The most common questions I get regarding NATE is, "What is NATE?" and "Why would I need it?". Let's get right to it then.
NATE is a 3rd party certification authority for HVACR technicians that has multiple choice test questions in the following categories...
- Air Conditioning
- Air Distribution
- Air-to-Air Heat Pumps - pass this specialty and be awarded into Air Conditioning too!
- Gas Furnaces
- Oil Furnaces
- Hydronics Gas
- Hydronics Oil
- Light Commercial Refrigeration
- Commercial Refrigeration
- HVAC Efficiency Analyst (Senior Level)
You must take and pass a core exam and one or more of the above specialties to be certified. This can be done in either order or both in one sitting. All of the core and specialties come in two categories, service or install.
The group was formed to serve the U.S. and Canada (but are in other countries as well) as a one-stop organization for hiring contractors, utilities, local municipalities, schools, consumers and more to know that their technician have the basic skills required to perform needed work. C-3 and Quality Circle Contractors have 50% and 80% respectively of their technicians with certification.
Why do you need to be certified?
Nearly 30,000 technicians are already certified by NATE. NATE certification shows prospective employers that you have a basic grasp of your trade. Many contractors also try to keep up their C3 NATE rating as well. This is when 50% of their techs have certification with NATE. Quality Circle Contractors have 80% of their technicians certified and get special listings on NATE's site where consumers go to look up qualified contractors for service and sales calls. (My company did this and received several calls from this list). Some utilities, such as SCE locally, required NATE certified techs and contractors for one of their newer rebate programs up to $1,250.00 for consumers. That can make or break a sale!
More on NATE certified techs...
It is shown that certified techs have reduced warranty calls, reduced demand on technical service and support staff, equipment under their care operated more energy efficiently, and they earn more money on average than non-certified techs.
What do I do after I certify?
Nothing, if you want...for a while. NATE specialties can be taken at any time and added to your portfolio. I said for a while because you must recertify your specialties after five years. This can be done by retesting or demonstrating ongoing education in the specialty areas by earning CEU's (continuing education units) or CEH's (continuing education hours) over the five-year period. Many seminars offer CEU's or CEH's for NATE. Our chapter meetings offer 2.0 CEH's for the two-hour meetings! One CEU is typically equivalent to 10 CEH's. Just before your five years is up and you need to re-certify, send in copies of all your certificates to NATE. They will check the hours of education you've accumulated and send you a new card.
NATE is quickly becoming an important part of a technicians career. Soon, NATE may very well be required for nearly all residential technicians in Southern California, with the commercial techs not far behind. Get certified soon and show your employer and customers that you aren't a "bare minimum" technician.
Our chapter is considering holding NATE study courses and eventually testing. Click on "comments" below and let us know your interests!
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