QUESTION: We are selling our home and have a bid on it. But before the home inspector left, he shared some of the items of concern on his report.He said we had a small amount of carbon monoxide leaking from our heater and that it needed to be cleaned. He showed me how he tested it and explained to me that most inspectors do not even test half of the things that he was testing.I showed him our carbon monoxide monitor, and it was not reading dangerous levels.Regardless, we had a heating company come to our home and completely service the heater, and the service person said all was well.The servicer said it was common for carbon monoxide to leak when the burner is heating up.My gut feeling is that we are going to have to replace or give a credit at settlement for a new heater.We obviously would never want to sell our home to someone under any unsafe conditions.However, we have maintained and upgraded most areas of the home, and are now also being told how the electricity was done incorrectly or how the outlets aren’t grounded.My question: When it comes to inspections, is there a standard or code of conditions that must be tested and documented, or is it subject to the inspector?ANSWER: The American Society of Home Inspectors says that heating and electrical systems are among the items covered in a standard inspection.In the inspector’s opinion, and I don’t know the areas in which he is well-versed, the furnace required cleaning because he detected carbon monoxide when it was operating.So, in response, you had the furnace serviced. You should obtain something from the servicer to show this has been done.Carbon monoxide is a byproduct of incomplete combustion caused when there isn’t enough oxygen available to create carbon dioxide, and a dirty furnace is a common cause of this.What the servicer should have done was make sure that the problem had been taken care of.Does a small amount of carbon monoxide result every time a furnace comes on? I don’t know, but I placed a spare detector within six inches of our furnace on a cold evening in late March and it didn’t even burp when the furnace came on time and time again.The instructions even caution not to put the detector as close as I did, but still it continued to flash “0.”Electricity? If the buyers are concerned, they should have a licensed electrician inspect the work. In fact, the same goes for the furnace. Tell them to hire a HVAC company to inspect it if they are concerned with the inspector’s report.The home inspector association’s standards of conduct clearly state that if the buyer has concerns about the issues raised in the report, he or she should contact an independent expert to conduct further testing.That’s the buyer. Not the seller.If the buyer eventually wants you to lower your price, it is up to the buyer to present clear and indisputable reasons why.

QUESTION: We have 50-year-old fiberglass awnings that need to be updated. They are not falling apart, but their appearance needs to be updated.A couple of years ago, we power washed them, which brought up the fiber, and, consequently, the awnings showed dirt after a time.My husband is suggesting painting them.ANSWER: I don’t think you should have power washed the awnings, considering their age.This round, you might try washing them with soapy water, rinsing with a garden hose, wiping away stubborn stains with distilled vinegar or foaming them away with baking soda (all Internet ideas), and then sealing them with a coat of car wax.I wouldn’t paint them. Since they don’t owe you anything, and it has been 50 years, perhaps it is about time for new ones.