Couple of questions for homeowners

[wilderness medic]

Couple of questions for people who are house savvy.

I just received a supplemental tax statement. I already paid mine. The best explanation I could get from the assessors office is it has to do with transferring it into my name. Is this normal? Out of my pocket or should this be covered in my loan like the regular taxes were?


I keep having to replace lightbulbs at a much faster rate. Also have one breaker that seems to constantly need to be reset. Reading up it sounds like I could possibly have to much power coming in as the culprit. How can I find out if this is why/fix it?



My bedroom is constantly humid. Not just a little moist, like I can't see out my windows with all the water humid. I leave the bathroom window open all day, it helps, but still seems to be way too humid. When I go to sleep the bed is moist like i'm living in the tropics. I have to clean mold off the surfaces way too much. The other bedrooms aren't like this. I could just install a dehumidifier but i'm more concerned as to why it's like that than actually dealing with the surface problems.



Any help is appreciated. Starting to not like house flippers like I used to. All for someone who's earned the money coming in and fixing a place up for a profit. But not when they cut every corner they can that will still leave the house standing.

[crashdive123]

Couple of questions for people who are house savvy.

I just received a supplemental tax statement. I already paid mine. The best explanation I could get from the assessors office is it has to do with transferring it into my name. Is this normal? Out of my pocket or should this be covered in my loan like the regular taxes were? You should be able to see something about the additional, or supplemental tax assessment on their website. The explanation you received doesn't sound kosher. Admittedly, I am not familiar with California tax law. If you don't get the answers you need, a call to a real estate attorney might be worth the investment.


I keep having to replace lightbulbs at a much faster rate. Also have one breaker that seems to constantly need to be reset. Reading up it sounds like I could possibly have to much power coming in as the culprit. How can I find out if this is why/fix it? Our power company does free energy audits - not sure if yours does or not. Might be worth a shot. If that isn't an option that works, I would definitely have a licensed electrician inspect. You may have a bad breaker, or worse case, have a short someplace that could lead to fire. I think you've had enough of that for one lifetime.



My bedroom is constantly humid. Not just a little moist, like I can't see out my windows with all the water humid. I leave the bathroom window open all day, it helps, but still seems to be way too humid. When I go to sleep the bed is moist like i'm living in the tropics. I have to clean mold off the surfaces way too much. The other bedrooms aren't like this. I could just install a dehumidifier but i'm more concerned as to why it's like that than actually dealing with the surface problems. Is your bedroom above grade level? Shady or sunny side of the house? A decent moisture meter should be able to locate if you have any moisture problems inside your walls. Some possibilities that come to mind are plumbing leak, roofing leak, window leak, missing or damaged vapor barrier, improper insulation....



Any help is appreciated. Starting to not like house flippers like I used to. All for someone who's earned the money coming in and fixing a place up for a profit. But not when they cut every corner they can that will still leave the house standing.

My comments in red.

[Rick]

I just received a supplemental tax statement. I already paid mine. The best explanation I could get from the assessors office is it has to do with transferring it into my name. Is this normal? Out of my pocket or should this be covered in my loan like the regular taxes were My guess is these were taxes due between the time the other owner sold and you took ownership. Look at the bill and see if it is for a few months (however long you were in the house) in 2014. In other words, did you split the tax liability with the previous owner for last year? It sounds like the ongoing taxes are in escrow.


I keep having to replace lightbulbs at a much faster rate. Also have one breaker that seems to constantly need to be reset. Reading up it sounds like I could possibly have to much power coming in as the culprit. How can I find out if this is why/fix it?th I concur with Crash on the electrician. However, You might start unplugging items from that circuit to see if it's something you added rather than a wiring issue. Do you have one or two electric heaters, a hair dryer or similar products that might up the wattage at certain times?


My bedroom is constantly humid. Not just a little moist, like I can't see out my windows with all the water humid. I leave the bathroom window open all day, it helps, but still seems to be way too humid. When I go to sleep the bed is moist like i'm living in the tropics. I have to clean mold off the surfaces way too much. The other bedrooms aren't like this. I could just install a dehumidifier but i'm more concerned as to why it's like that than actually dealing with the surface problems.
You definitely have water infiltration in that room. Do you have a crawl space? If so, that's the first place I'd check. If you have standing water under that room from any reason then you will have humidity issues. If you have flexible heat ducts don't over look the fact they may be full of water. I've been under homes before and it was obvious that water had condensed inside the flex duct. I gave it a couple of jabs to release the water when I was done working. I figured I did them a favor. That kind of moisture will rot wood quickly. You need to figure out what's causing it.

[RangerXanatos]

The year before last was one of our wettest years we've had and it caused a lot of mold.

Moisture was rising from under a house I'm working on and was causing some mold in places. Several bleachings and vinager cleanings cleared out the mold. Polyurethane on the wood floors helped reoccurance inside and a plastic vapor barrier under the house helped. I've also thought about puting a couple of black lights (uv) under there as well but haven't had to take it that far.

