Why Are Home Inspections Important?

Why Are Electrical Inspections Important?

The advantage of having a qualified electrician to perform an inspection for you is after general inspector is finished and has pointed out infractions an electrician can follow up and do a more thorough inspection, explaining to you not only why the issues may or may not exist but how to repair them. 

Electrical inspections generally performed only by a certified home inspector for someone who is buying a home.  While there is nothing wrong with this as a general inspection, a home inspector is not a qualified electrician.  While home inspectors are very well versed in the general condition of a home, they bring in specialists to test for insect damage and radon.  Don't you think your electrical safety is equally important.

Home Inspectors are trained to point out electrical problems such as a double tapped circuit, ungrounded receptacles, point out where a GFCI receptacle is needed or unsafe electrical service panels these are helpful when purchasing a building.  They are not allowed to give you electrical advice. 

The advantage of having a qualified electrician to perform an inspection for you is after general inspector is finished and has pointed out infractions an electrician can follow up and do a more thorough inspection, explaining to you not only why the issues may or may not exist but how to repair them.  For instance, a receptacle may not be grounded.  A home inspector might even point out that it is because of knob and tube wiring without an electrician's proper metering equipment and the ability to use it correctly, you will not know for sure.  If the inspector is right, they probably won't know all of the ways that this can be corrected because they are not required to keep up with all of the current codes that electricians must.

This problem can be resolved by simply having a two prong receptacle instead of a three prong receptacle, the reason the code allows this because the absence of a third proing to an electrician means that there may be the absence of a ground.  Scarily what this may mean to a home owner is brake off the round prong of an extension cord making it extremely unsafe.  Another way that this could be corrected is by installing a ground fault receptacle, which actually measures the current going through the plug itself and will trip if there is a in balance in current.  While both of these will meet the requirements of the code, you are still left with the unsafe knob and tub wiring.