Home Inspection Education, Training, Reporting Classes & Articles
InspectAPedia® -
How to Find a Qualified Home Inspector
Home inspection education classes, articles, free online guidelines
Advanced Home Inspection Education Articles, Classes, Standards, Ethics
Detailed articles on home inspection procedures, techniques, tools
Online classes on building defect inspection & diagnosis
Questions & answers about home inspection certification, licensing, professional associations, procedures, reports, ethics, classes & education
This article series explains how to inspect and diagnose all types of defects found at residential and light commercial buildings, how to perform home inspections, home how to find a qualified home inspector, home inspection standards and ethics, and detailed home inspection methodology. Advice for home buyers includes how to choose a home inspector and how to get the most from a home inspection.
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Advanced home inspection methods are presented stressing methods for increasing the detection of significant or safety defects at properties, technical expertise, and ethical conduct. Advice is provided for people interested in becoming a home inspector as well as for home buyers or owners who need to hire a home inspector.
Our page top sketch was published by US DHEW and by New York State in 1955 or earlier. [1] A glossary key to the numbered items is found at Home Inspection Definitions & Terms.
Basic & Advanced Home & Building Inspection Methods Courses & Papers
Also see the home inspection topics listed at page left.
HOME INSPECTOR EDUCATION lists home inspection training, courses, home study programs, texts, and references for home inspectors and other building inspectors and building diagnosticians as well as for building, structural, and indoor environment forensic investigators
BUILDING DEFECTS LISTS - curriculum recommendations for home inspector education, includes recommended knowledge base, inspection skills, and typical defects for each major area of residential and light commercial building inspections. Focus is on the identification and reporting of building and building mechanical system defects and hazards, rather than (the more narrow and new-construction-focused building code compliance).
BUILDING DEFECTS LISTS - curriculum recommendations for home inspector education, includes recommended knowledge base, inspection skills, and typical defects for each major area of residential and light commercial building inspections. Focus is on the identification and reporting of building and building mechanical system defects and hazards, rather than (the more narrow and new-construction-focused building code compliance).
CHINESE DRYWALL HAZARDS discusses Chinese drywall odors, sulphur smells, and corrosive outgassing hazards in buildings. Major costs to remove this product, repair or replace electrical wiring, plumbing, and HVAC components may be involved, and there may be immediate safety hazards due to damaged smoke detectors or carbon monoxide detectors in buildings where Chinese drywall outgassing has caused damage.
Electrical Education Classes - the following are work in process Power Point Presentations, very large files, for Milestone Electric, Dallas, TX - due - 3/25/2010
Aluminum Wiring Class for Electricians - Summary for licensed electricians, of the history, issues, current status of aluminum wiring hazards in residential homes
"The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes", Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 2010, $69.00 U.S., is available from Carson Dunlop, and from the InspectAPedia bookstore. The 2010 edition of the Home Reference Book is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. InspectAPedia.com ® author/editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume.
HOUSE DOCTOR, how-to be - education, training, tools, publications for house doctors: air leaks, heat loss, building energy loss diagnosis and cure
Log Home Inspection & Repair Guide - how to inspect, diagnose, and repair problems on log houses; how to identify and determine the age of different types of log homes: traditional log homes, manufactured log homes, slab-sided log homes, and alternative log homes using concrete logs and fiberglass logs.
Safety & Environmental Articles for Building Owners and Inspectors
ASBESTOS IDENTIFICATION IN buildings provides a detailed guide to recognizing asbestos-containing materials in buildings and links to in depth articles about individual asbestos-containing building materials
Electromagnetic Fields, Cancer, and Enviro-Scare: the relation of cycles of public fear and property values for Asbestos, UFFI, Radon, EMF, Lead hazards - "Enviro-Scare" - The Normal Curve Cycle of Public Fear of Environmental Issues
ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS - INSPECT, TEST, REMEDY - extensive information on indoor environmental concerns for just about all residential indoor environmental issues such as asbestos, chemical, or mold contamination, indoor air quality, allergens, lead exposure, etc.
