dings that will be easy enough to correct (add wall stud in living room, a couple of double joists, caulk holes where plumbing and electric come up w/fire caulk...).  The only biggie is they failed our stairs. 

Before we ever began this project, we had the house inspected inside and out.  It had to be approved for move.  We asked if there were any structural things inside that would not be approved - specifically the stairs and ceiling height upstairs.  We were told that the original house would be grandfathered in and any changes or additions would need to be to current codes. 

According to the inspection yesterday, we do not have a continuous 6'8" clearance on the stairs.  The ceiling height over the bottom stairs at one point is only 6'4".  If you drop a plumb line from the edge down to the step, it's 6'10".  But apparently you have to lay a board down the length of the stairs and measure up from the bottom plane of the board and have a continuous 6'8" clearance.  My husband is 6'3" and has never had a problem with the stairs.  He doesn't even come close to hitting his head.  But they are requiring we alter it. 

If we move that section back, we will not only have to cut into the wood floor upstairs, but the original banister/railings will no longer fit.  We questioned why that was not grandfathered in like the rest of the original structure.  They just said it was code.  *sigh*  Big heartbreak.  I don't know how we are going to fix this and make it mutually acceptable.  I am very adamant about not wanting ot alter the stairs/railings.

All things considered, I suppose we did pretty well.  With the exception of the stairs, there was nothing earth-shattering about the inspection.  We had dings, but we expected that the first time around.  Afterall, this IS our first rodeo and we certainly didn't shy away from tackling the biggest bull in the pen!  But we are completely stumped about what to do about the stairs to meet their requirement w/o altering the original look. 

I suppose this is where creativity and determination will come in handy!