Chief's Reg 4 testing in LA

[Kmg365]

Hello. I am new to the forum. I have been a fire alarm technician for approx. 17 years. I've done new installs, worked as a programmer, service technician, and most recently managed a service department. I am looking for a change, and would like to increase my value by obtaining a license to be a Certified tester for the Chief's Regulation 4.
I would appreciate any advice or information regarding this process. And, I would also like to get an idea of what the average hourly rate for a Reg 4 tester is.
Thanks in advance for any help y'all might have.

 

[RumRunner]

Hello. I am new to the forum. I have been a fire alarm technician for approx. 17 years. I've done new installs, worked as a programmer, service technician, and most recently managed a service department. I am looking for a change, and would like to increase my value by obtaining a license to be a Certified tester for the Chief's Regulation 4.
I would appreciate any advice or information regarding this process. And, I would also like to get an idea of what the average hourly rate for a Reg 4 tester is.
Thanks in advance for any help y'all might have.

I'm not sure what Chief's Reg 4 testing is that is required by City of LA.

From your post I gather that this activity is mostly about low voltage wiring-- in which case,it would fall under the scope of C10 license issued by CA State License Board (CSLB). A general Electrical Contracting License.

I'm a C10 license holder and I'm not required to take any test for this activity (as most C10 Holders are). If a C10 holder intends to do this in addition to regular electrical work , the board sends a Yes and No questionnaire where you submit along with a small fee. Specialty contractor like this still requires supervision by C10 holder--but you can still run the business under the umbrella of a C10 holder.

The C10 test is a three day sit down test 6 hours each day that covers Electrical theory and accepted engineering practices, planning and simple calculation and estimate. Business regulations and some accounting principles thrown in the mix. Perhaps you need to get this first and then venture into some other things that are electrically related.

The title you mentioned seems like a business license to do business in the City of LA.
Beverly Hills and other adjoining cities may have different requirements. I'm not sure what the hourly charge would be.
I'm guessing from the top of my head somewhere around $150 to $175 an hour. During my active days 20 years ago I charge $120 just to reset a breaker in Hollywood Hills.

This is not the right place to get the information you are looking for.

You need to contact the Contractor State License Board (CSLB) under the Department of Consumer Affairs

P.O Box 26999
Sacramento CA 95826-0026

Good luck

 

[GoldDigger]

That is a local fire regulation which includes testing requirements for fire protection systems in LA County.
http://www.lafd.org/fire-prevention/chiefs-regulation-4

It covers all manner of mechanical inspections, from standpipes and sprinkler heads through fire doors and elevators.
Some parts of the testing deal with electrical and electronic detection and alarm systems, but I am reasonably sure that a full or low voltage electrical license is not good enough.

You may want to look at the site above for leads on technician certification. I have no idea what the hourly rates are, and suspect that they vary with the kind of equipment being tested.

 

[kofireinc]

Hello. I am new to the forum. I have been a fire alarm technician for approx. 17 years. I've done new installs, worked as a programmer, service technician, and most recently managed a service department. I am looking for a change, and would like to increase my value by obtaining a license to be a Certified tester for the Chief's Regulation 4.
I would appreciate any advice or information regarding this process. And, I would also like to get an idea of what the average hourly rate for a Reg 4 tester is.
Thanks in advance for any help y'all might have.

I am a Reg 4 Tester and I'm happy to answer any questions you may have about the Chief's Regulation 4 Program. Advice I have is first get your CV and 1 or 2 letters of recommendation for someone that can vouch for your experience, second the application process is tedious so need to be organized, apply for particular systems and then study for them, attend a test date, take/pass written exam and then pass field test part of the exam. Feel free to contact me info@kofireinc.com

 

[tom baker]

I'm not sure what Chief's Reg 4 testing is that is required by City of LA.

From your post I gather that this activity is mostly about low voltage wiring-- in which case,it would fall under the scope of C10 license issued by CA State License Board (CSLB). A general Electrical Contracting License.

I'm a C10 license holder and I'm not required to take any test for this activity (as most C10 Holders are). If a C10 holder intends to do this in addition to regular electrical work , the board sends a Yes and No questionnaire where you submit along with a small fee. Specialty contractor like this still requires supervision by C10 holder--but you can still run the business under the umbrella of a C10 holder.

The C10 test is a three day sit down test 6 hours each day that covers Electrical theory and accepted engineering practices, planning and simple calculation and estimate. Business regulations and some accounting principles thrown in the mix. Perhaps you need to get this first and then venture into some other things that are electrically related.

The title you mentioned seems like a business license to do business in the City of LA.
Beverly Hills and other adjoining cities may have different requirements. I'm not sure what the hourly charge would be.
I'm guessing from the top of my head somewhere around $150 to $175 an hour. During my active days 20 years ago I charge $120 just to reset a breaker in Hollywood Hills.

This is not the right place to get the information you are looking for.

You need to contact the Contractor State License Board (CSLB) under the Department of Consumer Affairs

P.O Box 26999
Sacramento CA 95826-0026

Good luck

I am always surprised by the depth of knowledge here, even on some very obscure topics.