Construction Inspection in Canada

A House Works As A System by Construction Inspections

A house is a system of interdependent parts which means that the operation of one part will affect the other. When one of the house parts is not functioning properly it will affect the other parts.

Once the design decisions have been made, focus shifts to construction. There are several systems to help avoid errors and assure the desired levels of performance and workmanship are obtained. The selection of reputable companies, site supervision and appropriate testing is essential. Although fees are being paid for site inspections by local authorities if you really want to ensure that your building is meeting the minimum local building requirements you will have to hire a company for quality control.

Contractors’ own site inspections are an extremely important part of the quality control process. General contractors/builders appoint site supervisors to review all the work included in the contract, to check that it has been done according to the drawings and specifications — by their own forces or by subcontractors.

Conduction is probably the best known and the easiest to understand mode of heat transfer. It occurs when a material separates an area of high temperature from an area of low temperature, such as a wall separating a warm interior from a cold exterior. Glass, concrete and all metals are good conductors.

Forced convection occurs when the movement of liquid or gas is caused by outside forces. For example, a cold wind blowing across a warm outside wall will cause heat to transfer through the wall more quickly as the heat is quickly absorbed by the passing cold air.

Sealing ducts keeps conditioned air where it belongs, reducing the need for extra heaters in rooms furthest from the heating source. Air sealing and insulating the attic prevent warm, moist air from escaping, reducing home owners heating bills and preventing ice dams and the cost of repairs.

Recessed lights are very popular, but they are usually the source of considerable heat loss or gain in a ceiling. The recessed lights when scanned with an infrared camera will show a lot of heat loss. The solution is to buy lights that allow you to cover them with insulation thus preventing heat loss.

 Ice damming and roofing material damage can be caused by poor or non-existent attic ventilation. This problem can be avoided by installing attic baffles in the eaves to create a working ventilation system. Baffles also prevent wind from blowing back the insulation, which can reduce its insulating value.

Windows are a large source of heat loss or gain in a home. It is important to consider some common problems windows create and their solutions. A result of windows that perform poorly is that they make a room uncomfortably hot or cold. Windows with cold surfaces during the winter can cause condensation or even ice buildup at the bottom of the window. Finally, windows can allow furniture and other interior furnishings to be bathed in ultraviolet light, which, over time, causes them to fade.

Heating efficiency ratings are simply the percentage of consumed energy that goes up the chimney. As efficiency increases, less heat and air go up the chimney. As we increase heating appliance efficiency, we reduce draft, which in turn moves less air through the building, reducing its drying capability. The final step in efficiency improvement is a sealed combustion unit, which gets its combustion air from the outside and consequently does nothing to dry the building at all.