Shane,
As I would have knowledge of the circuitry inside and out, I could design tests that would check out the complete circuitry and verify that it is working properly without subjecting it to a full blown hazardous test.
That information is proprietary and will not be released to third party people who want to make AFCI testers.
I can only guess as to why they are not available yet. As they are listed, you would think that someone would want to buy them for the additional safety.
I don't think that they have actually made them work with out excessive nuisance tripping.
There are typical times in the life of an electrical system where things are more likely to burn down due to an arc in the distribution system.
1- When first built.
2- When ever new occupants move in based on the next item.
3- When remodeling or hanging things. And within about 2 years of any of the above.
However that does not match the fire data used to support the AFCI requirements. That data shows that 85% of the dwelling unit fires of electrical origin occur in dwelling units over 20 years old.
Now if you will excuse me, I need to go exerise my breakers and test all my GFCI's for the first time in 11 years.
The testing of GFCIs brings up another issue. The new GFCI rules are another just scam in the name of safety. Until you look close at the information on how they work, you might think that they are actually fail safe. They aren't. With one type, when the electronics fail and you no longer have GFCI protection all the happens is a green LED changes to red. With the other type the device locks the power out, but only after a test or power failure. The electronics could have failed months or years ago, but the power is still available because most don't use the test button. We have the same issue with the AFCIs...very few will actually be tested monthly as required by the instructions.
Don
