1365 Magnolia Avenue, Redding, CA 96001

A property condition assessment done in October 2018


1365 Magnolia Avenue, Redding, CA 96001
Multi-Family residence
Built in 1952
Total: 24,512 sq. ft. of habitable space

County: Shasta County

Site:
APN: 15310018
Acres: 0.96 acres [200 ft. X 210 ft.= 42000 sq. ft.]

Topography:
Relatively flat with slight slope towards creek to the south

Fencing around the property:
north: CMU retaining wall with wood fence on top
east: CMU retaining wall with chain link fence on top
south: CMU retaining wall along the creek

Parking:
Asphalt parking spaces in the rear (east) and side (south)
Total car port parking spaces: 41
Total uncovered parking spaces: 4
Total parking spaces: 45
ADA parking spaces: 0

Structure:
Two L-shaped two-story structures.
No basement
Concrete slab
Wood structure
Pitched Roof with composite shingles

Storm drainage:
Gutters with downspouts, courtyard side of the two buildings, take water to City storm drain.
In between the two structures and on north and south ends, pitched roof drops water to flatwork, sheetflow to drainage basins.

Facade:
Some wood siding
mostly stucco

Housing:
Total of 40 apartment units

Beds    Baths    # of Units    Average SF   
Studio    1 Bath    12    468 SF   
1 Bed    1 Bath    24    636 SF   
2 Beds    1 Bath    4    908 SF   

Amenities:
Office on second floor of north-side building
Laundromat on first floor (east end) of of north-side building
[2 washers, 2 dryers]
Laundromat on first floor (east end) of of south-side building
[2 washers, 2 dryers]
Elevated swimming pool (north-east corner of the property)--not heated; chain link fence around the pool;
BBQ area between the two structures
Designated smoking area in the rear parking space


HVAC:
electric heating
window air conditioners

Electricity: [City of Redding]
Each apartment individually metered.
240 V, 200 Amp to each apartment

Gas: [PG&E]
Each apartment individually metered.

Water: City of Redding

Sanitary Sewer: City of Redding

Storm drain: City of Redding

Trash: City of Redding

Seismic Zone: 3 (Peak Ground Acceleration:0.30g or less)

Flood Zone: Zone X Unshaded, defined as areas of minimal flood hazard.

Wind Zone:  I (130 mph)

Is an undersized gas line a safety concern?

 Is an undersized gas line a safety concern?

 

As a designer I often run into undersized gas lines.  This normally happens when more gas load is added to a correctly sized gas line.  For example, you have a 1” line serving a total load of 148 cubic feet per hour at a maximum length of 100 ft., but then you decided to add one more appliance that uses 50 cubic feet per hour of natural gas.  The existing one-inch gas line now becomes undersized. When all appliances are simultaneously working, the equipment that is farthest from the gas meter will hurt and you will not have the necessary gas flow to make the equipment run at its optimum condition.  

 

When does an undersized gas line become a safety issue?

In most cases an undersized gas line is not a safety concern.  If an appliance were going to use 100 Cubic feet per hour of gas, and now, because of the undersized gas line, it is getting only 50 cubic feet per hour then the appliance is only going to produce half the amount of heat it would have produced with the correctly sized gas line.  But under-performance of an appliance is not a direct safety concern.  It is just a myth that an undersized gas line helps build Carbon monoxide.  A combustion process using a hydrocarbon (such as the natural gas or Propane) produces Carbon dioxide and water (Carbon of the hydro-carbon fuel binding with Oxygen to produce CO2, and Hydrogen of the hydro-carbon fuel binding with Oxygen to produce water).  Carbon monoxide is produced when there is incomplete combustion i.e., there is a shortage of Oxygen (air).  An undersized gas line WILL NOT produce CO because you are not cutting down on air (Oxygen), you are reducing the amount of hydrocarbon to be burned.
An undersized gas line can be a safety concern in a quite different scenario.  Imagine a burner working with the optimum amount of fuel (gas) and air being delivered to it.  Now start reducing the amount of gas to the burner but keep the air coming in.  If the excess amount of air can put out the fire, then you have stopped the combustion process, but you still have the gas flowing to the burner.  In such a scenario the gas buildup can be a serious safety concern.

Tags: Low gas flow, health hazard, safety hazard, explosion, gas pipe sizing, gas line sizing, gas sizing, natural gas, Propane, Methane, Uniform Plumbing Code, Gas chart

Undersized gas line an explosion hazard?

Undersized gas line creating a health concern?

Elevator Control Room Air Conditioning

 Keep your elevator control room HVAC system simple.  If the elevator machine room is on the roof, and the room does not have fire-rated walls, you can use an exhaust fan to take the heat out of the room.  Bring make up air using a wall grille.  If the elevator machine room is surrounded by other spaces and the walls are rated, use a small split AC unit to cool down the room--the refrigerant pipes and the condensate drain penetration through the rated wall have to be protected.

 

 

 Tags

Elevator Control Room Air Conditioning

Elevator Machine Room Air Conditioning 

Elevator Room HVAC

Elevator Room Cooling in Northern California

Was Aluminum wiring ever used in California?

During the 1960s and 1970s, when Copper prices were high, Aluminum wiring as a replacement of Copper was used throughout North America.  And yes, many properties in California too were constructed with Aluminum wiring.  How do I know?  I assess properties.  A property I recently assessed in Northern California had Aluminum wiring that was replaced with Copper in 2018.   And before that, Aluminum wiring was reported by the owner of an apartment complex in Stockton--in August 2019.

 

Tags

Aluminum wiring hazards

Aluminum wiring fires

House burned down because of Aluminum wiring

Replacing Aluminum wiring with Copper