trend micro

yesterday, November 12, 2019, we got an email from trend micro. 

"On or around August 29, 2019, Trend Micro became aware...it was not until October 29, 2019 that we were able to definitively conclude that a Trend Micro employee used fraudulent means to gain access to a customer support data base that contained names, email addresses, Trend Micro support ticket numbers, and in some instances telephone numbers." 

don't you just love companies that talk-the-talk but don't walk-the-walk? personally, I'd like to be part of a class action lawsuit that puts Trend Micro out of business. !@#$%^&*! 🤬

Trend Micro rogue employee exposes customer data - BBC News 

lennox heat pump and mountain valley home comfort

problem: the "fan only" mode in our less-than-two-year-old lennox heat pump stopped working. 

the fan works in the heat and cool modes.

mountain valley home comfort (https://mvhc.net) says that we need a new fan motor. what? the fan works in the heat and cool modes. we ask MVHC questions: 

• our question: why does the fan motor need to be replaced when it works in the heat and cool modes?
• MVHC's answer: "your motor is working, but not working properly".
• our reply: "your motor is working, but not working properly" doesn't answer our question. the problem seems to us more like a signal or wiring problem than a motor problem. please have a technical person knowledgeable of the workings of the heat pump, including control, contact us with an answer to our question.
• MVHC's answer: "you're right, there may be a signal or wiring problem. the motors come with a module attached to their base that is the "communications/wiring" part of the motor. there is a chance that's where the problem is. I will have the technician call you..."
• our reply/questions: is the control for the fan motor part of the fan motor itself, or are they two separate parts? if they're not separate parts, then why not? it seems to us that they should be.
• MVHC did not answer these two questions. also, the promised call from a MVHC technician never came.

MVHC insisted that the fan motor needs to be replaced. we were told earlier by the MVHC service call technician that diagnosed the problem in our home that the fan motor costs somewhere in the vicinity of $1700 (part only). 

$1700 for a fan motor that doesn't last 2 years!?! does this sound fishy to you? yes? us too.

kid holding his nose from bad odor, isolated on white | Flickr

public domain

I'm not an HVAC expert--FAR from it. needless to say, I want the people that I'm paying to be HVAC experts to know more about HVAC than I do. with MVHC, I wonder if that's the case.

virginia dmv real ID ruse

so, 

"Virginians now have the option to upgrade to a REAL ID compliant driver’s license or identification card, or stick with DMV’s standard credential."   Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles 

so, that's what my wife and I do. we take all of our paperwork to the dmv. we get our real ID licenses back in the mail. great!

then, we go to use them. we book an alaska cruise on princess cruise lines.

we can't use them. it seems that virginia dmv isn't going to activate them until october 2020.

WTH!!!! 

weather.gov

for those like me who respect privacy, turn back the clock to the day when you could get your local weather forecast with a simple phone call. you didn't have to reveal your exact "location" to a website so that they can sell your address and other personal information to private vendors to pester you with their advertising--e.g., weather.com. 

I finally gave up on weather.com when I couldn't get my local weather forecast without revealing my exact location. I'd enter my town and state and get weather for some other location--goodbye weather.com.

use weather.gov instead of weather.com and you can get your local weather forecast and keep your privacy by not giving up your exact location and other personal information to pesky vendors.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US-NationalWeatherService-Logo.svg

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [Public domain]

strasburg, va--the same--yesterday, today & tomorrow

Strasburg council deadlocks on proffer vote | Nvdaily | nvdaily.com 

strasburg would have more public participation if it unstuck itself from the 1950s. the town of strasburg looks today like it did 50 years ago--and 50 years from now will look the same as it looks today. check out its poor streets and sidewalks, lack of quality stores, restaurants, attractions, businesses and well-maintained and safe parks (customer talk: riverwalk, town park, strasburg, virginia), its website (Home Page | Town of Strasburg Virginia), its FB page (Town of Strasburg - Home), etc. compare strasburg with nearby woodstock, stephens city, middletown, edinburg, etc.

... hair tonic Detective! | James Vaughan | Flickr

labeled for noncommercial reuse

spam email from the united kingdom

following are spam email addresses that I input into AOL's spam blocker.

a bunch of them are "... .uk" united kingdom. aka great britain, england.

these are the worst. 

when will these idiots realize that harassing a potential customer is not the way to make a sale? 

