the trade

[skillz]

i was wondering how all of yall stumbled upon tis trade

[thoglow]

I was 3 or 4 years old.My dad got rid of the swap cooler and had a gas pack installed.
That poor guy doing the install had to chase me around retrieving
his tools,Wye's,elbows,etc.Ever sense then I've been,in one way or another,
interested in the trade.Went to tech school in 95 and been at ever sense.

[rogerk]

It was either this or be the quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. I stand by my decision.

[comfort comando]

I thought a pipe fitter was job in porn. i found out my first day on the job i was wrong. been stuck ever since

[The Penguin]

Guy came to the town house my parents retnted when I was 10 - I changed the filter - got fibreglass in my hands :(

when I was 16 I got offered two apprentiships - machinist and refrigeration engineer
I asked my dad what should I do?

He said to take the refrigeration apprenticeship - so I did
DANG I'm glad I didn't take the machinist apprenticeship

[Lurch77]

Spent nine years in the military as an electrician. I liked working with electricity, but wanted a bit more challenge. HVAC seemed to fit the bill. Combine that with the fact I will have to crawl around in crawl spaces and attics, fight for space with spiders and other bugs and rodents, freeze my ass off on northern WI rooftops in February, listen to upset customers, burn my fingers, freeze my fingers, be woke up at 3am to do an emergency no heat call only to find the person let their fuel tank run dry, and a host of other really great things. It just sounded like my dream job.

[fgp6889]

Dad done it and i went with him,Just started where he left off,God I wish he was a banker,35 two bad knees,alot of cold nights and canceled weekend trip due to cold weather calls on sat morning. Funnny thing my 4 year old knows how to use the screw gun and where to put the guages on. All i HAve ever done is service,never install, but hope he may pick up large commerical high end service where he can specialize into a field,and not have to worry about the "public" residental stuff.

[edward301]

I was in the electronics business first, and started building houses on the
side. When the a/c's had problems and I would call the installing company
out to fix, sometimes the repair did not hold, and would call them out
again. Started to get expensive when out of warranty, since I could
build homes, and was great at soldering, and reading schematics, I started
fixing myself, and was very good at it. In the late 80's when the economy
went to he*l, it was cheaper to buy homes from HUD, and I did. I would
always buy the homes with bad roofs, a/c's so on. Cheap and easy to
fix. Later people I knew would ask me to look at their a/c's, and they told
their neighbors so on. Later sold my Communications Company and got
heavy into a/c. In the last few years sold most of my a/c business, and
still work in the Communications. I have one big big customer that I do
all their a/c work on 328 units. Other than this I am now part time in
the a/c business, has made my blood pressure return to normal.

Over the last few years I have been replacing aging a/c units in my
rental properties, and selling some each year. For some reason homes
in Austin, TX are still hot. So I am going to get out while the getting
is good.

[slimwoodie]

second gen boiler man :)

[lolson]

i was wondering how all of yall stumbled upon tis trade

at gunpoint :D

[DPSwitch]

I wanted to be like Slimwoodie.

Don't hear that every day now do ya?

[Catpower]

Got out the Air Force in '76, after a few months of partying my Mom packed my bags and just said GO so I used the GI bill for tech school (and partying)

[snipe70e]

Second generation snipe, third generation stationary.

[troyorr]

The day I graduated from High School I got drunk and when I woke up I had an eagle tattoo, a Korean girlfriend and I was working HVAC.

[markettech]

I wanted to be like Slimwoodie.

Mean, edgy and jaded?
































:D:D

[DPSwitch]

Mean, edgy and jaded?

I was thinking cranky and tired.....but yeah.... :D

[hvacr man]

I wanted to be an auto mechanic in high school, took all theauto classes and aced them. I was building engines and doing hot rod upgrades on my buddies cars. I graduated a semester early which was probably a bad move. The auto shop teacher wanted me to compete in a state troubleshooting contest but I wanted to get out and start wrenching. Well it turned out the shop I worked for abused the hell out of me by doing ASE certified mechanics work for shop boy wages. I was rebuilding engines, brakes, clutches, head gaskets, fuel injection work and the list goes on. I was actually the only guy in the shop most of the time because of a high mechanic turnover rate. I asked for a
raise and the cheap a$$ gave me a quarter an hour. It put a bad taste in my mouth for the auto industry so 2 weeks later I was enrolled in HVAC classes. 17 years later I'm back in school looking to get out of HVAC.

[tarheel_tech]

Im a second generation tech,started in this field when I was 12,been in this field since then.Graduated HS went staight to Tech school and got the basics,then got out into the real world and I am still learning to this day.

[OzziePedro]

i was wondering how all of yall stumbled upon tis trade

You ever wake up after a huge night wondering what you got up to while you were intoxicated?


Thats how I stumbled on it and then threw up all over his shoes.

[aruddick]

Got a job at a car wash after high school, My only goal in life was to make enough money for beer and a small pad. Took one look at my check and said "I can drink more than that". Was sitting at home drinking that night saw a t.v.commercial for a tech school and thought "That looks easy" (grew up with wood heat and no a/c). 18 years later I think I'm starting to catch on now.

[Green Mountain]

I've been the trade since 1964. I can't remember that far back to figure how I got started. :confused:






Really, I went to the Army refrigeration school in Ft Belvoir, VA. Been doing it ever since. I don't work with the tools much any more. Mostly designing and selling.