When gas has been turned off at a commercial property for six months or more, gas providers require a permit and inspection by our department to restore those services. For residential properties, a permit and inspection would only be needed if the gas has been turned off for more than 1 calendar year (12 months).
When it comes to having electricity shut off, each utility company in our jurisdiction handles it differently. If the electricity has been turned off to the property, whether it’s residential or commercial, contact your utility provider to get their requirements to restore power.
For a gas meter reset, the lines have to be pressure tested to ensure they are able to hold ten pounds of pressure on a thirty pound gauge. We allow homeowners to obtain this permit if they know how to perform this operation. If that is not the case, they are to hire a licensed plumber, gas contractor, or HVAC (mechanical) contractor. The cost for this permit is $54 on residential properties, $55 on commercial. Property owners are not allowed to obtain these permits for rentals or commercial properties.
Electric meter resets are similar to the above, except there is usually no preparatory work that needs to be done in advance of the inspection. Our inspectors do a visual inspection of all the electrical items they can see to ensure there are no glaring safety issues. Homeowners are allowed to obtain these permits also, though our inspectors have the discretion to require an electrical contractor to get involved if they do see a hazard that needs to be addressed. Permit fees for this situation are the same as those for the gas meter resets, as are the stipulations regarding property owners of rentals or commercial properties.
Results of these inspections are entered into our software, and forwarded to the appropriate utilities provider so that they know whether it is safe to restore service to these properties.
