Between 2017 and 2020, Lou Rubino inspected two homes in Commack — two jobs, each with a written report, and the photographs below come from them. The reports describe a cape and a split, about 64 years old.
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Lou’s two summaries flagged 19 items Repair or Replace, most for the exterior (9), roof, chimney and attic (4) and kitchen (3). Each report, newest first, as Lou wrote it up.
2020, a cape, about 64 years old: 7 items flagged: 3 exterior; 2 roof, chimney and attic; 2 structure. As recorded: gable roof, architectural and asphalt/fiberglass, seen from: walked, framed with 2 x 6 rafters; attic: no storage and attic hatch in master closet, fiberglass, below and r-19 insulation, gable vents, ridge vents and soffit vents ventilation; brick and clapboard vinyl and full brick siding, chimney: brick; poured concrete foundation, 2 x 8 and 2"x 8"x 3ea main wood beam floor framing, steel lally columns; forced air heat on natural gas, 40 gallon (1-2 people) gas (quick recovery) water heater (basement and utility room); 100-amp circuit breakers (Crouse-Hinds), romex wiring, copper supply pipes, public water, air conditioner unit; sliders, thermal/insulated and awning basement windows, hardwood t&g, carpet and laminated t&g floors, laminate cabinets, laminate counters. Flagged, in Lou’s words: “Front knee-wall access panel in right side closet is nailed shut”; “Left rear knee-wall access panel unable to remove, cover hits laminate floor”; “Loose 1/2 brick, left side of sliding glass door”; “Loose soldier course brick, sliding glass door, right side”; “Loose soldier course brick near left side rear window”; “Metal trim on either side of sliding glass door needs to be caulked”; “Front stoop first step has been placed over paver walkway”; “Pavers under front step have dropped in elevation”; “Front walk pavers are uneven and falling off at edges”; “Tree left side hitting siding and roof”; “Window shutter left front paint is peeling”; “Left rear bedroom door not installed”; “Master bedroom rear window crank is missing”; “Left rear basement window well cover is broken”; “Termite mud tunnel at left rear basement window frame”; “Termite damage to sill plate behind water heater”. Also noted: “Keep an eye on wear of shingle on dormer”; “Temperature too cool to test”; “Heat and light function not working on exhaust fan”; “No current to left side switch”; “Average life span of a gas fired water heater is 13 years”; “Left side of panel two conductors not capped”; “Seal may be leaking at top of meter pan”; “Non-insulated metal ductwork is a huge heat loose”. On the day: 57°F, cloudy, damp ground, rain in the three days before. Not present in this house: food waste disposer; gas/lp firelogs and fireplaces; range hood; solid fuel heating devices; sump pump; trash compactor; vapor retarders; windows.
2017, a split: 12 items flagged: 6 exterior; 3 kitchen; 2 roof, chimney and attic. As recorded: hip roof, architectural and asphalt/fiberglass, seen from: walked roof, framed with 2 x 6 rafters; attic: attic hatch in master closet, fiberglass, below and r-19 insulation, ridge vents, soffit vents and passive ventilation; rock and mortar and clapboard vinyl and stone siding, chimney: brick, metal flue pipe and metal siding; poured concrete foundation, 2 x 8 floor framing, supporting walls, crawlspace: crawled; forced air heat on natural gas, 50 gallon (2-3 people) gas (quick recovery) water heater (basement and utility closet); 200-amp circuit breakers (Siemens), romex wiring, copper supply pipes, public water, air conditioner unit; double-hung and thermal/insulated windows, hardwood t&g and tile floors, wood cabinets, granite counters. Flagged, in Lou’s words: “Fireplace chimney cement cap is cracked, and side walls need pointing from top down to roof line”; “Splash blocks need to be placed under down spout leader elbows to channel water away from foundation”; “Rear sliding deck door does not have screen”; “Rear deck boards nails are popping”; “Rear rail top is dry-rotted”; “Entire deck needs to be water-proofed”; “Fence gates are hitting ground and double gate right side is not pool safe”; “Side fences are not pool safe”; “Left rear shed double doors don't close”; “Door lift springs, no safety cable installed”; “Convection fan not working”; “Microwave exhaust is not vented”; “Lights under unit not working”; “Master-bedroom closet sticks”; “Basement left front bedroom closet missing hatch door for crawl space”; “Fans should always exhaust to exterior”. Also noted: “Tub stopper and control lever missing”; “Sink drain pipe installation is incomplete”; “Fan is exhausting into attic”; “Toilet Tank water float valve is broken”; “Only visible in small crawlspace under front entrance”; “Water meter in front lawn right side of driveway”; “Outside to left of garage door”; “No ground cable noted for pool pump motors”; “Old copper heat pipes exiting floor in utility closet”; “Boiler chimney flue is stainless steel lined”; “Remote fireplace damper on top of flue pipe”. On the day: 50°F, clear, damp ground, rain in the three days before; the house faces west. Not inspected that day: ceilings; floors; insulation under floor system; plumbing water faucets. Not present in this house: clothes dryer; clothes dryer vent piping; clothes washer; food waste disposer; gas/lp firelogs and fireplaces; trash compactor; vapor retarders; windows.
