NO SURPRISES

  • HOME

  • SERVICES

  • ABOUT

    • CONTACT
  • BLOG

  • More

    Use tab to navigate through the menu items.
    • All Posts
    • Exterior
    • Paul Author
    • Electrical
    • Plumbing
    • Roof
    • Maintenance
    • Cleaning
    • HVAC
    • Attic
    • Misc
    • Concrete
    • Insulation
    • Ventilation
    • Crawlspace
    • Mold
    • Radon
    • Drainage
    • Remodel
    • Pests
    • Caulking
    • Attic
    • Safety
    • Apps
    • Garden
    • Decks
    Can save you from a moldy attic!
    Paul Cummins
    • Jul 24, 2018
    • 1 min

    Can save you from a moldy attic!

    This switch senses humidity and turns on the bathroom fan automatically! Good for basement and top floor bathrooms. If moisture doesn't make it up to the attic it can't do any damage! I especially recommend this attached to a bathroom fan in moist basements. If you don't have a bathroom fan already, or even a bathroom in the basement you can still install a bathroom-type fan. Just read that dehumidifiers can use more than 1000 kwh/year, so over $200 in VA. They just take o
    404 views0 comments
    Save money with easy duct insulation!
    Paul Cummins
    • Jul 14, 2018
    • 1 min

    Save money with easy duct insulation!

    Have been in some cold crawlspaces and utility rooms during these hot days. This double reflective attic insulation is clean, easy to install and very effective. Here is the ideal installation to preserve conditioned air throughout your house. All the outgoing ducts are insulated so no cool or warm air is wasted in the utility room or inside the walls. After construction is complete your only option is to cover the exposed outgoing ducts in the basement or crawlspace. This w
    206 views0 comments
    Baffled by Lack of Ventilation
    Paul Cummins
    • Jul 7, 2018
    • 2 min

    Baffled by Lack of Ventilation

    The current solution to preventing mold in attics is very low tech: vents along the soffits and a ridge vent. Here's what soffit vents look like: Images of Soffit Vents. As you can see, there are many different kinds. The current rule of thumb is to have one square foot of vent space for every 150 square feet of attic space. And this means painted over vents probably don't hold muster. FYI: quotes on adding continuous vents on average sized attics run about $1300. Here'
    218 views0 comments
    Bathroom air: get it where it needs to go.
    Paul Cummins
    • May 10, 2017
    • 1 min

    Bathroom air: get it where it needs to go.

    Good air, good light: really makes a difference. These are vent ducts leading up from the two bathroom fans in the upper floor bathrooms. One of the fans actually blows backwards into the bathroom. That is because the terminus of the vent is the hard surface of the ridge vent, so air blows up, has nowhere to go and it returns. This wears out the fan and obviously doesn't get the stinky, moist air out of the bathroom. In some cases it does cause mold in the attic. Warm, m
    97 views0 comments
    Un-vented roofs
    Paul Cummins
    • Feb 2, 2017
    • 1 min

    Un-vented roofs

    This beautiful room doesn't have a conventional attic space. It may still be vented from the eaves to ridge as required in R806.3 of the International Residential Code but likely it is not. It is then called an un-vented roof assembly covered in R806.4 (click on image for link). Moisture from the home can still migrate through the recessed lights and even through the drywall itself. If it hits a cold roof deck it will grow mold. Therefore the idea is to keep the plywood
    11 views0 comments
    Whole-house fan can cool your house in the summer AND the winter unless...
    Paul Cummins
    • Nov 4, 2015
    • 1 min

    Whole-house fan can cool your house in the summer AND the winter unless...

    Unless you have one of these...or you could make a foam box. Click on image for link. #attic #ventilation #HVAC
    9 views0 comments
    Save 20 bucks a month forever for $20!
    Paul Cummins
    • Jul 22, 2015
    • 1 min

    Save 20 bucks a month forever for $20!

    Click on image for link to product. Cut to size with a utility knife and glue together with Gorilla Glue to make a box around your attic opening. No more fiberglass and dust in your face, and you can save up to $20/month in utility costs, plus help keep moisture out of your attic. Wow! EASY! Here's the type of plugs found in new houses. #attic #ventilation #insulation #popular
    174 views0 comments
    Paul Cummins
    • Apr 13, 2015
    • 1 min

    For real, this is cool, -108 degrees F'in cool!

    Mold likes moisture and lack of ventilation. It definitiely does NOT like these mold-busters with dry ice guns! How did they come up with this? "Gee, I have some granular dry ice right here, why don't we try shooting it at the mold, after all we've already tried everything else...like cake batter, Cheerios and salsa!?" #mold #attic
    3 views0 comments

    Home Inspection  NOVA-DC

    T 703-472-9020 / info@NoSurprisesHomeInspection.com / © 2014 No Surprises - Home Inspection NOVA-DC, LLC