Between 2016 and 2020, Lou Rubino inspected two homes in Woodbury — two jobs, each with a written report, and the photographs below come from them. The reports describe a center hall colonial and a town home, from 33 to 36 years old.
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Lou’s two summaries flagged 22 items Repair or Replace, most for the exterior (8), roof, chimney and attic (6) and kitchen (3). Each report, newest first, as Lou wrote it up.
2020, a town home, about 36 years old: 4 items flagged: 1 roof, chimney and attic; 1 exterior; 1 garage. As recorded: gable roof, architectural and asphalt/fiberglass, seen from: walked, framed with 2" x 4" engineered wood trusses and 2 x 6 engineered wood trusses; attic: scuttle hole in closet, fiberglass, below and r-19 insulation, ridge vents, soffit vents and passive ventilation; clapboard vinyl siding, chimney: vinyl siding; poured concrete foundation, engineered floor trusses floor framing, supporting walls; 50 gallon (2-3 people) electric water heater (basement and utility room); 200-amp circuit breakers (Ite), romex wiring, copper supply pipes, public water, heat pump forced air; sliders and thermal/insulated windows, hardwood t&g and carpet floors, wood cabinets, granite counters. Flagged, in Lou’s words: “Rear leader pipe needs splash block raised up”; “Large oak tree front branches overhanging garage roof, filling up gutters with debris”; “Large evergreens in rear overhanging deck and A/C condenser filling up with pine needles”; “Safety item:Garage door lift spring safety cables not installed”; “Base cabinet draws, have a lot of side to side movement and are not ball bearing smooth glide”; “Draws can not be opened to far or they will fall out”; “Side missing from counter cabinet”; “Left front bedroom, window screen missing”; “In basement under fireplace, water stain on ceiling tile”; “Area is dry now, may have been from water leaking down chimney when rain cap was no installed on chimney”; “Photo of access panel covers needed in basement, right front room for main water valve, waste pipe clean out access”; “Vinyl exhaust pipe in attic is torn”; “Tape peeling at corner near skylight”; “Sheetrock is discolored around A/C register”. Also noted: “Concrete block firewall has no gaps in attic”; “GFCI outlet in rear of garage is the master GFCI for all baths”; “Water heater date of manufacture is Aug 2020”; “Fireplace damper is rusted, most likely from water intrusion down chimney before rain cap was installed”; “Safety item: Exterior outlet not GFCI protected”. On the day: 65°F, clear, damp ground, no rain in the three days before; the house faces east. Not present in this house: basement windows; burner; combustion air; food waste disposer; fuel storage and distribution systems; gas meter; gas/lp firelogs and fireplaces; instant hot water; main fuel shut off; range hood; sump pump; trash compactor; vapor retarders; ventilation fans and thermostatic controls; windows.
