How do I get the permit for install home level 2 charger

[iaming]

I know it depends on the city, but I would like to have a general idea.

Should I apply and wait for the permit before the work?

I know there will be an inspection after the work, but I plan to hardwire it and run the wire behind the drywall.
If I finish the work, will it make the inspection hard/impossible?

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[HuntingPudel]

In my town, I would apply for the permit, pay the fee, and fill out a bunch of paperwork. Then I would run the rough electrical and then have it inspected. Once the roughs are approved I would perform finish installation and get a final inspection.

 

[Scooby24]

Oh, you were supposed to apply for a permit? Whoops!

 

[uclavic]

I know it depends on the city, but I would like to have a general idea.

Should I apply and wait for the permit before the work?

I know there will be an inspection after the work, but I plan to hardwire it and run the wire behind the drywall.
If I finish the work, will it make the inspection hard/impossible?

It's going to completely depend on where you live, but down here in LA the contractor filed everything for me and gave me the completed paperwork. He also scheduled the visit from the city inspector for me. My hardwire install was active as soon as the contractor connected it, but wasn't "officially approved" until the inspector came out to check it out. Funny thing was the inspector said I had another open approval pending. Didn't realize that when I had my dishwasher replaced 5 years earlier that Lowes had opened up a permit for that one as well. So the inspector came and checked that for me as well while he was out.

 

[Mach1E]

In my town I called an electrician and wrote a check to them. They took care of the rest.

But I would start with the electrician either way. They’ll let you know if you need to apply or if they take care of it.

 

[Lupercal]

No permit on mine, had a licensed electrician came out and give me two quotes one for hardwire and one for an outlet. They did put a electrical box on the wall so i guess i could switch to an outlet later if I wanted to, but I'm also only 3 feet of cable from the breaker panel.

 

[joes723]

Depending on where you are in WA (which city) will just determine how long it could take to get a city inspection. So, to hedge your bet you can apply for it even if it’s not completed but they will want to see how the outlet was wired, connection to the panel plus any runs used. When we bought our house I remember when the inspector came and we chatted a bit about it. (black Diamond) but I’ll admit we didn’t do the permit because the location of the outlet is literally outside the panel by about foot. Lol

 

[iaming]

In my town I called an electrician and wrote a check to them. They took care of the rest.

But I would start with the electrician either way. They’ll let you know if you need to apply or if they take care of it.

Forgot to mention it is a DIY, I thought it is by default in the forum

 

[RSF]

It sounds like you plan on doing this yourself? Unless you really know what you are doing, don't.

 

[iaming]

In my town, I would apply for the permit, pay the fee, and fill out a bunch of paperwork. Then I would run the rough electrical and then have it inspected. Once the roughs are approved I would perform finish installation and get a final inspection.

OK, that's more than what I expected.

 

[rreddy3]

I know it depends on the city, but I would like to have a general idea.

Should I apply and wait for the permit before the work?

I know there will be an inspection after the work, but I plan to hardwire it and run the wire behind the drywall.
If I finish the work, will it make the inspection hard/impossible?

The comments you’ve received in response to your question are good.
sounds, however, like you’re planning to do the work yourself. There was a time when I probably would have done so too. I turned 78 on Sunday and frankly there sre things I just don’t feel like doing anymore. So, my L2 is being installed by an electrician tomorrow. I went through Q Merit who in turn works with electricians pre-qualified by Q Merit. I had done a bit of web surfing to get a sense of what the installation costs are running in Fairfax County, VA. The quote I received is in the hunt, it’s ok. One thing to consider, if you can get a sense of the answer, is whether inspectors in your code jurisdiction are more or less biased when it comes to inspecting DIY jobs, if you are planning a DIY install. I am not saying whether inspectors generally are, or are not biased ine way or the other. Also turns out that although FFX County requires permits the county is waiving the associated fees through October, 2025. Social engineering at work to try and ease EV adoption. Interestingly, the fee waiver doesn’t seem to be widely publicized. It’s also fair to question whether waiving the small permit cost compared to the cost of an EV is going to sway anyone’s decision whether to get an EV. But our non-hunting poodle informs me that it leaves more money available for kibble, treats and toys!

 

[iaming]

Depending on where you are in WA (which city) will just determine how long it could take to get a city inspection. So, to hedge your bet you can apply for it even if it’s not completed but they will want to see how the outlet was wired, connection to the panel plus any runs used. When we bought our house I remember when the inspector came and we chatted a bit about it. (black Diamond) but I’ll admit we didn’t do the permit because the location of the outlet is literally outside the panel by about foot. Lol

Mine is also very straight forward, < 2 feet, so plan to get the permit and DIY.

 

[leehinde]

In my town, I didi the permit paperwork (which confused the city because, as others have said, it's usually the contractor.) The contractor gave me a break on his fee because I did it. I did the paperwork concurrent with the work. Inspection came after it was done.

 

[generaltso]

Oh, you were supposed to apply for a permit? Whoops!

Depends on where you live. My town doesn't even have any inspectors.

 

[B177y]

I know it depends on the city, but I would like to have a general idea.

Should I apply and wait for the permit before the work?

I know there will be an inspection after the work, but I plan to hardwire it and run the wire behind the drywall.
If I finish the work, will it make the inspection hard/impossible?

I did it DIY and I'm in WA too. I did do a few years of electrical work as an apprentice (different state) before becoming a firefighter, so I have a little bit of background and was comfortable going the DIY route.

***DO NOT GO ANY FURTHER WITHOUT REALIZING THAT YOU CAN DIE AND KILL OTHERS IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING.***

If you're comfortable, read on...

I live in unincorporated county. For me I had to go to the WA L&I (Labor and Industries) website. If you are in a bigger city or county, you may need to get added inspections, but L&I inspects all electrical work in WA. On the L&I website, you go through menus and choose what your work is. I think I did "Changing a circuit" or "Adding a circuit" or something like that. Then you pay and schedule an inspection date.

I did all of the work and left all of the cover plates off so that everything was visible, except keep your breaker panel covered since that is still "hot" and powering the rest of your house. Wire your breaker for the new circuit, but don't power it on until the inspector checks it.

The inspector was chill, took off the cover to my breaker panel, checked all of my work, commended me on my splice in the pull box that I needed (I went big and used 4 AWG wire so that I can go as high as an 80 amp hardwired EVSE in the future if needed). He asked about using a GFCI breaker and I showed him the instructions on my Juicebox 40 that said "DO NOT USE A GFCI CIRCUIT BREAKER" because it is built in to the Juicebox and will cause problems. Then he asked about the Mach-e and we talked about that for about 10 minutes.

I assured him that I had not by any means used the charger to charge my car before he came over to inspect it and he was cool.

Then he signs the permit and fills out a sticker to put on the inside of your panel.

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