095160621.40478557765243@shoponline.more4horses.com.au

1PcQaABQjH@9BQc8.pf0

3DVzi9h2hY@0A7oq.E2H

3s5Yky9.mD2A2EY5w5x@sink.offersforlife.co.uk

4PFsjhja5E@cKuzA.w1T

5LpwsaYrXg5LpwsaYrXg@s3G2f.2ih

9fNbkH5Emx@4vKj3.5gr

AsianDating@ightfistedbrick.net

BadCreditLoan@diligentscene.net

CreditCard@leftlumber.net

D2mDd2N.Fd1gi3j8gv1@trax.fashionylife.com

DownChic@rowput.com

IndianDating@machofaucet.net

MatureDating@eagerengine.net

RecycleCellPhonesforCash@eagerengine.net

RecycleCellPhonesforCash@remendoussoup.net

SatelliteTVpromotions@delightfulgroup.net

UJSKIF25FR@Mars.getwhatyousee.co.uk

UJSKIF25FR@fund.getwhatyousee.co.uk

UJSKIF25FR@ice.fashionylife.com

UJSKIF25FR@reshut.takendeals.biz

UJSKIF25FR@soul.fashionylife.com

UJSKIF25FR@warm.getwhatyousee.co.uk

UJSKIF25FR@weak.getwhatyousee.co.uk

agcysqmu@gky.net

alert@date.com

asn@libraryreach.net

bankofamerica@customerloyalty.bankofamerica.com

beststorecenter@originalbeststorecenter.com

booty_alerts@evepor.com

brunocosentino@rogers.com

cassualpromo@topcassualpromo.com

cigtrialpack@chartreuseville.com

claimrewardsupdate@beseteren.info

cschnackel@hotmail.com

davisondesign@nextworksoptimize.com

eQKhkNj.szmqWvTsym3@row.fashionylife.com

email@shopinbuck.com

erika.sassy@moptaste.com

ezines@arcamax.com

fun_alert@dvepor.com

greatamericanburgerbash@unitedwebmailzone.com

iamsophie@evepor.com

info@creativenetgrouponline.com

info@eversave.com

info@taxsimple.com

loneley.cheating.wives@postgra.com

lonelycheatingwives@wyrots.com

mail@favecrafts.com

meetsophie@barrowers.com

meetsophie@mowface.com

melanie@biz-hunter.com

moVtRQN3Ts@aPKab.P2e

movhioavfa@acsusa.org

notificationdept@ourquickfinancecenter.com

postmaster@debtwealthmoney.com

printablecoupons@mail-cidbotanicals.com

q11ouZK838@Je71d.WDk

qGZH6ti.MqThDvBE3JA@give.mindblowingdeals.email

qQW78lc.8K41wmxVtBz@text.getwhatyousee.co.uk

rhLI2AovB6@w87K2.1z3

sailer@bagr.de

sales@dstress.com

seabourn@dm-4.com

secure-users@americanexpress.com

smartcouponsaver@shopingexperienceteam.com

spm@calendarflip.net

spm@coatcover.net

stock@johnnydepot.com

sugah@yahoo.com

support@frametowall.com

texaswatch@texaswatch.org

three.putt@hotmail.com

wbuffet@wartytoad.com

wbufftet@wallawallamore.com

whwjipqmeu@fetchmail.com

winnernotices@johnnysdepot.com

zmufmogexe@000139.com

zoloftlawsuit@affordbeyond.com

image by JD Hancock

1983 I'm Surrounded By Idiots Pin | "I'm Surrounded By Idiot… | Flickr

riverwalk, town park, strasburg, virginia

"Town Park

The Town of Strasburg maintains the Town Park located along at Park Road at the east end of Queen Street. The park includes a large playground, tennis courts, basketball courts, baseball, softball, and soccer fields, a swimming pool, and a number of picnic and pavilion areas, as well as access to the Riverwalk and the Shenandoah River. The trail connects the park with Strasburg High School on Ram Drive. 

