Inspection Flashcards
Inspection 4 step process
- Consider your personal safety - know firms H&S procedure
- Inspection of local area
- External inspection
- Internal inspection
What to take on inspection
Phone, tape/laser measure, plans/other supporting information, PPE, pen, paper
What is PPE
Personal Protection Equipment
Examples of PPE
Fluorescent jacket, steel toed boots, non slip soled shoes, ear defenders, gloves, goggles, hard hat
What to consider when inspecting the immediate area to the property
Location - Location/aspect/ local facilities/ public transport/ business vibrancy
Environment - Contamination/ environmental hazards/ flooding/ high voltage power lines/ substations
Situation - Comparable evidence/market conditions/ agents boards
What to consider when externally inspecting the property
- Method of construction
- Repair and condition
- Car parking / access/ loading
- Defects/ structural movement
- Site boundary on OS Map/ Title plan
- Ways to date the building - ask client, see planning consent
What to consider when internally inspecting the property
- Layout/ specification - flexibility/ obsolescence
- Repair/ maintenance
- Defects
- Services - age/ condition
- Statutory compliance
- Fixtures, fittings and improvement
- Compliance with lease obligations
What statutory compliance to consider when inspecting
- Asbestos
- Building regulations
- Health and safety
- Equality Act 2010
- Fire Safety
- Planning compliance
Purposes of inspection
- Valuation - Valuation influencers
- Property Management - policing the lease
- Agency - Marketability issues
What to consider when inspecting for valuation purposes
- Location
- Tenure
- Aspect
- Form of construction
- Defects
- Condition
- Occupation details
What to consider when inspecting for property management purposes
If occupied - lease compliance, statutory compliance, state of building, requirement for repairs, details of actual occupier
If vacant - Statutory compliance, state of building, requirement for repairs, security arrangements, landscaping, vandalism/damage risk
What to consider when inspecting for agency purposes
- Condition
- Repair/ maintenance issues
- Statutory compliance
- Services
- Presentation
- Flexibility of accommodation
- Marketability
Types of foundations
- Trench/ strip footings
- Raft
- Piled
- Pad
What is a trench or strip footing foundation
Generally used for residential dwellings, for walls and closely spaced columns
What is a raft foundation
A slab foundation over the whole site to spread the load for lightweight structures
e.g. for made up/remediated land and sandy soil conditions
What is a piled foundation
Long and slender reinforced concrete cylinders (piles) in the ground to deeper strata when less good load bearing ground conditions/ high loads
What is a pad foundation
A slab foundation system under individual or groups of columns so that the column load is spread evenly
Types of Brickwork
- Solid wall construction
- Cavity wall construction
- Bricks
- Efflorescence
- Spalling
What is solid wall construction
Simplest type of wall is constructed in solid brickwork with headers, at least 1 brick thick
Different bricklaying patters incorporating headers such as Flemish bond - to tie together layers of brick
Cavity wall construction
Two layers of brickwork are tied together with metal ties, with a cavity that may be filled with insulation.
No headers used.
Evidence of cavity tray, air brick or weep holes may be seen
Stretcher Brick
A brick laid horizontally, flat with the long side of the brick exposed on the outer face of the wall
Header Brick
A brick laid flat with the short end of the brick exposed
What is Efflorescence
White marks caused by hydroscopic salts in the brick work.
What causes efforescence
Formed when water reacts with the natural salts, contained within the construction material and mortar.
Water dissolves the salts which are then carried out and deposited onto surface by natural evaporation.
What is spalling
Damaged brickwork where the surface of the bricks starts to crumble due to freeze/thaw action, after it has become saturated in winter
Shop specification - new shop
- Steel or concrete frame
- Services capped off
- Concrete floor + no suspended ceiling
- Let in a shell condition, no shop front, ready for fitting out
What are the two main methods of construction of a new office building
- Steel - less columns/ wider span between columns
- Concrete frame - more columns/ lower floor heights/ shorter span between columns
What if you cant tell construction on site
Check architects’ drawings
Institutional Spec (British Councils Guide to Office Spec, 2023):
- Full access raised floors with floor boxes.
- 2.6m-2.8m approx. ceiling height.
- Ceiling void-350mm, raised floor void – 150mm.
- Max opportunity for daylighting 300-500 lux average.
- Floor loading-2.5-3.0 kN/sqm, 1.2kN/sqm for partitioning.
- Air conditioning, double glazing, passenger lift.
- Planning grid - 1.5m x 1.5m
- Max depth - 12m -15m (shallow plan) or 15m -21m (deep plan) - allow for natural light
- 1 cycle space per 10 staff, 1 shower per 100 staff.
