B-2 Residential Remodeling exam questions, with answers
10 practice questions for the CSLB Residential Remodeling trade exam, each with the answer, a plain explanation and the source it rests on.
These are not real exam questions. CSLB does not release its test questions or answer keys, and nobody else has them. We write our own questions from the B-2 outline and the codes, standards and references CSLB lists for the exam. Each answer names its source so you can check it.
The B-2 exam has 6 sections. The questions below are grouped by section, with the share of the exam each one carries. Read the question, pick an answer, then open “Show the answer”. The other questions of the free test, scored section by section, are in the free 25-question B-2 test.
Planning and Estimating · 15% of the exam
Scope of work and code compliance; identifying design and construction errors; shop drawings, plans and specifications; field inspections; project coordination; estimating costs of materials, equipment and labor.
1. Your company holds only a B-2 Residential Remodeling license, with no other classifications. On an existing wood-frame house, which contract may you take as the prime contractor?
- A bathroom remodel with new tile, drywall repair, painting and a replacement toilet and faucet
- Re-siding the whole house with fiber-cement siding, with no other work
- Hanging new drywall in the garage and painting it, with no other work
- Removing a load-bearing wall and setting a new beam, plus drywall, paint and flooring
Show the answer
Answer: A. Business and Professions Code §7057.5 lets a B-2 contractor take a contract only when it includes three or more unrelated trades or crafts, and its list of trades includes tiling, drywall, painting and replacing plumbing fixtures such as toilets and faucets. Drywall plus painting is only two trades, and siding alone is one. A B-2 contractor also may not contract to make structural changes to load-bearing parts of an existing structure, such as a load-bearing wall.
2. You are coordinating the trades on a bathroom remodel. The walls are open to the studs, and the drywall crew is scheduled to hang gypsum board and cement backer board tomorrow. Under the federal guide specification for gypsum board (UFGS 09 29 00), what must be verified before the board goes up?
- That blocking and supports for fixtures, grab bars and towel racks are in place
- That every existing stud has been replaced with new kiln-dried lumber
- That all of the framing has been primed with a coat of drywall sealer
- That the tile and paint colors have been approved in writing by the owner and the designer
Show the answer
Answer: A. UFGS 09 29 00 says to verify that all blocking, headers and supports are in place to support plumbing fixtures and to receive soap dishes, grab bars, towel racks and similar items, and not to proceed until the framing is acceptable. Once the board is up, adding backing means cutting the wall open again, so the carpenter and plumber must finish before the drywall crew starts. Existing studs do not have to be replaced or primed, and color approvals have nothing to do with hanging board.
Job Site Preparation · 13% of the exam
Removing non-load-bearing walls; removing cabinets and countertops; removing plumbing and electrical fixtures; delivering and storing materials.
3. The owners want the wall between the kitchen and the dining room taken out. Before you price the demolition or apply for the permit, what must be determined about that wall first?
- Whether it is covered with plaster or drywall, since that sets the type of permit
- Whether its studs are 16 in or 24 in on center, since that sets the permit fee
- Whether it is more than 10 ft long, since shorter walls never need a permit
- Whether it is bearing or non-bearing, since a bearing wall may need engineering
Show the answer
Answer: D. When walls are being demolished, building departments ask for the existing framing layout to determine whether the wall is bearing or non-bearing, and engineering may be required if it is bearing. A bearing wall carries load from above, so taking it out means a designed beam and supports, not just demolition. The wall finish, stud spacing and wall length do not answer that question.
Core Trades Remodeling · 25% of the exam
Plumbing; electrical; mechanical; interior walls, ceilings and trimwork; flooring and stairs.
4. You are installing a new two-handle lavatory faucet in a bathroom remodel. Under the California Plumbing Code, on which side must the hot water valve be?
- On the left side
- On either side, if the handles are marked
- On the side nearest the water heater
- On the right side
Show the answer
Answer: A. CPC 417.5, as restated in a 2025-code bathroom remodel handout, requires the hot water valve to be on the left side where two separate handles are provided. People expect hot on the left, so a reversed faucet is a scalding hazard and a correction at the final inspection. Handle markings or the location of the water heater do not change the rule.
5. In a bathroom remodel, you add a 20-amp, 125-volt receptacle for a towel warmer on the wall opposite the vanity, about 9 ft from the sink. Your helper says it does not need GFCI protection because it is so far from the water. What does the California Electrical Code require?
- No GFCI protection, because the receptacle is more than 6 ft from the sink
- GFCI protection only if the receptacle is within 3 ft of the tub or shower
- GFCI protection, because every 15- and 20-amp bathroom receptacle needs it
- No GFCI protection, if the receptacle is on its own dedicated 20-amp circuit
Show the answer
Answer: C. CEC 210.8, as restated in a 2025-code bathroom remodel handout, requires GFCI protection for all 125-volt, single-phase, 15- and 20-amp receptacles installed in bathrooms, and the GFCI must be in a readily accessible location. In a bathroom the rule is not tied to distance from the sink or tub. A dedicated circuit does not replace GFCI protection either.
