This simple line is music to my ears. There is a rule book called the International Residential Building Code, the playbook for residential builders and remodelers. As a remodeler, I am constantly engaged in the art of gaining a better understanding of how to do it right. At Levco, I am QB1. I get to set the pace and create the design with my clients up until I get the permit and share the project details with the team. Building the project in my mind, referring to the code often.

The IRC Code book gets updated every 3 years, which is called a code cycle, bearing any shenanigans by lobbyists and politicians. Local folks of the code collaborative get to make insightful adjustments, and it evolves with building science, new products, and so on. It is a fantastic group of individuals who care deeply and want the best tools available. Sadly, they get derailed occasionally but seem to take it all in stride. I, on the other hand, typically blow off steam if the normal code cycle gets interrupted. Sometimes the revisions are more restrictive, other times they slacken the regs.

The Good Book

I refer to the copy in my office often. I dog-eared it until I discovered that they sell some preprinted tabs. I engage in discussions with my team about all sorts of things. To say it’s the Bible of remodeling is an understatement. We look for best practices and exceptions. We look at it from a climatic point of view and a regional perspective. Although Russia has more time zones than the US by 3, we still have a diverse country with many issues that need consideration.

Where Does Code Come In?

First off, you have to have a permit for just about anything we do in remodeling. There is a list of half a dozen exempt things, but that is less interesting to me. I was getting a building permit and overheard the permit techs dealing with a company that was caught without a permit, and they were begging for forgiveness so that their permit fees wouldn’t be doubled.

The code is the set of rules that we use to build things; We must follow them to ensure safety and longevity. It is a level playing field, and it includes some alternatives to allow for discretion in many cases. Lord knows we get into all sorts of situations that need some individual attention and flexibility to use good judgment.

There are plenty of cases where, after something bad happens, like a deck falls off a house and hurts people, then the finger-pointing starts, and lawyers come circling as the waters are chummed with contractors, engineers, architects, and the like. Did the work get done to code? If it did, then the code would likely be adapted in the next code cycle. It is my favorite kind of responsive tool.

One might argue that the code expresses the minimum requirements, so it expresses the lowest necessary work that needs to be done. At Levco, we do more than code requires in some cases; in others, code is enough.

Homeowners Perspective

It may sound seductive to save the permit fees and just have a buddy do the work on a weekend or at night. I must admit I have been tempted to taste that forbidden fruit. How complicated is replacing a water heater? The homeowner’s perspective is that you get 3rd party verification that it was done correctly. That is the silver lining. Then you don’t have to lie on that form when you sell the home and confirm that no work was done without a permit.

The Final Word

The other huge benefit of getting a permit is that most inspectors have experience and have developed wisdom and judgment. Only one inspector I know imagines that he will be on the witness stand every time he gets out of his car. I am confident that he will be rooted out eventually, but in the meantime 90% of the inspectors use their wisdom to interpret the code with fairness and balance. Kudos to the team of professionals who use the good book like I do to determine best practices in our profession.

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If you or someone you know is considering remodeling or would like to speak with a passionate and trustworthy remodeling contractor, please contact us. You’ll be glad you did.