The plumbing profession is heavily regulated. To ensure that each plumber can provide the best services to clients, they must go through several education and licensing stages to attain master plumber status. However, once a plumber gains a journeyman plumber license, they can practice their trade independently. If you are interested in plumbing as a career, you might be interested to know the difference between designations that determine the skill level of employees. In the case of prospective customers, seeking help from licensed plumbers assures you of service from professionals who have duly earned their right to practice their trade through years of training and have completed the state’s requirements. Throughout the country, the designation among plumbers is apprentice, journeyman, and master plumber. This article discusses the difference between designations:
What is an Apprentice Plumber?
An apprentice plumber is an employee who is learning their trade. In the Arizona plumbing industry, apprentice plumbers are registered in the apprenticeship program with defined rules set by the state. Apprentice plumbers should be going through classroom instructions (144 hours) and on-the-job training or doing relevant plumbing work (which will take 2,000 hours). An applicant should be over the age of 18 and holds a high school diploma before applying to an apprenticeship program.
Plumbers going through apprenticeships are typically paid. However, they can’t work independently. They should work under the supervision of a journeyman or master plumber. Apprentice plumbers are typically sponsored by an employer who pays them as they work to complete their apprenticeship.
After completing the necessary classroom and practical work hours, apprentice plumbers graduate and receive a nationally-recognized certificate to show their successful completion of the program.
What is a Journeyman Plumber?
Except for Phoenix, Arizona, recognizes a journeyman plumber as someone who completed four years of experience as an apprentice plumber, either as an employee or through a trade school program. That is, the state recognizes a plumber as a journeyman plumber as plumber who has completed a plumbing apprenticeship program but hasn’t completed the required plumbing license.
On the other hand, the city of Phoenix offers a journeyman plumber examination. Prospective journeyman plumbers can take a journeyman plumber exam to be a licensed journeyman plumber. The license is valid for three years. After which, a plumber should pay the necessary renewal fee.
A journeyman plumber needs a license to practice their trade independently. The license is granted by the Arizona Registrar of Contractors (ROC) because plumbers are required to register themselves as a business because of their contractor status. To gain this license, they must pass any of two possible plumbing licenses: commercial or residential ones. To achieve these licenses, prospective plumbers must pass a business management exam and an exam related to their preferred plumbing field (commercial or residential plumbing). Within Arizona, there are also specialized plumbing licenses that require additional exams. In most states, membership in the local union is also required. With the required expertise and licensed gained, plumber-contractors know business management and time management skills aside from plumbing knowledge.
What is a Master Plumber?
As the name suggests, a master plumber is the highest designation a plumber can attain. A licensed master plumber is a highly skilled expert, distinguishing them from regular plumbers. Many plumbers aspire to achieve this status, yet a few reach this stage. Aside from holding a master plumber license, they should complete comprehensive training, assessment of skills, and years of relevant experience in plumbing work as a journeyman plumber.
Master plumbers are expected to take on a broad range of plumbing issues. They also know various codes and regulations governing the plumbing trade at the state and federal levels. Master plumbers, like most professionals, have specific specializations. Because of their expert status, construction companies often hire master plumbers to design and install complicated plumbing systems in construction projects.
If You Are Looking For Dependable Licensed Plumbers: Call P&L Plumbing To Address Your Plumbing Needs
Licensed plumbers run P&L Plumbing with decades of combined experience delivering excellent plumbing work across different Arizona cities. We pride ourselves on our service quality, the use of modern technology, and broad expertise to tackle any possible plumbing tasks required by both residential and commercial clients. Whether you need help with your clogged drains, extending your water heater lifespan, leaky pipes, low water pressure in kitchen sink, backed-up sewer lines, or more, you can rely on P&L plumbing to take care of these issues. To know more about our services or to book a service from a plumbing service Chandler Az, call us at (480) 649-4400 or book online by clicking this link.
