My love of my soldering iron and creative addiction towards hard wired layouts has got me thinking about upping the voltages a bit .
Obviously there are plenty of 18 w valve amp kits out there which I will no doubt start off with to learn the dangers of working on high voltage projects and I intend to investigate do's and don'ts but when it actually comes to the legality of selling high voltage equipment (or even working on other peoples gear) is there any one here that knows the score ? What paper work needs to be in order and when would you feel qualified enough not to endanger the general public ?
This is not a loaded question !
Ive always wanted to work on valve gear .
Flown the nest .
Comments
I have always found it bloody disgraceful that in this country you can set yourself up as an electronics technician with no qualifications at all AFAIK.
In your particular case Maxi I would suggest a PAT testing course and the purchase of the necessary equipment.
This would prove quite costly (but check how much a Gorgi gas course costs!) but it has always been my firm conviction that 90% of the various "cowboy" firms could be eliminated with a few very basic laws.
1)Recognised qualification for the particular trade of course.
2) A "bricks and mortar" business office/workshop, NOT an accommodation address "hole in the wall"
3) Valid, properly licensed insurance, not just 3rd party but also to cover bad workmanship or (builders blight!) unfinished work.
4) Cold calling, either by phone or door knocking to be absolutely illegal. They MAY send out, by post, no hand borne flyers, details to prospective customers.
And, MOST of all the government of the day to fund enough trade inspectors (the gov' could sell the insurance?)
Anyone who cannot raise the cash to implement the above is either a sharlatan or has such a bad business plan the banks won't fund him!
Dave.
If you're thinking along the lines of building and selling your own kit there is a bit of European legislation called the "low voltage directive". It basically sets out how you'd get CE marking, which I would be prohibitively expensive to get early on, but that is no reason to ignore their rules. Design it right from the start and you'll be fine.
Btw I'm an electronics engineer, and while I've never built an amp to sell I work in an incredibly tightly regulated industry as well as on my own amps.
A big +1. That's how I ran my business but unfortunately the extra overheads meant I couldn't compete with those that didn't bother. I'm in a new job now thankfully but it was frustrating and incredibly stressful at the time.
Doh! Must have posted an earlier draft, I've edited my post now so it should make more sense!
Don't get me started on Part P... :x
I can't say I'm in favour of those without professional experience and qualifications selling mains powered electronic equipment to the public. It's about competence rather than regulations and paperwork, and broader knowledge than you'll get from simply assembling a few kits.
I feel qualified enough because I'm a time-served engineer, with an HNC, and 30+ years in engineering, 20 years of that in electronics and manufacturing. Still learning though!
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