Barry Stone
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Pros and cons of home inspection insuranceOct 17, 2014 12:01 am - Q. In some of your articles, you advise people to hire home inspectors who have errors and omissions insurance (E&O). I've been a home inspector for 15 years and have av...
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One too many roof layersOct 10, 2014 12:01 am - Q. The day after moving into our home, we learned that the new roof, installed by the seller during escrow, is in violation of the building code. In our area, only two l...
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Basics of maintaining a septic systemOct 03, 2014 12:01 am - Q. I have some questions about maintaining a septic tank. Someone told me to have my tank pumped every one to two years. Someone else said, "If it ain't broke, don't fix...
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No one disclosed faulty furnace pilot lightSep 26, 2014 12:01 am - Q. We bought our first home last month. It was built in 1948 and has a very old heating system. Our home inspector advised having the gas company check the furnace to ma...
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Constructing air ducts underground was a bad ideaSep 12, 2014 12:01 am - Q. The forced air vents in our floor fill with water whenever it rains. This has caused the metal ducts to rust out and expose the dirt. I have no idea who I should call...
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Tenant worried about water heater safetySep 05, 2014 12:01 am - Q. We rent a one-story house with a basement and are worried about the safety of the water heater. We asked the landlord about this, so he had it checked out by a plumbe...
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Home inspector overlooked faulty roofingAug 22, 2014 12:01 am - Q. I bought my house 3½ years ago. It and all the other houses on the block have flat roofs, but mine is the only one with shingles. During the last storms, my roof leak...
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Handyman scams elderly homeownerAug 15, 2014 12:01 am - Q. I'm distressed about an unethical handyman who has been taking advantage of my elderly mother. She first called him because the nails in her roof were sticking up. He...
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Do non-permitted additions add value to a home?Aug 08, 2014 12:01 am - Q. Our home has a bedroom addition that was built without a permit. Now that we are selling, we want to know if the non-permitted addition adds value to the home, or wil...
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Badgered by belligerent bureaucratsAug 01, 2014 12:01 am - Q. I have owned my home for nearly two years and recently applied for a permit to build a swimming pool. That opened a can of worms with the building department. They di...