Electrical Inspection: Just Venting.

[roblouvasz]

I had a new breaker panel installed in the garage this past Tues. The electrician put the request in for the inspection. He was told someone had to be at the garage between 9 am and 4 pm to let the inspector in today, Thursday. I was there at 7:30 am till 11 am. My father was there at 10:30 am till 4:15. the inspector never showed. Around 3pm I called the office and had to leave voice mail messages. Of course no one will be in tomorrow. I'll be going in person to speak with them on Mon. I just can't keep taking off work to wait for these people! I think it's more the electrician's responsibility to lite a fire under their butts if he wants paid!

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Did the electrician pull the permit? if so, then he shouldve been the one there not you.

 

[pattenp]

What do you expect when you're "Somewhere between the end of the line and the middle of nowhere."

 

[roblouvasz]

Call me stupid, but I'm assuming he did. I asked him if he (the electrician) had to be there for the inspection, he said no. Someone just needed to be there to let the inspector into the garage.

 

[roblouvasz]

What do you expect when you're "Somewhere between the end of the line and the middle of nowhere."

HA HA HA!! The house is in Mineral Ridge Ohio, in Trumbull Co. It's not a city.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Call me stupid, but I'm assuming he did. I asked him if he (the electrician) had to be there for the inspection, he said no. Someone just needed to be there to let the inspector into the garage.

The reason i asked is cause if you were the one who pulled it then you would need to be there.

Obviously theyre not gonna inspect if there is no permit and he shouldve been there.

 

[roblouvasz]

Why would he risk losing his license?

 

[mm08822]

This is a residential job, not a commercial or industrial job where job size can easily dictate extra manhours for other activities. There is no room in a residential job to build in 4-8 hours of extra labor.

You or someone you trust (18+) needed to be there to let the inspector into your home unless you had upfront arrangements with the electrician otherwise.

If you so happen to trust the sparky to "lock up after your done", then he would have priced the window of time that the inspector uses into the cost of the job. You want to pay for an extra 4 or 8 hours of *** time for someone?

I always tell customers when the job is done I will tell them who and where to call for which inspections and they coordinate with the inspector day and time and someone other than me needs to be home to let him in.

 

[bdk1976]

Maybe you guys have better luck than I do, but in my experience the 'inspectors' around here are nothing more than revenue agents. Charge a ton of $ for the permits, then don't show up on time, and when they eventually do, they do a half *** 'inspection' so they can GTFO and do who knows what with all of their leftover time.

Just like most 'good ideas', inspection offices started out with good intentions, but have gradually been corrupted into a quasi-tax agency where $ is first and any perceived safety benefits are a distant second.

 

[dogdog]

......
Just like most 'good ideas', inspection offices started out with good intentions, but have gradually been corrupted into a quasi-tax agency where $ is first and any perceived safety benefits are a distant second.

some here are called under the table $$$.... Not sure how much they charged.... I know my plumber was having a hard time getting the permit for the boiler closed when they didn't pay to play (not sure if the plumber or the guy pulling the permit)...why... you asked, the guy showed up, inspected, didn't fail or pass, just leave the status in limbo (8+ months later and it's closed)... and he still works there..so...cousin...

It dependents on the township, there is nothing the OP can do about it either.... smaller townships, if you complain, you might be ******* off some one's cousin of the mayor or his/her henchman.

 

[roblouvasz]

This is a residential job, not a commercial or industrial job where job size can easily dictate extra manhours for other activities. There is no room in a residential job to build in 4-8 hours of extra labor.

You or someone you trust (18+) needed to be there to let the inspector into your home unless you had upfront arrangements with the electrician otherwise.

If you so happen to trust the sparky to "lock up after your done", then he would have priced the window of time that the inspector uses into the cost of the job. You want to pay for an extra 4 or 8 hours of *** time for someone?

I always tell customers when the job is done I will tell them who and where to call for which inspections and they coordinate with the inspector day and time and someone other than me needs to be home to let him in.

I think you missed the point. The electrician was told by the inspector that someone had to be there between 9-4 today. Someone was there between 9-4 today. The inspector never showed up.

 

[roblouvasz]

Seriously, do they expect me to quit my job and stay at home for weeks on end???

 

[Farmall450]

Seriously, do they expect me to quit my job and stay at home for weeks on end???

