The purpose of this update is to remove 3 stars moving my experience from 5 points to 2 points and explain what happened between myself and the management at Dodge Electric and an issue I mentioned but chose not to disclose in my previous review which I will now.
So, I just received this statement from Mike Storer, Project Manager, at Dodge Electric, after submitting a request for a new Bid for continued work:
we are going to have to pass on doing any more work. I just don't think we are a good fit for each other.
and
I am confused as to why you would leave us a great review and ask us to do more work when you thought our best guy with the most experience didn't know the difference between #12 and #14 wire for a 20 amp circuit. Jesus was very stressed out when he left your house. He rarely tells us that a job stressed him out, that's why he handles all of our difficult and large jobs.
Interesting! What prompted this response?
What I did not share in my initial YELP review but did with Dodge Electric management in a private email to Mr. Storer are issues that I was forced to intervene with during the job...
Jesus, as I am now informed is their most experienced electrician with over 20 years' experience at Dodge Electrical, was about to do a serious electrical no-no as normally is common knowledge of any experienced electrician.
As Jesus was about to wire additional outlets onto an existing 20 Amp circuit that correctly had existing 12 AWG (gauge) wire from the electrical C/B panel, I asked Jesus a simple question, What gauge of wire are you going to use? He replied, 14-gauge wire, it is less expensive. This came to me as a shock!
This is how an electrical fire can start people! 14 AWG is not rated to carry 20 Amps and can overheat the wire, melt the insulation, short and arc and you know what can happen next. However, you want to statistically gamble on this, it is not to code and good luck with your insurance company after an incident.
14 AWG is typical throughout your home for all 15 Amp circuits (look in your electrical panel and your outlets). 20 Amp Circuits will have 12 AWG and the wire gets larger as you move to higher currents like an electric oven or your Air Conditioning Unit.
Later, when he finished that running the 12 AWG wire, Jesus and his junior partner of 5 years' experience were both connecting 15 Amp outlets to the 12 AWG wire. While not a safety issue so much you can't take advantage of 20 Amp capacity with power tools or anything requiring at least 20 Amps (wrong terminal configuration). So again, I immediate intervened and said, No, you need to install 20 Amp outlet! Interestingly again, Jesus said nothing but left the job to go buy 20 Amp outlets.
In regard to Mr. Storer stating that Jesus was stressed. I can't imagine why he should be. We seemed to communicate well Voices were never raised or showed anger or frustration. At no time did I do anything which was not a hindrance but was helpful to him in doing his job, with the exception of these two issues which I required correction on. Is it that he was traumatized by being told what to do electrically by a homeowner who is a woman? Was he was frustrated by having to go shopping for materials twice during a job? Maybe he had other personal issues going on. Either way, I have no regret and would stop anyone again if I saw something being done incorrectly despite what experience they say they have. You don't cut corners for cost! Arizona has lousy licensing requirements when it comes to anyone who calls themselves an electrician.
Instead of pushing me away as a customer, the owner of Dodge Electric whose electrical license Jesus is working under should have thanks me for intervening; It was a code violation I could have reported to the licensing board! No one reached back out to me to discuss anything.
That is a hell of a way for Dodge Electric to treat a client and especially a Disabled Veteran with a service-related injury which makes doing simple jobs electrical like this myself. But what I am finding out that when you hire an electrician here in Arizona, in most cases, the person doing the work is not even certified journeymen let alone a licensed electrician. What you get is an invoice containing a licensing number of someone at the company who may not even verify work was done per code.
The reason I came back to Dodge was because the jobs were simple, and when I saw something that was incorrect, they quickly corrected without any lip. And the price was fair for the work done and materials used. I made a mistake by not providing full disclosure on my 1st review.
My own personal professional background includes 25+ years as a mechanical engineer specializing in electronic packaging in the defense world. 6 years of troubleshooting and repairing both mechanical and electrical systems on aircraft. And I have a background in residential architectural design.