Residential Plans Examiner (R3)

The Residential Plans Examiner (R3) exam is offered by ICC. ICC offers certification programs for contractors and different types of construction and safety industry experts, plans examiners, involving plumbing and electrical inspectors, and other building safety professionals. A residential plans examiner reviews, plans, and construct documents for one-and-two family residences and their accessory structures for compliance with the local codes and standards as adopted by their jurisdiction. Evidence of the plan review is documented indicating deficiencies that must be corrected, or that the plan is available to be issued. Should plan changes need to be made, the residential plans examiner verifies that the submitted documentation is complete and clearly illustrates the work proposed, prior to permitting issuance.

The ICC Residential Plans Examiner certification exam tests the skills and knowledge of a candidate in the area such as architecture and life safety, design loads, structural elements, venting termination, etc. Being certified from ICC displays a significant accomplishment that can offer many benefits such as:

• Dormant Increase in Salary
• Openings in Career Advancement
• Professional Recognition
• Authenticating your Technical Expertise
• Being Marketable in your Job Search

Exam Details

The Residential Plans Examiner exam has an exam ID: R3. The exam is an Open Book Exam. The candidate will be given 2 hours to successfully complete the exam. Talking about the Residential Plans Examiner questions, there will be 60 questions. The Residential Plans Examiner (R3) exam method will be Computer-Based Testing( CBT ) and Proctored Online Testing. The ICC examination fee will be $219 USD. The candidate can register for the exam on the ICC website as well as at Pearson VUE.

Scheduling the ICC exam

Before Taking the Certification exam, here are some registration tips that you should follow:

• Firstly, the candidate must log in to myICC to make an exam purchase. If they already have an account, please contact ICC before creating a new one to ensure all of their information stays in one account.
• The candidate is required to pay for the exam first before they schedule if they are taking a National Certification, California, or UST/AST exam via CBT or PRONTO. Moreover, they have one year to schedule or reschedule the exam without paying for it again.
• Also, please enter the Legal name only exactly as it appears on the identification you will carry before testing. Entering wrong details will not let you take your test and no fees will be refunded.
• Lastly, you must have your government-issued photo identification ready to show the proctor.

Residential Plans Examiner (R3) FAQ

Course Outline

The Residential Plans Examiner (R3) exam has been made on the basis of the following potential areas:

Administrative 5%

Permits

• Determine if a permit is required and if the submittal is complete and meets the scope of the One and Two Family Dwelling Code.

Correspondence

• Communicate with the applicant any need for further information, alerting them of deficiencies in their submittal or of their approval to start work; mark the official approved sets of drawings after approval.

Site 10%

Site Plan

• Verify from the site plan that the building or structure location is in compliance with the requirements of the local ordinances, fire separation regulations, fire access, flood-hazard areas, setbacks, encroaching on any legal easement, wetland, right of way, or neighboring property.

Final Grade

• Verify that final grade will provide the required slope away from the footing or foundation wall and will not adversely affect neighboring property.

Architectural and Life Safety 25%

Room Sizes

• Verify adequate room sizes, ceiling heights, heat, light, and ventilation are provided.

Means of Egress

• Verify adequate means of egress, with proper widths, stairs, guards, rails, and openings.

Fire Protection

• Verify fire protection through rated walls, draft stopping, smoke detectors, and sprinklers.

Glazing

• Verify safety requirements for glazing and foam plastic elements.

Exterior

• Verify that exterior veneers and siding have correct anchorage, support, and backing.
• Verify that a weather-resistant barrier is correctly specified for all walls and around all wall openings.
• Verify that exterior sheathing materials are correctly sized and specified.
• Verify that plaster, stucco, and metal lath have correct thickness and fasteners.

Specialty

• Verify unique requirement compliance for specialty, detached, and accessory structures such as pools, spas, fireplaces, and storage buildings.

Structural 25%

Design Loads

• Verify designer used the correct design loads.

Footings

• Verify that footings are designed to correct depth, size and setbacks and that footings will extend below the frost line.
• Verify footing drains for basements and crawl spaces for compliance with the code.
• Identify soil type and verify that bearing capacity is adequate.

Foundation Walls

• Verify that foundation walls are correctly sized and have sufficient height above grade.
• Verify that foundation wall materials, reinforcement, anchor bolts, and fasteners are correct type, size, and grade and are located in accordance with building code requirements.
• Verify that foundation dampproofing and waterproofing are to be provided.

Structural Elements

• Verify that structural elements are correctly designed to support loads and maintain load path continuity.
• Structural elements can include beams, girders, trusses, headers, joists, rafters, columns, piers, walls, and bracing, as well as others not listed.

