Signs of Water Damage Often Found During Home Inspections

When you get a home inspection service in Cleveland, Ohio, one of the big things they are looking for are signs of water damage. Water damage can show up in a bunch of different ways. You can see signs that the roof has leaked, an old window let in water, or that the water came up from the basement or crawlspace. Each of these problems carries with it, different risks. Once you know the damage is there, then you can decide on what to do next.

Looking for Signs of Water Damage

There are quite a few signs of water damage your Cuyahoga County home inspector is going to be looking for. You can see staining on the walls or the ceiling. This is often the sign that the roof let water in, and the water dripped all the way down to the drywall. In cases like this, your home inspector is going to want to check out the attic because it could be a problem that still remains, it could mean that the attic space is moldy, or it could show that your insulation has been water damaged. All of these are not good, and would need to be dealt with if they haven’t already been.

You could also see lines on the walls of your basement, which commonly happen when your basement has flooded in the past. The line in the wall shows how high the water got during the worst flood, and it tells you that either the slope of your lot is wrong and the house holds the majority of rain or thaw water, or that there is some type of damage to the foundation of the house. Cracks in the foundation can be sealed, and basements can be waterproofed. However, that is not going to do much if the slope of your house brings all the water right back with each rain and snowfall.

Getting a home inspection in Cleveland, Ohio by Inspections by Keystone is always a good idea before buying a home. It gives you a really solid idea about how sound the house is that you plan to buy. If your prospective home does have water damage, it may cause you to back out of the offer, or it may be a reason to lower your asking price to ensure that the problems can be safely dealt with.