FPE Stab-Lok HAZARDS & REPAIRS WEBSITE - some circuit breakers may not only fail to protect the building from fire or its occupants from shock, they may also cause arcing, arcover, fire, or even explosion accidents and injuries to building inspectors, electrical workers, building owners, and home inspectors.
Safety Procedures for Electrical System Inspectors - how to inspect and test electrical panels and wiring in buildings safely, how to use digital multimeters or VOMs safely, how to avoid a potentially fatal shock
ZINSCO / SYLVANIA HAZARDS - some circuit breakers may not only fail to protect the building from fire or its occupants from shock, they may also cause arcing, arcover, fire, or even explosion accidents and injuries to building inspectors, electrical workers, building owners, and home inspectors.
Find the Age of a House How to Determine the Age of a Building from Visual Clues, Architectural Style, Building Materials, Construction Details, or Documentary Clues
Home Inspection Standards, Ethics, American Society of Home Inspectors-ASHI and Other Home Inspection Standards, Ethics, and Home Inspector Certification Procedures
Canadian Association of Home Inspectors CAHPI, includes the National Certification Program for Home Inspectors, and CAHPI, the professional association and provider of education for Canadian Home Inspectors - in English ou en Francais
Frequently Asked Questions, FAQs about Home & Building Inspection Procedures, Education, & Resources
Question: Why is it so costly to get into the home inspection business, and what courses or classes are best?
I've been looking around for good advice about home inspection. I'm in the 'brainstorming stage', of starting a new venture. My interest is multi-purposed. I want to become a certified home inspector in Pennsylvania, as the first stage. I've found it difficult to get good advice about which 'on line' course to purchase. Hidden fees, and marginal disclosure are my hurdles.
Your site is the first I've seen that seems without bias. Is it possible to see a comparison of on line courses for certification in Pennsylvania? I am willing to pay for the best, but it seems impossible to compare.
The purpose of my schooling is to facilitate a dream my son and I share. My son is in college for another two years, and wants to become a real estate 'mogul'. He is actually taking the right classes. As most his age, his imagination/dreams fall short of reality. I'm a home owner. No mortgage, and willing to sell if it could provide start up cash for our goal.
Why does it require $25K to get this home inspection business off the ground, when the course costs only a thousand dollars?
I've got other financial backing, but prefer to go forward on my own. I will appreciate your reply.
Your site has been what I was looking for, unless you are in the business of promoting a vested interest. There are recognized associations other than ASHI.
I am eager to learn more. - D.R.
Reply:
I'm sorry to have to reply that I don't have specific enough information about home inspection courses in PA to have an opinion about which is best. Some national education projects with which we've been connected are listed below at Books & Articles. I'm not sure why you have found it costs $25,000. to enter the home inspection "business", unless you are considering buying a franchise (see Home Inspection Company Franchises). But the cost of education is certainly going to be more than the $1000. you quote, as to succeed and to practice at a level of competence that minimizes the chance that you'll harm your clients, continuing education and professional involvement will be needed.
As I have experience in the home inspection education field, naturally I have opinions about that education process in general, as well as about some of the courses offered in classrooms and by distant education. Some more general advice about both choosing a home inspection course and home inspection education might include
Take a look at the education and experience of the instructors themselves. Some instructors may actually have had little or no field experience, or may come from an industry that gives them depth in a particular topic but who have little idea about what's needed during a home inspection. During an home inspection seminar in St. Louis a highly competent expert from the gas company was invited to tell us what problems to look for during a home inspection. He brought a gas meter onto the dais and proceeded to show how a gas meter is disassembled and tested for accuracy - interesting as background but completely off track.
Watch out: home inspection educators and classes, like construction in general, is often plagued by arm-waving "experts" who in fact have strong opinions but who have never even read the instructions on the box. Look for authoritative citations to expert sources when standards, procedures, and requirements are being discussed.
