Actually, I know it is not, but why does it seem that I might be about the only one around here that realizes this?
There are contractors building houses, sunrooms, screen rooms, decks, and the like without pulling any permits. They laugh when asked about permits and building codes and simply say it does not apply to them. And this seems like the usual attitude of the people around here. If the job can be done for less money by not following codes, the owners will usually go for it.
They will add a sunroom to a house, no permits, run electrical home runs for the AC/heat and outlets with numerous NEC violations along the way, and then just walk away, proud of their work!
My father had a huge electrical contracting business when I was a kid, so I grew up in the business. As the assistant estimator, I had to really learn the code and use it to my advantage. Then I started doing my own electrical work around Denver, CO where they are very tough on the codes and inspections. (Or at least they used to be back in the late 70s, 80s, and 90s.)
Back in 1995 when I was last living here I went to speak to the head electrical inspector of Knoxville and to show him a bad code violation in the apartment building I lived in. I showed him in the NEC where it is a violation and he literally told me they didn't have to follow all of the codebook there! I asked him on the spot whether he thought he was in the USA or not. I gave up doing any more electrical work at that point until I moved back to Denver where they do respect the NEC.
Now I'm back here again and it seems that nothing has changed, they are still using the SBC as their guide. (Southern Building Code) I had another contractor tell me that if the customer wants a dedicated GFCI circuit for their step-in tub, that it is an extra charge because they just connect to the closest circuit they can find! For that particular situation, I found an open splice, just taped together and hidden in the wall that connected to a kitchen circuit! The kitchen counter had to be taken out to get to the splice and remove it. And I am seeing techniques being used that I last saw used in Mexico and Vietnam when I last visited there.
I'm not sure of why this is, but it does seem to be a big difference in the attitudes towards building and electrical codes between the people in the red and blue states. And this is not meant to be a political topic, I am just questioning as to why there is no respect for the codes here in East TN?
There are contractors building houses, sunrooms, screen rooms, decks, and the like without pulling any permits. They laugh when asked about permits and building codes and simply say it does not apply to them. And this seems like the usual attitude of the people around here. If the job can be done for less money by not following codes, the owners will usually go for it.
They will add a sunroom to a house, no permits, run electrical home runs for the AC/heat and outlets with numerous NEC violations along the way, and then just walk away, proud of their work!
My father had a huge electrical contracting business when I was a kid, so I grew up in the business. As the assistant estimator, I had to really learn the code and use it to my advantage. Then I started doing my own electrical work around Denver, CO where they are very tough on the codes and inspections. (Or at least they used to be back in the late 70s, 80s, and 90s.)
Back in 1995 when I was last living here I went to speak to the head electrical inspector of Knoxville and to show him a bad code violation in the apartment building I lived in. I showed him in the NEC where it is a violation and he literally told me they didn't have to follow all of the codebook there! I asked him on the spot whether he thought he was in the USA or not. I gave up doing any more electrical work at that point until I moved back to Denver where they do respect the NEC.
Now I'm back here again and it seems that nothing has changed, they are still using the SBC as their guide. (Southern Building Code) I had another contractor tell me that if the customer wants a dedicated GFCI circuit for their step-in tub, that it is an extra charge because they just connect to the closest circuit they can find! For that particular situation, I found an open splice, just taped together and hidden in the wall that connected to a kitchen circuit! The kitchen counter had to be taken out to get to the splice and remove it. And I am seeing techniques being used that I last saw used in Mexico and Vietnam when I last visited there.
I'm not sure of why this is, but it does seem to be a big difference in the attitudes towards building and electrical codes between the people in the red and blue states. And this is not meant to be a political topic, I am just questioning as to why there is no respect for the codes here in East TN?
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