The management company handling my rental house replaced the old sub-standard meter base and main panel on my house. They said it was an emergency so notified me only after the fact. This was last winter and I am only now getting down to the house to prep it for sale. It appears that the electricians caused water leakage in the roof that may have warped my hardwood floors and I am not sure that they were correct in how they installed the panel.
The previous panel was only a 120v 60 amp service which was only grounded to a water pipe which was at the back of the house. For the new panel, they ran a #6 copper wire from the panel under the house and bonded it to the copper water pipe that is the main water feed for the house. My question is: should they not also have installed a ground rod and bonded to it. I realize that ground to a water pipe was code when this house was built in 1957. However, should they not install per current code when replacing a panel rather than installig to the code that was in effect when the original panel was installed? (Yeah, I will go ahead and install a rod and bond to it. I actually had installed a rod with the old panel earlier, but somehow it seems to have disappeared. However, since I am unhappy with them messing up my newly recovered roof and causing significant water damage, I thought I might also mention the grounding issue with them.)
Replies
It depends a lot on local code enforcement offies and what their interpretation of the local grandfather clause means.
Around here a service upgrade requires bringing the new service panel, including grounds, up to current code if it involves replacing the meter base. If it is a simple panel replacement w/o the meter base, the ground is not always upgraded. It should be IMO and individual inspectors have their particular likes and such on the issue.
If the upgrade was inspected, there should be a sticker on the service panel. If no sticker, call the management company and start there. The work may well be legal, but they violated local ordinances by hiring a contractor that did not get premits and inspections. You pay them to manage you property according to the law, not just the cheapest or easiest way for them.
Dave
if it was me I would call the state electrical inspector not the local. ask the question and file a complaint with them. have the state electrical insector not only check for the bad gound but have him note the damage the caused to the roof by his work.
After the state electrical inspector does his dance on the electrician and the local inspector.
Armed with report and the order to repair the service from the state go after your management company for hiring that incompetent electrician failier to inspect the work that is part for what you hire them for is it not.
What state are you in? Here in CA, the state does licensing of contractors, but permits and inspection are city by city.
-- J.S.
Let's see... absentee landlord, wants to sell property... so everything bad must be somebody's fault...quick! Let's sue!
I don't agree with your reasoning, and question your motives. As for second-guessing the electrical contractor, and the various city inspectors.... well, don't you think you ought to talk to them before jumping to accusations.
120v service? This place has been there for what- 80 years- and you've not bothered to put a penny into upgrading it? You waited for something to break, causing an 'emergency' repair.
You want sympathy, find it in the dictionary...
I don't want sympathy and I am not quite sure what brings on your attitude - no where did I say anything about suing and I am not about to. The reason I posted was that I wanted to see if my reading of the code met with the same understanding others have before I talk to anyone. I will probably just add the ground that I think should be there, patch the roof, replace a section of the hardwood floor that was water damaged, and forget about it. Being deaf makes it rather difficult to talk to anyone, thus I try to get the most information I can before moving forward. Glad you are such an expert on what is there and what the situation is. You must have a very powerful crystal ball to know all the facts... There was no problem and no real emergency. The management company rented to a "section 8" tenant and the section 8 people did an inspection of the property and found it did not meet their standards. As to the roof, it is unusual. It is a series of Hemasote panels - a type of fibrous material that basically has almost no withdrawal strength. It also is very easily damaged by water and requires an intact roof membrane to protect it. The electricians drove large lag screws into the roof, expecting that to hold the bracing they used. It didn't and it won't - it just serves as an entry point for water into the roofing material and then down onto the hardwood floor. This type of roofing is unusual elsewhere but it is common in the area where the house is located. If they had bothered to inquire as to the roof construction, they would not have made that mistake. They probably assumed it was a standard roof construction, which it was not. The house is about 50 years old and I lived there for ten years before my job disappeared and I moved 600 miles north, expecting to return shortly - which has not happened. Anyway, more than you wanted to know. I hope your day goes better tomorrow and you are in a better mood.
You may be on to something...it HAS been a trying day.