We had an HVAC sub over to the house to do a few minor things at the house. Not only did they show up at the time they said they would, they did the work on the spot and came in under budget. A completely unexpected trifecta. A day later and I’m still in shock at the turn of events.
All I have to say is what the !@#$??? So, electrical rough in was completed on Friday afternoon and the electricians called for the inspection. The inspectors came first thing Monday morning and failed the house for something very minor. The electricians didn’t put enough stud guards in the framing near the electrical panels to avoid a nail or a screw from going through the high voltage wiring.
As far as we are concerned that is fair enough. The last thing we want after spending the national budget of Guam on this remodel is for a nail to go through a 30 amp wire and burn the place down. The electricians came right out, remedied the issue and called back in for a reinspection. This is where things begin to drive me insane.
I get a call 3pm on Tuesday from the electrician to let the inspector into the house. No problem. I run over there and the inspector is sitting in his truck. I get out, unlock the house, wave to the inspector and get back in my car – and sit. 15 minutes goes by and the guy just sits there in his truck. Then he starts it up and drives away without ever going into the house to check to see if four little pieces of metal have been tacked into the studs!
Insensed about this I call the electrician and he checks the system online and the inspector reports that the home was inaccessible. Inaccessible!!! Not only was the door unlocked, I was fricking sitting right fricking there not 30 feet from where he was!!! So, we have to call in for a reinspection again. This time the electrician puts my cell phone number on the inspection ticket for them to call me directly as we aren’t expecting any subs at the house on Wednesday.
Wednesday comes and goes with no calls from anyone. I have no business over at the house that day, so I go to a few appointments and figure we’re just getting pushed off until the next day for getting this thing inspected.
Thursday morning I go to the house to meet the HVAC guy who is going to run a new wire from the heat pump up to where the new thermostat will go and run the gas line to the kitchen for the cooktop. As I unlock the door what do I find? A love note from code enforcement failing the inspection on Wednesday due to what you may ask? That’s right – the home was inaccessible! As my grandfather would have been oft to remark this is the phone age not the stone age! Not only did they know my electricians number, but my electrician gave them my number! The laziness and incompetence is astounding.
Yet again, a reinspection is called in. Yet again, my cell phone number is listed as the contact. Friday morning around 8:30am my cell phone rings. Its the electrician letting me know that the inspector in en route. Don’t you just love how they follow directions?
I get to the house about 5 minutes after speaking with the electrician. I unlock the house, open all the doors – front and back – and toyed with the idea of either putting up a blinking neon arrow to all entryways to the house or leaving trails of cheese so they could find their way in. The inspector shows up 10 minutes later, manages to actually exit his vehicle, gained access through the wide open front door and – finally – passed the house!
Five days, four visits, three stud guards, two failures and one approval.
Three times the charm I guess: 
Electrical, structured wiring and whole home audio is in!
More power! We moved the electrical panel in the house because where it was would have interfered with the kitchen cabinets and moving it just over a wall into the mudroom would have interfered with the new mudroom and the plumbing in those walls. Therefore, we needed to find a new home for the service panel in the entry way to the master bedroom. As a result they had to run this mama jamma wire across the house to bring the power in from the outside and to the new service panel.
The new low voltage panel for the structured wiring: 
Recessed can lighting in the kitchen: 
Recessed lighting and speakers in the living room: 
Miscellaneous wiring and whole home audio connections:
We lucked out in that the water main had already been replaced, so that helped out with the plumbing bill. Still, the plumbing is now about 85% all new. There was some legacy pipe that the plumbers felt was in good working order and they left an old cast iron stack pipe since they added about four new ones to significantly improve the water pressure in the house. The only thing left to do is for them to install the tubs and drains now that they are in and get their work inspected.
Kitchen sink: 
Washer hookup: 
Mudroom sink and refrig ice maker connection: 
Master bathroom: 
2nd/Guest bathroom: 
Its been more than a month since the last post and there is a lot of catching up to do. We’ve been busy reworking flooring and subflooring, getting plumbing, electrical, structured wiring and whole home audio going. We’ve also been busy making the final decisions on fit and finish now that we are about two weeks away from having the walls back in the house. Just some minor plumbing rough in, insulation and a few inspections remaining before it is time to wall it back up!