[wilderness medic]

Thanks guys. Wish I could do a fancy itemized red answer like that.

1. It says billing period is from the date I bought until next June. Lost, there is a 1st and 2nd payment tab just like the last one I did in (December?). 4 installments a year? Guess I should call the loan office and see if this is coming out of an impound account or if i'm stuck with it now.I'll check out their website too.

2. Nothing like a space heater plugged in. Wood heat, and the ONLY other thing that's constantly on is the fridge. The rest are small items like computer and musical instruments from time to time. No TV, desktop, etc. The other day I reset the breaker 3 times in a row. Every time I turned on the bathroom light and hardwired vent it kicked off. Nothing else was on. Since then i've had a other lights on and it's not kicking off. We do get a lot of power outages/surges. But i'd assume that's not it seeing as it kicked off with activation of the light, not randomly.

If the electricity audit is the same as a breaker test, I already had that done. Guy came out and went above and beyond looking at all my stuff. No problems with anything he saw besides the breakers being labeled incorrectly. Home inspector was just here a few months ago, but as i've noticed he missed a lot... Going to hate it if I have to pay a bunch for another inspection.

3. Well that sounds like the probable cause. Back bedroom is at a low point in shade. Good slope comes down there and with all the rain I imagine the crawl space is probably pretty soaked right underneath. Worried now, how do you fix that? Start bailing what water you can? I'll crawl and check it out. I'm tired of feeling like someone snuck in and peed in my bed while I was asleep haha...

[hunter63]

What they said......Taxes...?

A flipped house may have problem with moisture that was there before and covered up...
Electrical needs to be checked out for sure.....or you may have a fire.

[wilderness medic]

Electrical needs to be checked out for sure.....or you may have a fire.

"Hullo? Send me 15 electricians right now. I'll be in my truck with all my stuff until you get here."

[Wildthang]

You cn put a sump pump under that area of the house and keep the water pumped out of there! Also spread plypropelene sheeting after the sump pump is installed to keep the moisture from the ground from propogating into the room. Yoiu wi;; mnotice a huge difference!

[hunter63]

"Hullo? Send me 15 electricians right now. I'll be in my truck with all my stuff until you get here."

All you need is one good one.......
I have seen some scary stuff.

[TXyakr]

#2 electrical issue sounds like the most urgent and serious.

One of several possibilities is that home was remodeled and they put frig on circuit that did not have enough amperage for it. If breakers were not labeled correctly this is a clue (also very common.) I would demand my money back from original home inspector and/or place formal complaint with the state, may be a waste of your time but help you feel better. (I walk around with these guys, one home inspector is a personal friend of mine, daughters ice skated together, and also went to church together). Electricians can be VERY expensive I paid over $2000 just for a new breaker box and one new outlet, but burnt down house is more expensive.

Home flippers are a pain your protection is knowledge of home repair and construction and a great home inspector that you follow around and ask a lot of questions of. My uncle has been buying and selling homes for about 30+ years. I helped him repair many homes when I was in college, he has a PhD in Education but was a farm boy and knows how to fix things. Always told me real-estate was where to invest all my extra capital, start with low income property that is where the big profits are, alway has been. Slum lords aren't stupid, just need to be bullet proof. LOL sorry TMI. But electrical will harm you faster than leaks and humidity, fix that first! Then find leak or whatever other problem is.

[Rick]

What amperage is the breaker that is tripping? It may be as simple as a 15 amp breaker that should be a 20 or 30. A bathroom vent and light should not trip even a 15 amp breaker unless one of them has a problem (like a bad motor on vent). You probably have something else on that circuit.
What goes out when that breaker trips? Check everything. That will tell what is on that circuit. That's what you need to know. Flip it and start checking.

[hunter63]

You didn't say what circuit is tripping, but if it's a bathroom or kitchen, they are supposed to be ground fault outlets, or at least have one in that line.
These get weak and trip or are too light for the amount of appliances plugged in.

[COWBOYSURVIVAL]

We had a ground that was "glowing" at night at the plant...Facilities Engineer had the Power company out to check....Plant was down for 2 hrs. while the power company removed a dead vine from a transformer. SMH

[wilderness medic]

So the breaker is a 20 amp. It controls both bathrooms. It hasn't tripped since, but when it did it was just the light and fan. Room mate wasn't home, there were no appliances in the other bathroom plugged. So I don't understand how only that tripped it. We have gotten lots of power surges with recent storms. One night we had everything barely going (brown out?) Lights were on but barely glowing.

[tundrabadger]

I'm gonna jump on the "Call an electrician ASAP bandwagon. And I'm saying this as one who likes to fix stuff up around the home myself...if I had that happening, I would run for the phone and get a professional in.


