Pre-Purchase (Buyer) Inspection
When buying a home, you should always have a professional home inspection performed. You need to know exactly what you are getting. Making your buying decision much easier and more confident.
When we inspect the home we will look at the systems that make up the building such as:
- Structural elements, foundation, framing etc...
- Plumbing systems
- Roofing
- Electrical systems
- Cosmetic condition, paint, siding etc...
In the Upstate South Carolina area, especially in rural areas, many of the homes we inspect have private waste (septic) systems. If you are buying a home with a septic tank, you should consider having it inspected by a professional septic contractor. A standard home inspection does NOT include this type of specialized, instrusive inspection. To properly inspect the system, the contractor will need to dig holes to access the underground parts of the system.
Understand, that a septic system inspection entails much more than dropping a few dye tablets into a toilet - which is what many home inspectors do!
It makes good sense to have the tank pumped at the time of inspection. A professional septic contractor can perform both the inspection and pump the tank, killing two birds with one stone and assuring that you begin with an empty tank and a system that has been inspected thoroughly. We recommend to our clients that a septic tank be pumped every 3-4 years if a garbage (waste) disposal system is installed or at least evey 7 years.
Pre-purchase (Buyer) Inspection information reprinted with permission. ©High Tech Inspections.Â