Riverwalk

​Begin your walk along the Strasburg Riverwalk at the Strasburg Town Park. The gravel walkway, located along the Shenandoah River, offers beautiful views of the river and the face of the Massanutten Mountain Range called Signal Knob. The .9 mile walk ends at Strasburg High School (Ram Drive) and three benches and three doggie clean-up stations are located along the walk. 

River Access

The North Fork of the Shenandoah River is easily accessed at the Strasburg Town Park. A boat landing and gravel parking lot are available for people wanting to float the river on kayaks, tubes, or canoes, and very shallow drafting aluminum boats. This is a great area to float to from the Deer Rapids access point, approximately five miles upstream. If floating downstream, please be cautious of a dangerous dam about five miles from the Strasburg Town Park. For your convenience, port-a-potties are available at the parking lot." 
Town Park | Town of Strasburg Virginia

unfortunately,

• user safety is a concern: MINDS OF MUSH: guns in the town of strasburg, shenandoah county, va: target practice at night & a man firing a shotgun from a boat in the shenandoah river next to town park 
• user security is a concern: 
• trees, bushes, etc. obscure sight lines
• bears
• unleashed dogs *
• potential assaults, robberies, etc.
• no video surveillance 
• in more than two years, walking riverwalk almost daily, I've never observed presence of law enforcement on the trail 
• dog waste--while signs are posted advising dog owners to leash their dogs and to bag and properly dispose of dog waste, since these laws/rules aren't enforced, unleashed dogs threaten trail users and dog waste litters the trail and adjacent areas 

* this is a warning to all those dog owners who ignore the posted signs that say that your dog must be on a leash. if you fail to control your dog and it attacks me, then I will do whatever it takes to keep your dog from attacking me--whatever it takes. consider yourself warned.

unfortunately, failure to address user safety and security concerns, lack of enforcement of laws/rules and lack of maintenance have made a liability out of what should be an asset--not to mention diminishing the experience for those who use riverwalk.

while this photo shows the south fork of the shenandoah river,

it is typical of the north fork at riverwalk, town park, stasburg, va

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shenandoah_River_near_Flint_Run.jpg

Nyttend [Public domain]

tom tom

I submitted a help request to tom tom:

Customer (Ray Koenig) via channel 'CSS web' 04/30/2019 08:02 AM

Tom Tom Home doesn't recognize my Tom Tom Start. I'm logged in my Tom Tom account. my Tom Tom Start is on and connected to my computer. I entered Tom Tom Start and GZ (1st 2 letters of my serial number). Tom Tom Home says that my Tom Tom Start is not connected. it is connected.


Here was their reply:

Staff Account (Mayur M (US)) via channel 'E-mail' 04/30/2019 10:55 PM

Dear Mr Koenig,

Thank you for contacting TomTom Customer Support. My name is Mayur, and I am glad to have assisted you today.

As you mentioned that your START device is not recognised by your computer.

We apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused.Please be assured that I will put my best efforts to assist you.

I understand your issue and this might be due to connection issue. I request you to please try connecting the device with alternate USB cable also please try to connect the device to some other USB port.

Please follow the steps mentioned in the link to troubleshoot the issue for device not recognised.

YOUR NAVIGATION DEVICE IS NOT RECOGNISED (TOMTOM HOME)

If you have any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to email me using this link Click here to reply

to reply or call us at 877-757-7137 Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. EST.

With Kind Regards,

Mayur M.

TomTom Customer Support

If you have any further questions you can update us by replying directly to this email. You can also find a list of your questions on https://us.support.tomtom.com/app/questions/list/. Alternatively we have our support website http://www.tomtom.com/support our YouTube channel; http://www.tomtom.com/videosupport. You can also ask questions and find answers from other TomTom customers on the Discussions forum: http://discussions.tomtom.com/ After 3 days your incident will be automatically set to Answered. However, should you need to update us, you can still reply to the incident within 28 days.


Here was my reply:

Customer (Ray Koenig) via channel 'CSS web' 05/01/2019 07:00 AM

other problems: 1. my device apparently updated by itself. 2. the screen displays are different. 3. a new version of the mapping appears on top of the old version (i.e., both versions appear). 4. clock displays as either time remaining (when on a trip) or 12:00 am (at start up). my device doesn't respond to "set clock". 5. when I reset the device to default it displayed a foreign language that I couldn't recognize. ... 6. the problem isn't with my computer's USB port or cable.

