Q. We’re starting an addition, getting estimates from several contractors. Some told us we wouldn’t have to wait for the permit to be approved (it has been six months since it was turned in). Some said that we could save money substituting steel beams with stronger wooden ones, called “lams.” They told us that, traditionally, this is done without a problem or discussion with our architect, just the building inspector, who accepts and approves the work, not the architect. Is this true, and will it save money? The job is going to cost much more than we thought, and anything will help.
A. Everything you asked about is a lie. Not waiting for the permit is a bad idea, fraught with homeowner liability if anything goes wrong, from an onsite worker injury, to a fire, to incorrect work that gets hidden before an inspection. Like the insurance commercial says, “We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.” It doesn’t happen often, but I’ve seen all of them. When it does, your contractor gets to sit back and watch you, the homeowner, absorb the loss.
Last week, for example, like most weeks, I stopped by a construction site and saw the wrong beams being installed. The owner was home, so I showed them. They seemed protective of the decision, accepting that the framers could continue. After all, the framer assured us he could keep going, substituting the right beam later. With hundreds of nails in that beam, it was never coming out. I had no choice but to stop the work.
The owner wondered why I was so adamant. I explained that in a high wind (which happened two days later) the framing could come apart. Not imagining that high winds occur often, the contractor called, making his case and telling me that, “traditionally,” this kind of beam is used “all the time.” Every construction job is different — custom, if you will — and I had to tell him the beam wasn’t the right one, and I couldn’t accept it.