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Elevator at church

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craigibc

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 17, 2010
Messages
265
Location
Western New York
We have an elevator at our church and sometimes if it is left at the bottom level it stops working. We have to call the repairman and it cost $465.00 for them to flip and switch and get it working. I was not there last time is was “fixed” and the other person that let them in did not take down any details on what switch to flip to fix it.
So this past week it happened again and the repairman will take 4-6 weeks to repair it and it is a 5 minute repair.

Anyone have any experience with something like this and any advice that you can offer?

Craig
 
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Firebrick43

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Joined
May 12, 2015
Messages
13,998
Location
West central Indiana
craigibc said:
We have an elevator at our church and sometimes if it is left at the bottom level it stops working. We have to call the repairman and it cost $465.00 for them to flip and switch and get it working. I was not there last time is was “fixed” and the other person that let them in did not take down any details on what switch to flip to fix it.
So this past week it happened again and the repairman will take 4-6 weeks to repair it and it is a 5 minute repair.

Anyone have any experience with something like this and any advice that you can offer?

Craig
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The best advice I can give is don't work on it.

Working on elevators without a license opens you up to all kinds of litigation, especially in your state.

If it keeps tripping there is a problem with either overloading the elevator or a mechanical issue.

Either educate to keep from overloading or demand the repair company fix it right. Or get a different company.
 
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PCustoms

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Joined
Jul 23, 2011
Messages
22,403
Location
VT
Firebrick43 said:
The best advice I can give is don't work on it.

Working on elevators without a license opens you up to all kinds of litigation, especially in your state.

If it keeps tripping there is a problem with either overloading the elevator or a mechanical issue.

Either educate to keep from overloading or demand the repair company fix it right. Or get a different company.
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Spot on.

Most elevators in public buildings require inspection/certification, and the average joe can't work on them.
 
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PoorUB

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Joined
Mar 29, 2021
Messages
11,622
Location
Fargo, ND
The guy probably reset an overload, then walked away without trying to figure out why it tripped.

Call them back, or call a different company and let them know you expect to be told specifically what was wrong and what was done to make certain it didn't happen again.

It *****, but often there will be a random issue that a tech can not make it come up while he is there. I dealt with this in HVAC. Once in a while I would just have to wait for the complete failure.
 
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nadogail

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Joined
Jan 23, 2009
Messages
31,928
Location
Coronado, CA
Learn how to do a reset on the controls, the contractor who installed the elevator in my home walked me through the procedure as part of the "Sign Off' when he finished the job.
 
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BrandonV

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Joined
Jun 9, 2023
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4,030
Location
Arizona
rkevins said:
contact a reputable company, check the brand and contact that company. Try TK if there is a rep in your area.
Click to expand...

It probably varies by region, but I've worked with a couple dozen elevator mechanics from all the major companies, and my experience has been pretty consistent across the board.

This isn't meant to disparage the entire industry, I'm sure there are excellent mechanics out there but in my experience, the ones I've dealt with rarely fix the root problem. Instead, they just reset the controller when we report issues. We've escalated it all the way up through their management several times, but nothing ever really changes.

What grinds my gears is when they're supposed to do maintenance weekly but then I have an entrapment because he hasn't gone in and cleaned the absolute positioning system tape.
 
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nadogail

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Jan 23, 2009
Messages
31,928
Location
Coronado, CA
I would not be surprised to learn that the Elevator Mechanic is allowing the root to go unresolved so that he can get more “Easy Fix” service calls.
I have encountered this when the mechanics are paid by commission rather than salaried.
 
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Loud Lyle

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Joined
Nov 4, 2024
Messages
90
Elevator mechanics are paid by the hour and are judged on the number of repeat callbacks they have. The companies do not allow many of them to spend the time troubleshooting problems. I’m glad I work for an independent company that is owned by one man and uses union trained mechanics.
 
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NUTTSGT

Super Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Sep 14, 2009
Messages
50,879
Location
Northern Central Ohio
We get calls for people stuck in the elevator....we do what we have to do and/or call those that need calling.

We don't foot the bill. My thoughts are if you put in an elevator, be prepared to incur the costs associated with such.... much like a boat or airplane.
 
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Stick-man

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 16, 2013
Messages
295
Location
Mid-South Tennessee
Loud Lyle said:
Elevator mechanics are paid by the hour and are judged on the number of repeat callbacks they have. The companies do not allow many of them to spend the time troubleshooting problems. I’m glad I work for an independent company that is owned by one man and uses union trained mechanics.
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Are you IUEC?
 
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Old Man Roger

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 6, 2017
Messages
17,439
Location
Palm Coast Florida
Loud Lyle said:
Resetting an elevator is not fixing an elevator. Call a different company. Elevators can kill you . Do not work on it yourself. 20 year elevator mechanic here.
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I’m listening to this guy^^^^
nadogail said:
I would not be surprised to learn that the Elevator Mechanic is allowing the root to go unresolved so that he can get more “Easy Fix” service calls.
I have encountered this when the mechanics are paid by commission rather than salaried.
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I know ac guys that do the same. The most common is to not fix a slow leak.
 
J

johnnn

Active member
Joined
May 22, 2017
Messages
30
Is this a wheelchair lift or a full elevator designed for several people at once? Wheelchair lifts will have a somewhat user friendly manual. I've seen simple resets fix stuck wheelchair lifts.
 
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bobg03

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 29, 2020
Messages
3,420
Location
conway sc
craigibc said:
We have an elevator at our church and sometimes if it is left at the bottom level it stops working. We have to call the repairman and it cost $465.00 for them to flip and switch and get it working. I was not there last time is was “fixed” and the other person that let them in did not take down any details on what switch to flip to fix it.
So this past week it happened again and the repairman will take 4-6 weeks to repair it and it is a 5 minute repair.
Click to expand...
Elevator Techs are one of, if not the highest paid trade out there. If I was in my 20's and looking for a career this is where i'd look.

We had numerous elevators including freight and passenger elevators when I worked for the FD at Pfizer, all 18 of us were trained on the basics of operation and also on SAFE elevator rescue when one failed. Operators in production buildings were allowed to ride in freight elevators, but not in research facilites except for the transport of animals. Those were company rules as the facility was self insured through IRI.

Once we had completed a successful rescue from any elevator we were required to Lock-Out-Tag-Out, post it as OOS and contact the elevator company to find the issue and fix it.
 
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