I got caught!!

[otsenre]

Recieved a stern warning from fire dept and code enforcement officer for spraying primer in my garage. I have worked out there for the past 20 years, and today was first time I had unwelcome company, I probably had a disgrunted neighbor who called them on me. Has anyone dealt with them before?

[Longhorn Man]

with the clean air laws you guys have you are kinda lucky thats all you got.
I was rather amazed when I looked into all that. I came real close to moving out there in 97, and some of the preservation laws was one of the things that stopped me.
I have nothing against clean air, I just hate it when they blame things that aren't quite the real problem.

[mclairmo]

I use to work for the San Diego City Attorney's code enforcement division and I can only tell you to do whatever they tell you to do or not do. They are looking for revenue in the form of fines and will pursue you with the seemingly unlimited resources of the government. They can actually have you put in jail if you push them hard enough and long enough. I've seen it done before and its crazy but true. Buy a respirator and spray with the garage door closed. They are watching you now.

[OARNGESI]

yeah becareful i think the fine may cost more than paying some for a nice paint job

[special-K]

Expect to see alot of enforcement where fines can be attached,from traffic to zoning and on.The local governments can make up for deficits real quick with aggressive enforcement.
And,the inspector`s jobs are tax based,so they need to justify their jobs to keep from being cut.

[bhoeger70]

I would check into weather the code inforcement officer even had jurisdiction (sp). If you are not runnig a business out of your garage around here they dont have jurisdiction, a mans home is his castle.

[milled]

Originally Posted by special-K

Expect to see alot of enforcement where fines can be attached,from traffic to zoning and on.The local governments can make up for deficits real quick with aggressive enforcement.
And,the inspector`s jobs are tax based,so they need to justify their jobs to keep from being cut.

what he said. It's just going to get thicker as we progress thru this deperssion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i freaking hate the goverment and enviro-nuts!!!

[68gmsee]

I agree with the revenue generation theory. With all of the people screaming when the cities and counties try to raise their taxes these days, law enforcement is going to be pressured to generate their own money. I've seen almost a doubling of efforts in my area and college students aren't here yet.

[69sixpackbee]

That is why I painted my truck in the makeshift spray booth on my back lawn at 3AM on three consecutive nights. Everyone was asleep. The only thing they saw me do was sand, sand, sand. The compressor in in the garage and the door was closed. Nice and quiet :0

[SactoJim]

Big time enforcement here too. Just heard this morning about 2 more "red-light cameras" being installed (among the many that already exist) and the fricken fines being $420!!!! These cameras will also catch "right turn on red" violators....you know, where you kinda coast through to turn right cuz no traffic is coming.....I DESPISE THESE AUTOMATED REVENUE GENERATORS disguised as safety enforcement equipment!

I've painted for years in residential garages and all it takes is one "over sensitive" neighbor to get a tiny wiff of paint fumes and your screwed.

[JimmyFloyd]

Originally Posted by SactoJim

Big time enforcement here too. Just heard this morning about 2 more "red-light cameras" being installed (among the many that already exist) and the fricken fines being $420!!!! These cameras will also catch "right turn on red" violators....you know, where you kinda coast through to turn right cuz no traffic is coming.....I DESPISE THESE AUTOMATED REVENUE GENERATORS disguised as safety enforcement equipment!

I've painted for years in residential garages and all it takes is one "over sensitive" neighbor to get a tiny wiff of paint fumes and your screwed.

It's funny you mention those. I am in Sacramento for business this week, and when we were heading over to the mall area, I saw them working on one of the cameras. I agree with you, the automated revenue generators are annoying.

[mclairmo]

Your home is not your castle, unfortunately. Code enforcement can tell you what you can and cannot do, regardless of whether you are operating a business or not. Paint is considered a hazardous material, as are flourescent lights bulbs, lead batteries, oil, gasoline, etc. and code enforcement has the legal authority to dictate how you deal with that waste. So does the EPA, CARB, etc. Code enforcement has broad authority. I remember we used to nail people for living in their garages. That's a violation. Here in San Diego, we are now limited to watering our lawns 3 days a week an only on certain days and between certain hours. I can be fined big time if I'm caught watering when it's not my allowed day to water my lawn. Can't even wash my car between 6 am and 6 pm or some crap like that. Beware of code enforcement. You do not want to be on their sh!t list.

[fine69]

I dont have any of that crap to deal with.

Thank GOD.

I truly cannot imagine it.

[Longhorn Man]

mclairmo is dead on right. The EPA and other govorning bodies have every right to look into, and fine you for spraying in a garage. There's polution issues, and safety issues since the place does not meet safety regulations nor properly ventilated for your safety.
Tread lightly, you don't want these kinds of fines.

