Just purchased my flir E6 camera, waiting for it to arrive. In anyone who has taken the class, is the nachi 3 hr class enough or should I look into additional classes as well?
I am not familiar with the InterNACHI class. Back when I took classes 15 or so years ago, I took the Building Sciences for IR Thermography week long course and the Level I Flir IR Thermography class for another week.
I would recommend at least the Level I course by Infraspection or Flir and depending on what you plan to use your imager for, take the Level II week long class as well.
Do you know what you are going to use it for? 
IMO, you should have at least taken the Level I Thermography class before even buying a camera. Do you think the 3-hour InterNachi course compares to a 4-day course? The Level I course is $2000.00. I am scheduled to take the class in May 2020 in Cleveland. Not sure if I will get into Thermography but I took the advice of many others on this forum to take the courses before investing in equipment.
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I was going to mention that, Joseph, but he said that he already bought it, so I passed.
Maybe he could return it?
"You don’t know what you don’t know until you know it. Author unknown…
I also am not familiar with the InterNACHI course, but this is a skillset that I don’t believe should be learned via an online course. There are many nuances to doing thermal scans, and learning from a real person, and the ability to have Q&A’s are important. I took the Infrared Training Center(ITC) 4-day Level 1 course. I would suggest perhaps taking a home/building centric course first, as you learn a lot of information in Level 1 which you would not put into practice at first. Monroe IR offers a 2-day Certified Residential Thermographer(CRT) which is less expensive and will give the basics to get started. Should you choose to increase your IR skills, then perhaps move on to the more comprehensive/expensive courses. We have three of the FLIR E6 cameras, and one less expensive FLIR… The E6 is a very good camera for our purposes.
Take the Certified Residential Thermographer class from Monroe Infrared. It is specifically designed for home inspectors who use IR. Only costs about $500. Totally worth it. It teaches you how to properly interpret the IR images and teaches you about heat reflection, etc. I would advise you NOT to use the IR camera in your inspections until you’ve had training. It’s very easy to misidentify things without the training. I recently completed this course and started using IR in all of my inspections. It’s a great tool but you have to know how to interpret the image results to be effective at it.
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I agree wholeheartedly with your advice, do not use the camera until you have the proper training under your belt. In the meantime, play around with it in your own home, relatives homes, friends, neighbors, etc. to get a feel for it. However, there are always instances when deals or sales may make the timing of your camera purchase worthwhile. I too just picked up a camera at a steep Black Friday discount. I am taking the Monroe class in February along with the InterNACHI course, and plan to take the level 1 as well. As Joseph is hinting at, you would open yourself up for failure and liability issues by using it without the proper training.
a BIG no … a 3 hr class is not adequate to learn how to do IR.
Take the Certified Residential Thermographer class from Monroe Infrared. Only costs about $495. It teaches you how to interpret the IR images, etc. It’s very easy to misidentify things without the training… It’s a great tool but you have to know how to interpret the image results to be effective at it.
Thanks for the replies. I’ve been looking into cameras for a little bit now and I was kind of settled on this one and I got a decent deal for the holidays so I jumped on it. I have experience with thermal imaging cameras in a different capacity, so I am familiar with readings and interpretations to an extent. I was planning on taking a course down the road, especially since it can fulfill most of my CE credits. I was just curious if that 3 hr video was enough to get me started. Only time will tell.
Thanks again guys
So, will you be flying to the East coast or driving?
When I took a InterNACHI course taught my John MaKenna, God rest his soul, the course was 16 hours online. It was very helpfully in theory.
Besides the level Courses, I, II and III, there are CERTIFICATION COURSES:
1: Electrical Systems. 2: Electro/Mechanical Systems. 3: Mechanical Systems. 4: Buildings & Roofs. 5: Pest Management Professionals. 6: Home & Building Inspectors. 7: Weatherization Professionals.
*NOTE: The IR Inspections for Home & Building Inspectors are discounted for InterNACHI member’s. Highly recommend.
They are conducting their CRT class in multiple locations from December through March. Check their website for a class nearest to you.
Not as much as you think…
I know Lvl III thermographers that are nuclear physicists with Phd’s who would not point a thermal camera at a building.
Phil- I strongly agree with you. I have learned more from others, sitting around the table during lunch than the course I was taking. I also gained contacts with expert thermographers on three continents that have helped me on numerous occasions over the years who were invaluable. Taking time away from your day job (over several years) to fully utilize this science is vital to your success. Those who do everything on line are just part timers. You can’t learn this stuff on your own and be any good at it. Attending (better yet, teaching) at IR conventions introduces you to others and concepts you will never consider.
Moving from making $350 per Inspection to $2k does not happen by playing around on line.
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That is for sure, David!