“Flagged” is HomeGauge’s Repair or Replace mark, not a verdict on the house. See a complete report.
Related: The Suffolk County page · What an inspection costs · Schedule an inspection.
All three photographs are from Lou's own Commack inspection reports, chosen because they show a building component and nothing that identifies a property or an owner.
Median year built in zip 11725: 1964 (Suffolk County: 1970). Of 9,452 units, the 1960s built the most, 41%; 2% is from 2000 on. Next come the 1950s at 31% and the 1980s at 9%. An older house is not a worse house, but its wiring, plumbing and roof were installed under different rules and replaced piecemeal, which is what the inspection looks for. Lou’s reports here: 64 years old. (ACS)
74% utility gas, 20% fuel oil or kerosene; fuel oil 20% against 45% county-wide. NYSDEC logs 183 petroleum spills at private homes in Commack since 1986, 51 since 2015. 8 were logged in 2012, the year of Hurricane Sandy. Ask about a tank, and for closure papers. A tank can be buried in the yard or sit in the basement, and a removed one should come with paperwork. Buried tanks are outside the standards New York sets for a home inspection, so the seller’s answer matters. (ACS, NYSDEC)
91% detached houses; 93% owner-occupied (Suffolk County: 82%). Detached houses dominate, so most inspections here run from the roof to the foundation of one building. (ACS)
Town of Smithtown: 64 basement tests, average 2.94 pCi/L, 8 at 4 or above (13%). Suffolk County: 8% of 576. First-floor tests there: 18, average 1.01. On the share at 4 or above, it ranks 1st of the county’s 10 towns and cities. The highest basement reading was 42.6 pCi/L. EPA’s action level is 4 pCi/L, and it advises testing every home whatever the area’s results. Radon testing is optional. (NYSDOH)
38 flood-insurance claims from zip 11725 since 1978, most in 1979 (10): 118th of the 189 zips on these pages. A claim count describes the zip, not the house. Flood zones follow the address. Check the address on FEMA’s map. (OpenFEMA)
The Town of Smithtown Building Department. Your attorney usually runs the search. The inspection reports the condition of what is there and flags work that typically needs a permit, such as a finished basement, a dormer or a moved panel, so you know what to ask about.
The New York State Uniform Code, the Suffolk County Water Authority and private wells, and the Sanitary Code rules on cesspools (no in-kind replacement since 2017) and I/A septic systems: county-wide, written once. They are the same for every town in Suffolk County, so they are set out there with their sources instead of on each page.
Lou quotes the actual property, not a flat rate — what drives the price is size, age and what is included. The written report arrives the same day as a rule; a large or complex house can run to the next morning. Call or text 516-330-3870.
Lou covers Long Island, the five boroughs and Westchester from his base in Wantagh, and the archive behind these pages shows where that work has actually concentrated.
Nearby towns Lou has inspected: Kings Park · Smithtown · Dix Hills · Hauppauge · Huntington Station · Central Islip · all 250 towns.
His Commack file goes back to 2017. Yours would not be the first.
Not sure yet? Read what New York requires of your inspector or see a real report.