Complete Home Inspection Earns Esteemed 2012 Angie's List Super Service Award

Award reflects company’s consistently high level of customer service

Complete Home Inspection has earned the service industry-coveted 2012 Angie’s List Super Service Award, an honor awarded annually to approximately 5 percent of all the companies rated on Angie’s List, the nation’s leading provider of consumer reviews on local service companies.

“It’s a select group of companies rated on Angie’s List that can claim the exemplary customer service record of being a Super Service Award winner,” said Angie’s List Founder Angie Hicks. “Our standards for the Super Service Award are quite high. The fact that Complete Home Inspection earned this recognition speaks volumes about its dedication providing great service to its customers.”

Angie’s List Super Service Award 2012 winners have met strict eligibility requirements, including earning a minimum number of reports, an excellent rating from their customers and abiding by Angie’s List operational guidelines.

Service company ratings are updated daily on Angie’s List. Companies are graded on an A through F scale in areas ranging from price to professionalism to punctuality. Members can find the 2012 Super Service Award logo next to company names in search results on AngiesList.com.

Customer Service

Recently, a customer called with some great questions regarding what to do following his Kansas City home inspection. As often is the case with homes built before the 1960, the electrical outlets in the home he was looking to buy were two-wire outlets. Some of the original outlets had been replaced with today's three-prong receptacles, but they were still two-wire outlets. He had asked the seller, as part of their negotiations following his Complete Home Inspection, to have the outlets rewired to meet today's standards. The seller refused. So our customer called for more information on how serious a "problem" this represented.

He asked a lot of intelligent questions about whether he should walk away from the deal, about safety issues, about electrical surges, and more. Now, he understands his options and can better decide what he wants to do going forward. In this particular case, contacting an electrician to get an estimate of the cost to ground the outlets sounded good to him. it was great to spend the time further explaining things to him and easing his mind. It's part of our Customer Service that we value so highly.

But overall, this is a shining example of the home inspection process. I've been doing Kansas City home inspections for more than twenty years now. But, I'm not the "house police". Because something is uncovered during your inspection does not mean that the seller is required to "fix" it, or that you're required to do anything about it after you move in. That is entirely up to you, your situation, and your negotiations with the seller. But, since it was uncovered during your inspection, it must be documented so that you know the condition of the property at the time of the inspection. What happens next depends on what you want to do about it.

Back to the electrical outlets in our customer's house, the house doesn't need to be rewired. Outlets can be grounded. GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) outlets can be installed for safety. It is possible that new owner could live safely in the house without doing anything about the outlets, as the seller had been living there safely for years. So there are many possible courses of action now. Knowledge is the key in making the correct decision for you and your situation, the knowledge you get from your Complete Home Inspection.

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. And, we answer your questions. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com.

Thank you

Thank you to the people who put together and publish the American Society of Home Inspectors' "Reporter" magazine each month. It's fun to be included on the cover of the December issue. The photo was taken during our recent Chapter Leadership Conference in Chicago.

Rental Property Inspections

When you're moving into your new rental property, you're very excited to see the place, start unloading your belongings, and get going on the process of transforming it into your new home. You probably wouldn't walk around the back of the property, look under the deck, and discover evidence of a previous deck fire.

Neither did the woman from the property management company helping my client get ready to move in. It was quite a shock to her when I showed her what my inspection uncovered. Obviously, someone had tried to repair the damage. But the management company knew nothing about it.

Because he had had me inspect the property for him before he moved in, my client, the new tenant, was now protected from liability for the fire damage. And he was now aware of what was lurking underneath the deck.

Later in the inspection, we flushed the toilet and turned on the shower and the faucet in the master bathroom all at once. The flow of water revealed a hole in the main drain pipe in the basement. The cable company had accidentally drilled into it from the neighbor's townhouse while running their cable. With the sudden large volume of water in the drain pipe, the hole sprayed water against the wall. This would then run down the wall, across the floor, and toward the floor drain. Sadly, it would also soak whatever was being stored in this area of the basement.

Looking around the basement also revealed a large opening around the water main pipe where it came through the foundation. You can see the mud that washes in around the pipe when it rains. Again, this leads to a wet basement, possible mold and mildew, and can damage or ruin items that are stored in this area.

All of these defects were found in a five-year-old townhome that, otherwise, was in great shape. And it's likely that none of these defects would be found and listed by you as you filled out your damage report form. You  have other things on your mind.

That's why we suggest you hire Complete Home Inspection to do your walk-through for you and with you. It's a great way to protect yourself, find out what really might be wrong with your new place, and find out how to use the various features and appliances in it. You'll get some peace of mind that you could really use while dealing with the move-in process.

And, Rental Property Inspections are a great investment for landlords and property management companies, too.