Here was tom tom’s reply:

Dear Ray,

Thank you for updating the incident. I am Mayur again.

We apologies for the inconvenience caused to you.

Ray, I checked your device details and I found that there were two maps one is of 9.25 version and the other one is higher version and therefore you can see couple of maps.

As you mentioned that this device is not showing the correct time. I would like to inform you that this device was affected by WNRO ( Week Number Roll Over ) update which needs to be downloaded on the device before 6th April 2019

The GPS Week Number Roll Over effects the GPS communication between satellites and GPS receiver chips. This means that some Satnavs lost the ability of certain functions. The roll over happened on the 6th of April 2019.

I request you to check if the application on the device is of Version 9.541 and if the device is updated I can only suggest you to perform soft and factory reset on the device.

If you have any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to email me using this link Click here to reply to reply or call us at 877-757-7137 Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. EST.

With Kind Regards,

Mayur M.

TomTom Customer Support


it took a while. I had given up hope. but, a month later I received an email with a link to fix my tom tom. I suppose that all's well that ends well.

conrad helsley, shenandoah county virginia supervisor

Supervisor Helsley won't seek re-election | Nvdaily | nvdaily.com 

customer talk: shenandoah county virginia's handling of an alan toothman construction, inc. building code violation doesn't pass the smell test 


perhaps there's a connection...

PEretired: pulte homes, silver spring transit center, alan toothman construction, inc., shenandoah county, virginia, customer talk, good, bad & ugly, minds of mush

http://peretired.blogspot.com/ 
http://silverspringtransitcenter.blogspot.com 
http://customertalk.blogspot.com 
http://mindsofmush.blogspot.com
http://peretiredgoodbadugly.blogspot.com 

businesses: customers can be your best friends, or your worst enemies--take your pick.

many businesses today, conventional (e.g. stores, lawyers, amazon, etc.) and unconventional (e.g. government (all levels), hospitals, churches, etc.), don't heed two old, simple rules of business:

1. a business's existing customers are the best source of future business.
2. customers are always right.

each business chooses...

1. treat your customers well, and your customers will come back, and they'll say good things about you to others.
2. treat your customers poorly, and suffer the consequences.

each customer chooses...

1. reward good businesses with good reviews. 
2. help your fellow customers out by giving poor reviews to those businesses that treat you poorly. your review may prevent some future potential customer from getting burned.
3. do nothing.

doing nothing is not an alternative--unless you like getting poor service, and seeing others behind you get poor service too.

it's all pretty simple--if both businesses and customers remember these two old, simple rules of business.

Mountain Valley Home Comfort, New Market, Virginia

I can't ever recall seeing a company with a 5 star rating based on hundreds of reviews--add ours to the heap. after we mentioned to our maintenance agreement service tech, that we had a problem with a cold room in our new house, General Manager Phillip Little called and discussed the problem with us. MVHC put in another air supply vent and ductwork and corrected the problem. MVHC's employees are knowledgeable, capable and friendly. most importantly, MVHC stands behind their work. thank you, MVHC. 

hey t-rump, where's my tax cut?

comparing my 2018 federal income tax with 2017: 

• total income up 7.6% 
• 1040 taxable income up 83.7% (103.8% from qualified dividends & capital gains worksheet taxable income)
• itemized deductions down 25.3%
• federal income tax up 121.3%

my 2018 federal income tax is more than double my 2017 federal income tax! thanks, t-rump and congress! 

had enough?

who do you trust? 

   - liars in the WH & congress? 
   - the extremist republican and democratic parties that are financed by billionaire corporations and billionaire extremist PACs that supply dishonest, extremist candidates for public office? 

image by Democracy Chronicles

two party system | See the article "Two Parties See Record L… | Flickr

   - the biased news media?
   - or do you think for yourself?

to fix our dysfunctional government is simple and easy--stop voting for republican and democratic party candidates who are liars and extremists, and who don't represent the best interests of our country to move our country forward. 

voting for a republican or a democrat is a vote for the party--the hand that holds the puppet/money strings. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIAJl-wZElg

File:Godfather puppetmaster.jpg - Wikipedia

public domain

in the next election--national, state or local--vote for someone who shares your values who is not a democrat or a republican. 

even with their billion dollar donors, the republican and democratic parties will shrivel up and die if no one votes for their lousy candidates.

nothing will be better for our country.

