As a prospective buyer walks up to your home, one of the first things he or she likely will see is your driveway provided it is not populated by vehicles. He/she will see the driveway and the home’s exterior front area before seeing the inside of the home. The driveway of most Ontario homes is at the front though we seen some at the side. So in short, the driveway adds to or subtract from the home’s curb appeal.

There are many types of driveway materials. We have seen unpaved, gravel, asphalt, interlock and concrete. Each of these except the unpaved has their own advantages and disadvantages. For example, asphalt cost less than interlock and concrete, and has reasonably good life. Interlock looks good and costs more, but we have seen weeds growing up between bricks in interlock driveways quite frequently. Concrete in its many versions last the longest, the easiest to maintain but is the most costly. In this article we will focus only on asphalt driveways since they are by far the most common of the three, and the problems associated with them mostly as they age.

1. Ponding or Standing water
   The driveway may become un-leveled or have impressions often caused by the weight of parked vehicles in the same spot over time. The result is that rain water will settle in these areas. Anywhere, that water collects and sits for long periods will eventually be damaged. Water getting between the aggregate and going through freeze-thaw cycles in our northern climate is what causes the damage.

1. Ravelling
   Asphalt drive way consist of aggregate (gravel) and a binder. The sun’s ultraviolet rays causes the binder to deteriorate. The result is that the gravel becomes loose. What also compounds this problem is that water can now get into the asphalt resulting in both problem 1 and problem 2 occurring at the same time.

3. Settlement and Shrinkage
One that we see a lot in homes is when the driveway is close to 15- 20 years old, or not maintained properly is settlement and shrinkage. The result of which is the driveway level drops a few inches lower relative to the garage floor for example. We have seen as much as a 4 inch (100 mm approx.) differential in a some cases.

4. Cracking With Gaps Supporting Plant Life

Ravelling and shrinkages will support cracking. If the job was poor in the beginning all these will happen more quickly after installation. As cracking begins dirt and moisture will set in. These are the ingredients needed to for plant life. So grass and weeds will soon follow providing the driveway with an unsightly seen.

Things NOT to do
Some of the ways you can lengthen the life of your asphalt driveway starts by first not doing certain things in your driveway.

1. We are thinking of oil changes or auto-mechanic work. Asphalt is oil based and oil and gasoline both will damage your driveway.
2. If the driveway is new, wait 3 to 5 days before driving on it. The higher the temperature the longer wait because the asphalt remains softer longer. It is important to know though, that asphalt takes about six months to a year to be completely cured.
3. Do not use metal shovels to remove snow. Metal shovels can scrape and dig into the asphalt. Indentations and scratches makes water penetration easier.

Things you SHOULD do
Now for some of the things you can/should do. Care of your driveway actually starts in the summer. Do so by fillings cracks and sealing your driveway. Fillers and sealers are readily available in big box stores in wide varieties. Now it is possible if you did not do any of things talked about in the previous section, it is possible there are no cracks to fill and if you sealed the year before maybe no sealing is required at this time. All that is possible, however to arrive at that conclusion, you must first inspect the driveway in the summer which is actually step one of good driveway maintenance.

The End

Qualitex Home Inspection services the Greater Toronto Area: Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Milton, Oakville, Burlington, Vaughn.

We do not inspect appliances in the home other than those that are installed or considered permanent. So to be clear, washers, dryers, fridges, stoves, dishwashers and microwave ovens are not are not considered installed or permanent. Therefore, they are not inspected. However, we will point out any obviously and noticeable defect observed. If the serial numbers of the appliances are readily available, these are generally documented. But sometimes or in some cases we cannot find this data. This is particularly true with ranges because the serial number is usually at the rear of the unit which means we would have to move the range to get that data.

For prospective home buyers we suggest that they always budget to replace some of these appliances if the home is over 10 years old. This is because the average life of the appliances described above vary widely depending on use and care. As a rough guide, we can say that most appliances will last between 10 and 20 years.

