For those who have ventured over to Mike Holt’s message board you will notice down in the safety thread the bashing of HI’s. As you all know I have been an advocate for HI’s in many Mike Holt Events and on all boards I can find…well because I am one and well the sad thing is so many people say things they know NOTHING about.
They talk about HI’s missing things…man I have a LAUNDRY LIST of things Electricians miss or dont do all the time but they dont seem to want to talk about that…simply amazing that they think ( not all of them ) that HI’s steal business from Electricians…this just shows they have NO IDEA what HI’s do…anyway I always find it funny to hear other electricians cry and moan about HI’s when chances are many of them LIVE off HI’s finding defects.
Anyway…just find it funny is all…it seems like us Electricians are always moaning and groaning about something…HI’s dont want to be Electricians and the Electrician sure as heck can’t be HI’s without ventuing outside their field of study so i wish they would just open their eyes and see what a generalist is…
I get to call out things that electricians get wrong almost every day. Does that mean all electricians are idiots? No, it means the bad ones are lousy at their professions just like the bad HIs are lousy at theirs.
You’d think that they would realize that both HI and electricians come in many flavors from the very good to the very bad and every shade in between. Have none of them ever seen a bad panel that was called out by an HI? Do they not realize that when the have to go back and unravel an electrical nightmare that it was created by a fellow electrician, not an HI.
It’s pointless and foolhardy to talk about the members of either profession in general terms because the skills vary so widely between the individuals of either group.
I’ve seen this kind of dialog on Mike Holt’s boards before, but fortunately never in the field. It’s harder to talk negatively about someone when they are in front of you.
most everybody went to school some got A’s and some Got D’s they both passed. In all fields this is true do you want the doctor that got a D working on you. Hmmmm… Something to think about.
I have a lot of respect for all the trades and I know a lot of really good electricians. I spent many years with a tool-belt on my waist working as an electrician. Home inspection is a different trade. We have to know things about electrical systems that electricians do not need to know and often don’t know. Look how many times home inspectors have had electricians not know of problems with Federal Pacific panels or don’t understand the hazards of terminating two grounded conductors under a single screw.
I am still very involved with the electrical trades. With all due respect to my fellow electricians, they need to understand that as home inspectors we have to know much more about how systems age, how they perform over time. Most skilled tradesmen don’t see how things break down in 10, 20 or 50 years. We do.
Houses are becoming increasingly complex. Years ago a popular bumper sticker with electricians was “I’ve seen the future. It’s Electric”. I liked the saying so much, I use it to this day! A young person coming into the electrical trades only has to focus on what is being done today. Home inspectors need to know about today and everything for a span of a hundred years! I was proud of my craft as an electrician and I’m equally proud to tell people today that I am a home inspector.
I am hoping you understand my post. I also spent MANY MANY years with the tool belt on. I have wired everything from the normal dwelling to the multimillion dollar commercial project. I have been lead master electrician on many large projects well before I became known around the country as an electrical code expert and instructor.
My references are to the few electricians on the www,mikeholt.com website who are the ones that do not seem to understand that we have two different trades here and I wish they would understand. I defend Home Inspectors all the time as they are dear to my heart but everyone knows I am also a tride and true electrician at heart and wish other electricians who bash HI’s would understand.
Oh well…just so we are clear. I strive to help both electricians and home inspectors learn as I teach them on a continued basis…and when I won Mike Holts Top Gun it was really based not only on my code knowledge but also the presetnation of bridging the two industries. I just get frustrated when I see an electrician bash an HI simply because they dont know the facts and then they dont want to listen to the facts…its always gets frustrating.
But…hopefully those who bash the very industry that feeds many of them will learn to at some point respect them as well.