File:Two party system diagram.png - Wikimedia Commons

the same goes for biased media--stop patronizing divisive, biased media and they'll go out of business. nothing will be better for the USA. 

the news media has this story all wrong. IRS says average refund up 1.3 percent | TheHill it isn't about refunds!!!-- it's about your total tax for the year. 

tax is the total amount that you owe the federal government each year. refund is the difference between what was withheld and your total tax. if more was withheld than your total tax, then you get a refund. if it's the other way around, then you pay the difference.

get it right irs & news media! it's about total tax--it's not about refunds! 

Lowe's Millennium Lighting Oxford 7-Light Rubbed Bronze Transitional Scavo Glass Shaded Chandelier

we purchased a chandelier from Lowe's on-line. a month later, I rated the experience on the chandelier's page on lowes.com. here's what I wrote:

"1. styrofoam packaging was pulverized. it took more than an hour to clean up the pulverized styrofoam mess. 2. single-page of instructions is unreadable--not enough ink and very tiny print. 3. we completed an on-line request for referral for installation when we ordered the chandelier. we received confirmation of our request in an email from lowe's that reads: "we will contact you soon". not true--lowe's never followed up. 4. product description reads: "requires seven 100-watt A19-shape medium-base frosted incandescent light bulbs, not included". not true. the electrician that we hired strongly recommended that we use low wattage LED light bulbs. we are VERY dissatisfied with the packaging and instructions for this product and lowe's failure to follow-up on our request for installation services."

I attached a scan of the instructions.

my rating didn't appear on-line. *

go figure. 

* PS (1) when I submitted my rating, this message displayed: "thanks for reviewing. your knowledge about this product could really help someone out." (2) I got the verification email that was "sent by: bounce.exacttarget.com". (3) I verified my rating. (4) I got the message that my email address had been verified. (5) nonetheless, my rating didn't appear on the chandelier's page on lowes.com until several days after I posted this on my blog. (6) lowe's failure to post my rating on the chandelier's page on lowe's.com (until several days after I posted this on my blog) speaks volumes about lowe's. we will never make a major purchase at lowe's again.

integrity and trust are the cornerstones of business. 
what good are product ratings if the rating process lacks honesty and integrity?

image by Mark Smiciklas

Trust Filter | www.intersectionconsulting.comEvery small bus… | Flickr

answer: no good.

bottom line: it doesn't take several days to post a customer's rating--not even several hours. the same day that I rated lowe's chandelier on lowes.com, I rated (on google) the electrician who installed it. I submitted my rating, received an email from google requesting verification of my rating, and I verified it. within minutes of when I had submitted my rating on google, it appeared on online. if you rate a product, verify that it's your rating, and it doesn't appear online within minutes, then the vendor's rating process doesn't pass the smell test.

kid holding his nose from bad odor, isolated on white | Flickr

Item # 409771 Model # 1207-RBZ

Millennium Lighting Oxford 7-Light Rubbed Bronze Transitional Scavo Glass Shaded Chandelier