2016, a center hall colonial, about 33 years old: 18 items flagged: 7 exterior; 5 roof, chimney and attic; 2 kitchen. As recorded: gable roof, architectural and asphalt/fiberglass, seen from: walked roof, framed with 2 x 8 rafters; attic: light in attic, no storage and attic hatch in master closet, fiberglass, below and r-19 insulation, gable vents, ridge vents and thermostatically controlled fan ventilation; cement stucco and t-111 stucco siding, chimney: masonry stucco; poured concrete foundation, 2 x 10 and 2 x12x 3ea main wood beam floor framing, hollow steel lally columns; hydronic heat on gas, 50 gallon (2-3 people) gas (quick recovery) water heater (basement and utility room); 200-amp circuit breakers (Square D), romex wiring, copper supply pipes, public water, air conditioner unit; double-hung, thermal/insulated and awning windows, hardwood t&g, carpet and vinyl floors, laminate cabinets, granite counters. Flagged, in Lou’s words: “No metal flashing around chimney”; “Rear skylight needs roofing cement along top side”; “Cement chimney cap is cracked both chimneys”; “Garage roof vent packed with leaves”; “Attic hatch cover in master closet is too small for opening and not insulated”; “Trim on roof of garage at house wall is ripped”; “Did not see water grooves under styrofoam stucco for drainage behind stucco”; “Grooved styrofoam was not invented then”; “Left rear door dead bolt does not line up with latch plate”; “Left rear storm door handle broken, and lock sticks”; “Caution: Left rear wood steps are loose”; “Front brick walkway is uneven large depression on left side”; “Tree encroaching on right side of front walk”; “Tree rubbing on garage roof”; “Tree hitting right side of roof and house”; “Caution: tree-house ladder is dry rotted”; “Tree house roof is unstable”; “Whole tree house is out of level”; “Net posts are out of plumb and footing are turning up both sides”; “Basketball backstop support is out of plumb”. Also noted: “Tree debris laying on roof”; “Caution child hazard: Railing to basement steps is loose and balusters missing”; “Railing to second floor is loose and balusters too far apart”; “Second floor landing balusters too far apart”; “Tile missing from behind toilet left side”; “Caution could not determine if jacuzzi is on GFCI circuit”; “Screw covers missing from johnny bolts”; “Water heaters typically last 10 to 15 years depending on usage”; “Outside left front to left of meter”; “Not able to test pump, strongly”; “Shelf braces placed over main panel cover”; “Pool sub-panel has water inside, this is not a water proof enclosure”; “Zone valve wet and rusted from water leak”. On the day: 75°F, cloudy, damp ground, rain in the three days before; the house faces NE. Not inspected that day: ceilings; insulation under floor system; service entrance conductors; sump pump; surface walls and floor of pool; vapor retarders. Not present in this house: can fence be climbed by the use of personal items or structures against fence; cooling and air handler equipment; electric lights secure; food waste disposer; gas/lp firelogs and fireplaces; heating equipment; hot water systems, controls, chimneys, flues and vents; interior drain, waste and vent systems; interior water supply and distribution systems and fixtures; microwave cooking equipment; pumps for vacuum or cleaning; windows.
“Flagged” is HomeGauge’s Repair or Replace mark, not a verdict on the house. See a complete report.
Related: The Nassau County page · What an inspection costs · Schedule an inspection.
Both photographs are from Lou's own Woodbury inspection reports, chosen because they show a building component and nothing that identifies a property or an owner.
Median year built in zip 11797: 1980 (Nassau County: 1955). Of 3,194 units, the 1980s built the most, 25%; 14% is from 2000 on. Next come the 1960s at 17% and the 1970s at 15%. 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: 33 to 36 years old. (ACS)
51% utility gas, 30% fuel oil or kerosene; fuel oil 30% against 28% county-wide. NYSDEC logs 138 petroleum spills at private homes in Woodbury since 1986, 34 since 2015. 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)
55% detached houses, 21% attached single-family houses, 8% buildings of 10 to 19 units; 87% owner-occupied (Nassau County: 82%). Detached houses dominate, so most inspections here run from the roof to the foundation of one building. Lou’s jobs here included a condominium. (ACS)
Town of Oyster Bay: 231 basement tests, average 1.79 pCi/L, 20 at 4 or above (9%). Nassau County: 6% of 837. First-floor tests there: 65, average 0.92. On the share at 4 or above, it ranks 2nd of the county’s 5 towns and cities. The highest basement reading was 13.9 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)
43 flood-insurance claims from zip 11797 since 1978, most in 1978 (9): 108th 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 Oyster Bay Department of Planning & Development, Building Division. 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, groundwater from 46 public water systems, the county sewer-connection rule and the Article XI heating-oil tank closure program: county-wide, written once. They are the same for every town in Nassau 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: Syosset · Plainview · Cold Spring Harbor · East Norwich · Melville · Jericho · all 250 towns.
His Woodbury file goes back to 2016. Yours would not be the first.
Not sure yet? Read what New York requires of your inspector or see a real report.