Why You Need a Licensed Contractor

In the previous article we discussed the importance of pulling a permit and hopefully have given a good overview as to the true risks of not obtaining one. In this article we are going to discuss the risks of having a contractor who’s not licensed in a particular field perform work on your home. Please note, that many of the same risks that apply to not having work permitted also apply to hiring a contractor who does not have proper licensing for the job. I won’t repeat that same information you’ve already read, but instead want to focus on what I’d consider to be the nuances of the task at hand. Contractors may have a wide knowledge base on how to install certain items; but it doesn’t always mean they understand why they are installing something in a particular way or the nuance of why some things need to be installed in a certain order. The consequences of not understanding the nuances of what you’re doing can be costly. 

I will be the first to admit, as a general contractor, I have sometimes hated paying the high rates which plumbers and electricians demand. The price points for their work are generally quite high, and they can be seeing multiple jobs in a day because of their high demand that clean up seems to land back on the contractor after they are finished. However, I do need to recognize that I have to hire them for a few reasons. 

1.  I am legally required to. If a project calls for relocation of plumbing lines, gas lines, or electrical lines then you are legally required to hire a professional with that particular license to perform the work and get a permit for it. The only exception is a homeowner who chooses to perform the work themselves.
2. I hire them because they are fully trained and licensed in these specific trades (or skill set) and understand the nuances of the systems they are installing. They spend 5+ years developing the skills to become a Journeyman and then Master of their trade and that knowledge, plus the knowledge of the systems they install should be respected.

Consequences of Not Working with a Licensed Contractor

I will also admit that for some it is not difficult to solder copper, run PEX lines, or run wires to make electrical connections. What is challenging is knowing about drain line sizing, proper sewer venting, wire sizing, and what types of vents and systems are required for your HVAC systems (to name a few). I can’t tell you how many times I have seen work where individuals knew how to install one of these systems, but didn’t understand the nuances and consequences of what they were installing. A few real life examples *(A quick side note, all these examples I am going to offer would have been caught had the work been permitted and inspected):

One: Starting with an improperly sized breaker. In an electrical system the breaker is meant to be the weakest link in the circuit. The idea being that if the breaker receives electrical current it is not intended to receive then the breaker can pop, thus breaking the circuit which eliminates the dangerous flow of electricity. The problem I have seen on several occasions is that someone who had enough knowledge on how to install a circuit breaker but didn’t understand the nuance of why the breaker was sized for the amps it was rated for changed out a breaker that led to home damage. For example, a homeowner has a bathroom with a 15 amp breaker. They are in the bathroom and have the lights turned on and then turn on a hairdryer, all of a sudden the breaker pops because it’s maxed out its amp capacity. The homeowner wonders if they can simply add a new breaker that’s rated for higher amps like a 20 amp breaker. They install the larger breaker not realizing that when the connected wires receive the electricity they heat up, and if small wires receive more electricity than they are capable of handling they can get too hot and catch on fire. The smaller 15 amp breaker would have caught this problem and shut off power to the circuit preventing too much heat, but the 20 amp breaker may not sense the problem until it’s too hot and could potentially ignite causing a structural fire. 

Two: Individuals using pipe tape and pipe dope (joint compound) on flare fittings. On threaded plumbing and gas connections (or fittings) it is standard practice to use pipe thread tape, pipe dope, or sometimes plumbers will use both tape and dope to make connections so the fittings are water or gas tight and cannot create a dangerous leak. Some individuals who are not professionally trained on how to work with the water or gas fittings can get the impression that you use thread tape or dope everywhere except for where a fitting connects to a rubber gasket. However, this is not the case when it comes to gas flare fittings. In this scenario a flare connects to another flare fitting, even though there is no rubber gasket, pipe thread and pipe tape are not used on that connection. A small amount of plumber’s grease may be used to help the fitting cinch in but that is all that should be used in that scenario. Because the installer didn’t understand the nuance of the different types of pipes, they’ve created a situation where natural gas or propane is almost guaranteed to leak at those connections.

