Home Owner Tips Archives | Wil-Do Home Inspections

18Aug 2018 by swilson

Home Seller Tips – Receptacle tester

Home Seller Tips - Receptacle tester If you've ever sold a home before or purchased one and followed around the home inspector, you may have seen them with one of these handy gadgets. A receptacle tester. One of the most basic and inexpensive tools a home inspector carries, but also the most used. When I inspect a home, I try to test every accessible or visible receptacle I find with one of these. This will tell me if that specific receptacle has been correctly wired. We have a lot of older home here in Northern Michigan, and a lot of DIYers that may or may not be proficient in their electrical work. It's pretty common to find receptacles with open grounds(not hooked up or many times no ground present), open…

08Aug 2018 by swilson

Radon Testing | Traverse City, MI

Community, Home Buyer Tips, Home Owner Tips

Radon Testing in Traverse City, MI Radon is a colorless, odorless gas that is a result of decaying uranium. It can transfer from the soil into your home regardless of your foundation type; slab, basement, crawl. And is only second, behind smoking as being a leading cause of lung cancer. It can find it's way through cracks or openings in the foundation, floor/wall joints, exposed soils ( sump pit or crawl space), even through your well water. It is estimated that 12 percent of homes in Michigan have elevated Radon levels of 4 pCi/l (measured in picocuries per liter). The good news is that if your home does have elevated levels, a Radon mitigation system can be installed to lower them to safe levels, or almost completely eliminate them. To put…

26Jan 2018 by swilson

Vacation Rental Safety Inspections

Community, Home Owner Tips

Vacation Rental Safety Inspections We are so blessed to live in such a beautiful place that people all over the state and all over the country want to visit here. The trend has been increasing more and more that vacationers are renting homes vs. staying in hotels. Occasionally, these rental properties change hands and are sold, and when they do, the purchase typically involves a home inspection. That's where I come in! This past summer I was called to inspect a Glen Arbor lakefront home that was an active vacation rental through a popular vacation rental company. The purchaser planned on continuing to rent the property, along with sneaking in a few weekends himself. This was a very nice home that sat almost right on top of Glen Lake, with…

12Sep 2017 by swilson

Fall Home Maintenance Checklist

Home Owner Tips

How is it September already!?! As always summer was a whimsy haze of sunsets and lake swims and laughs and lot's of hard work. I'm always thankful to be so busy. As kiddos head back to school and us adults get back to adulting I thought it was a good time to post some Fall home maintenance tips. Regardless, if you're selling or buying in the near future, a proper seasonal home maintenance plan can save you big bucks and headaches in the long run. And f you're just enjoying your home, it's a good way to show your home some love. Below is a short checklist to get you started. You should be able to cover the basics, but if you are interested in having me give your home…

07Mar 2017 by swilson

Spring Ahead

Home Owner Tips

Can it be true!? Is Spring right around the corner? This week we had our first thunderstorm. And although a true blue Michigander, knowing that we could very well have snow into May, I must say that waking to the last remnants of snow washed away by the night’s rain and a hint of spring in the air, had me feeling energized. This weekend, we will “spring ahead” or “spring up” or “march forward” whatever you want to call it, we will set our clocks ahead; a true sign that spring is indeed around the corner. So, what better time to start planning a some spring maintenance for your home? Whether you’re thinking about selling or buying or just enjoying your home, kicking of a good maintenance plan this time…