Why Do We Take the Electrical Service Panel Cover Off?

It is pretty obvious that there is corrosion within and on this service connection. However, even an electrical panel that appears to be corrosion free may have deficiencies that can interfere with or shorten the lifespan of the unit.

Your home inspection includes many electrical tests for functionality and safety. We test every receptacle, switch, light, ceiling fan, and any other electrical fixture within the home that is permanently attached. The regulations and guidelines from the State of Texas say that an inspector only needs to check a “representative number” of items. We consider a “representative number” to be all of them.

We also remove the cover, called a ‘deadfront’ cover, to visually inspect the electrical panel. This unit has a copper service entrance cable (wire). It is not normal to see corrosion at this connection. Corrosion can create resistance which leads to heat.

As Professional Inspectors we consider our first and primary duty to be identification of potential safety issues. For this home we recommended a Systems Specialist evaluation by an Electrician to evaluate if the unit was safe for the family buying this home.

We felt the family needed to know the cost of repairs, what exactly needed to be repaired, and how long it would take to perform the repairs. In this situation coordination with the utility company was required since the connection could not be safely disabled without a complete termination of service. The family was able to negotiate appropriate repair costs with the seller after the electrician’s evaluation.

Some real estate inspections do not result in a recommendation for a Systems Specialist and some do. However, this is why we schedule your home inspection usually within 48 hours of your call. Your option period gives you a finite amount of time. Therefore, we purposefully schedule your inspection with a sense of urgency.

Your home inspection needs to be thorough. We will inspect the entire home as if we were buying it, provide you an unbiased detailed report of the findings, and will encourage you to ask questions during the walk-through. After you have read your home inspection report we encourage you to call with any additional questions.

You can search for our online reviews either by clicking on our reviews page or independently searching on Google. We encourage you to do so. Third Step Inspections is indeed Where Quality & Integrity Meet!

Thanks for considering Third Step Inspections for your real estate inspection needs!

Tony