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. Call or E-mail today to schedule your own Complete Home Inspection, whether you're renting or buying - 913-268-0222, completehomeinspectionkc.com.

Clean out your gutters

In case we ever do get some rain in the Kansas City area, it's very important to keep the rain gutters on your house free of debris this Fall.

It's easy to forget to do this on the heels of the drought of 2012. But, letting all of the falling leaves clog things up will cause a lot of problems for your house's foundation IF it ever actually rains.

Clogged gutters and downspouts lead to overflows and back ups that can put water in your basement. The clogs keep rain water from flowing away from your house's foundation. It, instead, seeks out the cracks in your basement walls. And, due to the drought, it's entirely possible that the soil surrounding your foundation has pulled away from the foundation. That movement may have caused some new cracks to form. Now, with the gap between your foundation and the dirt surrounding it, water has an even easier path to find those cracks.

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. Call or E-mail today to schedule your own Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com.

Eye of the Beholder

In the last week or so, two customers have commented on their Kansas City home inspection and the service they received from Complete Home Inspection. One left a very detailed and thorough comment on "Angie's List" about his detailed and very thorough inspection - http://completehomeinspectionkc.com/kansas_city_home_inspection_012.htm.

And the other sent a simple and direct E-mail following her Kansas City home inspection - "Miki: I was really pleased with your work and hope to work with you again. Thanks."

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing and more, we do it all for you. And, according to our customers, we do it pretty well, too. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com.

Thanks for the follow-up

Following the August 3rd blog post below about the effects of the Kansas City drought on your foundation, we received a great E-mail from a reader. The E-mail read in part -

"Good morning, I read your article called, "Effects of the Drought," published online on Aug. 3. It was a great article and (I) have questions if you don't mind my asking. Being a Louisiana native, I'm unfamiliar with the solid clay soils of the area and with droughts, for that matter. I hear about watering foundations and such, but I don't have a basement or a crawl space. I'm on a slab...No one ever talks about this kind of home construction here...nor can I find information about it online...Thanks for any insight you can provide to me. I can not find any information on this anywhere and people I've spoken to don't know. I get mixed answers, but no definites."

We answered her specific questions for her by return E-mail. This is a great example of why it's so important for you to be with us during your Complete Home Inspection. You get the chance to ask the questions that are important to you. You get to find out how the systems of your potential new home operate, how to change filters, how to light pilot lights, and more. It's your chance to pick a brain that's been doing Kansas City home inspections for more than twenty years now.  

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing and more, we do it all for you. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com. Get your questions answered and make yourself into a smarter home buyer.

Effects of the drought

As the drought continues in the Kansas City area, here's a home owner's maintenance tip for you. Water your house's foundation. That's right. It probably won't grow at all, but watering the dirt against the foundation might help keep cracks from forming and water from seeping into your basement. Assuming it ever rains.

How much should you water? That's a tough one to answer. It's like tightening a plastic fastener. The instructions always say "Don't overtighten". In other words, when it breaks, then you know that you've overtightened it. When watering the ground around your foundation, you want the soil to be damp. Not wet. Not soaked. Damp.

Keeping the soil around your foundation damp keeps it from drying out and moving away from your foundation. If the soil shrinks away from the concrete, it opens up a channel between the earth and the concrete. And when we finally do get some rain, guess where the water will go - straight down that new opening between the dirt and concrete and, perhaps, into your basement. Damp soil will instead stay up against the concrete and will then absorb the eventual rain water as it did before the drought.

Keeping the soil damp around your foundation also helps avoid the "elevator" effect of the soil. When the soil is very dry, it compacts, which can cause the house to settle. Dry soil also shrinks and gets lower on your foundation, causing a negative slope that will route future rain water towards the house. Then rain can make the soil swell pushing against your foundation. That shifting, or heaving, up and down puts stress on the concrete and can cause cracks to form.

So, the grass may be dormant or burned up. The flowers may have already wilted. But remember to water the ground around your foundation. A rule of thumb is that if the plants against your house are watered, then the foundation should be fine.

Then, just pray for rain.

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing and more, we do it all for you. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com.

Nice to hear

Our customer wasn't able to attend her Kansas City home inspection so she asked a friend, Charley, to be there for her. He's in the home remodeling business and would be the one doing any fix-up work for her on the house. A few days after her inspection, Charley called and left this message:

"I went through the report you sent to your client. I'm calling just to tell you that I'm very impressed with your work. You're very thorough, not only when I was there, but looking through this report. Like I said, I'm just super impressed with your detail, with your knowledge and your thoroughness. We don't always hear that from people that are in the trade, as I am. I just thought I'd pass that on to you. Good job."

