PDD Pass- Thoughts
This was my final exam and I passed on my first try. I used Kaplan study materials but quickly found that I got overwhelmed with the complexity of all the calculations that this section has. I liked Kaplan for all the other sections, but this one was tough to get through.
The test does not ask you to memorize equations, but you should generally know how to use them. For instance, how to convert between square feet to cubic yards etc.
After reading through much of the Kaplan materials and using their test questions, I purchased Elif's questions. I thought a lot of the questions prepared me well for key items to study for. Her questions are tough, but they have a lot of information embedded in the answer explanation. You have to search through the code a lot for her questions, but I didn't find that I needed to do this much for the exam but it prepared me well. From her questions, I developed flash cards that related to each question so that I was learning about all the items that were included in the multiple choice question, not just what was the correct answer.
I took Elif's quizzes many times just to get in the practice of answering questions. Her practice test questions are the same as the quizzes which I was a bit disappointed about, but there is plenty of variety. I also took the practice exam in real-time three separate times just to get in the rhythm. I took one before I studied and scored a 62%. After this, I then took one at the mid-point of studying, then another toward the end, passing with higher scores both times. Study and create flash cards from the practice exams selections- this really helps!
Studying for the PPD exam first also helps because a lot of the concepts carry over. I ordered Frank Ching's Building Construction Illustrated toward the end of my studying process, and wish I had it for other exams. ORDER THIS BOOK. It was so much more helpful than trying to read paragraphs of content. The graphics and descriptions are a great place to start.
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lfollis congrats!!
Am also using Ballast for PDD and I have a question,
was it enough to cover the MEP topics? did you face any questions that have new ideas related to the MEP topics? -
Thank you, Abdallah!
Generally yes, I think the content in Ballast has a lot of helpful information, but it was a bit dry for me to get through. I thought supplementing with Building Construction Illustrated by Frank Ching was super helpful in understanding it a bit better visually. You should generally know the components, names, and uses of mechanical ducting and hvac and water heating systems, when to use what, how heating vs cooling works with condensation/evaporation, what specification schedule relates to each topic (lighting, hvac plumbing etc), electrical phasing for different types of buildings, etc. Elif's questions were helpful in solidifying the topics for me, but if you have a firm grasp already from Ballast I would skip her quizzes.
The ballast book really stressed calculating water pressure at different heights of buildings, lighting at different locations in rooms, etc but I don't recall needing this.
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Congratulations on passing your final exam, and on the first try! Great advice about using practice questions as a learning tool rather than just focusing on the score. Creating flash cards from the answer choices and explanations is a great way to dig deeper into the concepts. I also agree that studying PPD before PDD can be helpful because of the overlap between the two. Thanks for sharing such a detailed breakdown of what worked for you and best of luck on what's ahead!
Kiara | Black Spectacles | Community
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