Installer drilled through hot water line! Yipes!

[stardust3]

Curious to whether he was drilling from the outside in or inside out. Sounds like it was from the outside in.

As a rule of thumb it should always be from the inside out.

This stuff does happen, he fixed his mistake as he should. So all is well & he walked away with an invaluable experience.

 

[Jimbo]

Similarly, when I was brand new installing cable 15 years ago, I was drilling from inside an attic out, and went thru the main electric drop before it even hit the meter...

I've done that, ONCE, about 15 years ago ...
Drilled from the inside out, came out and saw black on the siding, thought, thats not good, then realized what I had done.

I went thru the line from the house connecter to the meter.
Fwiw, thats the piece that IS the Subs responsibility as far as the Electric goes.

No, I didn't die, thats why they use insulated drills.

 

[ts7]

The problem is the possibility of future problems. Whenever water is involved, especially below grade, there is the potential for mold damage and, depending on how/where the break occurred there could be the possibility of contamination. With both plumbing and electrical work, at least in some jurisdictions, it must be repaired by a licensed tradesman. Also, if any future insurance claim is filed the insurance company may try to deny the claim if the repair wasn't up to code, wasn't done by a licensed professional or "due diligence" to properly mitigate the damage was not documented (found that out the hard way).

I agree with most everyone else, the tech made a mistake and did his best to make it right. It is unfortunate that Dish would hold this against him but the OP could be in much more "hot water" if he ever had to file a claim with his insurance or if the repair came in to question from an inspector in the future.

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[KAB]

The problem is the possibility of future problems. Whenever water is involved, especially below grade, there is the potential for mold damage and, depending on how/where the break occurred there could be the possibility of contamination. With both plumbing and electrical work, at least in some jurisdictions, it must be repaired by a licensed tradesman. Also, if any future insurance claim is filed the insurance company may try to deny the claim if the repair wasn't up to code, wasn't done by a licensed professional or "due diligence" to properly mitigate the damage was not documented (found that out the hard way).

I agree with most everyone else, the tech made a mistake and did his best to make it right. It is unfortunate that Dish would hold this against him but the OP could be in much more "hot water" if he ever had to file a claim with his insurance or if the repair came in to question from an inspector in the future.

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Good Grief, already. Why is this thread such a magnet for second guessing the event and the the conclusion?? All is well.

 

[Hall]

Curious to whether he was drilling from the outside in or inside out. Sounds like it was from the outside in.

The OP stated he "heard drilling outside" and then the installer ran "in".


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[Dishman1978]

Funny I just read this....I broke a PVC pipe to a water bib last week. Snagged that thing with my ladder. Customer was able to fix it, but I was worried there for a bit.

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[Claude Greiner]

Curious to whether he was drilling from the outside in or inside out. Sounds like it was from the outside in. As a rule of thumb it should always be from the inside out. This stuff does happen, he fixed his mistake as he should. So all is well & he walked away with an invaluable experience.

Yea, inside out so you get the hole correct on the inside where it counts.

A few exceptions are...

Basements. You need to drill outside in because you can't get a drill in the ceiling. However if you follow the same level as a water faucet or other hole for electrical you should be fine

Fire brick. These are tricky as you got to still on a motor joint, unless you got a heavy duty hammer drill. The problem with a very heavy duty hammer drill is that it tends to split the brick if your not careful

 

[dentke]

I was taught in brick to always drill through the mortar, not the brick, because you can easily fix the hope in the mortar in the future but the brick would always have the hole.



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[ts7]

Good Grief, already. Why is this thread such a magnet for second guessing the event and the the conclusion?? All is well.

It is a legitimate concern and I don't appreciate the attitude

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[ChadT41]

I have to agree with KAB. Although your point is valid, in the situation, I think what was done, is best for all parties involved. Freaking out about it, is worthless.

 

[Bobby]

If you drill from the inside to out on a stucco sided building, you're going to have a problem. Your little hole on the inside is going to be a big blowout on the outside. Think of a bullet entering the skull in the forehead and what it looks like at the back of the skull....

 

[Dah-Henny]

...Think of a bullet entering the skull in the forehead and what it looks like at the back of the skull....

...now that's an image not soon removed from my brain!

 

[navychop]

If you drill from the inside to out on a stucco sided building, you're going to have a problem. Your little hole on the inside is going to be a big blowout on the outside. Think of a bullet entering the skull in the forehead and what it looks like at the back of the skull....

I hate it when that happens....


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[dishcomm]

Well, it could have been worse. Luckily my basement is unfinished. Heard drilling outside. He had to make another hole for the second cable. I was on the phone canceling with Direct and the Dish installer came running in stating that he thinks he hit a water line. Sure enough, hot water spilling out on to the bare concrete floors. He had to run to the local big box hardware store to get a fitting. I had to sweep water down a drain and turn on my dehumidifier. I asked him if he reports this incident, he said no, but gave me his card to call him if there were any problems. He never asked me to sign any paper work, is that normal for Dish?

The only reason to for the tech to alert the office is if there is non repairable or professional required repair damage.
I once hit a buried water pipe that the homeowner spotted for me and also alerted me to the depth of the pipe. Yep, I hit it. His water line. So I stopped the install, looked it over( PVC pipe). Ran to the nearest hardware store and picked up a no hub coupling. Homeowner dug back to expose pipe on both ends. Cleaned it up and installed the coupling. I was there for about 90 more mins and in that time the pipe did not leak. I documented the incident and the repair on the work order and had the homeowner sign off on the repair as satisfactory.
Was he drilling into the basement from the outside in?. What type of wall material is the basement( Brick, cinder block, concrete)?
Are the pipes in the basement exposed/ visible?

 

[pomona]

Drilling outside in through header. OK with the fix + the water got rid of the stupid cat's hairball stains off of the concrete floor! Needed a good scrub anyway.

Should he have had me sign anything after the install? Nothing, just his card and left.

 

[Hall]

I'm sure his rules are to report any damage including noting it on his "paperwork" (I think they use tablets now) and you sign off on the work (the installation) and any special circumstances. Many years ago, for example, during my installation, there was something not being able to locate the dish without trenching in the line. I told them I would dig a trench and bury it and they put a note to that effect on the work order (it was paper back then !) and I signed or initialed that part.