Inspection, Testing, and Troubleshooting
Know the periodic test categories
A17.2 organizes inspections into categories, including routine, periodic, and acceptance inspections. Know what is checked annually versus what requires five-year testing, such as certain relief and rupture valve tests, and the rated-load brake test. Trap: questions that assign a five-year test to a component tested annually, or that omit the no-load and rated-load distinctions.
Safety-device testing sequence
Governor and safety tests, buffer tests, and emergency-brake tests follow defined procedures. Understand that safeties are tested with the car empty or loaded per the standard, and that governor trip speed is verified before safety engagement. Know that escalator testing includes brake stopping distance and skirt and step clearance checks.
Troubleshooting method
Use a disciplined sequence: verify the complaint, check the simplest causes, isolate power versus control, then test components. Read fault logs before replacing parts. A high-yield trap is jumping to controller replacement when the actual fault is an open safety circuit, a door interlock, or a loose connection. Remember that safety circuits are series-connected, so one open device disables the whole string.
Worked example
An elevator stops between floors with doors closed and will not restart. Rule of thumb: check the safety circuit first, then the door interlocks, then the governor switch, then controller faults. If the car can be run on inspection speed, the power circuit is likely intact and the fault sits in the safety or control string.
Documentation and reporting
Inspection results, test tags, and deficiency reports must be accurate and timely. Know that the inspector's authority to remove a conveyance from service depends on the AHJ's rules, and that red tagging and follow-up reinspection are administrative steps candidates are expected to recognize.