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. And we apparently do it very thoroughly, too. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, http://www.completehomeinspectionkc.com/.

Two more reasons for a Kansas City home inspection

As you wonder if it's really worth it to have a Kansas City home inspection before you buy a new home, consider two things that happened this past week. Both may have been things that you wouldn't notice as you look at the big picture of the house: moving into it, who gets which bedroom, and all of the other things you need to think about. But both could be deadly for you and your family.

1) The seller of the home was a home builder. So you might assume that everything in the home would be fine and that an inspection would be unnecessary. But, during our inspection, we discovered that a natural gas line had a valve on it that is designed to be used with LP gas instead. That's very dangerous. And it's probably not something you would notice yourself. Additionally, that same natural gas line did not have a "trap" installed to allow the particulates in the gas flow to safely settle out. Instead, the pipeline went directly into the gas appliance, taking the impurities along with it.

2) Another home included a bedroom door with the handle installed incorrectly. The lock on the handle was on the hallway side of the door, not inside the bedroom. Instead of being able to lock people OUT of your bedroom, people could lock you IN your bedroom. That could be tragic in the event of a fire. Again, it's something that you probably wouldn't notice on your own.

It really pays off to have a certified professional do your Kansas City home inspection. Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, http://www.completehomeinspectionkc.com/.

Your Kansas City home inspection

Sometimes, in today's litigious society, it can become frustrating the way businesses always seem to cover their rears when it comes to disclaimers and fine print in contracts. For instance, we talk about how your Kansas City home inspection lets you know the condition of the property "at the time of the inspection". But that only makes sense. We can't predict what might happen to the property in the future. We can only see what it's like now, and perhaps some evidence of what happened to it in the past. Clients are amazed when we uncover evidence, in an attic for example, that the house had had a fire at some point in the past.

We also talk about not being able to inspect certain aspects of the property because we couldn't get to them. We can't remove drywall to check behind it, for instance. One home seller had moved most everything from the house into the garage, making the garage impossible to completely inspect. So, while it may sound like some legal double-talk, we're simply telling you that what we can see, what we can get to, and what we can investigate, will be completely inspected. But sometimes, we run into this - This kitchen sink drain pipe showed evidence of a leak:















But the sink above it, made it impossible to completely investigate.















No, we don't do dishes.

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com.

Yes, even a brand new house

It's easy, with a newly constructed house, to think that there's no reason to have Complete Home Inspection inspect it for you. Think again.

Here's the attic in a new house we inspected recently -

No insulation at all. Now, is that something you would check as soon as you move into your new home?

Probably not. Instead, you'd be wondering why it cost so much to cool and heat your new place.

In another new construction, we couldn't get the kitchen sink spray hose to extend from its resting place. We found that the dishwasher's drain hose and the spray hose were tangled up under the sink. Further, the dishwasher was susceptible to backflow from the sink's garbage disposal because of the way its drainage hose had been placed. Again, you don't usually move into a brand new house and immediately check under the kitchen sink. Why not have Complete Home Inspection do that for you?

Yes, your builder's warranty covers things. Yes, you have a year to make a list of what needs to be repaired. Getting a Kansas City home inspection from Complete Home Inspection BEFORE you move in gets you a jump start on that list and allows you to get many of those things fixed before you take occupancy.

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, new construction inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com.

There must be a reason

One of the most gratifying things over the last twenty years of Kansas City home inspections is having real estate professionals hire us for their children's Kansas City home inspections. Just in the last week or so, two different realtors have called to schedule an inspection on a home their son or daughter was buying. These realtors had each seen a Complete Home Inspection in the past, had seen how we treat our customers, and had read our inspection reports. So, they knew where to turn to make sure that their children would be taken care of. It means a lot to get that kind of recognition and trust from real estate professionals.

Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. And for the children of realtors. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Kansas City home inspection from Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com.

Customer comments about a Kansas City home inspection

Here's an unedited comment from someone who recently hired Complete Home Inspection to do a Kansas City home inspection for him:

"Thank you so much for your Excellent Inspection Report! I was impressed and happily elated with all your photos, comments, recommendations and thoroughness in your coverage of priority details you have now provided for me. I can only say "A Professional Job~Very Well Done" to my complete satisfaction! I only wish that I could have met you {-in person-} today when I stopped by on my school bus route:(
Maybe someday..? I promise to share this experience with your results to others who may ask me for a very well qualified Home Inspection Service referral.

PS: I especially appreciated the timeliness of your completed report and emailed by days end (within so few minutes of my sights scheduled visit)."

How can we serve you? Whole house inspections, condo inspections, radon testing, mold testing, and more, we do it all for you. Call or E-mail today to schedule your Complete Home Inspection, 913-268-0222, www.completehomeinspectionkc.com.