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Smawgunner
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 11:03 - Edited by: Smawgunner
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The "cabin" we have is a historical hewn log home. It sat deserted for a decade or more, never had plumbing of running water but did have electric years ago. I've been slowly bringing it back to life. It now has electric. I'm getting into projects like replacing the stairs which were not code before. I'm afraid of crossing some line that's going to throw red flags to the powers that be suddenly having inspectors crawling all over it. Should I worry? Wth no septic and water, it's just a shell with electric. Thoughts? We're inOhio in the middle of nowhere.
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turkeyhunter
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 12:22
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I would say it's a "hunting camp"...or a BARN with POWER??
if you call the inspector's will come.... is that what you would really want??NOT ME!!!
if you are contacted...you could always ASK for forgiveness...
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Smawgunner
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 12:47
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I want to keep the inspectors as far away as possible but I don't want it to come back and bite me in the rear.
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rwoods
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 12:55
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Gee Smawgunner I am surprised that you got an elec. service without pulling a permit. I thought that you needed the panel inspected before the elec. company would hook you up.
I do know that some of the rural counties in the great state of OHIO don't have their own inspection dept. and that they rely on the state to do inspections but I don't know about Athens. I am in the north west part of the state.It would be worth making a phone call to the county or check on line to see if they have a bld. inspection dept. Good luck with your project but at some point I think you might have to go legal and pull a permit for the remodeling, you really have a great place
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turkeyhunter
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 13:38
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Quoting: Smawgunner I want to keep the inspectors as far away as possible but I don't want it to come back and bite me in the rear.
I would take the chance...but that's ME!!!!
try to edit your post,...and remove your county on your post...you know some peeps like to talk...
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Smawgunner
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 14:05 - Edited by: Smawgunner
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AEP inspected th meter can and everything outside but nothing inside. Didn't need a permit for any of that. Also, I'm thinking of hiring someone to build a porch on the front of it, and my guess is it would need a permit and inspection. If they came out and saw my other work, the gig might be up! I'm Having second thoughts on THIS now.
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turkeyhunter
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# Posted: 28 Mar 2015 18:42
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Quoting: Smawgunner I'm Having second thoughts on THIS now.
I bet out in the country you could find a "good ole boy contractor" to build you a porch and no one will ever know....I would not open that can of worms with permits/inspections etc.
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Littlecooner
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# Posted: 29 Mar 2015 10:15 - Edited by: Littlecooner
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I agree with the turkeyhunter, I would stay away from inspection and permit, always maintain that I had a "hunting camp" that needed lights so I turned on the power for the very occasional times I was there "hunting". then look around for a "good ol boy" who was handy with a hammer and saw to build you a porch. If you are off the beaten path, they why would anyone know what you are doing if you do not announce your actions around the community. Enjoy your "hunting" shack, they are a lot of things that can be hunted, even undesirable weeds in the back yard can be "hunted".
You say you have been doing work, including rebuilding the stairs. Well, building a porch to a log cabin is not a technical difficult job. Just do it yourself. You could pre cut all the floor planks, etc and carry them in for a week end. Sounds like a couple cases of beer, a truck load of lumber and two or three "hunting buddies" could put a porch together in a single week end and then return again on another week end to put on the roof. Just my 2 cents worth.
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Don_P
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# Posted: 29 Mar 2015 13:05
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This is kind of the problem when there is no inspection. I've been in a house wired with 16ga lamp cord, in many where the loads were totally misunderstood by good ol boys.
The solution to these kind of problems is beyond me. I can't work on them without either putting you in a bad spot, or risking license and insurance. For stairs in an inspected cabin restoration I've gone over beforehand and had the inspector let a non code set in, they were within what I had to work with and better than the original set. Part of that comes from developing a good relationship with inspections.