Getting licensed vs. staying in business: Most important: front-end or beginning home inspector education is aimed at meeting the requirements for licensing or "certification" in various states and provinces. But having worked on home inspection course curriculum development, standards, and exam or test questions, I can assure you that it is impossible to include in any single series of classes or tests all of what a home inspector really needs to know to avoid a catastrophe such as missing a costly or even fatal defect at a property.
Continuing professional education: Getting into the "business" (it's less of a profession and more of a business these days) is easier than staying in the business. Therefore my OPINION is that anyone serious about developing professional-level expertise as a home inspector needs to plan for continuing education, participation in classes, seminars, professional meetings, etc. You are quite correct that there are "recognized" home inspection associations besides the original - ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors.
Professional home inspection associations, ASHI and others, include among their members people who are highly ethical, professional, serious, and competent, and almost always such people are happy to assist newcomers to the field. As in any association, you'll also come across some people who are perhaps more lax about ethics, professionalism, and competence.
The benefits from working together in education, professional development, and even marketing far exceed the personal gain that might be obtained by being individually greedy or exclusive. Your task will include sorting out the people with whom you want to associate from those you will want to avoid. Your recognition of the ethical and practical issues around hidden fees and marginal disclosure make clear that you already have a criteria for making that distinction.
Focus first on what you know least: In beginning one's home inspection education, and considering the vast breadth and depth of knowledge that is required to approach all of the many systems, materials, and components of even a simple residential structure, there is one trick that can help: admit to yourself, honestly, which topics you know the least about, and concentrate on becoming educated on those areas first.
Eschew overconfidence: Last among this sermon, is the need for humility. As soon as one of us becomes overconfident that we know know it all, we're going to make serious mistakes, errors, or omissions that put both our clients and ourselves at risk. Even after thousands of diligent home inspections, the best inspectors approach every building with a genuinely curious mind, asking "what crazy weird new problem am I going to find here?" And never, ever try to buffalo or bluff your clients. I found that the more honest I was about admitting what I did not know, the more my clients trusted me.
Particularly because you are planning to work in the field, I invite you to take a look at any of our articles that you find of interest, and to comment, critique, ask for more information, or contribute information. Doing so improves the quality of our information and it gives another opportunity for a credit-link to refer readers to you for your own professional services.
We would much appreciate hearing any comments, critique, suggestions, or further questions that you may have after you've taken a look at any of our online articles (see CONTACT). We are dedicated to making our information as accurate, complete, useful, and unbiased as possible: we very much welcome critique, questions, or content suggestions for our web articles. Working together and exchanging information makes us better informed than any individual can be working alone.
Please keep me posted on how things progress, and send along photos of interesting or curious things you come across at home inspections or in classes if you can. Such added details can help us understand what's happening and often permit some useful further comment. What we both learn may help me help someone else.
Critique, contributions wanted: Contact Us to suggest corrections or additions to articles at this website, and if you wish, to receive online listing and credit as a contributor. Particular thanks are due to the many experts and also consumers who read and critique technical articles at InspectAPedia.com.
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[1] Basic Housing Inspection, US DHEW, S 352.75 U48, p.144, out of print, but is available in most state libraries; New York State version, ca 1955, source of our page top sketch of house parts. However even this illustration appears to have been copied from a still earlier source and we have seen this identical drawing with different numbers and often published without a consistent key that defines the numbered items.
Gregory Brown, P.E., Eastern Environmental Engineering Services, Califon NJ, Tel: 908-832-5098, Email: gabrown48@comcast.net. Mr. Brown, a licensed professional engineer in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, provides environmental / compliance, investigation, and remediation services and is the contributor of ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS, New Jersey - Update on New Jersey Environmental Regulations that impact real estate transactions.
Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair
Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.
The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 2010, $69.00 U.S., is available from Carson Dunlop. The Home Reference Book is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. InspectAPedia.com ® author/editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume.
Carson Dunlop also offers information about the ASHI@HOME home inspection training program - an ASHI version of the Carson Dunlop Home Study Course. Contact the company at 800-268-7070.
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