new home buyers lose--again

• when county building inspectors fail to pick up obvious building code violations, then new home buyers lose. 
• when the county building code enforcement official fails to cite the builder for obvious building code violations (after telling the homeowners that he was going to do so), choosing instead to "reach out" (his words) to the builder, then, besides being outrageous, new home buyers lose.
• when the county attorney fails to cite the builder for obvious building code violations, choosing to send threatening letters to the homeowners instead, then, besides being outrageous, new home buyers lose.
• when the homeowners ask their representative on the county board of supervisors to look into the matter, and the supervisor turns a deaf ear to them instead, then, besides being outrageous, new home buyers lose.
• when the builder violates the building code and the approved grading plan that call for the ground at foundation walls to slope away from foundation walls a minimum of 6 inches in 10 feet, and the homeowners' crawl space floods, then new home buyers lose.
• when the builder connects buried flexible plastic pipes, that have high and low points, to downspouts, and buries the outlet end, then new home buyers lose.
• when the builder installs roof gutters level, instead of sloped, and roof gutters overflow, then new home buyers lose.
• when roof gutters are too small for the roof area that they drain, and roof gutters overflow, then new home buyers lose.
• when downspouts empty into crawl spaces, then new home buyers lose.
• when the builder builds foundation walls with large buried holes (presumably because the builder didn't want to excavate rock), with earth spilling through into the crawl space that is otherwise sealed to the outside, providing an easy path for rodents, snakes, etc. to get into the crawl space, then new home buyers lose.
• when the temperature inside a bedroom is more than 10 degrees colder than the thermostat setting (located 15 ft. from the bedroom), with the supply vent and the bedroom door wide open, then new home buyers lose.
• when floors go BANG when you walk on them, then new home buyers lose.
• when foul odors come from a bathroom sink, then the home buyers lose. 
• when new home buyers pay from their pockets to "fix" (if they can be--some "built-in" problems can't be fixed) builders' code violations, poor construction and bad science (building a house is more than a pretty floor plan) and government inspection and code enforcement failures, then new home buyers lose--literally.

customer talk: the public isn't being protected from bad builders--take shenandoah county, virginia, for example.

Burglar + Bag | John Graham | Flickr

virginia
strasburg 
county
shenandoah 
woodstock 
griffey
bowman
helsley
alan toothman construction, inc.

the public isn't being protected from bad builders--take shenandoah county, virginia, for example.

bring it on, bowman. let's go to court. let the public decide who the victims here are. lawbreaker toothman? shenandoah county? us? ruffner? citizens of shenandoah county? citizens of the commonwealth of virginia? citizens beyond shenandoah county, virginia? 



briefly, here are the facts:
1. when we purchased our house, unbeknown to us, the builder had not graded our lot per the approved grading plan and R401.3 of the virginia building code.
2. months later, after heavy rains, I found standing water in our crawl space.
3. as heavy rains continued over the next few months, the amount of water in our crawl space grew.
4. at some point I mentioned to our duplex "roofmate" that there was standing water in our crawl space.
5. our roofmate contacted the shenandoah county building inspection and code enforcement department.
6. the shenandoah county building official and an inspector with the building inspection and code enforcement department met with our roofmate.
7. after their meeting (neither me nor my wife were present; I was not home at the time) our roofmate asked my wife if the county inspector could inspect our crawl space. Jenny called me, and we agreed.
8. afterwards the building official told us "if there's a code violation then the builder will have to fix it."
9. the following day, the building official met with our roofmate and said that there was no code violaion, explaining that she didn't qualify under section 19.2-8 of the virginia code.
10. on june 30 I sent mark griffey (shenandoah county building official) an email entitled "formal complaint, building code violation". I pointed out that R401.3 had been violated. I also pointed out that we were eligible under section 19.2-8 to submit this code violation complaint. finally, I said: "Should you reject my formal complaint, then I request a meeting at county offices with you and other county personnel or outside consultants involved in the decision not to issue a notice of violation of the building code to the builder for this violation."
11. griffey told me in an email that he was sending a notice of violation to the builder.
12. griffey didn't send a notice of violation to the builder. when I asked him to explain why, he said that "they" had decided to "reach out" to the builder.
13. some time later, locations of underground utilities were marked and the builder brought 2 large rolls of flexible plastic pipe and placed them behind our house. I contacted griffey and asked what was going on.
14. on july 26 griffey sent an email entitled "updated drawing".
15. on july 30 I replied to griffey's email with 13 specific comments plus general comments regarding the unsuitability of the plan. griffey did not respond to my comments.
16. on aug. 7, sept. 14, dec. 3 and dec. 4 jordan bowman, shenandoah county attorney, sent threatening letters to me and my wife.
17. on aug. 14, at our expense, we contracted to have a waterproof slope installed on our property consistent with the approved grading plan and R401.3.
18. there's mold in our crawl space.
19. the floor and duct insulation in our crawl space were saturated and ruined by the flooding.
20. R408.3.1 requires: "Exposed earth is covered with a continuous Class I vapor retarder. Joints of the vapor retarder shall overlap by 6 inches (152 mm) and shall be sealed or taped." the loose sheets of moisture barrier in our crawl space were neither sealed nor taped. 
21. R408.5 requires: "The under-floor grade shall be cleaned of all vegetation and organic material. All wood forms used for placing concrete shall be removed before a building is occupied or used for any purpose. All construction materials shall be removed before a building is occupied or used for any purpose." paper, cardboard, leaves, pieces of wood, conduit, air duct hangers, fasteners, brick, concrete, insulation, and other construction debris litter our crawl space.
22. there are other defects in our house that result from bad science and poor construction and inspection. e.g., customer talk: alan toothman construction, inc.: BIG hole in the wall, BIG hole in the head 