- 8m2 to 10m2 general workspace density
Types of air conditioning systems
- VAV
- Fan coil
- VRV
- Static cooling
- Mechanical ventilation
- Heat recovery system
- Comfort cooling
Air condition systems - what is illegal as of 1st Jan 2015
The use and replacement of the low temperature refrigerant R22.
Existing R22 systems need to be modified to become more eco friendly
What is a VAV (air conditioing)
Variable Air Volume
(highest capital cost but most flexible)
What is a fan coil (air conditioning)
Usually 4-pipe
Lower initial cost + good flexibility but higher operating and maintenance costs
What is VRV (air conditioning)
Variable refrigerant volume
Lower capital costs but higher running and maintenance costs
What is static cooling (air conditioning)
Chilled beam and displacement heating
A natural approach to climate control with lower capital and running costs, but less flexibility
Mechanical ventilation (air conditioning)
When fresh air is moved around the building
Comfort cooling (air conditioning)
A simple form of air cooling system
Shell and core fit out
Common parts completed; office floors left as shell ready for fit out by occupier
Category A fit out
To Grade A specification
Category B fit out
Fit out to occupiers specific requirements
e.g. instillation of cellular offices
How are cellular offices set out
in a 1.5 planning grid
What is the typical space allowance for normal office use
Approx. 1 person for 7.5 -9.25 sq m
Industrial warehouse basic construction
Usually steel portal frame, cladding with insulated profiled steel cladding walls and roof
Institutional specification for Industrial
- Min. 8m clear eaves height, 10% roof lights.
- Min 30kN/sqm floor loading.
- Plastic coated steel profiled cladding with walls to approx. 2m.
- Full height loading doors (electrically operated).
- 3 phase electric power (415 volts).
- 5-10% office content and WC facilities.
- Main services capped off.
- Approx site cover – 40%
- LED Lighting
What is an inherent defect
A defect in the design or a material which has always been present
What is a latent defect
A fault to the property that could not have been discovered by a reasonably thorough inspection of the property
What should you check regarding building defects
Whether there are any warranties for the building from the contractor and professional team
What should you do if you identify any building defects during your inspection
- Take photo
- Establish cause of damage
- Inform client
- Recommended advice from a building surveyor, or structural engineer if there is movement
What are the three common causes of defect
- Movement
- Water
- Defective / non-performance / deterioration of building materials
What is subsidence
The vertical downward movement of a building foundation caused by the loss of support of the site beneath the foundation.
What could cause subsidence
Changes in the underlying ground conditions
What is heave
The expansion of the ground beneath part or all of the building
What could cause heave
By tree removal and the subsequent moisture build up in the soil
What may horizontal cracking in brickwork indicate
Cavity wall tie failure in a brick wall
When does shrinkage cracking occur
In new plasterwork during the drying out process
What are settlement cracks caused by
Differential movement
What else can cause cracks
Thermal expansion/ movement
What is wet rot caused by
Damp and timber decay
What are signs of damp rot
- Wet and soft timber
- A high damp meter reading
- Visible fungal growth
- Musty smell
What causes dry rot
Caused inside by a Mycelium fungus attack which destroys timber and masonry
What are signs of dry rot
Mycelium fungus
- Spreads across the wood in a fine and fluffy white strands
- Large often orange mushroom like fruiting bodies
- Strong smell
- Red spores
- Cracking paintwork + cuboidal cracking/ crumbling of timber
How far from ground level does rising damp usually stop
1.5m
What causes condensation
A lack of ventilation and background heating
Signs of condensation
Mould and streaming water on the inside of the window or walls
What else can cause damp
Leaking plumbing/ air conditioning units/ pipework
Common building defects in period residential / office / shop buildings
- Dry rot
- Wet rot
- Tile slippage on the roof
- Death watch beetle
- Damp penetration - roof + ground level
- Water ingress around door + window openings
- Structural movement/ settlement
Common building defects in modern industrial buildings
- Roof leaks around roof lights
- Damaged cladding panels
- Cut edge corrosion
- Blocked valley gutters
- water damage from poor guttering/ burst pipe
- Settlement/ cracking in brick work panels
Common building defects in modern office buildings
- Damp penetration - roof + ground floor
- Water damage from burst pipe/ air con units
- Structural movement
- Damaged cladding
- Cavity wall tie failure
- Efflorescence
7 Poor mortar joints in brickwork
Key Legislation for contamination
Environmental Protection Act 1990
RICS guidance note for contaminaiton
Contamination, the Environment and Sustainability, 2010 (3rd edition)
Key principals of RICS guidance note - Contamination, the Environment and Sustainability, 2010 (3rd edition)
- Understand obligations, know responsibilities and comply with law
- The polluter or landlord pays for remediation
- Desk top study; previous use, local history, planning register
