A home inspection is an essential part of the home buying process and sets you, the homeowner, up for success – or at least gives you a clear enough picture that you have the opportunity for it! As we say, we ensure your dream home doesn’t become a nightmare. But as thorough as we are, there are some items a home inspection doesn’t cover.
We like to let our customers know what the home inspection doesn’t cover so we can best meet their expectations and they can find other ways of meeting those needs. Here are a few of those items.
Mold Testing
Mold can range from an annoyance to a deadly toxin, depending on the species of mold and a particular person’s susceptibility to it. Mold can damage your home and destroy its air quality. And while we may notice mold when inspecting a home (especially basements and crawlspaces), your home inspection doesn’t cover mold testing.
If you notice mold in your home or something that looks like it, you can contact a professional air quality company to test it.
Generators
Southwest Virginia has a lot of rural areas that can be susceptible to power outages, so it’s no surprise that many Southwest Virginia homes also have generators. But while a generator may appeal to a potential home buyer, a home inspection doesn’t cover inspecting generators. It’s more specialized.
Testing for Hazardous Chemicals
Old homes can be full of dangerous chemicals that used to be common in home construction before we learned about the dangers they posed. Lead paint used to be the standard, but sadly, it’s been proven to cause brain development issues in young children and can be poisonous to anyone.
Asbestos is another formerly common building material that we now know can cause lung cancer. Home inspectors may notice materials that appear to be hazardous, and we will point them out if we do, but testing for hazardous materials like asbestos and lead paint is something your home inspection doesn’t cover.
Other Inspections to Add on to Your Home Inspection Doesn’t Cover
Although your home inspection doesn’t cover everything, there are several inspections you can add to get a fuller picture of your home. Some of these include well inspection, radon testing, and water testing.
Well Inspection
Like generators, wells are especially common in rural areas. When you live outside the limits of municipality-supplied water, your well is an essential resource. We offer well inspections to ensure that yours is in good working order.
Our well inspections include a physical inspection of the well, pump analysis, flow tests, and water testing.
Water Testing
Even if your well is in good working order, it doesn’t mean your well water is safe to drink and use in your household. We run a water analysis to search for bacteria and other common contaminants.
Radon Testing
As we mentioned in a previous blog, Southwest Virginia is Zone 1 for radon, according to the American Lung Association, with 1 in 4 homes having radon levels. Radon is the second leading cause of cancer in your home, and there is no safe level of radon.
We can run a test for radon to see if you have any in your home so that you can take action to mitigate it.
Do You Have Questions About What a Home Inspection Doesn’t Cover (and Does)?
If you have any questions about what your home inspection does and doesn’t cover, you should ask before you hire your home inspector. At Detail View, our licensed home inspectors are upfront and honest about what they will be looking for and will give you a full report when we’re complete, but we welcome questions to clear up any ambiguity or confusion you may have.
Call the professionals at Detail View today!