what is not known 

• how did the water get in our crawl space? 
• if our lot had been graded according to the approved grading plan and R401.3, then would our crawl space have flooded? 
• maybe. the answer to this question will never be known.
• will our crawl space dry out with drier weather? 
• maybe. time will tell. given the amount of water in our crawl space, it will likely take many months of warm, dry weather to dry the space out.
• is the water in our roofmate's crawl space connected with the flooding in ours?
• maybe. however, I've inspected our crawl space many times and I've never seen any standing water within 6 to 8 feet from our common wall.
• if the water in our roofmate's crawl space is connected to the flooding in ours, then how much is coming from our crawl space and how much is coming from other sources?
• IMHO, this is indeterminable. I do know that the ground in the front and the rear of our roofmate's house slopes towards the foundation walls. IMHO, this is where the water in our roofmate's crawl space comes from.

finally: 

• why has shenandoah county steadfastly defended lawbreaking builder alan toothman construction, inc.?
• why does the county attorney continue to harass us with threatening letters? (we're in our seventies.) 
• why did the county refuse to meet with us as I requested (#10 above)?
• why didn't the county reply to my comments on the unsuitability of the toothman "fix" (#14 & 15)?
• toothman's and shenandoah county's "fix" does not comply with R401.3. R401.3 requires:
• "R401.3 Drainage. Surface drainage shall be diverted to a storm sewer conveyance or other approved point of collection that does not create a hazard to the dwelling unit. Lots shall be graded to drain surface water away from foundation walls. The grade shall fall a minimum of six inches (152 mm) within the first 10 feet (3048 mm)."
• "Exception: Where lot lines, walls, slopes or other physical barriers prohibit six inches (152 mm) of fall within 10 feet (3048 mm), drains or swales shall be constructed to ensure drainage away from the structure. Impervious surfaces within 10 feet (3048 mm) of the building foundation shall be sloped a minimum of 2.0% away from the building."
• the "Exception" applies only "where lot lines, walls, slopes or other physical barriers prohibit six inches of fall within 10 feet". No such prohibition exists, as shown on the approved grading plan for our lot.
• toothman's and shenandoah county's interpretation of the exception in R401.3 as being an "either/or" situation is incorrect. The exception only applies if the ground can't be sloped away from foundation walls for 10 feet. As the approved grading plan shows, this is not the case with our lot.

it doesn't pass the smell test--either toothman is jim jones and bowman and griffey are drinking the kool-aid, or something worse is going on.

despite the facts that:

• we own the property, we were denied a seat at the table--see #10 & #15 above.
• I have a degree in civil engineering, we were denied a seat at the table--see #10 & #15 above.
• I held licenses to practice civil engineering in Virginia and several other states, we were denied a seat at the table--see #10 & #15 above.
• I have over 40 years' experience in civil engineering and construction, we were denied a seat at the table--see #10 & #15 above.

citizens: 

• you deserve to be protected from construction that doesn't meet the state building code
• you deserve competent building inspection and code enforcement
• you deserve county and state government that defends you--not lawbreaking builders 

       ➤ SPEAK OUT

       ➤ SPREAD THE WORD

       ➤ VOTE  

virginia
shenandoah county 
building inspection
code enforcement
mark griffey
attorney
jordan bowman
conrad helsley
alan toothman construction, inc.

builder alan toothman + shenandoah county, virginia = poorly engineered and constructed new homes

what do you get with a bad builder and a virginia county that doesn't enforce the building code?

answer: angry homeowners with poorly engineered and constructed new houses. 

bad science 

1. ground that slopes towards the house, instead of away from the house, as the virginia building code and the approved grading plan require. result: flooded crawl space. 
https://www.prettypurpledoor.com/yard-grading-how-to-grade-a-yard/ 
Amy knows this! How come a virginia builder and shenandoah county's building official, shenandoah county building inspectors, and shenandoah county's attorney, who handles building code violations, don't?!? bad science.

