Most plumbing issues are not discovered until the pipes fail while causing up to thousands of dollars in water damages and needless repairs.  

The plumbing system is one of the major pillars of the home inspection.  We will identify the type of pipes used as well as reporting their current condition.  Our desire is to make you aware of how much life expectancy you might anticipate based on the age and condition of the current materials used.  All visible plumbing will be evaluated in either the attic or the crawl space.  We will also inspect and identify on any visible defective products that were used.  Areas of potential concern will be brought to the buyer’s attention.  It is not uncommon to identify copper pipes that are aged, corroded and possibly failing. 

Polybutylene pipes were common in the late 80’s and early 90’s and are noted for corroded connections as well as brittle pipes that have caused premature failures and leaks.  PEX Pipes can occasionally have some corrosion at the fittings between the pipe connections.  This product is the latest and most common type of pipe installed on new construction.  We will do our best to empower each home buyer with relevant information in regards to their plumbing in hopes of limiting as many unforeseen surprises as possible.  The water pressure and water drainage will be observed under normal operating procedures to assure there is adequate water flow throughout the home at the time of the inspection.  The plumbing shut off valves and water supply fixtures will be tested.  Corrosion, leaks or other defects will be reported.  The approximate life expectancy of a hot water heater is 10 years.  The age, condition and the performance of the hot water heater will be determined to give you the best realistic expectation of when you might expect to replace this unit. 

Hot water heaters can prematurely fail without any physical evidence of doing so.  Our objective is to simply give you the best information we can, but we are limited to the current conditions and can only report on their performance as it was at the time of the inspection.  (Our observation is done in a three-hour window and conditions and performances can change and we cannot guarantee when those changes could take place.)