Three: Open Loop heating systems are where you have a hot water tank which supplies heat for the domestic water supply (drinking/showering) as well as some form of a hydronic heating system. People may opt for an open loop system because they want a tankless installation; it’s less expensive to buy just one heating source. In this case for an open loop you’d buy a tankless water heater. With a closed loop system you need a water heater and a boiler – so two separate heating systems costing more money and taking up more space. The benefit of the closed loop system is that the water supplies are separated and can never mix. Why is this a good thing? This is where understanding the nuances comes into play. Let’s say you have an open loop system where the domestic supply and the radiant heating supply are not separated. It’s the summer months, or you’ve left on vacation for several weeks and have not needed to heat your home. This means that without needing that heat, your radiant heating system hasn’t needed to turn on which means that water has been sitting stagnant in your floors for some time. This stagnant water grows harmful bacteria where, if certain safety measures haven’t been put into place, that stagnant water could begin to backflow into your drinking water as well the water you shower with. This harmful bacteria has been known to cause legionnaires disease. For those that understand the nuance of why they need certain components for the system they would have installed check valves to prevent backflow, and a timer to trigger the recirculation pump to turn on every 4-6 hours to prevent stagnation in the water. If you had a closed loop system you wouldn’t have needed either of those components as the waters were separated. 

These are just a few examples which I have seen over the years. In every one of these cases this would have been something that would have been caught had the project been permitted and installed by a licensed MEP (mechanical, electrical, and plumbing) professional and permitted for inspection.

I know I spent some time listing examples of work performed by folks who didn’t possess a license for the tasks they were taking on. Sometimes folks possess a license for what they are tasked with but they still don’t understand the nuance of what they are doing. This example comes from a video post found online by a licensed company. The company built a steep pitched roof using a ridgeboard hand cut rafter roof system. With this system they installed “collar ties” to prevent downward pressure that a roof can experience which can then cause a collapse. The nuance, which they didn’t realize, is that collar ties aren’t meant to prevent downward pressure on roofing systems. Collar ties are installed on the upper 1/3 of a rafter system. Their purpose is to prevent wind from applying an uplifting force which can cause a roof to blow off its walls. To prevent the downward pressure they were experiencing in the video the company needed to install a second set of bracing at the lower 1/3 section of the rafter called rafter ties or ceiling joists. This is what prevents the roof from collapsing. Without understanding the nuance, they built a roof which was on the verge of collapsing, the company did catch the deflection in the video and were able to “fix” their mistake before it was too late.

How did this happen? In the video they claim the house they built passed framing inspections. Personally, I can see how this could pass with an untrained inspector, but I cannot see how this could pass all the safety nets of architectural drawings, structural drawings, county permitting, and inspections. My guess as to what could have happened is the original plans called for the roof system to have both collar ties and ceiling joists, and somewhere along the way the ceiling joists were ditched in favor of having a more open concept ceiling. Someone either did not understand the nuance or forgot the “why” of the plans being drawn that way. While the house being built was beautiful, being left that way could have had catastrophic consequences.

In terms of real life examples, this list could go on and on with examples of improper shower installations, failed deck systems, and so on but what makes us at Southern Mesa different?  

How We Protect Our Clients

At Southern Mesa we only use licensed professionals to perform any aspect of MEP related work which requires a permit. While we are willing to change a light fixture or reinstall a toilet we recognize that for the safety of our clients and to protect them and us under our insurance we need to pass these installations to the correct licensed professionals in accordance with the law. As of the writing of this article Southern Mesa is in the process of obtaining a class C construction license for El Paso County. This means that we will be able to build any homes from the ground up as well as perform structural additions to an existing home. We are committed to never deviating from structural plans without having an engineers stamp of approval confirming the safety of the structural alteration. Lastly, our team of project managers and foremans possess a strong knowledge of construction means and methods. Some of our team have structural framing backgrounds spanning more than 20 years of experience in both residential and commercial applications. Others on our team have 15 plus years in deck and outdoor living space construction, and over 20 years of tile and remodeling experience on homes valued in excess of 5 million dollars. We are committed to providing each customer with a highly experienced project manager or foreman to oversee the day to day aspects of your renovation or new build.

*For our last article on how we protect our clients, please check out “Should they work on our property”