[shortbed70]

Heres what I'm going to do for my shop. I cant afford a booth so... Make a frame that fits in my walk through door to hold inlet air filters doubled up,then explosion proof fan in back wall with filters on the back side of it to filter anything going through. Kind of a cross draft type thing. I painted a monte carlo this way in a garage in an alley with alot of traffic and had no sanding/buffing afterwards. Be sure to wet the floor down and clean your walls too.

[mclairmo]

My folks used to drive me to Clifton's Cafeteria in Lakewood, CA every week to eat and on the way, I woudl always see a guy in his garage who was always spraying hot rods right inside his garage, which faced a major street. He eventually stopped and I never saw him again. Either the enviro-nazis got him or he moved, died, whatever. He was me hero, though. I still dream of converting one bay in my garage into a spray booth.

[hilandr452]

My dealings with the local code enforcement have made me believe in the statement that better fences make better neighbors.

Being a stormwater code compliance inspector myself, as well as someone who believes Global Warming is a hoax, not all of the codes are there for revenue generation and some are there for your safety as well as those who live around you. What I do is make sure the construction sites are doing what they can to make sure they aren't discharging pollutants into the drinking water. You wouldn't believe some of the ridiculous things people dump in the creek or down the storm sewer to save a little money. Like I said some code is needed.

That being said, some guy probably died in his garage from the fumes because he didn't have proper ventilation or maybe his wife and kids died and some senator got word of it and used it to make himself look like a hero in an election year.

That sort of thing which should be common sense is now law in a lot of places just because government has to keep getting bigger and bigger to grab more power and take away more of our freedom. Just wait until government is paying for our health care and decides it's too expensive to pay for the way some of us live and start to make laws against being obese, or drinking, or eating what some burocrat at some desk thinks is the wrong kind of food. You think the laws are intrusive now?



It's getting closer and closer to that point where we'll have to bind together as Americans and take it all back from the crooks who are running it now. How many of you guys are flying the Gadsden flag?

Don't Tread on Me

[mclairmo]

Hilandr452, you have to admit that a good year is measured by the amount of fines handed out. I remember attending a breakfast, paid for by the taxpayers, and everyone kept going on and on about how many fines were issued and how many hundreds of thousands of dollars were collected in fines with everyone clapping with glee. Made me sick. I've done plenty of stormwater work and while I agree people should not be dumping hazardous waste into our oceans, those restrictive codes have killed many a development or condo conversion project. One of my condo conversions ran into massive stormwater drain and filter issues and it was nightmare. Do we want affordable housing or clean oceans, it's hard to have both.

[hilandr452]

I believe there's a balance, and if it's kept at the municipality level, there are no fines, at least not in my municipality. We use stop work orders and cash financial assurances only as a last result when the site is discharging and the developer refuses to take the necessary steps that were agreed upon when he signed the stormwater discharge permit. I've never seen a project go down because they had to install a silt fence or build a water quality pond. I've seen projects go down because the banks stopped lending money and they ran out on their subs.

If the State or EPA gets involved, HUGE fines start coming forth, but at the municipal level, we're just trying to get the site compliant because we hold a permit with the state to regulate the developers or we get the fines as well. I consider my job to be more of a help to contractors and developers to prevent them from being in bigger trouble. It's a tough job, because everyone thinks you're out to get them, but that's not really the case.

I was a contractor for 8 years before I became an inspector, so believe me I understand. You really don't want to get hit by the feds or the state man.



Dan

[hilandr452]

Crap dude, I just saw that you're in San Diego. That's a whole other world out there man. It's different out here.

BTW Chargers are my favorite team.

GO BOLTS!!!



Dan

[mclairmo]

All of SoCal and probably the whole state are not about compliance. They want the fines and could care less if they tank a project. Building anything here sucks.

[SactoJim]

"Building anything here sucks"..........SO TRUE.....at least anything requiring permits.

I'm in the paint booth business and have to get permits to install them and do so all over Northern Ca. Just recently finished a booth in the lovely city of San Jose and among the many PIA issues there were, the permit fees were over $7,000....you read that right! This is to get the OK to install a listed piece of equipment.....un-fricken-believable! You would have to be totally mental to think about going into business in this state.

[gerfunken]

While I understand that "nothing is illegal till you're caught doing it" I get frustrated by the fact that there isn't really a published list of do's and dont's for any community. It seems that regulations are drafted and enforced, but there's never any publication that is easy for anyone to find, read or understand

I just started the process of painting myself, and have been wondering since I first saw the post. But, I have to question this, if the house painters are allowed to use compressed air to spray paint a house, and they do this in bulk, why would be painting a vehicle in the same manner be illegal?

Not trying to add to the rant, but it reminds me of the time I was cited for "driving in a dust free zone."

[b-rad]

easier to ask for forgiveness then permission that the motto i live by lol

[69sixpackbee]

permit fees were over $7,000.

That's because the "Golden State" is f**king broke!!