A common defect I see in homes, especially newer homes, is the wrong fastener being used to secure kitchen cabinets to walls. I commonly see drywall screws used rather than proper cabinet screws. What’s the difference between the two and why is it an issue? Let’s dive in! Drywall screws are made to serve one purpose and that is to secure full sheets or partial […]
If you’re a new resident or soon to be new resident of O’Fallon Missouri there are many things you’ll need to know or do to get set up. O’Fallon’s population is a little over 87,000 people and growing with lots to see and do! Moving to a new town can be a stressful process and it can take a lot of time searching the web […]
An open ground receptacle is an electrical receptacle that is not showing a ground wire connected. This could be because the ground wire disconnected on the receptacle or somewhere in the circuit or series or because there simply isn’t a ground wire (because it is an old 2 wire electrical system). The reason this is unsafe is that although the receptacle appears to be grounded, […]
A home inspection can take anywhere from 3 to 6 hours. The length of time a home inspection takes depends on many different factors. The main factors are age, size, and condition. The main factor I use to give a rough estimate of how long the inspection will take is the size of the house. Before I dive deeper I want to put a little […]
When buying a home there come some inherent risks, especially when purchasing a used home. However, purchasing a home in the winter time brings some additional inherent risks that you may not know about. Now before I start I want to say that you will probably hear from real estate agents that winter is the best time to buy a house. I’m not necessarily arguing […]
As a home inspector the tool I use most is undoubtedly a flashlight. In this very first installment of Rigid Reviews I review my favorite flashlight, the GearLight. The past 4+ years I have been inspecting homes I have gone through or tried at least 30 different flashlights. I landed on this one as my favorite and most reliable flashlight: GearLight (Buy on Amazon). The […]
You may be asking yourself “What constitutes as a stupid thing to negotiate from a home inspection report?” Over my years in this industry I’ve been part of a variety of transactions that were stuck in negotiations over extremely minor and stupid stuff that had me saying to myself “They really requested that to be fixed out of everything in that report??”. That, coupled with […]
You’ve landed here wanting to know how much a home inspection costs I suppose? Here I will tell you how much a home inspection costs, but keep in mind that there are many variables to this question. Below I open up and get completely transparent with my pricing, so let’s get started! First off, it’s unfortunately not as easy as just giving you a price […]
Rigid Inspections, LLC offers Radon testing in O’Fallon Missouri. We also do Radon testing in St. Charles county, St. Louis County, and St. Louis city. What is Radon? Radon is a radioactive, colorless, odorless, tasteless gas, occurring naturally as a decay product of radium. Radon enters your home through the soil and it is everywhere, some areas just have higher levels of it. Why is Radon […]
A word I hear tossed around a lot in the real estate industry is “Grandfathered”. What is the meaning of that term? In the housing and real estate industry it’s a term I will sometimes hear agents or sellers use to down play issues that come up in an inspection report. By definition it means “exempt from new law or regulation”. Why?…Because it’s old?…that’s insensible! […]
A recent conversation with another home inspector friend of mine prompted me to write this article. We, as home inspectors, are not specialists. A common misconception of people who hire home inspectors is that the inspectors are specialists with a superior source of home knowledge and ability to explain any problem and the fix for it. This is not entirely true. Yes home inspectors are very knowledgeable when it comes […]
Contact: Zac Knoblauch, CMI® Rigid Inspections, LLC (636) 336-6634 (618) 975-7031 info@rigidinspections.com www.rigidinspections.com FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Zac Knoblauch Earns Certified Master Inspector® Designation O’Fallon, MO. (Nov. 15, 2019)– Rigid Inspections is pleased to announce that Zac Knoblauch is now credentialed as a Certified Master Inspector (CMI)® , which is the home inspection industry’s top professional designation. The Master Inspector Certification Board has awarded the Certified Master Inspector […]
I run into this situation often. Some home buyers that are in the market for a home are setting their expectations too high. As a licensed and certified home inspector, I am here to tell you that no home is perfect, in fact I can spot issues with the beautiful home in the featured image for this blog post (on the home page under the recent posts […]
City occupancy inspectors are indeed a great resource, especially for home buyers who forgo paying for a private home inspector. The reason for this article is to go over the differences in what a city inspector does and what a privately hired home inspector does, because there are many. A response I hear occasionally after I call something out in my inspection report, from either […]
House hunting is an exciting adventure, and the process of finding that perfect home is an experience you will always remember. However, be careful not to get too caught up in the moment and swept away by emotions, or you may overlook potentially serious defects. It helps to know what to expect. Rigid Inspections conducts hundreds of home inspections every year, and the following nine […]