Lateral Bracing

• Verify lateral bracing is adequate to meet required load conditions such as wind and seismic loads.

Construction Design

• Verify construction design for wall systems built below the lowest finished floor in flood zones.

Pre-manufactured Construction

• Verify pre-manufactured construction elements are to be utilized in accordance with their listing.

Energy Efficiency 5%

Energy

• Verify energy saving provisions for the building envelope, mechanical equipment, and appliances comply with the code and are indicated on the plans.

Mechanical 10%

Mechanical Equipment and Appliances

• Verify adequate protection, support, space, and clearance are provided for mechanical equipment and appliances.

Room Volume

• Verify adequate room volume for combustion air or alternate provisions.

Venting and Venting Termination

• Verify proper application of venting and venting termination.

Fuel Gas Pipe Sizes

• Verify proper fuel gas pipe size to provide adequate gas to appliances and equipment.

Fuel-Burning Equipment

• Verify that special systems utilizing fuel burning equipment, such as interior open-flame grills, pool and sauna heaters, hydronic heating systems, and decorative appliances comply with code requirements, the manufacturer’s instructions, and listing of the equipment and have proper access and clearances.

Plumbing 10%

Fixtures

• Verify minimum required fixtures are provided in proper location with correct clearances.

Clearances and Support

• Verify adequate clearances and support are provided for piping and piping termination.

Potable Water System

• Verify potable water system is provided and protected.

Sanitary Disposal

• Verify sanitary disposal system is provided and protected.

Electrical 10%

Load Calculation

• Verify adequate service is being provided for the building as per the load calculation.

Circuits and Disconnects

• Verify required circuits and disconnects are provided.

Grounding and Grounding Electrode Sytems

• Verify the method and location of the grounding and grounding electrode systems.

Outlets, Switches, Luminaires, and Receptacles

• Verify that outlets, switches, luminaires and receptacles, including GFCI and AFCI protection, are installed in required locations.

Electrical Panel

• Verify electrical panel location and working space clearances.

Bonding

• Verify bonding of metallic housings and elements.

Conductor and Conduit Size and Support

• Verify proper conductor and conduit sizing and support.

Exam Policies

Results for examinations taken online or at a testing site are available immediately after completion of the examination. For National and UST/AST Certification Exams, The candidate will have six exam attempts within a six-month period. They are responsible for paying the exam fee at every attempt. Once they have attempted an exam six times, they must wait six months from the first attempt to register again.

R3 Residential Plans Examiner Study Guide

The Preparatory guide gives you a step-by-step learning path to prepare for the exam and validate your skills for better opportunities.

Visit the Official Website 

Touring the ICC official website is an important step while preparing for the exam like R3 Residential Plans Examiner. Also, the official website provides a lot of essential information and sources which is very helpful in preparing for the exam. Further, resources such as study guides, courses, sample papers, training programs, whitepapers, documentation, faqs, etc. The candidate can find all such important things on the official page.

Refer the Exam Guide

Before starting your preparation, it is very important to known the course structure and exam guide. For the examination, you should visit the official website to get the Residential Plans review study guide and course outline. Below are the objectives of the Residential Plans Examiner (R3) examination:

• Administrative
• Site
• Architectural and Life Safety
• Structural
• Energy Efficiency
• Mechanical
• Plumbing
• Electrical

ICC Learning Center

The candidate can also go to ICC Learning Center. The ICC Learning Center offers training programs on every exam. The ICC Learning Center provides programs for a particular exam that contain all information on the exam such as description, intended audience, delivery method, duration, etc. The candidate should join a training program to gain knowledge and skills for Residential Plans Examiner (R3). With the Residential Plans Examiner training courses with ICC, the candidate will receive in-person instruction from ICC experts in one of their state-of-the-art training facilities. This is a fully hands-on learning experience with a subject matter expert to guide the candidates through each exercise and answer all their questions. 

Join a Study Group 

Joining a group study or an online community will also be useful for the candidate. It will help them to do more hard work. Also, studying in the group will help them to stay connected with the other people who are on the same pathway as them. Also, the discussion of such study groups will benefit the students in their exams.

Evaluate with Free Practice Test 

Practice tests are the one which ensures the candidate about their preparation. The R3 Residential Plans Examiner practice test will help the candidates to acknowledge their weak areas so that they can work on them. There are many R3 Residential Plans Examiner sample questions that you can practice and are available on the internet nowadays, so the candidate can choose which they want. The candidate can start Preparing for Residential Plans Examiner (R3) Now!