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turkeyhunter
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# Posted: 30 Mar 2015 09:10
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Quoting: Don_P Part of that comes from developing a good relationship with inspections.
never met a inspection I liked
or inspector either...and most office's change inspectors....like the wind
Quoting: Littlecooner Sounds like a couple cases of beer, a truck load of lumber and two or three "hunting buddies" could put a porch together in a single week end and then return again on another week end to put on the roof
that's what I am talking about!!! GIT er Done..LOL
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rmak
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# Posted: 30 Mar 2015 09:38
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I had bad experiences with our county inspectors when we added an addition onto our house. If you've been reading about or have watched the movie "Still Mine" on a recent thread here you can see the inspectors in our area. They undermined my efforts and did and said a lot of sleeze things that were unnecessary to me. Particularly since I'm paying their wages. I couldn't ask them what was wrong because they would say they aren't in the business of helping or teaching people. I can understand that up to a point, but it would have helped to get a clue what was wrong so I could fix the drawings. They never seemed all that busy that they couldn't take a minute to provide some direction. All the time I spent waiting in their office, they would be joking and back slapping their contractor buddies that came in and would approve things in a second. I fully understand the role of inspectors and have had good experiences with others from other counties, but I can't say anything good about ours. I always wonder how bad their behavior is making things here since many people I know do their best to circumvent having to deal with the inspectors at all. So, by their attitude they are probably causing a lot of shoddy building to be done.
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turkeyhunter
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# Posted: 30 Mar 2015 10:12 - Edited by: turkeyhunter
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Quoting: rmak I had bad experiences with our county inspectors when we added an addition onto our house. If you've been reading about or have watched the movie "Still Mine" on a recent thread here you can see the inspectors in our area. They undermined my efforts and did and said a lot of sleeze things that were unnecessary to me. Particularly since I'm paying their wages. I couldn't ask them what was wrong because they would say they aren't in the business of helping or teaching people. I can understand that up to a point, but it would have helped to get a clue what was wrong so I could fix the drawings. They never seemed all that busy that they couldn't take a minute to provide some direction. All the time I spent waiting in their office, they would be joking and back slapping their contractor buddies that came in and would approve things in a second. I fully understand the role of inspectors and have had good experiences with others from other counties, but I can't say anything good about ours. I always wonder how bad their behavior is making things here since many people I know do their best to circumvent having to deal with the inspectors at all. So, by their attitude they are probably causing a lot of shoddy building to be done.
and there we have a another person going about it "the right way"...and we see how that works out.
......their contractor buddies "give them perks" along the way...and I am not talking about perk tests either
all good points in your post!!!
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Smawgunner
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# Posted: 30 Mar 2015 11:53
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Ok...all of you have convinced me that pulling a permit is not in my best interest...and I agree. I've done most of the work on the cabin myself but I'm not getting any younger. I feel its a race against time to get this done and to enjoy it while I still can. I built my woodshed last spring and ended up with two slipped discs! I'm still walking with a sciatic limp! LOL
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GreatOutdoors
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# Posted: 30 Mar 2015 20:35
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The town I live in is notorious for being difficult with the permit process.
I got a free hot tub/spa from a friend. I found out beforehand that I was supposed to get a permit just to install a hot tub - so I thought I would be legit & get the permit.
The building department wanted a diagram showing exactly where the hot tub was going to set, a site survey, a topo survey, a calculation of how many square feet of pervious / impervious areas. and an electrical diagram showing how it was going to be wired. And of course they wanted money - non-refundable money
I submitted the diagrams (electrical & hot tub placement), and a survey that I had done from when I bought the house (a couple years prior). After a couple weeks without hearing anything, I went to the building department to check on the status of the permit & they told me that I didn't submit the electrical diagram (which I had). I went back the next day to give them my diagram & they brought out the folder with my paperwork - the diagram they said they didn't have was the first page in the folder
A couple weeks later they told me that I couldn't have a structure within 10 feet of the property line (the back property line is along a canal. I wasn't going to able to install the hot tub where I wanted, so I called back and talked to a different person. The second person said that I had a 6 foot set back, so I had to agree to install the hot tub right next to the house.
Then a couple weeks later they said that my survey wasn't what they wanted - they wanted a TOPO survey. I asked why on earth they would want a topo survey & they said they needed to understand which way the water was going to flow if the hot tub was damaged & released all the water. I gently reminded them that the hot tub may hold 300 gallons total and that amount of water was nothing compared to the water coming off my roof during a thunderstorm. They didn't care (logic just bounced off them) and I had to pay a survey company $300 to get my topo survey.
All in all - the permit process took 2 months and cost me $500 to install my free hot tub (after they had threatened to deny me a permit a couple times).
The really hilarious part is that when I went to drop off my permit paperwork - the building department office had an electrical outlet on the wall that was ripped out and there were wires coming from that hole that were spliced (not in a junction box) and laying on the carpet. I saw that & I thought "These people are going to check MY work?"
