Turning Metal Extractor off does not stop maintenance

[rightfn]

Like a lot of things in this game, I learned this the hard way. You have to dismantle the building, or somehow get it outside drone coverage, if you dont want to pay the maintenance on it just yet.

This also happened to my polymer factory, I'm slightly less than 100% sure. Most buildings dont behave like this, so I think it's important to know which have hidden 'special' behaviors which can be costly.

I really hope this gets improved along with the addition of a 'let this building run until it breaks but dont repair it' button.

[LLOYD AF]

It still needs maintenance, that's due to dust build up as well. Even when turned off there's still dust blowing around

[MinionJoe]

Originally posted by LLOYD AF:

It still needs maintenance, that's due to dust build up as well. Even when turned off there's still dust blowing around

With all other buildings (incl water extractors and poly factories), when you turn them off, drones will not maintain them.

[rightfn]

Originally posted by LLOYD AF:

It still needs maintenance, that's due to dust build up as well. Even when turned off there's still dust blowing around

If you mean it still degrades when turned off, I realize this and it makes logical as well as gameplay sense (building degrades over time whether you use it or not).

By 'maintenance' I mean the act of a drone spending resources in order to retore the building to like-new working condition. That's the thing that I was trying to stop by turning maintenance off, the spending of replacement machine parts.

Some (most) buildings, once they do break down, the game does not 'force' you to restore them until you wish to use them again by turning them on. So this was alarming to me to discover this one acting differently (had to figure out where my machine parts were disappearing to...)

[Mnementh]

Turned off buildings do not request maintenance from Drones until they're turned on. (But they do take decay and eventually enter malfunctioned state.) Only except being when maintenance has already been requested.

Or you've observed different behavior with the Metals Extractor?

[MinionJoe]

Originally posted by Mnementh:

Or you've observed different behavior with the Metals Extractor?

Yes. Last night, I observed deactivated metal extractors receiving maintenance from drones.

Edit: It may have been a rare metals extractor. I'll have to double check. Sorry.

[Mnementh]

Originally posted by MinionJoe:

Originally posted by Mnementh:

Or you've observed different behavior with the Metals Extractor?

Yes. Last night, I observed deactivated metal extractors receiving maintenance from drones.

Edit: It may have been a rare metals extractor. I'll have to double check. Sorry.

You're correct. Thank you all for reporting this.

[MinionJoe]

Originally posted by Mnementh:

You're correct. Thank you all for reporting this.

No, thank you for being here and responding to unofficial bug reports!

If you need anything else, please just let me know. It's been a couple decades since I filed a formal bug report (and I don't yet have a Paradox account), but I'll help however I can.

[rightfn]

I am relieved that this is being seen by the devs (or their representative here) as something that should be addressed.

I am a bit shy of reporting things like this, since it is not always 100% clear if something is obviously a bug or just working as intended, not only that but there are many devs and also fans who will defend the most peculiar design oversights in games, and try to invent a gameplay or 'lore' reason why it makes sense that the one thing in the game works differently than all the other things like it.

("Well the metal extractor needs maintenance even when turned off for these science or story reasons: ______", to which my response is "If the behavior of this building being different is Truly Intended then the UI should state this clearly in the building stats"). I am grateful that nobody has been doing this.

[rightfn]

I can confirm that my polymer factory is also getting maintained by drones when it is turned off.