Grumpy inspector. Am I wrong here?

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Joseph Roy

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I am a licensed plumber here in MA .
This Morning I called for a rough gas inspection the inspector tells me 9-10am.
In this town you have to stand your inspections. 10.10 rolls around so I call
the town to see if he is coming????
I have just been forgotten in the past.
The guy from the town says you are really
Calling because he’s 10 mins late???
I said yes I was He calls me back and
Says he is on his way.
The 85 year old inspector pulls up a says
You called because I’m 10 mins late who
the hell are you?lol
So he is here to look at a rough gas test the
Test is on and the pipe is roughed behind each appliance! Before he does anything he turns to me and says do you have a appliance hooked up? I said no why would I?
Why would I disconnect the customers stove
Two days before Christmas so I can get a tag
Telling the gas company that we need a meter??
It is the middle of winter who know when they can get a meter here???
Bottom line is he was mad about me calling
town and had a personal Vendetta !
As he is getting back in his truck I told him he was wrong he says i may be wrong but
you are not getting this tag. Lol
 

Sylvan

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When we do a integrity test on gas piping we do leave the appliance connected and the supply valves closed

Years ago all appliances had to be disconnected and the valves had a plug installed .

MA is slightly behind the times and once an inspector in MA has an issue with a contractor good luck getting anything passed

NYC did allow for self inspections ( no longer on gas) and if the inspectors did not show up we passed
 

James Henry

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No offense, but I'm shocked that you even thought about disrespecting an inspector. You don't have to like them but they have the power.
 

hj

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Sylvan, here we STILL have to disconnect and plug the supply line so that the intergity of the flexible connector can be checked. But, I am confused as to whether the person was testing a part of the system. Otherwise, why would he worry about the customer not having gas, but also if the meter is not set yet, what difference does it make whether he "disconnects the fixture two days before Christmas". The sequence of his posting is somewhat confusing. But the old maxim, "the inspector may not always be right, but he is ALWAYS THE INSPECTOR" holds true in this case.
 

Tuttles Revenge

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You might be right... but you might have shot yourself in the foot too.

Theres a right way to handle situations like that and that probably wasn't the right way to handle it.

One way to fix problems like that tho, that I learned from my dad.. Have a chat with the inspector.. get to know him a bit.. If he likes whiskey.. make sure to buy him a nice bottle of whiskey.. If he likes fishing.. take him fishing.

Here if we're doing a whole house.. all appliances disconnected, valves in the on position and plugged.. If we're testing a branch we install a telltale tee.
 

Joseph Roy

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Sylvan, here we STILL have to disconnect and plug the supply line so that the intergity of the flexible connector can be checked. But, I am confused as to whether the person was testing a part of the system. Otherwise, why would he worry about the customer not having gas, but also if the meter is not set yet, what difference does it make whether he "disconnects the fixture two days before Christmas". The sequence of his posting is somewhat confusing. But the old maxim, "the inspector may not always be right, but he is ALWAYS THE INSPECTOR" holds true in this case.
This was a new gas piping install going from propane to natural gas.
All he was there to do is look at the gas test pressure and pipe install.
 

Taylorjm

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It would be much easier if there was a set of the rules that the inspector had to follow, things would be much easier. Unfortunately, they are given way too much power to do whatever they want. This is a perfect example. They were hired to do a job, shouldn't matter if you are rude or nice, they should just do their job according to a set of regulations. To withhold your permit because he was mad that you called to see why he was 10 minutes late is uncalled for. If he said he was going to be there, he should have been there or called you to say he was running late. You shouldn't have had to call him. I wish you could call the town and explain that the inspector didn't do his job because he had an ego trip and they could do something, but who knows if that would help or hurt the situation.
 

Mliu

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If he likes whiskey.. make sure to buy him a nice bottle of whiskey.. If he likes fishing.. take him fishing.
This is the kind of under-the-table nonsense that is common and expected in third-world banana republics. I'm not saying that Tuttles is wrong, but no one in America should have to bribe a public official for him to do his job responsibly and correctly.
 

Sylvan

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My foreman had an issue with a lady inspector who said " She is tired and does not want to walk up three flights of stairs and that he take a picture of the roughing and show it to her"

He refused she failed the inspection

We sent a letter requesting another inspector and explained her actions were very unprofessional

She was fired as we were not the only ones to complain about her .

The majority of inspectors are great and in NYC we are not allowed to even offer the inspectors a cup of coffee.

Some will not even shake your hand as it looks like your handing them something
 

Reach4

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The majority of inspectors are great and in NYC we are not allowed to even offer the inspectors a cup of coffee.
Good.

I suspect it was not always that way.
 
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