The Strip-Mall Rooftop and the Borrowed License

A mechanical permit for HVAC work is a separate trade permit from the general contractor's building permit, and in most Louisiana parishes the mechanical permit must be pulled by the licensed mechanical contractor performing the work - not borrowed from the GC. Pulling it under someone else's license, or letting a licensed contractor 'loan' coverage to an unlicensed one, is the classic violation the board pursues; it also voids your ability to control inspections and puts your name on work you did not supervise.

Verify before signing:

• Your license classification and the project scope cover this work (confirm the current mechanical classification and any dollar threshold directly with the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors - do not rely on the GC's summary).
• Who is the permit holder of record on the mechanical permit, and who signs the inspection card.
• Your subcontractor certificate of insurance naming the GC as additional insured, with the coverage limits the contract requires.
• The plan review status - commercial tenant build-outs in Louisiana typically require State Fire Marshal review, and the unit change may trigger a plan revision.

If the answer to the permit question is 'we'll work it out later,' you do not mobilize.

Venting R-410A is a federal violation under Section 608 of the Clean Air Act - knowingly venting ozone-depleting refrigerants and their substitutes is prohibited, and the fact that the recovery machine was elsewhere is not a defense. Exposure lands on the person who did it, the company that directed or permitted it, and, practically, on you the moment you touch the equipment and put your name on the job.

What to do now:

• Document the condition you found, not an accusation: photographs, the serial tag, and a note that the circuit was open to atmosphere.
• Do not recharge an open system. The line set and coil have been at atmospheric pressure for a week in Louisiana humidity; moisture and air are in it. Recover whatever remains, replace the filter drier, triple-evacuate to 500 microns and hold, then weigh in the nameplate charge plus line-set allowance.
• Verify 608 certification for every tech on the job, including the helper. Only certified technicians may purchase or handle refrigerant, and your company's certification records should be in the file before the truck rolls.
• State the facts in writing to the GC and require his acknowledgment that no further venting occurs. If he shrugs, that is your signal about how the rest of the job will go.

In an AE zone, equipment at grade is in the floodplain and the parish's floodplain ordinance governs. Mechanical equipment servicing the structure generally must be elevated to or above the base flood elevation, or protected by a documented floodproofing method acceptable to the local floodplain administrator; pads and curbs at grade are exactly what the ordinance is written to prevent. Practically: a raised structural curb or platform bringing the unit's components above 8 ft, with the gas, condensate, and electrical connections detailed for that elevation and for buoyancy and scour.

That detail is a change to the GC's scope and to your price. Handle it as a written change order before you order the curb: describe the elevation requirement, cite the floodplain ordinance and the BFE, price the platform, the revised disconnect location, and the added labor, and get a signature.

Commercially, also confirm: retainage and payment terms, your lien rights and the notice requirements for furnishing notice to the owner on a private commercial job, the schedule and the liquidated damages clause (three weeks is tight), and who is responsible for the final inspection sign-off. The installation risk is manageable; the paperwork risk is what sinks subs.