Ok so I am selling my house. The pool inspector came out and said my pump was at the end of its service life and it was making a loud noise. Problem is I just had the pump serviced and new bearings, seal, gasket and impellar. The noise level is a lot lower than what it was and it's cooler to the touch. I think he just looked at the housing and said it was old. That guy works at a pool service company so it works for him to have people just replace the parts I stead of service them. What should I do?
Pool inspection said pump is going bad
- Thread starter notactjack
- Start date
After a number of inspections over the years I find that inspectors fell like they MUST come up with problems. A former home inspector told me that he was to have at least 12 items listed in his report that needed attention. Or he was not to leave the site.
All theses things are negotiable too. Being able to debunk the inspector and show a receipt that you have taken care of something and doing your part counts. Buyers can ask and you can counter offer. If they ask for a new pump then offer the cost of the motor only (if you just have a fixed HP pump). It is u nreasonable to expect everything new on a resale.
Did he find anything else?
Has the owner already asked for a new pump?
All theses things are negotiable too. Being able to debunk the inspector and show a receipt that you have taken care of something and doing your part counts. Buyers can ask and you can counter offer. If they ask for a new pump then offer the cost of the motor only (if you just have a fixed HP pump). It is u nreasonable to expect everything new on a resale.
Did he find anything else?
Has the owner already asked for a new pump?
- Nov 12, 2017
- 11,908
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Ha, home inspectors, gotta love 'em.
I can only speak for CA, but here you'd be under no obligation to fix a pump that is working, that's for sure. In my area, pool's are "free" when you buy a house. They usually add no value in terms of sale price. So the buyers want something fixed, that isn't broken, on something they're getting for free? Uh, thanks for stopping by, watch that screen door there on your way out.
I've sold a few homes that could have used some fixing up. I just said, "Yep, that sure could use some attention. But the sale is "as is" and here's my price. Take it or leave it."
That might not work in your neck of the woods, and maybe you need to do everything you can to make a buyer happy. I wouldn't know. But everything is negotiable, and I wouldn't hand over a thousand bucks to a "pool inspector" just to line his pockets, just because he said so.
You wouldn't replace floors just because the realtor said "Hey, these floors are old and they're not going to last forever." Let the buyers fix it if they want it fixed, right after they buy the house!
Good luck with your sale!
I can only speak for CA, but here you'd be under no obligation to fix a pump that is working, that's for sure. In my area, pool's are "free" when you buy a house. They usually add no value in terms of sale price. So the buyers want something fixed, that isn't broken, on something they're getting for free? Uh, thanks for stopping by, watch that screen door there on your way out.
I've sold a few homes that could have used some fixing up. I just said, "Yep, that sure could use some attention. But the sale is "as is" and here's my price. Take it or leave it."
That might not work in your neck of the woods, and maybe you need to do everything you can to make a buyer happy. I wouldn't know. But everything is negotiable, and I wouldn't hand over a thousand bucks to a "pool inspector" just to line his pockets, just because he said so.
You wouldn't replace floors just because the realtor said "Hey, these floors are old and they're not going to last forever." Let the buyers fix it if they want it fixed, right after they buy the house!
Good luck with your sale!
Yeah we aren't fixing any cosmetic, issues. But they asked for a new pump. Also I had a waterline tile break off and I don't mind getting that repaired. I called the inspector and asked him how he determined it was "at the end of its service life" he said he never said that and the I told him I just replaced the bearings and he said well the motor is going out. Which doesn't make sense because the bearings are what make contact.
borjis
LifeTime Supporter
I had some of that on my first home purchase. I wanted and paid for a pool inspection.
There were legit items, like the low ph (from tabs being used) and the gfi not working on the pool light.
Oh and of course, LOL he said NOTHING about the 300+ CYA levels I later discovered.
But he also claimed the brand new 3/4 hp pump motor was not powerful enough for the solar heating system and that was dead wrong.
There were legit items, like the low ph (from tabs being used) and the gfi not working on the pool light.
Oh and of course, LOL he said NOTHING about the 300+ CYA levels I later discovered.
But he also claimed the brand new 3/4 hp pump motor was not powerful enough for the solar heating system and that was dead wrong.
ZcottD
0
You can't win with home inspectors. I had a home inspector tell me I needed to put in all new smoke/CO detectors, which I had already done 2 days prior to the inspection. I would just give them a copy of the receipt and let them know its in good shape. If they have a lot of little things they are worried about, theres some insurance/warranty thing the selling can usually buy thats in the $500-700 range, not sure if it would cover the pool equipment, but I bought that for the buyers when I sold my house instead of fixing a ton of little things.