As an example, lets look at an air conditioner. The range is about 8 to 20 years. The average is about 15 because the vast majority of air conditioners last closer to the high teens up to 20 years. So, if you are buying a home that is 10 years old or older and the air conditioner was ten years old, then the remaining life could be zero since it already exceeded the minimum of 8 by being 10 years old. But in reality though, it may last you 5 more years. Hence the formula below:

Remaining Life = Average Life – Current Age

In the formula above we use Average Life instead of the high end of the range which is 20 years. We think doing so is more realistic and better advice for the buyer. Below is a breakdown of appliance types lifespan and average life.

Appliances-Life-Expectancyv2

This list should be used as a guide only. Individual appliances may have longer or shorter lifetimes based on quality, usage, and care. The date of manufacture (DOM) of an appliance is usually “coded” in the serial number. We use the word “coded” because date of manufacture is not always spelt out. Letters or numbers and their sequential placement in the serial number tells you the date of manufacture. There is no uniformity across manufacturers. With every manufacturer doing his own thing, then unless you contact them you may not be able to tell the date of manufacture, and therefore no clue as to the remaining life. We uses a database that tells us the method each manufacturer uses to code the date of manufacture in the serial number of furnaces and air conditioners. In more than 98% of cases we can accurately identify the date of manufacture for furnaces and air conditioners.

We hope that this brief document provided some guidance in what to expect when buying a home where some major appliances are included in the sale.

The End

Qualitex Home Inspection services The Greater Toronto Area: Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Milton, Oakville, Burlington, Vaughn.

 

www.qualitexhomeinspection.ca
Tel:416-997-3466

 

In our last issue Part 2 of this series, we described an issue discovered not during an inspection but just out of curiosity of our lead inspector while he was doing other work in the basement of a home. The questions that arose out of that discovery led to the finding of an underground leak that created a sink hole that would eventually cave in. In this entry (Part 3) of the series, we will talk about a finding we made during an inspection. That story goes as follows… [Read more…]

www.qualitexhomeinspection.ca
Tel:416-997-3466

In Part 1 we listed 4 possible reasons a typical Home Inspector may miss something. To Recap they are as follows:

1. Lack of experience (maybe in a specific area of the Home Inspection discipline)
2. Defect was hidden or somehow concealed
3. Conditions necessary for defect to be found was not present
4. Not having the correct tools required
5. Distraction at the time of inspection

In this installment (Part 2) of the series, we will detail an actual situation from start to finish. It will also demonstrate that a good inspector is also an investigator. Somewhat not unlike a detective. The story goes like this…. [Read more…]

www.qualitexhomeinspection.ca
Tel:416-997-3466

Clients sometimes get upset when a Home Inspector misses something. This is understandable. After all you are paying for him or her to find defects that you are not aware of, or have the expertise to identify. You expect thoroughness and professionalism. However, even the best inspectors can miss things for a variety of reasons. Some of these reasons are listed below:

1. Lack of experience (maybe in a specific area of the Home Inspection discipline)
2. Defect was hidden or somehow concealed
3. Conditions necessary for defect to be found was not present
4. Not having the correct tools required
5. Distraction at the time of inspection
[Read more…]

www.qualitexhomeinspection.ca
Tel:416-997-3466

Question:
We have knob and tube wiring in our home. But uncle Bob says there’s nothing wrong with leaving it alone. What should I be doing?

Answer:
Have your home’s electrical systems evaluated by a licensed electrical contractor. See further details below:
[Read more…]

www.qualitexhomeinspection.ca
416-997-3466
 
 
1. Is aluminum wire allowed?

Short Answer: Yes!
Long Answer: The Canadian Electrical Code (CEC) which is adopted by the Province and included in the Ontario Electrical Code allows the use of aluminum wire in all types of construction at present, as it was in the past when aluminum wire was first introduced.

2. Is Aluminum wire safe?
Short Answer: Yes, but not always.
Long Answer: Yes, if properly installed and properly terminated and used in it’s proper application per the Canadian Electrical Code (CEC) it will operate as safely as copper wiring, but there are more things you need to know.
[Read more…]