2. level roof gutters that overflow and add to the crawl space flooding. how come builder toothman doesn't know Why Gutter Slope is Essential to Your Home? when I asked toothman why all of the roof gutters are level, she said "they're all that way." great!!! all of the roof gutters on toothman's new houses are level!!! bad science.

3. flexible plastic pipes connected to downspouts with high and low points and buried outlet ends. how dumb is that?!? 

our house came with level roof gutters and 5 downspouts--3 with flexible plastic pipe attached to them and 2 with splash blocks. the outlet ends of 2 of the 3 downspouts with flexible plastic pipe attached were buried.

I notified the builder when rain from one of the downspouts with splash blocks missed the splash block and went into the below ground access well to the crawl space. the builder replaced the splash block with a buried flexible pipe and extended the buried flexible pipe on one of the buried plastic pipes.

later, after a heavy rain, water from the roof backed up in the other pipe with the buried outlet end, backed up in the downspout, and backed up in the level roof gutter such that all of the runoff coming from that section of the roof was overflowing the level roof gutter. it washed out a slope onto my neighbor's driveway. when I told toothman, she said "we would never bury the outlet end". this after toothman had already unburied 1 of the 2 buried outlet ends on our property! talk about dishonest!

roof drainage should flow by gravity, which requires a straight grade--no dips or high points and open outlet ends. water and air trapped in flexible plastic pipes by low and high spots require pressure to flow. when water backs up in downspouts, they leak, and the weight of the stored water can cause downspouts to break away from the house. bad science. 

4. holes in the foundation wall: MINDS OF MUSH: alan toothman construction, inc.: BIG hole in the wall, BIG hole in the head. what?!? bad science. 

5. a room where the temperature is ten degrees colder than the thermostat temperature. (the thermostat is located in the hallway 10 ft. from the cold room.) bad science. 

poor construction 

1. floors with low spots that go BANG! when you walk on them.

2. gutters that leak and a downspout that empties into the below ground, crawl space access door well. 

3. a foul odor coming from the bathroom sink.

4. sloppy trim. 

shenandoah county, virginia's poor inspection and followup failures 

1. during and following construction shenandoah county's building inspectors failed to identify that the ground sloped towards the house instead of away from the house. this is a clear violation of virginia's building code. also, the approved grading plan shows the ground sloping away from the house. in addition to not knowing what the building code requires, apparently the inspectors can't read plans. even so, how can one not see the difference between a hill and a swale? 

2. even though shenandoah county's building official told me that the county was going to cite toothman for violating the buiding code, shenandoah county did not. when asked to explain why the county wasn't citing the builder for a building code violation, the building official told me that he chose instead to "reach out" (his words) to toothman. what?!?

3. shenandoah county's attorney, who works for a private law firm in the neighboring county, wrote us threatening letters. 
http://mindsofmush.blogspot.com/2018/08/how-shenandoah-co-va-mishandled-clear.html
https://mindsofmush.blogspot.com/2018/09/another-letter-from-jordan-bowman-sigh.html 
what?!? 

4. it doesn't pass the smell test. 

citizens of shenandoah county, virginia and elsewhere: 

• you deserve to be protected from construction that doesn't meet the state building code
• you deserve competent building inspection and code enforcement
• you deserve county and state government that defends you--not lawbreaking builders 

       ➤ SPEAK OUT

       ➤ SPREAD THE WORD

       ➤ VOTE  





alan toothman construction, inc.
woodstock 
virginia
shenandoah county
building official
mark griffey
attorney
jordan bowman
strasburg
conrad helsley
stony pointe