Probably, they're gov't "servants" after all

 

[dogdog]

I think you missed the point. The electrician was told by the inspector that someone had to be there between 9-4 today. Someone was there between 9-4 today. The inspector never showed up.

sounds like my USPS delivery guy went to work as inspector in your town ... my packages are out for delivery every day for 6 days and never showed up.... until the 7th day...

 

[Bretny]

My pannel was inspected..then the guy called to ask if i screwed in the neutral bonding screw. I said yes...i passed.

I bet you wouldnt be so upset if no one had to be there. No one had to be at my house.

 

[Jim greengo]

I usually have the inspector call me when hes an hr out and go from there.

 

[ard]

I think you missed the point. The electrician was told by the inspector that someone had to be there between 9-4 today. Someone was there between 9-4 today. The inspector never showed up.

Seriously, do they expect me to quit my job and stay at home for weeks on end???

Call the inspectors boss. Explain you already took a day off work.

Demand they schedule an inspection at your convenience- within a one hour window of your choosing.

Or

Tell the electrician he can manage the process, he can have someone wait... he will get paid after it is inspected.

I dont put myself in a position where I let people **** me around


Good news in this case, if you totally piss off the inspector and his boss, it is the electrician that will get bent over.

 

[csi123]

I think you missed the point. The electrician was told by the inspector that someone had to be there between 9-4 today. Someone was there between 9-4 today. The inspector never showed up.

Don't think he missed the point. He obviously was replying to post#2. It was suggested that the electrician should wait at your home for days until the inspector show up.

That's such a good idea! Let him roam in your house for days with nothing to do other than sitting in your couch playing with your wife's and daughter's underwear....

 

[matt_i]

I wasn't too impressed with my bldg department either.

General beefs
- the people who interface with the public and their technical partners seem like enemies who don't ever talk to each other despite working in the same office, thereby leading to conflicting information and advice.
- only 6 inspections per day can be scheduled but when they are here <10 minutes total where is the rest spent? Jimmy johns and the DQ?
- I also had similar issues with a wide open time slot but coincidentally I was working midnight shift at the time so I was here every day. Just had to trash my already insufficient sleep schedule to be available.

 

[MikeF2316]

sounds like my USPS delivery guy went to work as inspector in your town ... my packages are out for delivery every day for 6 days and never showed up.... until the 7th day...

How ironic. Isn't the 7th day for rest?

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Maybe you guys have better luck than I do, but in my experience the 'inspectors' around here are nothing more than revenue agents. Charge a ton of $ for the permits, then don't show up on time, and when they eventually do, they do a half *** 'inspection' so they can GTFO and do who knows what with all of their leftover time.

Just like most 'good ideas', inspection offices started out with good intentions, but have gradually been corrupted into a quasi-tax agency where $ is first and any perceived safety benefits are a distant second.

umm the inspectors arent the ones charging or collecting money for the permits. that would be the building departments they work for.

Don't think he missed the point. He obviously was replying to post#2. It was suggested that the electrician should wait at your home for days until the inspector show up.

That's such a good idea! Let him roam in your house for days with nothing to do other than sitting in your couch playing with your wife's and daughter's underwear....

I said that the electrician should wait at his home FOR DAYS?

aww no, never said that. try working on your reading comprehension.

 

[mike93lx]

No way in hell i would pay an electrician to stand around for a day waiting for an inspection.

***** getting blown off, especially when you are taking time off. I'd push the inspector for a tight window and a commitment

 

[b-boy]

The guys in my area are absolutely horrible.

It took 2 months to get my permit for my pole barn.

I left multiple messages and went to the building department on numerous occasions. I never actually spoke to one of the inspectors in person. I left all the paperwork with a secretary from another department.

I talked to the guy once on the phone when he wanted to deny the permit because I was having Amish builders do the work.

Finally he approved it. The contractor saw him the first day when he came to measure the depths of the post holes. He was supposed to come back a few days later, but he never showed. It's been 2.5 years and he's never completed the inspection.

 

[ForceFed70]

Electrical inspections are certainly different here.

If it's a ticketed electrician pulling the permit/inspection, inspectors often don't even show up. When the electrician calls for inspection, they have 48hrs (weekends/holidays don't count) to show up. If they don't show, you're considered passed. Nobody has to be there, but they do need to be able to access the building.

If it's a homeowner permit, it's a similar process except they will show up for the inspection every time. They still only have 48hrs to show up tho.

