A building inspector's worst nightmares (31 photos)

The main task of a building inspector is to ensure that buildings are built according to the rules, repaired on time and are safe for people both inside and outside. The main fear of a building inspector is seeing what is shown in these photographs!





“I don’t know about the owners of this building, but I try to park my car away from its walls.”



“A brick that crumbles into dust is not really suitable for supporting an entire building.”





"Who wants to admire the view from the balcony? Not me!"



"A simple way to tell if a wooden beam is rotten"



“The owner decided to combine two rooms into rooms and demolished the load-bearing wall - without plans or approvals, just with a hammer”



"You're looking at the worst frame rot we've ever encountered on inspection. You can't even touch that wall without it all falling apart."



“The wall holding up the slope is about to collapse onto the road.”



We inspected this terrible house on stilts last week. We were ordered to re-equip it to protect it from earthquakes. It’s not very clear what is being protected here.”



“I think one more piece of plywood and everything will last a century!”



“There shouldn’t be a millimeter of free space here. If the walls in the corner decide to run away, that’s very bad news.”



"The stone support is dangerously close to a large hole in the ground. It seems that the owner will soon feel that the floors are giving in slightly."



We haven't been able to do a proper torque test on this bolt... but something tells me it's not necessary



“I really want to check out this basement, but perhaps we should wait until there are not so scary steps leading into it.”



"This concrete pillar dreams of being the Leaning Tower of Pisa"



"The staircase has moved slightly away from the building? It's okay, we'll fix it!"



"Resistance of materials? No, you haven't heard"



"This is a house built in 21009. This is an example of how regular undetected pipe leaks can destroy a floor in a matter of years."



This is what it means to “fall apart before our eyes”!



"You're bound to have nightmares under a ceiling like that."



“These builders will probably just want to hang the next building in the air.”



This is a serious deterioration of the old concrete structure. This structural defect occurs because water penetrates into the concrete, causing the steel to rust and expand.



“Here, due to the swelling of the soil, the foundation has already floated”



“Wall cracks like these indicate problems with the foundation.”



“It seems that these balconies, without waiting for repairs, were about to retire on their own”



“If you use plywood to strengthen the foundation instead of steel structures, it will not last long.”



“The supports and piles here have long since quarreled and scattered, and are not even in contact with each other.”



“It’s unpleasant to discover a cave system under the foundation of an already built house.”



"Retaining walls are a headache for builders"



"Someone's obviously nesting here"



"This is what a brick foundation looks like that doesn't have much life left"