Our Schedulers Are Professional!

The scheduler was helpful and very informative. I called around to price others and although there were cheaper ones I felt that I would get a higher level of professionalism and better information out of this company. I have not been through any other inspections, as this one was my first, but the staff was friendly and seemed knowledgeable.  Ray Motsinger- Jeffersonville Indiana

Carbon Monoxide

Just when you think you’re safe, a recent nationwide survey has uncovered that a majority of American homes are dangerously under-protected when it comes to fire and carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

Even those equipped with smoke and CO alarms are at risk according to the study, which revealed that two-thirds of U.S. households are not in compliance with the national recommendation for the number of smoke alarms set by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Even more alarming is the 90 percent of homes that do not meet the recommendation for number of carbon monoxide detectors, including 40 percent that report having zero working carbon monoxide detectors.

“These statistics confirm what we’ve feared for years – that far too many homes in this country are not as well protected as they should be against the dangers of fire and CO,” says Deborah Hanson, director of external affairs for First Alert, a leader in residential fire and CO detection devices. “What’s more troubling is that many people don’t realize that their families are at risk.”

Despite the low number of NFPA-compliant homes, nine out of 10 respondents to the survey reported feeling “certain” their homes are adequately equipped with smoke alarms, and 62 percent reported the same for CO alarms.

“There is a clear and concerning lack of awareness among homeowners regarding the number of alarms required to fully protect a home and its residents,” adds Hanson.

The current recommendation by the NFPA (www.nfpa.org) is to have at least one CO alarm on each level and one in or near every bedroom or sleeping area. For smoke alarms, homes should have one installed at the top of each staircase and one in every bedroom or sleeping area. To put this into perspective, the average-sized home in America – a two-story, three bedroom house – would need a minimum of four smoke alarms and five carbon monoxide alarms to comply with NFPA guidelines.

In addition to installing the recommended number of alarms, The Home Safety Council (www.homesafetycouncil.org) suggests implementing the following precautions at home to help protect against fire and CO poisoning:

* Regularly test smoke and CO alarms -Regular maintenance is just as important as having the correct number of alarms. Be sure to test alarms monthly and replace batteries twice a year. Smoke alarm units should be replaced every 10 years and CO alarms every five years. These are simple tasks, but vitally important when it comes to home safety.

* Plan and practice a fire safety drill -Identify exits and if necessary, equip second-floor rooms with escape ladders. Practice actually going through the motions, and finally, identify a meeting place outside so everyone is accounted for.

Add a “network” of smoke alarms – Many homeowners may not realize there are alarm networks available for home use, which are wirelessly connected and “talk” to one another to alert to a fire in a different room. First Alert ONELINK alarms are connected, and if one alarm goes off, all alarms sound and can “tell” homeowners the location of the fire.

“Each year nearly 3,000 Americans die from home fires and CO poisoning claims another 450 lives,” says Hanson. “Our goal is to bring these numbers down by continually educating consumers about the dangers of fire and CO and teaching them how to protect themselves, their families and their homes.”

While Certainty performs its home inspections, we use sniffers to tell us whether there is a leak around your furnace.  If you would like to have a home inspection done by a qualified home inspector give us a call at 866-417-9591 or book your home inspeciton online

We serve all of Southern Indiana and Louisville Kentucky including, Jeffersonville, Clarksville, New Albany, Sellersburg, Seymour, Bedford, Madison, Columbus, Paoli, Corydon

Garage Door Safety & Maintenance

On a recent home inspection in Jeffersonville Indiana we decided to do an article on garage door safety; just stop and think about this, a garage door may be the heaviest working part of your home. Most people have never given very much thought to all of the safety features of a garage door, or even just how hazardous a malfunctioning garage door may be.

As often as your garage door is used it is really important to take into account your maintenance and safety conditions. There are various moving things which may come loose and fail possibly resulting in someone to getting injured. The garage door is a motor-driven piece of equipment which is frequently being opened and closed above your vehicle in addition to your entire family.

Over time there has been several unique kinds of garage doors installed in garages of which consist of individual panel doors that will kick out to one piece roller doors, however the most familiar style is most likely the panel garage doors. These kinds of doors are actually simple sections hinged to one another that are hanging on tracks using a spring system to help with raising the garage door. They may be manually operated but today many of them have a garage door opener which has a remote opening devise allowing you to operate the garage door from inside your car or truck.

The following are some maintenance ideas to keep the garage door safe and secure and last for several years;

•             Visually look at your garage door for any cracked areas notably where the garage door opener attaches at the top of your garage door

•             Check to be confident the door rollers are not loose or damaged, and lubricate them once a year or if you ever start to hear noises

•             If the garage door has the safety sensors, test them monthly by means of closing the door and blocking the beam being very careful to not have anything in the route within the door in the event the reverse detectors do not work

•             Doors built after 1993 have got the reverse sensors together with the pressure sensing unit. To try the reverses sensing unit device; put a roll of paper towels on the garage area floor under the garage door and once the door opener detects the pressure it should reverse and begin to open

•             Look for loose nuts, mounting bolts or anchoring screws then tighten as needed

•             Do not allow the young children to spend time playing using the garage door since there are a number of pinch points on your garage door, and ensure the garage door opening and closing button is beyond the reach of children

•             Visually check out the garage door springs, there are two common styles of garage door springs; torsion springs as well as extension type springs. For those who have extension springs there should be a safety cable going inside the springs for safety

•             Be sure the whole family understand and learns how to utilize the emergency safety release option

Safety First; you can do some minor repairs like tightening loose bolts but if the springs need work get in touch with a professional garage door service provider for making the repairs.

If you don’t know how to maintain the safety of your garage door, you can contact Certainty Home Inspections to have a home inspection done on your Indiana or Kentucky home which will allow one of our home inspectors to check out the safety of your garage door for you.

Jeffersonville Home Inspector Warns Home Buyers !

Best Home Inspection Company This Side Of The River!

Certainty Home Inspection in my opinion is one of the best inspection companies on this side of the river. They have always been fair, honest and very respectful of my buyers and sellers. My buyers love the ease of reading the inspection report and how they break things down for them. Certainty will be on the top of my list as recommended home inspectors. Kathy Striby Prudential Parks and Weisberg Jeffersonville Indiana 47130

Outstanding Jeffersonville Inspection

Your inspection on our home was outstanding!!!   The fantastic way you let us know that the home was sound was a comfort to us for us to  go ahead and purchase the property.  You have our work prioritized on what needed immediate attention.  Your tips and advise on a septic system were also very helpful to us.  Thank you!  Karen and Larry Durall