Safety, Records, and Professional Practice
Core Concepts
Field work involves hazards: pressurized lines, hot water, confined spaces, chemicals, and electrical equipment. Practice lockout/tagout, depressurize before disassembly, wear PPE, and follow confined-space entry procedures. Never test or repair an assembly without isolating and relieving pressure.
Recordkeeping is part of the job. Document the assembly make, model, serial number, location, test results, gauge calibration, tester identification, and date. Records support compliance audits and help track device history. Accurate, legible, and timely records protect both the tester and the water system.
Professional practice includes honesty in reporting, refusing to certify a failed assembly, and communicating clearly with customers and the AHJ. Know that falsifying test results is a serious violation with legal and public-health consequences.
Traps in Questions
A common trap is an answer that suggests skipping a step to save time, such as testing without depressurizing or recording results later from memory. Another trap is treating a failed assembly as "close enough." The correct professional response is to document the failure and require repair and retest.
Rule of Thumb
If it is not documented, it did not happen. Record immediately, accurately, and completely, and never certify a result you did not observe.