- Contamination causes - heavy metals, radon, methane gas, diesel/oi/chemicals
- Signs of contamination - evidence of oil/chemicals/oil drums/ subsidence/ underground tanks/ bare ground
Causes of contamination
Heavy metals, radon, methane gas, diesel/oi/chemicals
Signs of contamination
Evidence of oil/chemicals/oil drums/ subsidence/ underground tanks/ bare ground
How many phases of environmental/ contamination investigation
3
What is involved in Phase 1 environmental/ contamination investigation
Review of site history with desk top study
Site inspection and investigation
What is involved in Phase 2 environmental/ contamination investigation
Investigation to identify nature + extent of contamination
Detailed soil samples taken using bore holes (intrusive)
What is involved in Phase 3 environmental/ contamination investigation
Remediation repot setting out remedial options with design requirements and monitoring standards
What to do if you suspect the site contains contamination
Suggest specialist report
What to do if you are instructed to value a site with contamination
- DO NOT provide advice until specialist report commissioned
- CAVEAT advice provided with appropriate declaimer, highlighting use of special assumption
- DEDUCT remediation cost from gross site value
What is Land Remediation Relief (LRR)
A form of tax relief that applies to contaminated or derelict land in the UK
What does Land Remediation Relief allow
Companies to claim 150% corporation tax deduction for expenditure in remediating certain contaminated or derelict sites, or those affected by invasive plants e.g. Japanese Knotweed
Deleterious materials can degrade with age causing what issues
Structural problems
Signs of potential problems with deleterious materials include
Brown staining on concrete, concrete frame buildings and 1960s/70s buildings, modern buildings
Types of deleterious materials
- Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC)
- High alumina cement
- Calcium chloride
- Woodwool shuttering
What does RAAC stand for
Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete
What is RAAC
A material used in construction in many buildings between 1960s-90s.
Presence confirmed in a range of public sector properties including hospitals & schools.
RAAC is susceptible to deterioration over time, especially in harsh environmental conditions
What happens when RAAC deteriorates
Structural issues, compromising safety and longevity of buildings
How to identify RAAC
- Lightweight, “bubbly” concrete panels
- Smooth, white or light grey finish
- Distinctive “V” shaped grooves where panels meet
Found in roofs, floors, and walls of buildings constructed between the 1950s and mid-1990s
What is a hazardous material
A material which is harmful to health
Examples of hazardous materials
- Asbestos
- Lead piping/ paint
- Radon gas
What should you do if you suspect hazardous materials
Recommend specialist reports and make appropriate assumptions in your advice
Always check contents of an asbestos report/ register
Where does surface water run off
Into the water course such as a soak away or a storm drain
Where does foul water drain
From soil pipes into a sewerage system (private or public)
Who own a private sewer from the boundary of the property
Statutory undertakers
What is Japanese Knotweed
An invasive plan which can damage hard surfaces such as foundations and tarmac
Why is Japanese Knotweed an issue, particularly to property lenders (who may refuse a loan if it is present or nearby the property)
- Not easy to control
- Costly to eradicate
- Specialist company must remove and dispose of it
What does Japanese Knotweed look like
Purple/green hollow stemmed with green leaves
How would a specialist remove Japanese Knotweed
- Legally
- Chemical treatment
- Digging out
- Removing from site
- Dispose in a licensed landfill site
In accordance with Environmental Protection Act 1990
Where to find RICS guidance on Japanese Knotweed
RICS Professional Standard: Japanese Knotweed and Residential Property 2022
RICS Professional Standard: Japanese Knotweed and Residential Property 2022 PURPOSE of this updated document
- Provide a more holistic assessment based on updated research
- Contains a decision tree based on risk level
- Straightforward and objective categorization of JK
= ENSURES CONFIDENCE AND TRUST
What Act prohibits allowing Japanese Knotweed to spread
Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
Penalty a Magistrates Court can impose for allowing Japanese Knotweed to spread
- Max fine of £5,000
- and/or Max prison sentence of 6 months
Penalty a Crown Court can impose for allowing Japanese Knotweed to spread
- Unlimited fine
- and/or max prison sentence of 2 years
Penalty a Local Authority can impose for allowing Japanese Knotweed to spread
Community Protection Notice (CPN) - if ignored then
- Fine of up to £2.5k per person
- Fine of up to £20 for an organisation
Examples of other invasive plants
Hogweed
Himalayan Balsam
Case law for invasive plants
Williams vs Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd 2018
Williams vs Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd 2018 outcome
Court of Appeal:
Network Rail liable for costs of treating invasive plant plus damages for the loss of use of their neighbours property even after the plant was treated (but not the reduced value of the property)
