Inspector

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The Kid

I call myself the Kid, That what I was named.
Location
San Bernardino County
Occupation
Inspector
Just a question not a trick question or rhetorical, or should I say comment. Not to under mind any kind of inspector(s).
I realize the complexity of both worlds. Like I stated. This is not to start any debate.
What is the difference between the California Residential Electrical Exam and the California Commercial Electrical Exam.
 
Commercial deals with:
-motors and control wiring
-variable frequency drives (VFD’s)
-fire alarm systems
- switch gear
-motor control centers
-transformers
-large Roof top Units (RTU’s)
-automated systems
 
Resident = house, other buildings max # of stories
Commercial = everything
I don't know I live on the other left coast.
 
The Kid said:
OK, well now. I realize I am not at a IAEI meeting however, I am trying to get a realistic non-sarcastic answer.
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Ok, being serious now. You claim the be an inspector. You really don't know the difference between residential and commercial work or is there something else about those exams you want to know?

-Hal
 
Commercial has on it HVAC 134a, and resi is not allowed to use 134a.

But, CA is an oddball, if you have a commercial license you cannot do resi work, and if you have resi lic you can't do commercial work, AND, they only allow you to have one or the other, but not both at the same time, they charge a small fee (I think $250 or $500) everytime you switch to the other lic after you have passed the tests. CA is nuts.
 
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FionaZuppa said:
Commercial has on it HVAC 134a, and resi is not allowed to use 134a.

But, CA is an oddball, if you have a commercial license you cannot do resi work, and if you have resi lic you can't do commercial work, AND, they only allow you to have one or the other, but not both at the same time, they charge a small fee (I think $250 or $500) everytime you switch to the other lic after you have passed the tests. CA is nuts.
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Has nothing to do with electrical licensing, but at same time is stupid. From what I have been told 410A that is common in residential and a lot of light commercial refrigeration is nasty stuff if you would inhale it, and also operates at higher pressure compared to many other refrigerants which increases risks should there be line burst or something like that.
 
kwired said:
Has nothing to do with electrical licensing, but at same time is stupid. From what I have been told 410A that is common in residential and a lot of light commercial refrigeration is nasty stuff if you would inhale it, and also operates at higher pressure compared to many other refrigerants which increases risks should there be line burst or something like that.
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You didn't catch onto to the sarcasm. ;)
Tidbit info:
410a is a mix of two refrigerants and has a glide slope.
410a performs worse than 22 when ambient is above ~100F.
R22 was a moderate green house gas and a nasty ozone killer, 410a is magnitudes worse on greenhouse but will not destroy ozone.
410a has been marked "no longer acceptable for use" for all applications Except for residential, but soon EPA will phase out 410a the same way they did 22.

cheers.
 
My refrigeration buddy said Dupont actually pushed for Freon to be outlawed because their patent ran out, and they had a new, yet less efficient refrigerant patented they needed to sell. Kinda like arc fault breakers and Eaton! LOL!
 
R290 now. It's propane. You don't even need a license to buy it or use it and you can vent it to the atmosphere. No recovery.

Nearly all small commercial refers have been using it. I see all window A/Cs using it now. Coming soon to larger installations like walk-ins, etc. Has been in use in Europe for 20 years.

You can tell if something is charged with R290 by the big sticker on the back that says "Danger Flammable Gas".

-Hal
 
hbiss said:
R290 now. It's propane. You don't even need a license to buy it or use it and you can vent it to the atmosphere. No recovery.

Nearly all small commercial refers have been using it. I see all window A/Cs using it now. Coming soon to larger installations like walk-ins, etc. Has been in use in Europe for 20 years.

You can tell if something is charged with R290 by the big sticker on the back that says "Danger Flammable Gas".

-Hal
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There's a lot of chatter around flammable stuff for use in HVAC, because it poses a serious fire/explosion risk to occupants when the stuff is indoors. I suspect 410a will be around a tad longer in favor of NOT putting flammable gases inside homes. HVAC leaks quite often.

And technically, if it's not a ozone killer gas you can buy it w/o a lic. I buy 410a online and I am not EPA 608.
 
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