The kitchen is one of the busiest rooms in most homes. With a home inspection from SDI, you have a better understanding of what you’re about to buy.Here are the top four common kitchen problems we find during a home inspection:
#1: Vents That Go Nowhere
In many kitchens, the range vent is a decorative-only feature. The kitchen range vent should extract the steam and capture some of the airborne cooking grease. Just because it’s there doesn’t mean it works. We check the range vent to learn if the fan switches on. We inspect for evidence that it vents outside the house.
#2: Electrical Problems
Poor electrical wiring and receptacles aren’t just defects, they’re dangerous. Kitchens, as well as bathrooms, need heavier gauge wire than living areas and GFCI protection throughout the room. SDI Home Inspection often finds wiring dangerously close to plumbing, especially under the kitchen sink. That’s where garbage disposal and dishwasher wiring might run.
#3: Poorly Installed or Maintained Appliances
Appliance repairs aren’t cheap and replacement can cost thousands of dollars. SDI home inspector checks the operation of major, built-in appliances such as the range, refrigerator, dishwasher and garbage disposal. The most common appliance defects include:
- Range burners that don’t heat up
- Ovens that don’t warm
- Refrigerators and freezers that aren’t cool/cold enough
- Missing floor- or wall-mount appliance stabilizer brackets
- Countertop range top inserts with defective built-in ventilation
- Dirty, dust-covered refrigerator coils
- Leaky or broken ice maker
#4: Plumbing Defects
Plumbing defects might be as simple as a dripping kitchen faucet or unimaginable as a widespread leak that rots the subfloor. Caught early, most plumbing issues only need simple repairs. Left unchecked, they could require major repair, replacement or even partial demo and reconstruction of the room. SDI will check for:
- Slow or clogged drains
- Leaky fixtures and sinks
- Leaky water supply pipes
- Outdated water supply pipe materials (old, galvanized pipes corrode from the inside out)
- Mold growth
- Proper size supply and drain lines
- Plumbing vent defects
- Water heater defects
