TOPIC: Deep insulation

Just starting up a home inspection business and practicing some reporting.  If the attic is 14-18 inches deep in insulation do most feel it is unsafe to pass?  If so how do you report on this?  Do you mark it as could not fully inspect due to deep insulation making it unsafe yet functional for what you can see or do you mark it up as not inspected?

I think what you are trying to ask is if you cant see it, are you worried you might miss somthing. Take pictures if you are worried. You don't have x-ray vision and your customers need to know this. You should just add a comment like, only things not obstructed by insullation could be inspected. Here many builders run the bathroom vent out of the soffit. I have a pre made comment that says "The bathrooms should be vented to the outside. Most construction runs the vent pipe out to the soffit areas, and the pipe usually get covered in insulation. I could not confirm your vents are hooked up properly without digging through the insulation. You should investigate this if you choose to."

I personaly am not digging through a bunch of insullation to find a vinyl hose. Just cya and if you did not inspect it tell them why.

I have found several vents not hooked up. Count the vents in the house, when in the attic you should be able to see that many vent lines exiting the roof or side of home. You can turn all vents on and check the discharge points for air flow. I inspected a home built in the 1980's with three fans and only two discharges. In this case I did move insulation to find it because I knew there was one with no discharge. Original roof, it had never been hooked up or given a discharge point.

Davin, My problem is they like to vent them into the soffit. Unless i actully dig for the hose i will never know. That could be a lot of digging. If they came out the side no big deal.

I could be wrong, and will check, but I don't think vents are allowed to vent out soffits. Gable's or roof only

Davin, Knox county wants them to do this! Lean somthing new every day huh. Check it out
www.knoxcounty.org/codes/pdfs/bath_exhaust_fans.pdf