For the moisture.....after you've got the electrician in, you might want to invest in some moisture loc for your crawlspace. In the interim, get a couple of chemical dehumidifiers. they are cheap, which is good because the electrician, moisture loc, and sump pump if you need them will cost some money, but they will make your room more comfortable, and help to prevent mold and mildew from forming. I used to use a brand called....i think it was dri-z-air, they were pretty good. It's a bandaid solution, but you can't be breathing in whatever's growing in that moisture.

[wilderness medic]

Not concerned about breathing it, keep the mold clean. It just shows up quick. Unfortunately the crawlspace is dry...a lot drier than I expected. Guess that means I have a leak somewhere?? Eh, sounds like a much bigger problem... I'll check out the chemicals. Guessing they are just desiccant you put around the room like the packs in shoes.

I'll call and see what the electrician says.

[edr730]

Good advice so far. You have checked the crawl space, so you have eliminated that possibility.
The plumbing might be the next easiest for the water problem. Look at your floors and see if there is any sign of moisture such as a laminate floor curling, vinyl floor having areas where there are bubbles where 1/4 inch underlayment has released and formed big bubbles in the vinyl floor. Or lift up carpet in areas close to the bathroom wall. Find the access panel to the facuet in the bath and look in there. Dishwashers are notorious for leaking also. These are just the most obvious areas and signs and there could still be leaks in walls that could still be problems, but less likely.
After looking for obvious signs in the plumbing, find access to the attic or under the roof and look for leaks, especially during a big rain.
Other things to consider are if it is a block house and poorly insulated and is sweating. Insulation in the walls is wet for some reason and if the moisture problem in both rooms are because the rooms are connected.
Moisture and electricity don't get along too good and it's possible that the problems are connected.
As far as electricity goes a brief and general rule of thumb is that the house is 15 amp, the kitchen, bath and outside are 20 amp and the last three all have ground faults to keep you from getting electricuted. The frig, microwave and outside have seperate circuits...or extension cords from the circuit box.
It's impossible to know anything without looking at the problem, but at least this gives you some clues to look for.

[wilderness medic]

Good advice so far. You have checked the crawl space, so you have eliminated that possibility.
The plumbing might be the next easiest for the water problem. Look at your floors and see if there is any sign of moisture such as a laminate floor curling, vinyl floor having areas where there are bubbles where 1/4 inch underlayment has released and formed big bubbles in the vinyl floor. Or lift up carpet in areas close to the bathroom wall. Find the access panel to the facuet in the bath and look in there. Dishwashers are notorious for leaking also. These are just the most obvious areas and signs and there could still be leaks in walls that could still be problems, but less likely.
After looking for obvious signs in the plumbing, find access to the attic or under the roof and look for leaks, especially during a big rain.
Other things to consider are if it is a block house and poorly insulated and is sweating. Insulation in the walls is wet for some reason and if the moisture problem in both rooms are because the rooms are connected.
Moisture and electricity don't get along too good and it's possible that the problems are connected.
As far as electricity goes a brief and general rule of thumb is that the house is 15 amp, the kitchen, bath and outside are 20 amp and the last three all have ground faults to keep you from getting electricuted. The frig, microwave and outside have seperate circuits...or extension cords from the circuit box.
It's impossible to know anything without looking at the problem, but at least this gives you some clues to look for.

Thanks. The dishwasher hasn't worked since I got it. PITA bottom is constantly flooded, doesn't drain. Flipper probably threw in a broken one for aesthetics. But that's at the other end of the house.

How can I find out if the plumbing in the walls/bath is leaking? Do I need to start pulling drywall? It seems to be isolated to the bathroom. I started keeping the door closed and today the bedroom seems to be drying up immensely.

I don't think it's poorly insulated. It holds heat/cold very well from what i've seen. Also have checked the attic, roof, and outside. No problems there.

[Duece]

You can get a moisture detector for checking the walls but they leave a couple of holes a bit bigger than a nail we used to use one when i worked for a disaster restoration company
D

[TXyakr]

Moisture detector from you local rental center is a good idea or buy one if you must. Don't rip up carpet and walls until you are certain. It is remotely possible these two problems are related that a leak from a water pipe or roof is causing a short circuit. I have also had rodents chew thru the insulation on electric wires and cause a short. A transformer completely outside your home and off your property could be going out and causing a brown out (low voltage) but that is not very common. There are many possibilities. Most likely it is something simple and common, hopefully easy to fix.

A very different but slightly similar problem happened when a crew putting in a fence nicked the insulation on the underground wires coming into my house. This allowed the copper to corrode and over a year later the voltage dropped off suddenly and the power company had to dig it up and replace it. So I was out of power for a few days because the dang fence crew ignored the flags marking where the underground power was. So if a rodent chewed a line a little or if a nail damaged the insulation a little (remodel) some water caused it to corrode, you might have a similar problem inside your house. This is just a half A$$ guess, many other possibilities.

Often circuits are run to where it is easy to run the wires and use minimum copper not to were it makes the most logical sense, so may be some outlets and lights in one room and an outlet in room next to it as well that you did not expect be sure you map breaker box out carefully.