- Nov 12, 2017
- 11,908
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Well, my focus would not be on the pump. Because that's not likely what this is about. You have every logical reason to push back about the pump, and I'd be sorely tempted to myself, because it's a silly, short-sighted request, in the grand scheme of things, and the darn thing is working! The buyer's want to win this negotiation. They want to feel like they got a better deal than they should have, somehow, through their genius negotiating skills. It's human nature when you're spending this kind of money. Just like it was explained that the inspector had to find something, even where nothing was wrong, the buyers have to get something out of you, just so they can say they did. They know they can't come after any "cosmetic" stuff. So they've glommed on to a pool pump, of all things. And maybe, if you're honest with yourself, you're only going to all this trouble about the pump for a similar reason? So they don't get that $500 out of you?
If the house has been long on market, and you haven't gotten many looks or offers, don't let $500 blow the deal. If you've got open houses full of people and multiple offers flying around, then go tell these buyers to pound sand.
In other words, I'd worry less about the pump and what the inspector said and bearings and what not, and more about the house-selling strategy that is behind this all. What is your realtor advising? What's his commission? Ask him to pony up for the pump! He will if he wants this sale bad enough. Like it's been said, everything is negotiable.
If it comes down to it, tell the buyers (you know, thru the realtors) that while the pump is fine as is, you want them to be happy and enjoy the pool. But instead of you paying to have the pump fixed or replaced with the cheapest thing you can find (paraphrasing), that you'd rather they accept x-dollars in "cash/discount" so that they can upgrade the pump to something better. This will sound like a magnanimous gesture to them, it'll put cash in their hands, which is all they really want, and you can offer them half of what it would cost you to put in a new pump. Win-win.
Just another spin on it...
This is the black and white answer to your "issue."
Dirk brings up some realpolitik considerations although I doubt the buyers would break their contract over a pool pump with current service/repaired records or they'd be risking their earnest money.
The "problem" with inspections is that they work for whoever paid for their services and if the buyer paid for it then, like my buddy who does A/C says, "when I come to your home to service it then I'm there for an entirely different purpose than when I come to inspect something before you buy it," which roughly translates into, "The additional couple hundred dollars I charge over a normal service visit for a pre-purchase inspection buys you some negotiating points."
Unfortunately, ou don't even have a guarantee the report is about your property. A couple days before the buyer of my condo closed on the property, her agent sent my agent an email asking if I knew why the GFCIs in the kitchen weren't working, why the light "fixtures" didn't work (my first clue), and whether there was a problem or if the circuit breakers were just off. I read through the report to verify what I suspected: the report had pictures of my condo but all of the descriptions couldn't have been for my condo. My condo doesn't have light fixtures because we remodeled it with can lights throughout the first floor. Maybe someone might call recessed lights "fixtures" but they'd have a more difficult time explaining why he suggested the gas line be capped off correctly (21 town home "condos" and none of them even have gas run to them when they were built!) and questionable expertise on his opinion that the stairs were "non-standard" and should be verified to be "code compliant" ...I should have forwarded that to the inspectors for giggles.
In any case, I simply went into the condo and took video of me plugging a lamp into every outlet and testing the GFCIs and flipping the light switches so the agent could see everything worked properly. I never heard anything back...not even a thank you when I listed all of the issues and concerns over the report and suggested the buyer get her money back.
A proper inspection is neutral, I’m disappointed to read about the AC contractor & he likely doesn’t understand the implications & liabilities of errors & omissions.
CT requires a license to inspect.
When I inspect, it doesn’t matter who paid me - the reports will be identical.
CT requires a license to inspect.
When I inspect, it doesn’t matter who paid me - the reports will be identical.
- Nov 12, 2017
- 11,908
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
I suspect that's very true, but I was cautious about saying that out loud. (And a buyer can almost always get out of losing earnest money, at least here in CA.) Buyers can be fickle, sensitive, superstitious, the works. You never know. If they're looking at more than one property, and can't decide, sometimes all it takes is a little "feel good" to make the difference. That's what I meant by "don't let $500 blow the deal." Sometimes that's all it takes. And if the seller loses an offer, and it takes another week or two for the next one to come around, that $500 goes poof: mortgage, utilities, etc.
So off topic! But I hope the OP finds some value in the discussion...
There's no reason to be disappointed by what I wrote. In my post, I specifically limited what he was talking about to the difference between a "service" call and an "inspection" -- not the difference between a buyer vs. a seller paying for an inspection.
The "problem" of how inspections are generated has more to do with the asymmetry of an inspection's utility; I was not referring to bias in reporting. The report may be neutral, but even a neutral report places buyers and sellers at odds with one another and provides a buyer with more leverage over a seller.
This report says: "Pump present, pump operational, pump is X years old [end of service life, etc.]"
In this situation, since we are discussing the issue with the seller, the report presents a problem (even with it being completely neutral) because it is revealing potential concerns (which is its intended purpose): the pump is on the downslope of its life expectancy.
Based on this report, the buyer wants a new pump whereas the seller sees a functional pump present.