As both my father and brother are ticketed electricians, I always get them to pull the permit and call for inspection. So far, they've never actually arrived to inspect. My dad/brother will come and inspect tho - it's their ticket on the line so they're motivated to make sure it will pass. They can loose their ticket for too many failures and/or stupid mistakes. Which is what keeps them honest since most times their work isn't inspected.

 

[roblouvasz]

Call the inspectors boss. Explain you already took a day off work.

Demand they schedule an inspection at your convenience- within a one hour window of your choosing.

Or

Tell the electrician he can manage the process, he can have someone wait... he will get paid after it is inspected.

I dont put myself in a position where I let people **** me around


Good news in this case, if you totally piss off the inspector and his boss, it is the electrician that will get bent over. [/QUO
I got a hold of the inspector this morning. He said he was called back to office. Didn't even call my electrician. He said he would be there Monday. I still have to be there between 9-4. No, they don't schedule.

 

[Sparkynutz]

Call the inspectors boss. Explain you already took a day off work.

Demand they schedule an inspection at your convenience- within a one hour window of your choosing.

Or

Tell the electrician he can manage the process, he can have someone wait... he will get paid after it is inspected.

I dont put myself in a position where I let people **** me around


Good news in this case, if you totally piss off the inspector and his boss, it is the electrician that will get bent over. [/QUO
I got a hold of the inspector this morning. He said he was called back to office. Didn't even call my electrician. He said he would be there Monday. I still have to be there between 9-4. No, they don't schedule.

I'd keep the door locked and no show like he did see how he likes it.
Then when he calls you tell him what others said. Give you a date with smaller window on a day you already have off. **** bending over for him. hes the public paid servant not you. Jacking you around is bs. It's not Electricians fault either so why make it his especially if he did a good job.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

[BFBOB]

Here's the real solution: call the inspection scheduling authority, ask (don't demand) that your inspection be scheduled far enough in advance that you can be first on the list for that day.
(Explain calmly you can't afford another whole day off work) Around here (yes, I'm licensed) that's no problem.

And, if you don't do that, on the day of the inspection you can call the inspector during the one hour he's in the office each morning and find out when the inspection is likely to be done. Often he'll only be able to tell you AM or PM, but that's still a help. In your locality, things may be different, but there should be someone in the office at some time you can have a conversation with.

I usually don't show up for inspections, but if there's something unusual, I like to be there to answer questions. $saves re-inspections. Yes, I do charge for that- usually by building it into the bid in the first place.

Just read some of the horror stories above. I guess I should count my blessings. It's usually a pretty smooth easy process here.

 

[ard]

I got a hold of the inspector this morning. He said he was called back to office. Didn't even call my electrician. He said he would be there Monday. I still have to be there between 9-4. No, they don't schedule.

Right.

Becuase you talked to the inspector AND NOT HIS BOSS. Guy screwed you the first time and is re-screwing you on Monday. Your call, you OK with it who are we to argue.

 

[ard]

A friend of mine over in the SF peninsula was having a major project done- entire backyard, decks, pools, landscape, some house work. Like $300k (Bay Area, house is prolly 4M+)

His contractor would tell him stuff would be done on this day or that day, and then people never showed. They'd show a day or two later. After two months, my friend schedules lunch with the contractor at a local diner for 12noon to discuss the project.

My friend, however, is sitting in his kitchen at 12 noon. At 12:20, his cell rings- it's the contractor.. "Hey Paul, aren't we on for lunch today?"

Paul says "So how does it feel????"

Worked like a charm.

 

[roblouvasz]

You have to understand, they don't schedule appointments or time windows. If they say they'll be there on such and such day, someone has to be there between 9-4. If they (the inspector) doesn't show then I'm SOL. THEY DON'T CARE! And trust me, I can't say anything more about the people who run Trumbull County and the heads of the various departments without this thread being deleted or closed. Trying to talk to this guys boss is useless because he doesn't answer his phone. What I would like to know is, what kind of recourse do I have in getting these people to do their jobs?? I'll be calling this guy first thing in the morning to remind him I will be there all day tomorrow and that I'll be taking another day off of work. I was told by my electrician that there is some kind of provision for new construction that if the inspection isn't done within a certain amount of time, then the service can be connected to the grid and the inspection done later. I'm going to see if that can apply in my situation.

