new mechanic

[scrapper]

Hello all,
Its been a very interesting experience so far!I started as a new helper last oct. not knowing a dern thing about a.c.Last month they put me in my own truck and said get buisy.Im the mechanic all the techs cuss..they go on my call backs because of obvious simple mistakes.But, the mistakes I make are on things I have not yet encounterd in the field.So far, Ive never repeated a f up..I was thrown under the bus because my co. was short an installer, and they offered me a $4 raise.Hell I may not yet be a pro, but damn , who amoung you would not take another $4 ?I would like to say this..yes there are alot of call backs because of faulty installations.No arguements here.But ,to defend mechs like myself who do give a crap about their work,I do have to do cleanups sometimes behind lazy, crappy(GREEDY) service techs as well.LIke doing a full change out and then seening yellow jumped to white at the thermo...hmmmm.like replacing a c/u and having a leak at the handler..hmmm .One job we did was a change out on a down and out family who had no $. The A/h/u/ was put in and when they went to change the c/u/ it was noticed that one leg of the 220 was disconnected at the box DAMN!OOPs,What am I supposed to do guys?To be honest most of the techs that work for my co. are honest ,decent folks,whom I give the utmost respect. But there is that small % that will sell someone new product because there a/h/u/ has a friggin scratch in the paint job.

[h2045]

Let me get this straight! You have 10 months in the biz and 30 days in a truck. You say you are the MECHANIC all the other techs cuss because you have made in your words obvious simple mistakes on things you have not seen before? That is not why they are cussing you,you have no business second guessing anyone.As far as yellow being jumped to white that means nothing w/o identifying what terminals they were landed on.Plenty of us have and will continue to turn down a $4 dollar per hr raise, we know why, you don`t!Finally you ask what you are supposed to do? Work on your attiude, be quiet and pay attention.

[mallron]

you can't be serious.

[Senior Tech]

You have a lot to learn...and apparently so do your co-workers. Their is only 3 key ingredients to succeed in this business...education (training), honesty and integrity.
Find these 3 and you along with the company you work for may survive, don't....and you'll be working for "Hacks Are Us".

[rob10]

And your boss is a friggin idiot for letting it happen.

[lowtemp]

how can u be licensed after only 10 months. It took me 5 long years and 3 sessions of trade school to get my license. I think you should still be calling yourself an apprentice. Ive been in this trade 15 years now and im still learning.

[Dad]

scrapper... that says it all right there

You say you are the one that other techs cuss due to what ever, ok... sounds like we are going to give you a little practice here.

or... you could do this.

Hang in this site, read everything you can put your hands on and show the other guys (you know, the ones that you work with and respect now, you know, the ones with all of the call backs) how to do it right.

Let's see just how much of a crap you do care, then, get back to us in 5 or 10 years.

[alex1960]

Another simple life.
Be aware of electricity and fan blades.

[tinner73]

i think this is why you have to go through 5 years of apprenticeship before you become a union journeyman. there is a huge difference here.

[h2045]

He already works for Hacks R Us

[lowtemp]

i wonder why scrapper hasnt replied to any of these posts.I think he realizes he is a joke and hit the high road.

[sonc]

Originally posted by tinner73
i think this is why you have to go through 5 years of apprenticeship before you become a union journeyman. there is a huge difference here. What about non-union guys ? Are they made to serve an apprenticeship? Are guys down there in the U.S. allowed to just buy a truck and start wrenching compressors? Scary

[scrapper]

First off all, I am ,as I said, a NEW Mech.I am paid to install equipment.I am not a service tech.I dont claim to be either.I think a few individuals took some sort of mis directed offense ,in my initial post, I might have come across in a dis respectful tone. If this is the case ,Im sorry.
Second, I am not a hack.Pointing out some questionable bad things that I see in the field ,does not make me a hack either.It makes me honest.

I was NOT laying some blanket inditement on service techs, Im going to be one some day hopefully,I was just pointing out interesting practices OF A very FEW Techs(2 out of about 15) in my co.My co. is not a hack outfit and it annoys me when I see the possibility of our rep. being soiled by lasiness of a few people.
Third, in my state, I dont have to have certification(to be a mech) as long as my company does.

I am a good installer. I was being sarcastic about call backs.I take pride in my work and the customers appreciate the way I show them and their homes respect and do my best.


Yes I took the truck for $4 more an hour,and in my humble opinion it was money well spent by the co.



To those who posted replies of encouregement , thank you.Yes I am new,and always willing to listen to those with more knowledge.

[servman]

Scrapper,

I used to have a guy thay worked for me that had the same attitude you do. I am not trying to be rude by real world truth is you should not be in a van and out on your own after 10 months. If your company thinks you are above average learner and wants to put you in a truck you should be following another tech from job to job, which would not make sense sine it would be a waste of money (gas). My guess is you are in a truck because they need a body. The guy that used to work for me was in an apprenticeship program (4th year of a 5 year union program) used to complain about the other techs to me and thought he could do better. He was a hard worker so I gave him a truck to see what he could do. Too many call backs later I gave him a choice. Come out of the truck, ride with another mech and take his lead from him to refine his skills or find another company to work for. He chose to leave. Since then his attitude has not improved and and due to that fact he has worked for 5 different companies in two years. You need to change your attitude, go to school and get some training. Word of advice, you will only get out of school what you put into it.

[scrapper]

Serve man,
Thanks for the reply.Whats wrong with my attitude?I want the customer to get the best product and service for his buck.90% of the installs I do are carbon copies of each other.For the 10% that are unique, I dont claim anything. My co .sends a more expierienced mech. crew and I help them,watch them,and learn.

