"playing" with my inspection cameras

427 Views 6 Replies 3 Participants Last post by stelzerpaintinginc., 2 mo ago

jennifertemple

Discussion Starter · 2 mo ago

"playing" with my inspection cameras today. I must say, there is a bit of a learning curve. First I started to drill a hole in an upstairs floor and right off hit a joist. I moved 6" and got through the floor only to find the area above the living-room ceiling has masses of spider webs to get in the way. Here are the pics of my first run bore scope. There seem to be quite a few of those white ceramic things; is that leavings from old wiring? I think I may be close to finding the source of the dripping water because I have found the pipes but the camera is hard to control for good pics.

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stelzerpaintinginc.

· #3 · 2 mo ago

@cbinc is dead on. Ceramic insulators from knob & tube wiring.

Hey @jennifertemple, you might wanna use a moisture meter to track which areas around the leak have the highest MC. It should help keep you from spending copious amounts of time repairing plaster before you repair plumbing.

Which borescope do you have? Nowadays, you can get affordable ones to connect right to your phone via Bluetooth. I have 2 cheapies; 1 that I use for stuff like you're doing and 1 to look in all the nooks of an engine's naughty bits. I'll sometimes wind some insulated wire around mine before sending it through walls to keep it more rigid.

What is that in your last pic? Is that part of the stack?

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stelzerpaintinginc.

· #5 · 2 mo ago

jennifertemple said:
Once I narrow down the area I will need to remove plaster because I cant see how I would get a moisture meter in there. I do have one. What I do know is the wand for the inspection camera is 39", minus a couple of Inches at the camera connection. long and I know the direction I sent it. Thanks for the tip about insulated wire. That last pic!!?? I am not at all sure, I want to look more closely around there because I do believe it's part of the old iron boiler pipes AND it might be a connection to that that is putting out water. (I tried 3 HVAC companies before I took on the job as a DIY thing. One failed to bring the camera he promised, though I had ripped a good piece of wall to give him access. One guy insisted it was not water dripping but the sound of pipes expanding. (Like I can not tell the difference between a dripping noise and a pipe rattle.) Guy #3 was the one that had me run a useless test by turning off the water supply and see if the pressure drops. He suggest 24 hours would be long enough! At the very least, after I isolate the issue, I'll be able to say "Here is the evidence of water running across the ceiling, here is where the problem APPEARS to be. Now, what needs to be done here?"

The stack is in the opposite side of the house, I had it replaced years ago and built the walls to enclose it, myself.

I live in an older house too where trying to figure out what every other jackwagon who lived here before me did as a means of repair is often the largest hurdle before being able to correctly diagnose a problem. Back before codes were codes. Good luck on your repairs. Hope it's an easy fix. I hate plumbing.

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stelzerpaintinginc.

· #7 · 2 mo ago

jennifertemple said:
Sometimes I have laughed out loud on seeing an old "Repair" and others have had me scratching my chin and thinking "Who does chit like that!" There were a couple that just Ticked me off, big time! (The sellers pulled some sneaky stuff as a reno flip) Fortunately, I got the place cheap over ten years ago, I knew there would be a lot needed doing (Like a new boiler, new plumbing stack, insulation and a new steel roof all done on year one.) I plan to have ALL of the wiring and plumbing replaced and up graded. I finish paying off my mortgage in two years. I'd have paid it off sooner if extra payments were not limited by a threat of penalty.That is when I will embark on serious renovations. The GREAT thing about this house is the frame and foundation are as sound as the day the builders walked away. They just do not build houses that last like this, anymore. This house has sood strong for 112 years and it will stand another hundred if cared for. All the old oak trims are a nice bonus!

Yes to the quality of old homes. Back when 2x4's were 2x4.

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