                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

INSPECTION AND TESTING (§ 40.1-51.19:3)

A. A hobby or model boiler shall be inspected every two years inclusive. It
shall be the duty of the owner of any hobby or model boiler to obtain and
display an inspection certificate. A hobby or model boiler can be placed in
nonoperating status upon written notification to the chief inspector. Normal
inspection procedures apply when reinstating the boiler.

B. The inspection of every hobby or model boiler shall include an examination of
or for the following:

   1. The fusible plug, if provided in the original design.

   2. The safety valve or valves. Such valve or valves shall be (i) marked with
   an American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) stamp, (ii) set at or below
   the maximum allowable working pressure, and (iii) sealed in a manner that does
   not allow tampering with the valve without destroying the seal. The
   requirement of clause (i) shall be waived for model boilers upon the passage
   of an accumulation test.

   3. Internal corrosion.

   4. Leakage.

   5. The boiler power piping, up to and including the first valve.

C. A hobby or model boiler shall be subjected to nondestructive testing, at the
owner&#8217;s expense, to determine the maximum allowable working pressure in
accordance with Boiler and Pressure Vessel Regulations (16VAC25-50-10 et seq.).

D. All hobby and model boilers shall pass a hydrostatic test. The pressure shall
be at one and one-quarter maximum allowable working pressure, as determined by
the inspection certificate and as deemed necessary based on inspections or other
evidence. A hobby or model boiler that does not meet the requirements of the
ASME code and is not registered in the Commonwealth shall, at the owner&#8217;s
expense, be tested to one and one-half times the maximum allowable working
pressure for hobby boilers and twice the maximum allowable working pressure for
model boilers and, to be operated, shall have a successful (i) for lap seam and
nonstandard welded boilers only, complete radiographic or ultrasonic examination
of the long or longitudinal seam; (ii) ultrasonic examination for metal
thickness, and for the purpose of calculating the maximum allowable working
pressure, the thinnest reading shall be used; and (iii) for hobby boilers with
lap seam construction, dye penetrant or magnetic particle examination for cracks
with an ultrasonic or radiographic examination of areas where testing shows
possible cracks.
			The requirements of this subsection for hobby boilers only testing to one and
one-half times the maximum allowable working pressure or full radiographic or
ultrasonic examination may be waived after the initial inspection if the
inspector finds that the general standards of subsection B are met and the
safety valve or valves are set at the maximum allowable working pressure
determined by the following: calculations from the ultrasonic results or 100
pounds per square inch, whichever is lower. If a variance is requested for butt
strap hobby boilers, the Commissioner shall not deny such variance request
without a given, valid reason.
			The requirements of this subsection for model boilers only for testing to
twice the maximum allowable working pressure or full radiographic or ultrasonic
examination may be waived after the initial inspection if the inspector finds
that the general standards of subsection B are met and the safety valve or
valves are set at the maximum allowable working pressure determined by the
following: calculations from the ultrasonic results or 100 pounds per square
inch, whichever is lower.
			Any boiler which has been without a documented inspection within the past
twenty years must have a two times maximum allowable working pressure hydro test
prior to its operation.

E. Any hobby or model boiler holding a current out-of-state inspection
certificate shall be accepted by the Commonwealth of Virginia, provided the
inspection standards meet or exceed standards adopted by the Commonwealth.

HISTORY: 1999, c. 335; 2000, cc. 879, 898.