Finally, My Dream Shop #14: Building Inspectors Must Be Unhappy People!

Apparachniks

-- Thos. Angle, Owyhee Design, Oregon

shame on them.
Perhaps some letter writing would be appropriate (after you get final approval of course) saying that they inspector obviously wasn’t doing his/her job properly as it took several trips to find errors… he should have only needed one visit at the end to point out all the things “wrong” and then one visit to see that they had been fixed.

Perhaps a letter to the newspapers to show people where their tax dollars are being spent. hmph.

Anyway…...... one step closer; doing what you have to do .. and then, it will all be part of history.

-- "Functional WoodArt" by Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

This is whats great about where i’m at in Alabama. We don’t yet have enough govt bureacrats to make building a dog house an intolerable ordeal. I’m sure its coming though.

Glad you’re near the end!

-- miles125, Alabama.."Architecture is frozen music""

It’s a shame that after you spend all that money and time, these clowns have to come in and nickel and dime you, basically playing power struggle games. The worst part is that they can’t agree amoung themselves what the code is. Good luck and soon enough you will be standing in the middle of your new shop, with no worries except what to build!

-- Women love me.....trees fear me

The only good bureaucrat is one with a pistol at his head. Put it in his hand and it’s good-by to the Bill of Rights.

- H.L. Mencken
Chin up grit the teeth , smile.

Bob

-- A mind, like a home, is furnished by its owner

Seems that you or your GC did not take the right person in the city building department to the right place for lunch.

No, really, I can feel your pain. Where I live anything under 100 sq. ft. will only require approval from our architectural board, no county inspections. That has me debating whether to keep my shop in the garage or go whole hog and put me a nice shop in the back yard. There is even a vacant lot next to mine that I guess I could buy and put a shop on it.

Good luck getting finished up. Show us some pictures when you are done.

-- -- Rob Hix, King George, VA

In Delaware where I live it’s 350sq ft needs a footing inspection and a final.

So my neighbor built a storage shed with a loft. After the final inspection was done a bed was moved in for his son and daughter in-law to visit. She’s allergic to cats. So they will sleep in the “Storage Shed” with hard-rock maple floors.

-- Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com

I feel your pain, CalGirl! You know those cheap, piece-of-junk storage sheds with 2×2 framing and 6’ walls that they just come dump off in your yard, concrete blocks optional? No permit needed. Want to build one of decent quality yourself? Permits, inspections, commercially built trusses. I fought with the county to get them to let me put the thing on concrete blocks – they wanted me to put it on a foundation with hurricane straps!

-- Coffee is best with a fine layer of sawdust on top. -- http://www.north40custom.com

It’s terrible that the inspection system where you are is such that it encourages inspectors to find “building code exceptions” so someone gets $30 per re-inspection. It seems if you end up paying them whatever amount those “several re-inspections” cost and everyone locally knows about it, why don’t they (the inspectors and their departments) get together and develop a system that charges that full amount and they coordate their inspections so all the inspections are done at once so at most they would come out twice (once for the initial and the second time to inspect any call back work that is “required fixes”, with the second “follow-up” inspection at no cost. It would make things much less frustrating and more predictable.

This is just one bystander’s thoughts. I know in the real world things are not that logical, though they should be.

Glad you are nearing the end and will have your work space to enjoy. Looking forward to seeing your shop when finished.

Dalec

yah.. first there is the nuisance value and then the cost value (financial and time) and then there is the cost on the environment – -just think of all that extra travel impact on Mother Nature…

-- "Functional WoodArt" by Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

It seems as though they are trying to justify their jobs, they probably have no lives outside of their work. If you can call what they do work. I call it harassment.

-- http://dustynewt.com

Didn’t they look at your plans when they issued you a building permit? Seems like all these dislikes should have been discovered then. The inspections are suppose to verify that the contractor followed the plans and codes that were to be verified when the plans were delivered. I’m sorry that they put you through all of this, but will celebrate with you when you are finished. Good luck and happy woodworking!

-- Jesus is Lord!

Our tax dollars at work…most of it is because of bad contractors, but for that we all suffer a bureaucratic solution.

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

good point, Os…..... definitely letter-writing time!

-- "Functional WoodArt" by Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

While you are letter writing pen one to your local legislators and/or city council.

-- Only the Shadow knows....................

I borrowed some tools from a plumber friend of mine, when I put the cast iron sewer ground work in my basement. When I was done my friend came over to pressure test it, before calling the inspector.

I tested out fine, but I noticed a drain line to the shower had been accidentally bumped, or stepped on, so the water would have to go uphill. I was going to adjust it, but my friend said, wait until the inspector leaves, because it’s not leaking.

Sure enough the inspector passed the pressure test, but didn’t check anything else.

After he left I set things straight. It’s lucky I noticed it myself, or I’d of had a defective shower drain.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

Seems to me that he didn’t do his inspection correctly the first time. He should have inspected and reported on every variance so that you could get them fixed. So, why do you have to pay another $30.00 for a return visit? And when you tell him you’re not paying for his mistakes, he just won’t pass your inspection. Right? So like everyone else, you feel it’s far better to pay than fight. And he goes to the next customer and does the same thing. It’s called abuse of power. Didn’t Date-Line NBC do a report on these scamming contractors and inspectors? They filmed it in Florida too, didn’t they?

You ever hear of what happens to bad contractors? They become inspectors!

Maybe it’s time to be firing off a few letters to his boss. I mean “bosses”.

-- Bob Vila would be so proud of you!

Nothing like good ol american apple pie Calgirl. Mmmmm, the smeeeell, a slice, I’ll say yes to anything. lol

Its only unbelievable til you actually do it, and then its really unbelievable.

Inspectionnazis, seems like they are everywhere. The guy I’ve had to deal with can only be called a jerk (with apologies to jerks everywhere). At least we don’t have the pay per inspection scam. I’d definitely get hot about that).

-- Bob, Carver Massachusetts, Sawdust Maker http://www.capecodbaychallenge.org

You have perservered and the end is in sight. Congratulations. You will certainly have a story to tell with this one.

Dalec

I guess you didn’t grease enough palms the first time around so they kept coming back. When I built my shop I have one inspector check the underground connection to the electric meter and that was it. What’s that old saying: Just be glad you’re not getting all the government you’re paying for. Sounds like you are getting more than you deserve or need.

-- DocK, WV