At Morgan Inspection Services, we use an infrared camera on all of our home inspections to help us to see things that otherwise might be invisible. What exactly is an infrared camera and what does it do? Infrared is part of the non-visible wavelength of light. Heat creates infrared energy. So basically, an infrared camera is a camera that can see heat (and cold). Infrared cameras, or thermal imaging, sees heat differences, and these heat differences are often clues to hidden problems.
A home inspector who is also a Certified Residential Thermographer can use an infrared camera to look for thermal anomalies (indications of hot or cold areas that look a little out of the ordinary.) Since water cools as it evaporates, it produces a very obvious cold spot. Likewise, the flow of electricity heats up wires, switches, connections, appliances, etc. This is normal. But if there is a damaged or loose electrical connection, then that connection will most likely be hotter than the rest of the area, and will stand out as a hot spot to a thermal camera.
To show how sensitive the camera is, the photo above is a picture of a wall after putting my hand on it for about 2 seconds.
This photo shows the recliner where I was sitting when I wrote this blog.
A thermal camera is NOT x-ray vision. It does not see through walls, ceilings, or anything else. All it can do is look at the temperature (or heat signature) of whatever is in front of the camera. Having said this, if there is water or a wet spot in a wall, or an electrical issue in a wall that makes the visible part of the wall colder or warmer than the rest of the wall, then the thermal camera will be able to see it. Sometimes what the camera sees are serious issues that would not be discovered without the use of a thermal camera – at least not until the damage gets worse and more costly to repair, and finally becomes visible inside the home.
Here are some examples of things that we and other inspectors have found with thermal imaging
A normal-looking bedroom wall.
With thermal imaging, it was very apparent that the shower on the other side of this wall was leaking into the wall.
What you see- a normal-looking breaker.
With the thermal camera, it was apparent that one of the connections was overheating and needed to be addressed.
This is what it looks like to the normal eye.
With a thermal camera, we can see that water has gotten behind the siding because no kickout flashing was installed.
A junction of a ceiling and wall.
With thermal imaging, it was obvious that there was an electrical issue in the attic that needed to be addressed.
In each of the cases shown above, none of these problems would have been identified during the course of a normal home inspection without the use of thermal imaging. While thermal imaging is not a guarantee that all such issues will be discovered, it will give your inspector a much greater chance of identifying such issues during your home inspection.
© 2022 Mike Morgan
This article was written by Mike Morgan, the owner of Morgan Inspection Services. Morgan Inspection Services has been providing home, septic and well inspection services throughout the central Texas area since 2002. He can be reached at 325-998-4663 or at mike@morganinspectionservices.com. No article, or portion thereof, may be reproduced or copied without prior written consent of Mike Morgan.