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turkeyhunter
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# Posted: 30 Mar 2015 21:00
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Quoting: Smawgunner Ok...all of you have convinced me that pulling a permit is not in my best interest...and I agree. I've done most of the work on the cabin myself but I'm not getting any younger.
excellent!!!! birds of a feather flock together!!!
ENJOY!!!
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turkeyhunter
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# Posted: 30 Mar 2015 21:06
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Quoting: GreatOutdoors "These people are going to check MY work?"
I a sorry you went though so much for a free hot tub....sometimes when you TRY to do the RIGHT thing....it's the wrong thing to do!!!
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Don_P
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# Posted: 31 Mar 2015 20:01
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In these tough jurisdictions how much forgiveness do you think these departments will give if they discover unpermitted work later. In encouraging others to fly under radar remember that the repercussions on you are non existant, on some following your advice they can be substantial.
Smawgunner is in a situation I don't envy, nor would I encourage someone to put themselves in that situation. We don't have to like laws, we can act like the law is the cop's fault, none of this is true, it is what it is. As you are seeing, the options keep narrowing down this path. We are all free to chose our own path, and its' consequences.
I keep up with inspectors nationally and typically when a person comes forward and asks what to do to be legal, they are scolded, charged double permit fees and any covered work is exposed to the satisfaction of the inspector. If you can open a small area of concealed wiring and insulation, for example, and he is happy viewing a representative sample, then that might be the limit. I've also seen them require everything be exposed. An engineer may be required for the foundation. The safe and easy way out for him is to say "better luck next try. He has an enforcement job to do and you created the problem, keep things in perspective.
If you think they are abusing their position, document and report to the people who write their check. That is local and effective. If it is a code issue there is an appeals process. Think before you do this, is your complaint legitimate. Ignoring these laws and complaining to the chior is pretty much useless if nothing is going to come from it. Tighter enforcement and codes are becoming more widespread and will not become less of a burden in the future if people choose to hide, hoping not to be hung one by one rather than standing their ground and speaking up together. Generally I've found myself alone speaking to the regional building officials, planning commission or the board of supervisors.
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Smawgunner
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# Posted: 31 Mar 2015 20:30
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The problem with small towns/counties is its often a good old boys club where everyone knows everyone. In my county and seat, I know this all too well. And if you don't reside in the county, it's that much worse. I fought a landlord in court here and lost on all counts. I know damn well he was in the wrong but I still got screwed.
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turkeyhunter
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# Posted: 31 Mar 2015 20:39
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Quoting: Smawgunner The problem with small towns/counties is its often a good old boys club where everyone knows everyone. In my county and seat, I know this all too well. And if you don't reside in the county, it's that much worse. I fought a landlord in court here and lost on all counts. I know damn well he was in the wrong but I still got screwed.
VERY TRUE!!!!!
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Smawgunner
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# Posted: 8 Apr 2015 14:24
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Here is what I found on their web site:
5713.17. Duty to notify county auditor of improvement costing over $2,000; entry for examination.
To enable the county auditor to determine the value and location of buildings and other improvements, any person, other than a railroad company or a public utility whose real property is valued for taxation by the tax commissioner, that constructs any building or other improvement costing more than two thousand dollars upon any lot or land within a township or municipal corporation not having a system of building registration and inspection shall notify the county auditor of the county within which such land or lot is located that the building or improvement has been completed or is in process of construction. The notice shall be in writing, shall contain an estimate of the cost of the building or improvement, shall describe the lot or land and its ownership in a manner reasonably calculated to allow the county auditor to identify the lot or tract of land on the tax list, and shall be served upon the county auditor not later than sixty days after construction of the building or improvement has commenced.
Upon the discovery of a building or improvement that has been constructed but of which the county auditor has not been notified as required by this section, the county auditor shall appraise it and place it upon the tax list and duplicate at its taxable value, together with a penalty equal to fifty percent of the amount of taxes that would have been charged against the building or improvement from the date of construction to the date of discovery had the county auditor been notified of its construction as required by this section.
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toyota_mdt_tech
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# Posted: 8 Apr 2015 14:50
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Why do you need inspectors, you are just doing cosmetic. Its already built and in place, probably a time before permitting making it legal now. Just keep going, no inspectors, ever. Electrical? Yeah, it was already there when you got it, right.
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