After everything...I still love Florida (Golden Gate: lease, insurance, house)

[kristin4]

Oh, where to begin...I guess the beginning.

We found a home we really liked. It needs work, but we are willing to work on it ourselves.

The electric was tampered with and power was stolen from LCEC. So, LCEC came and took the meter and disconnected the line from the pole. I did research, called LCEC and found out what to do in order to get the power turned on.
We were told to:
1. get an electrician, did that

2. have electrician get permit, he did that

3. dig up by the meter box and have conduit replaced by electrician,
did that

4. have Collier county inspect work, did that

5. call LCEC, set up an account, did that

Now to the frustrating part! LCEC was supposed to install line and meter box in 2 days from inspector release of c/o

Well, LCEC now says, it will take anywhere from 24 - 57 business days for them to run the line and put in the box. They said, an engineer must look at the paper work and now there is a $315 charge. We were initially told, that the previous owners were sued for the damage and it would be free of charge (except for the electrician and permits).

I am very angry. We are renting and need to get to work on the house while we still have a lease. The drywall is getting spongy from moisture in the home. There has got to be a way to get them to move quicker since I was originally told it would only be 2 days.
The electrician is trying to get things moving, but every time we get somewhere, something else comes up.

Has anyone had any dealings with LCEC like this? Does anyone here work for LCEC and can give me some help?
I just can't get anywhere...

[B4U]

And now you have a 3 day weekend. So you won't get help from anyone.
I'm so sorry. I have no answers for you. But try the health issue. You need A/C for health reasons.
Other than that, you might want to take a drive down Horseshoe Drive on Tues, and talk to Collier people.
I have FPL, so I don't know how LCEC works.

[kristin4]

Thank you.
I guess I just needed to vent. I was hoping that someone would know what to do, but I knew that was a long shot.
Even though we have hit one road block after another, on many different things from drivers licenses to car titles, I have taken it in stride. Until this. I need the electric on before we can do anything else to the house. This is holding up all of our plans.
There has to be a person or place that we can take this to. Even remediation. We were promised 2 days...not 24-57 business days! I had to cancel the water treatment guy, the tile guy, the insurance inspector, the bush-mower guy (water sprinklers need repair first and that needs water working), etc...
I guess, the one company that doesn't NEED the work or the money, is the electric company. Too bad their bad practices are hurting the people that do. These guys were all expecting to start work this weekend.


Darn LCEC. I wonder, is it possible to switch electric companies? Can I put in for a change to FPL? Or do we have no other choices in Florida? Are we restricted to whatever company owns the lines?

[TannerBoyle]

My advice to you, kristin4....is for you to quit your job and start drinking heavily.

[RMD3819]

Call these people: Welcome to the PSC Web Site

I've called them twice, both about Sprint landline phone service (before it became Embarq).

I had a house built in Golden Gate Estates, and not way out either. I needed five landline lines installed and I ordered them months before I needed them. When I was ready for install I called them to schedule.

Sorry, no lines are available in your area. We will start to upgrade the system in 6-8 weeks and additional lines will be available then. How about one or two just to get started? Nope, maybe if somebody cancels service but right now, no.

The cell phone system was cruder then and plus these other lines were for fax machines and internet access so cell service couldn't be substituted.

I called the PSC people. Two days later I have a message on my answering machine stating they will be out to install all five lines as requested.

The second time I had a guest house built on the property. I ordered one line. They never showed up. I call back. They say it has been installed. No it has not. Back and forth with phone calls, no show appointments, and them insisting the work has been done. This dragged on for weeks.

Finally after a no show appointment I called the PSC at about 4PM. The PSC says they will check on it. Forty-five minutes later my dogs go crazy. There is a tech in the driveway. Apparently the line was installed, but it was on the main house and not the guest house. He disconnects it and runs it to the guest house.

[kristin4]

RMD3819, Thank you so much for that link! That is what I was looking for. Now I need to pray that they get somewhere...


Thanks again!
I just love this board!!!

[B4U]

RMD, what a good link!
Kristin, I hope that helps. Geez, what a pain for you.
Let us know what happens. Through your nightmare, maybe others can avoid the same thing.

With the lack of building in the past 2-3 yrs. in this area, you'd think they'd be interested in keeping their people busy.
As an aside; I don't believe you can change companies. Just like there's no option to a cable company.

The best of luck to you.

[nhkev]

May want to look into renting/buying a generator

[Compression]

Originally Posted by nhkev

May want to look into renting/buying a generator

A properly sized, and maintained generator is a truly wise investment anywhere. But particularly in SW Florida where weather can put your electric out for hours, or in extreme cases, days, or weeks in the event of a hurricane.

[kristin4]

I figured it was time for an update. I don't want to jinx myself...

The schedule date for running the electric is now, 9/16/09.
Praying they do not change it and it gets turned on that same day!
i was told this is actually very quick, since the average is 24-57 days. I tried to explain that we have been fighting to have it on for a month already, so this actually isn't fast...but within the 24-57 business day period.

My husband is going there every day and opening the windows, while it is sunny and warm. We are lucky to be having a breeze.

We are purchasing a whole home generator. We just do not want it there, till we move in. Less chance of it being stolen with us living in the home.
We have a small portable generator (800w) for our saltwater aquarium. Dh tried to use it for the dehumidifier, but it would kick off when the compressor turned on. It is perfect for running a few pumps on the tank, but not strong enough for a dehumidifier.

Well, I just figured I would let you know. Also wanted to give a giant THANK YOU!!! to RMD3819. I am sure I wouldn't even have an install date without the call I made.

Kristin