Advanced Engineering, Contracting & Inspections

04/11/2025

If you have never bought a home and are thinking of buying one, or you are a Realtor who is new to the industry, please join us and this awesome team of Real Estate Industry Professionals for this informative seminar on April 30th in Melbourne! The key information presented will help prepare you for the process ahead.

01/06/2022

Hi Everyone,

We would like to invite you to an informative free event that may help you navigate the sometimes confusing and frustrating road to your closings.
Please join us for a Lunch and Learn on Wednesday, January 12th from 12-2 p.m. Learn what's going on and changing in 3 different industries impacting real estate. The 3 companies that are participating are Prime One Insurance, Synovus Bank of Merritt Island and AECI Home Inspections.

Lunch, Drinks and Dessert provided. The location is the Chamber of Commerce office behind the Merritt Square Mall. You can search for it on Facebook by looking for Lunch and Learn Cocoa Beach Chamber of Commerce.

Hope to see you there!

02/19/2020

10/01/2019

Saw this today doing an inspection. The homeowner bought the house anyway even though she said can't stand him 😄

06/08/2018

This is an excellent article everyone should read with all of this heavy rain we have been having here in Brevard County:

Preventing Flooding Due to Heavy Rain

Posted by Matt Buchanan

Every American lives in a flood zone, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). It’s merely a question of whether their flood risk is low, moderate or high.

Floods occur when water runoff overwhelms the capacity of existing drainage systems. In areas where the sewer system doubles as a storm water drainage system, water can back up through sewer pipelines, inundating residences and businesses. Additionally, rainwater enters buildings through doors, windows and other openings, or through cracks in the buildings’ foundations.

Residents in areas at high risk for floods may not be able to prevent flooding entirely. There are measures, however, that minimize risks and prevent the property damage associated with flooding.

1. Sandbags

Sandbags prevent flood damageSandbags are burlap bags, half-filled with sandy soil. They should be used to divert the flow of water away from buildings. Sandbags are not intended to be used as a barricade around your buildings. In fact, if you build a wall of sandbags around your structures, you may end up causing a moat to form between the structures and the sandbags, which will exacerbate flood damage. Thus, it’s important to take note of the grade around your house so that you can predict how water will flow once it begins approaching your home.

Gutter Flood Prevention2. Install rain gutters and other drainage systems.

Rain gutters are open pipes that catch the rainwater that runs off the roof and channels it to the ground. Their efficiency can be enhanced by the addition of downspouts and splash pads. Without an operational gutter, rain will spill over the edge of a house and damage the exterior walls. Remember to keep your rain gutters and downspouts free of leaves, trash and other debris.

Foundation Grade Preventing Flood Damage3. Grade your lot

Optimally, ten or so feet of ground surrounding your property should slope at least six inches to funnel rainwater away from your property. This will prevent water from seeping into your foundation and basement.

4. Invest in a sump pump

If houses or businesses are on level ground, or have basement entrances that are actually located below ground, a concrete slap, complete with a drain and resting on a gravel base, is an excellent idea. The drain should empty into a sump pump.

Sump pumps are small pumps that drain water from the inside of a structure to the outside, through a small pipe. It’s best to have a battery backup sump pump system as well, since flooding is often accompanied by electrical power failures.

5. Install a backflow protection device

Backup related to overstressed municipal wastewater systems can be prevented through the installation of a Backflow Preventor (BFP) device. BFPs are available with both automatic and manual controls. When the device is in operation, however, you must remember not to use your toilet, dishwasher, washing machine or any other appliance that discharges wastewater into your sewer service line.

6. Purchase flood insurance

Sewer backup and flood insurance are riders to traditional homeowner insurance policies. They can be costly, but if you live in an area that is prone to flooding on a regular basis, you will be very happy that you have this protection.

A.E.C.I. can inspect your home if you think you may have water intrusion or to see if you are at risk of flood damage.

09/07/2017

A.E.C.I. can help you after the hurricane passes with infrared inspections of your homes, R.V.'s, and boats to find hidden water damage. Your insurance carrier's adjuster may not document all the damage that really exists leaving your property vulnerable to mold and other problems down the road. We will provide a report and pictures to help you get your proper compensation should you need it.

08/14/2017

We here in Brevard County hear a lot about sinkholes and they are scary! Fortunately, our County does not have a history of them and they are not really a concern. It is good to know however, that the Florida State legislature requires homeowners insurance carriers to include catastrophic ground collapse coverage in their policies for everyone! If you do live in an area prone to these, then you would be wise to have the sinkhole endorsement added to your policy. Brevard County homes typically have minor settlement issues or visible minor cracking of the various construction materials related to expansion and contraction movement due to humidity and temperature extremes. The other culprit for cracking may be due to poor site prep when the home was built. Any organic material that was contained in the fill dirt breaks down and shifts the soil. It is also important to examine water run-off from roofs or gutters that could also cause wash out at the foundation. If you see cracks in your home that appear to be changing over time or are wider than 1/4 inch, you may want to have a professional inspection.

08/14/2017

We want to Thank everyone who liked our page! We welcome any comments or feedback for those of you who know or who have worked with us!

Commercial and Residential Building Inspection company serving all of Brevard and Volusia Co.

08/01/2017

Older homes in Florida with central air and heat systems may may have these gray plastic covered ducts. The loss of the protective plastic covering on flex duct poses several concerns including loss of the duct insulation, increased air conditioning system operating costs, and possibly air leaks out (if supply ducts are damaged) or un-wanted attic debris leaks in (if return ducts are damaged), and in-duct condensation in the HVAC system leading to mold and indoor air quality concerns. In hot attic spaces or where exposed to UV light, the plastic of this flexible air conditioning duct material disintegrates leaving its fiberglass insulation exposed to also disintegrate, leak, or possibly blow into the building living space.
Replacement of the duct work should be done at a significant expense due to the difficulty of removing and replacing these ducts in limited attic spaces. "This information is from a 2017 InspectApedia.com article".