How to get licensed for heating and HVAC work in Maine

Licensing office Maine Fuel Board, Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation · (207) 624-8627 [17]

The license pathway in Maine

1. 1

   Apprentice oil burner and/or solid fuel technician

   • $40 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $40

   Your starting license. You assist with installing, repairing and servicing equipment under the direct supervision of a journeyman or master, with a supervising master who has signed a Certificate of Supervision on file with the board. [8][12][14][18]

2. 2

   Journeyman oil burner and/or solid fuel technician

   • 1 year of experience
   • Optional: a 160-hour board-approved course (cuts apprentice time to 6 months) or a 320-hour one-year community college course (replaces it)
   • Yes, open book, 70% to pass, at Prov; 1 and 2 oils up to 15 gph: 105 questions (5 unscored) in 3 hours, $90
   • $100 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $100

   Installs, cleans, services and repairs oil (or solid fuel) burning equipment under the indirect supervision of, or employed by, a master. You need one year as a licensed apprentice, or one of the school routes, and the exam for each license authority (fuel type) you want. [2][12][13][14]

3. 3

   Master oil burner and/or solid fuel technician

   • 4 years of experience
   • Yes, 70% to pass, at Prov
   • $200 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $200

   Can install and service oil (or solid fuel) equipment on their own and supervise journeymen and apprentices. You need four years of licensed experience, with at least two as a journeyman. A master solid fuel technician needs two years as an apprentice solid fuel technician. [3][12][14]

4. 4

   Propane and natural gas helper

   • $20 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $20

   The starter license for gas work. You assist a licensed propane and natural gas technician under direct, on-site supervision. [10][14][19]

5. 5

   Propane and natural gas technician

   • A national propane association training program or a board-approved course
   • Yes, one per authority, at Prov ($90 each)
   • $100 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $100

   Holds one or more authorities, such as appliance connection and service (up to 500,000 BTUs per appliance), large equipment, tank setting and outside piping, delivery, or plant operation. [9][13][14]

Who needs a license

Maine law says a person who installs or services solid fuel burning equipment (including pellet-fired central heating), or oil, propane or natural gas burning equipment, must be licensed by the Maine Fuel Board. Exceptions include licensed electricians doing the electrical part, licensed plumbers doing plumbing, and a person working on the single-family home they live in, if the work meets board rules.

Mechanics who install air-handling equipment, sheet metal and similar parts of a heating system don't need a fuel license, but the work must be supervised by a master oil burner technician or propane and natural gas technician who is responsible for the installation. [1][5]

Heat pumps and air conditioning

State guidance on mini-split heat pumps (2013) says the license required by state law covers the electrical part of the installation:

• Any size, any building: a master electrician (or a journeyman working for one), or a limited electrician in refrigeration. A limited electrician in house wiring may install them in one- and two-family homes.
• Units under 36,000 BTU in one- and two-family homes (and existing multifamily buildings with electric heat): also a master or journeyman oil burner technician, under an agreement between the Fuel Board and the Electricians' Examining Board.
• A general contractor may install the system parts but not the wiring.

If the system isn't charged with refrigerant at the factory, the installer also needs EPA 608 refrigerant certification (small appliance level or higher). See the Maine electrician license page for the electrical route. [4][6][7]

The license ladder

Oil and solid fuel:

• Apprentice. Starter license, no exam.
• Journeyman. One year as an apprentice (or six months plus a 160-hour course, or a 320-hour community college program), plus the exam.
• Master. Four years licensed, two as a journeyman, plus the exam.

Oil licenses come in "authorities" by fuel and burner size, such as #1 and #2 oils up to 15 gallons per hour, #1 and #2 oils over 15 gallons per hour, and #4, #5 and #6 oils. You take a separate exam for each.

Propane and natural gas:

• Helper. Starter license, no exam.
• Technician. A training program plus an exam for each authority (appliance connection and service, large equipment, tank setting and outside piping, delivery, plant operation).

More: journeyman vs. master. [2][3][8][9][10][11][12]

The exam

You apply to the Fuel Board first; once approved, you schedule with Prov. All fuel technician exams are open book and need 70%.

The journeyman 1 and 2 oils (up to 15 gph) exam has 105 questions (5 unscored) in 3 hours. It draws on an oil heat technician manual, the Fuel Board's laws and rules, NFPA 31 (oil-burning equipment) and other codes. Most oil and propane exams cost $90; solid fuel exams cost $65. [12][13]

Fees and renewal

• Apprentice: $40 every two years.
• Propane and natural gas helper: $20 every two years.
• Journeyman: $100 every two years.
• Master: $200 every two years.
• Propane and natural gas technician: $100 every two years.
• First license: add a $21 criminal background check.

A $50 late fee applies to late renewals. Apprentices and helpers who are more than 90 days late must reapply as new applicants. [12][14]

If you're licensed in another state

Maine's fuel law asks out-of-state applicants for journeyman and master licenses to show the board satisfactory evidence of their experience; you still need to pass the exam. We didn't find any published reciprocity agreements. Maine's licensure-by-endorsement law directs each board to set up a process for applicants from states with substantially equivalent requirements. Ask the Fuel Board at (207) 624-8627. See license reciprocity. [2][3][15][16][17]

Steps to get licensed in Maine

1. Get hired and licensed as an apprentice

   With a supervising master's Certificate of Supervision, apply for the apprentice license in the board's online licensing system: $40 plus a $21 background check. [12][14]

2. Get one year of licensed experience, or take a course

   Work a year as a licensed apprentice, or six months plus a 160-hour board-approved course, or complete a one-year, 320-hour community college heating course. [2]

3. Apply for the journeyman exam

   Send the exam application with a signed affidavit of your supervised experience and any school certificates or transcripts. Wait for board approval before scheduling. [11][12]

4. Pass the Prov exam

   Fuel technician exams are open book; you need 70%. The 1 and 2 oils (up to 15 gph) journeyman exam has 105 questions in 3 hours and costs $90. [12][13]

5. Apply for your journeyman license

   Starting 24 hours after you pass, apply online with a Certificate of Supervision and pay $100 plus the $21 background check. [11][12][14]

Where to get the hours

Programs that train HVAC technicians in or for Maine, from their own official pages. Listed by type, not ranked.

• State program

  Maine Apprenticeship Program

  The Maine Department of Labor's registered apprenticeship office. Its searchable map lists active apprenticeships, including heating and ventilation employers, and pre-apprenticeship programs. [20][21]

• Other

  Licensed heating companies

  You can start as a licensed apprentice with any heating company that has a master oil burner technician; your supervising master signs a Certificate of Supervision that the board keeps on file. [12][14][18]

Licensed in another state?

Questions people ask