Finish Trades Remodeling · 18% of the exam
Cabinets; countertops and backsplashes; painting, staining, coating and interior wall covering; fireplaces and mantels.
6. You are ready to install new stock cabinets in an L-shaped kitchen. The plan has no tall pantry or oven cabinet. According to cabinet manufacturers' installation guides, which cabinets are normally set first?
- The base cabinets, starting at the sink base and working outward
- The wall cabinets, starting at the open end of the longest run
- The base cabinets, starting at the open end of the longest run
- The wall cabinets, starting in the corner and working outward
Show the answer
Answer: D. Cabinet manufacturers' installation guides say that, as a general rule, it is better to start with the wall cabinets in the corner and work out; one manual says to begin with the wall cabinets for ease of installation. With the base cabinets not yet in the way, the wall cabinets are easier to lift and fasten. Starting in the corner also keeps the two runs lined up where they meet. (If the plan had a tall pantry or oven cabinet, it would set the top line for the wall cabinets.)
7. You are repainting interior wood trim in a house built in 1992. After the loose paint is scraped off, bare spots are left with raised edges of sound, firmly adhering paint around them. According to National Park Service guidance on interior painting, what should be done so those edges do not show through the new paint?
- Go over all of the trim quickly with a mechanical sander to save time
- Apply an extra-heavy finish coat so the new paint fills in the low spots
- Leave the edges alone, because two coats of primer will level the surface
- Hand sand to feather the edges of the sound paint down to the bare areas
Show the answer
Answer: D. NPS Preservation Brief 28 says hand sanding is necessary to feather the edges of the firmly adhering paint layers down to the bare areas so that shadow lines are avoided. It also warns that mechanical sanders usually leave traces of the sander's edges that are visible through the new paint film. Extra paint or primer does not hide a sharp paint edge; the step shows through the finish.
Exterior Remodeling · 13% of the exam
Roof repairs; remodeling exterior walls; doors and windows.
8. Your crew has installed new vinyl replacement windows in an existing house. The owner asks you to peel off the manufacturer's temporary energy-rating labels right away. Under the California Energy Code, when may the temporary labels be removed?
- After the building inspector has made the inspection
- As soon as each window is set and fastened in its opening
- After the owner has signed off on the window installation
- After the exterior trim and sealant work is finished
Show the answer
Answer: A. Section 110.6(a)5 of the 2025 Energy Code requires manufactured windows and exterior doors to have a temporary label, and that label shall not be removed before inspection by the enforcement agency. The inspector reads it to confirm the installed windows' ratings. Pulling the labels early, even at the owner's request, can cost you a failed inspection.
Safety · 16% of the exam
Personnel safety; job site safety; demolition and material safety.
9. A painter working from a stepladder in an occupied house leaves a hammer and a pry bar on the ladder's top while he goes to get more material. People are walking through the room below. What does Cal/OSHA's hand tool rule for construction say?
- Tools may be left on a ladder, provided that each one weighs less than 5 pounds
- Tools may be left on a ladder, provided that a warning sign is posted at each doorway into the room
- Tools may be left on a ladder, provided that the ladder is less than 6 feet tall
- Tools not needed for the work may not be left on ladders, scaffolds or overhead levels
Show the answer
Answer: D. Title 8 §1699(b) says tools not needed for the work to be done shall not be left on scaffolds, ladders or overhead levels, and when work is done overhead, positive methods must be used to keep tools from falling. A tool knocked off a ladder can hit a worker or a family member walking below. The rule has no weight, sign or ladder-height exception.
10. You are setting up an interior renovation covered by EPA's lead RRP rule in the dining room of a house built in 1950. A heavy built-in hutch and an upright piano cannot be moved out of the room. What does the rule require for objects that stay in the work area?
- Leave them uncovered and wipe them down with a dry rag at the end
- Cover them with plastic sheeting, with all seams and edges sealed
- Drape them loosely with a canvas drop cloth for the length of the job
- Move them to the center of the room, away from the walls being worked on
Show the answer
Answer: B. For interior renovations, EPA's RRP work practices require the firm to remove all objects from the work area or cover them with plastic sheeting with all seams and edges sealed. Lead dust settles on anything left exposed and is hard to clean out of upholstery, piano keys and cabinet joints. A loose drop cloth, a dry wipe or simply moving the items does not contain the dust.
Where to go from here
How the license works, from experience to fees: how to get a B-2 license. Everything about the course: the B-2 exam page.
Questions from our free B-2 test, written from CSLB License Examination Study Guide, Residential Remodeling (B-2), form 13E-B2 (03-2026). CSLB notes that the percentages are approximate. Reviewed 14 October 2026. Study guidance only; we are not affiliated with CSLB or PSI.