 

[driftpin]

Sometimes inspectors have to divert from their schedules because of a more-pressing issue. An example would be a fire at a charter school, the inspector and structural, mechanical, and plumbing inspectors, along with the fire marshal's office, have-to inspect the property to see about closing the business from a life safety viewpoint. It would be a good thing if the inspector could ask the secretary in the office to use the contact phone # of inspections scheduled for that day, where he/she wouldn't be able to honor the prior arranged inspection, and to call them.

You always have the option of contacting your elected representative in the local jurisdiction, asking for the chief inspector of the discipline, the scheduled inspector, or the Building Official to contact you because of your need.

 

[ard]

I had an issue with an inspector about 6 years ago.

I kept escalating, until I made a formal request to be heard at a public Board of Supervisors meeting.

48 hrs after my request, the head of building called. The next AM the inspector showed up and signed off. I then took it off the agenda.

Everyone has a boss.

 

[LS6 Tommy]

Our old inspector in my town was OK. Not great, but OK. When I redid the basement he was inspecting the rough elelctric and he told me I needed to pull a plumbing permit to remove an existing bar sink and reinstall it in the same location. I played ball and went to Town Hall for the permit. The clerk told me that what he wanted was BS and that I was a good sport for doing as he asked. She didn't tell me anything, but she marked the permit "paid" without collecting any money from me.

When he came for the final on the electric, I told him I would be done reinstalling the sink in five minutes if he wanted to inspect that, too. He said he wasn't willing to wait. I was done before he finished the electrical inspection and I told him I was ready for the plumbing final. He asked how I could be done when he didn't hear a torch and that he didn't like Shark Bite fittings. I said, "That's irrelevant, Shark bites meet code, but I didn't use them. I used a Pro Press." He said, "What's a Pro Press?". Enough said.

I miss him. The new inspector is a total ***.

Tommy

 

[roblouvasz]

Sometimes inspectors have to divert from their schedules because of a more-pressing issue. An example would be a fire at a charter school, the inspector and structural, mechanical, and plumbing inspectors, along with the fire marshal's office, have-to inspect the property to see about closing the business from a life safety viewpoint. It would be a good thing if the inspector could ask the secretary in the office to use the contact phone # of inspections scheduled for that day, where he/she wouldn't be able to honor the prior arranged inspection, and to call them.

You always have the option of contacting your elected representative in the local jurisdiction, asking for the chief inspector of the discipline, the scheduled inspector, or the Building Official to contact you because of your need.

When I talked to him on Friday, he said he didn't have my contact information. It's right on the permit. Like I said before, they really don't "schedule" inspections. They tell you to be there on a certain day from 9-4. If they don't show up, oh well, they don't care.

 

[mm08822]

You have to understand, they don't schedule appointments or time windows. If they say they'll be there on such and such day, someone has to be there between 9-4. If they (the inspector) doesn't show then I'm SOL. THEY DON'T CARE! And trust me, I can't say anything more about the people who run Trumbull County and the heads of the various departments without this thread being deleted or closed. Trying to talk to this guys boss is useless because he doesn't answer his phone. What I would like to know is, what kind of recourse do I have in getting these people to do their jobs?? I'll be calling this guy first thing in the morning to remind him I will be there all day tomorrow and that I'll be taking another day off of work. I was told by my electrician that there is some kind of provision for new construction that if the inspection isn't done within a certain amount of time, then the service can be connected to the grid and the inspection done later. I'm going to see if that can apply in my situation.

Assuming your in Trumbull Co, Oh............

http://buildinginspection.co.trumbull.oh.us/pdfs/dico_ResidentialCode10412.pdf



Of course, nothing contained within wrt no shows/late/breaking appts. They have 4 business days to inspect otherwise any progressive work can proceed. This would not have any value for a completed sub-panel.

 

[roblouvasz]

Good news!! I called the inspector at 8:00 this morning and reminded him of our discussion on Friday. He showed up a 10:30! Real nice guy. Checked the installation and told me the electrician's work was excellent. The work passed. The power should be on in about a week. The paperwork has to be sent from Trumbull Co. Building Dept. to the city of Niles who supplies the power. But, just to hedge my bets, I talked to Niles electrical supervisor. He said if I had issues with getting the inspector to come out, he would pull the meter, put in jumpers and reconnect the power until the inspection. On another note, the septic tank installer showed up too! The new tank is installed and the health inspector showed up today too!! Holy Cow Batman!! Two inspectors in one day! I SHOULD BY A LOTTERY TICKET!!!! The install should done tomorrow. We should be moving there in about two weeks. I'll keep ya posted.