Anyone HVAC or Electrician?

[crikker]

I'm interested in pursuing a career in HVAC or in Industrial Electrical. Any ups and downs in those two? Inputs? I've researched both and they seem to be growing but what about pay? Marketable? Etc. I'm always looking for others takes on their jobs. Thanks.

[kuys]

I was an industrial electrician for a few years.

Pay below average, work hard as hell, benefits non-existent.

Granted I worked for a well below average contractor.

[Stingray89]

I've done HVAC off and on for the past 5 years. I started working for a company in the summer when I was 15. It's hard work, hot, long hours, crappy working conditions and the pay is not that good. You can make a living, but it wont be much of one unless you move into management.

[albertofrog]

Dont be too put off...

Its dirty and crappy if you're on the tools,

but if you can get a degree in electrical engineering, then you get to send other people to do your dirty crappy jobs...

works for me..

I'm an Electrical Engineer looking after the HVAC in a Power plant and the money is not to be sniffed at.....

[NINFAN]

Thought about it myself, but it was either out in the middle of nowhere (which at the time was just not doable) or I needed to be a 3rd year apprentice at least. ELT just don't cover it, and I gradded when the big "meltdown" hit here. Bad timing, as always.

Now I've been out of it for to long, both realistically and IMHO.

If you can get into it I hear the pay is really good, so good luck

[McHaven]

My stepdad is HVAC. He loves it. He loved learning about it, analyzing the systems in houses and upgrading them. He makes pretty good money but has to work some long hours. A good A/C Tech is vital in Houston though.

[Let It Fall]

As an industrial electrician heres the scoop.

Pays MUCH better than residential, pays a bit better than commercial.

Overall pays VERY good I made 20$ an hour out of highschool. Moved up to 27$ an hour in 3 years.

You WILL work ALOT of overtime 50 hours a week is normal and average. Some jobs 70-84 hours a week. Depending on the economy, and the job.

Work weeks are either usually.
4- 10s 40hrs
4- 10s and an 8 48hrs
5- 10s 50 hrs
5- 12s
7- 10s
7- 12s


It is VERY easy to fake your way in, no school required, you can lie about your experience and just learn on the job.

If you do go to school you usually average 1-2$ more an hour but you will also have a SLIGHTLY better chance at getting the job over someone without the certification.

Be prepared to travel, long distances and long periods. Almost every job lasts between 3-2 years, but it depends on what part of the phase you are hired in at.

If you do travel expect per diem. Usually 2-8$ an hour or 60-150$ a day untaxable pay.

If you dont want to travel get a certification and look for a permanent position usually paying about 3$ an hour less. And 40-50 hours a week only.

Be prepared to work in the HOT and the COLD and even the rain and snow. Im not going to say its SUPER hard work. It is work, but its not that bad thanks in a big part to safety.

Safety is a BIG issue, you will spend about 1 hour every day just in safety, group meeting discussions, filling out a JSA for every individual job you do that day, listing every tool you use, every possible danger and every way you can eliminate them. Then everyone in the group must read and sign on, you must fill out a JSA for every task you do. Then at the end of the tast or day you will need to get everyone together and sign off.

You will spend 30mins-1 hour at the end of every day cleaning up, your work area. You ALWAYS clean up at the end of the day and if you feel the area is messy you will clean stop and clean up that area before a safety man writes you up on it.

You usually get 1 hour worth of breaks everyday 30 mins of which you are not paid for.
9:00-9:15 BREAK 11-11:30 LUNCH 3-3:30 BREAK.

Some jobs you can spend a whole DAY just gathering materials for the next task.

You may spend a whole day sitting on your butt waiting for an area to be deemed safe, or waiting for a supervisior to make a decision, or a plant manager. You may be told to make it look like your working, and not to get caught goofing off while you really have no job to do.

It is VERY dangerous. You will hear about MANY deaths and see a few also.

If there isn't a desperate need for workers, its usually not what you know but WHO you know. So make as many friends as you can. Get their numbers and just try to get some sort of friend ship. It doesn't matter if the person is your helper or your supervisor or the company owner. Its about WHO you know.

You may work night shifts usually 6PM - 5AM

Normal work starts at 6-6:30 and ends about 5-5:30

Be prepared to be treated GREAT on small jobs. Leave freely for lunch, boss may take you out to lunch extra 15min lunch etc.

But On big jobs you may be treated like an animal. Lunch tents PACKED with people, being expected to get their before you are paid. Such as getting at the parking lot at 4:30 to take TWO buses into the plant, one to the front gate and one to the work area, only to start getting paid at 6:30. Then again too few busses to get everyone out at a decent time.

Such as.. Work ending at 5:00 and you dont get to your truck untill 6:30.

And last but not least.
Learn the Construction culture LINGO.

[MJ5150]

Originally Posted by Let It Fall

......being expected to get their before you are paid.....

This is always the one lots of guys have a hard time with. If you start at 6AM, that means you are at your work station working at 6AM. You can't pull into a parking lot at 10 till, and wander into the jobsite finishing your mocha and donut then mail it in for a couple hours while you finish waking up and get ramped up.

Riding a bus from a designated construction worker parking lot to the jobsite is more and more common these days. Especially if you pick up a job in a busy downtown city. Some guys think they should be paid for this part of the day, and those are the ones who get run off after less than a couple weeks.

-Mike

[Let It Fall]

Originally Posted by MJ5150

This is always the one lots of guys have a hard time with. If you start at 6AM, that means you are at your work station working at 6AM. You can't pull into a parking lot at 10 till, and wander into the jobsite finishing your mocha and donut then mail it in for a couple hours while you finish waking up and get ramped up.

Riding a bus from a designated construction worker parking lot to the jobsite is more and more common these days. Especially if you pick up a job in a busy downtown city. Some guys think they should be paid for this part of the day, and those are the ones who get run off after less than a couple weeks.

-Mike

Something in your post makes memthink you worked construction. (used a phrase).

I understand that but the problem comes when you have to get there two hours early and since there isn't enough busses you have to wait an hour at te cyualmjob site for everyone o get there and the day to start.

Also it seems people who have a problem with this simply "drag up" itsalways easy to get a job when you babe one.

[i_got_a_mohawk]

I wish I had gotten a trade instead of following academia, but I digress.

One of my friends is a qualified electrician. But 3 years or so after being fully qualified he was sick of it and joined the police.

I'm guessing it, as with any career, isn't for everyone!

[MJ5150]

Originally Posted by Let It Fall

Something in your post makes memthink you worked construction. (used a phrase).

Drywall finisher for 17 years. The last eight in the union. I laid off more guys for being late than anything else.

I know what you mean about the bus issue. We had an expansion project at the airport in Seattle. We also had to ride two buses every morning and then pass through security. For a 6AM start, I had to leave my house at 3:30 every morning to cover the one hour commute, then the bus rides and security.

-Mike

[Let It Fall]

I know how that is, I would leave my house at 3:30 and not get back home till 6:30 Due to traffic.

One more thing I wanted to mention, there are alot of drugs which can make the job more dangerous, including ALOT of people working drunk.

Maybe its where I live, but I have worked with ALOT of people from around the country.

[Hookus]

Well, my vote is for the guy who said Electrical Engineering.

I don't know how old you are, but I still work in construction, and am 35. Also going to college now so I don't have to do it anymore. Either of those jobs will exact a physical toll on you, so I would say to use the muscle between your ears, and get an education, then a job that won't age you in dog years.