Sub-panel ???

[ICE]

Service upgrade inspection.

The flex that pokes through the stucco has two hots and a neutral that are landing on a breaker that is labeled sub-panel. Quite naturally I asked where the sub-panel is located. They didn't have an answer. So along with a bunch of other corrections I asked them to find the sub-panel. I noticed that the stucco to the right of the upgrade panel has been patched and after the third inspection with no results I told them to open the wall. They resisted but finally did as told.

This mess was inside the wall. The panel that was on the wall is now laying on the grass.

They have started over with a recessed panel.

This is what it looked like the last time I was there. Because I did not sign off the final, a Sub Contractor Coordinator for a solar company wrote a scathing email to the office manager. Apparently they never fail inspection unless I am the inspector.

 

[Yankee Chronicler]

This is what it looked like the last time I was there. Because I did not sign off the final, a Sub Contractor Coordinator for a solar company wrote a scathing email to the office manager. Apparently they never fail inspection unless I am the inspector.

Sort of makes you wonder what the other inspectors are doing, eh?

 

[Inspector Gadget]

Sort of makes you wonder what the other inspectors are doing, eh?

I'm nodding my head here in an "I can relate" kinda way.

 

[tmurray]

I used to work in a smaller municipality with a few other similar sized municipalities around it. We used to get the "they don't make me do that in <other municipality>" until we started calling one another to compare notes.

Whenever I heard that statement from then on, I called around to understand if I was doing something wrong or not. Many times, the other municipality wasn't familiar with that requirement and once you know better, you do better.

Contractors stopped using that statement.

 

[Sifu]

I used to work in a smaller municipality with a few other similar sized municipalities around it. We used to get the "they don't make me do that in <other municipality>" until we started calling one another to compare notes.

Whenever I heard that statement from then on, I called around to understand if I was doing something wrong or not. Many times, the other municipality wasn't familiar with that requirement and once you know better, you do better.

Contractors stopped using that statement.

Many times I have done the same thing...only to find they have done the same thing in other areas, and failed inspections. Recently I had a building owner get really upset when I told them the building they were in must be sprinklered because they had changed the occupancy (to an A2) and code required sprinklers. He was adamant that they didn't do it just one town over. I got ahold of those plans. He was right, he was not made to sprinkler the building BECASUE IT WAS ALREADY A SPRINKLERED BUILDING. All the meetings, calls to the mayor, calls for me to be fired....suddenly stopped.

Unfortunately, in many instances, they are right though. Hard pill to swallow for them. On some occasions when I have inquired and highlighted a problem, the justifications (code contortions) are interesting. What I find most interesting is when an issue is identified there were no contortions, just ignored or overlooked without a second thought.

Everyone makes mistakes, only some learn from them.