This "neutral" report provides information to the buyer that can be used during negotiations but fails to provide the seller similar utility. At best, an inspection could come back clean so that the seller can sigh in relief but can't ask for more money. A report's utility, even neutral ones, are more beneficial to a buyer than a seller during negotiations.
Dirk,
In this scenario, I expect the house to be under contract already or they wouldn't be doing inspections.
When I author a report, its utility is of zero consequence to my assessment.
If the report buyer intends to leverage or negate a contention, so be it.
If the report buyer intends to leverage or negate a contention, so be it.
I'm confused as to what you're trying to clarify with your response. My comments aren't an indictment of the inspector or the report itself and I'm confused why you continue to read them in that way despite my clarification.
Regardless, I'm not going to get into a flexing match with members of this forum and sorry if my posts came off that way.
You aren't likely to gain any traction with this inspector for a variety of reasons. One of the reasons is that he's made an assessment based on his personal/professional opinion and changing that conclusion after the fact undermines his expertise.
If you want a shot at a different conclusion, you'll need a different inspection only this time have all of your documentation at the ready. And, if you haven't already, make sure any documentation is on hand, in the open, in your agent's possession before any other inspections occur so you don't encounter similar issues.
- Jun 7, 2017
- 9,155
- Pool Size
- 29000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Jandy Aquapure 1400
I'd say no how , no way it comes as is. No one is going to back out of a house contract over a pool pump.
Ok My issue is resolved. I gave the seller the receipts of all the new pump parts I bought. Bearings, seals, gaskets, and a whole new grid system for the filter. I also issued a credit for the total of the tile line repair. All is good now.
Unfortunately the pool inspector works for the local pool builder/pool supply company that I buy supplies at and go to for issues. Now when I questioned him about determining the pool pump was bad he said he didn't say it was bad, or at its service life. He stated they asked about the noise and he told them that means the bearings are going out. So I told him they are new bearings and he says well maybe the damaged bearings caused the motor to be damaged. (which is a lie he just thinks I don't understand mechanics or electrical motors at all.) I would think maybe there is elevated noise because my pump sits between my house and echoes off my concrete block fence/wall. Or the simple answer to any component is to just replace it. since he works at a place that sells motors that's an easy answer. Anyway I allowed the credit just to be done with this deal. Now time to buy a carbon monoxide detector and I'm good to go.
Unfortunately the pool inspector works for the local pool builder/pool supply company that I buy supplies at and go to for issues. Now when I questioned him about determining the pool pump was bad he said he didn't say it was bad, or at its service life. He stated they asked about the noise and he told them that means the bearings are going out. So I told him they are new bearings and he says well maybe the damaged bearings caused the motor to be damaged. (which is a lie he just thinks I don't understand mechanics or electrical motors at all.) I would think maybe there is elevated noise because my pump sits between my house and echoes off my concrete block fence/wall. Or the simple answer to any component is to just replace it. since he works at a place that sells motors that's an easy answer. Anyway I allowed the credit just to be done with this deal. Now time to buy a carbon monoxide detector and I'm good to go.
We just sold a house. We didn't have a pool, but I'm familiar with the 'end of life' comments. I think they use general industry assumptions, like a gas water heater is typically good for X years, a shingle roof is good for X, years, etc. Our buyers report called out almost every thing, as the house is 11 years old and everything is original.
I would say, no repairs will be done on the pump, as you just had it rebuilt and it is fully operational. Provide proof if you can. You could always throw in a home warranty. But, if I was the seller, I would just refuse. Our inspection called out some warped vinyl, and we said we weren't replacing because we already replaced it last March, and it happened again, due to the reflection of the sun. We showed pictures from last March, and the buyer was OK with it.
But, beware, that underwriters and appraisers can request repairs nowadays too! The buyers appraisal was contingent upon us spray painting some aluminum posts, pressure washing the house and replacing the stupid warped vinyl the buyer was OK with. Wth? They probably won't over a pool pump, but they can do whatever they want. Ugh.
Good luck!
I would say, no repairs will be done on the pump, as you just had it rebuilt and it is fully operational. Provide proof if you can. You could always throw in a home warranty. But, if I was the seller, I would just refuse. Our inspection called out some warped vinyl, and we said we weren't replacing because we already replaced it last March, and it happened again, due to the reflection of the sun. We showed pictures from last March, and the buyer was OK with it.
But, beware, that underwriters and appraisers can request repairs nowadays too! The buyers appraisal was contingent upon us spray painting some aluminum posts, pressure washing the house and replacing the stupid warped vinyl the buyer was OK with. Wth? They probably won't over a pool pump, but they can do whatever they want. Ugh.
Good luck!
borjis
LifeTime Supporter
Awesome they accepted the receipts as proof the pump is fine and you credited for tile repair.
I would have done the same if I was the buyer.
I would have done the same if I was the buyer.