[lowtemp]

there in lies the problem (no certification needed to be a mechanic)In Canada there would be no way you would be able to do that.

[servman]

Scraper
In you first post I took your attitude as "been there, done that". I know you said the mistkes you make are from never running across the problem before and basically makeing a best guess fix. As long as you learn from your mistakes and apply it to the next situation you knowledge will keep increasing. Like alot of people have said before it is best for some one as new as you are to the field to keep quiet and learn as much as possible. Just my advice. Know one likes the new kid to tell them how to do their or thinks they can do a better job and will take offense and will be unwilling to help you when you have questions. I know I will probably hear alot of flack about saying this but if you want to learn and go far, try to join a union company and go to the union trde schools. Beats any college coures or trade school out there.

Again no offense but some one as new as you to the field should never be out on your own. It will only cause problems for the company and you when you can't solve or fix the problem they won't care or remember you are new, just that you did not solve/fix the problem and they had to send some one else out. Also the customer will complain to the company you work for and say that they don't want you back wich again makes you look bad.

[Edited by servman on 08-08-2004 at 07:59 PM]

[scrapper]

Low temp,
What do you mean "therein lies the problem".There is really no problem.Just because you are good in the classroom does not always translate into apptitude or ability.Most drivers who get into accidents have gov. certified drivers licences. That being said, I am striving for more knowledge in the field and am planning to go to school.I would love to take a fresh new "graduate" into the attic with me here in summertime Florida so he could show me some advaced skills in mastic or duct repair.All kidding aside lowtemp,I sometimes make small mistakes, but I do a good job and make my company an ungodly amount of money.

[scrapper]

Serveman,

I failed to mention that when I get in the least possible jam, I have huge backup from personell that have experience in the field.Any prob, I just call ..yes I am green,but smart enough to know How green I really am.If I cant fix the prob. I grab the horn.

[lowtemp]

its not a matter of learning classroom skills.Its more about liability.If something should happen and you had no license(especially a gas license)the courts would hang u and your employer out to dry. This has happened on many occasion here in Ontario Canada.

[seaboard]

I hear of this often. I've heard of a few residential companies in my area that will hire two guys on Monday. Put them with an experienced installer on a specific type of house (new installation work) and the next day, those two guys are working on their own at a duplicate house a block over. These subdivisions have provisions so that the houses on a single block don't look too much alike. Once the experienced installer has shown the newbies an example of each house type, he turns them loose to do the rest! Once they've finished that subdivision, they've seen ranch, cape cods, colonials, etc. so the company figures they're then ready for changeouts. Very soon, they throw them into service. Companies are rushing guys that aren't ready into service because they're isn't anyone out there. I think it's only going to get worse before it gets better also.

[Dad]

take a look at this post from a few days ago.

http://hvac-talk.com/vbb/showthread.php?threadid=57821



remind you of anyone you know?

come on... you got to find a little humor in this somewhere

[acjourneyman]

Hey Lowtemp, I was trained in Canada and now work in the US.You don't even need a gas ticket down here to work on gas and that is why you always see buildings and houses explode down here,NO CERTIFICATION NEEDED.It sucks because all of us guys that did a 5 year apprenticeship get lumped in with guys that get a van after 2 days and go F stuff up.

[Paul/Pa.]

Scrapper just study as much stuff as you can stay on this site, there are alot of smart people hear. 4 bucks an hour is alot of money and most people would take it too( I don't care what they say here) I don't blame you one bit. However you will come to a point that money isn't everthing but thats for another thread.

As far as out on your own..well your probally not ready but you have to start somewhere. As long as you don't get in over your head its all good. We all had to start somewhere. As far as your company goes if they train you (and will pay for it) stick around a while and take in as much as you can. If they are hacks at least you will learn how not to do things :) You can always move to bigger and better things. The real experience is what its all about. Most guys probally got thrown in a truck just like you and had no choice but to learn it. Just don't jepordize anyones saftey and make sure to learn the right way to do things (like the guys on this site) and you'll be fine.

One word of caution.. be carefull about bashing other techs as it will come back to bite you. Your were not there and don't know the whole story. As for the people giving you a hard time...relax a bit he made it to this site and thats more than probally more than 90% of the people in our industry would do so lets all relax and try to help. Scrapper good luck with your new career!

Paul

[lowtemp]

hey acjourneyman i guess the americans need an organization like TSSA down there to straighten things out.:)

[brettln]

On my first day, I was given a Van, Cell, and pager. They sent me out and said call if you have any problems. I think the look on face was probally priceless.
Mind you I was still in school too. You just need to ask ?
and do your best to use your common sense. If you dont know something, CALL SOMEONE! If you dont have a cell phone......get one. Most techs, (unless their a-holes),
would much rather answer your questions, than have to answer your call backs because you were to embarassed to call someone.

This business requires (no titty babies)........thats what i was told anyway. Take it for what its worth! LOL

Hang in there........and learn, everyday. If your not learning....your not caring.

[Edited by brettln on 08-09-2004 at 07:43 AM]

[acjourneyman]

I don't know what TSSA is Lowtemp.I have come to realize though that even after a combined 20 years in 2 trades that you will never stop learning.Don't be afraid to ever ask questions.I still call sometimes to get a second opinion or if I am unsure of something, You just can't be cocky or it will bite ya in the ass.I would definately grab some books and at the least read and learn the refrigeration cycle inside and out and learn electrical.It is the Number 1 killer in our trade.

[lowtemp]

TSSA stands for technical standards and safety authority and they pretty much police the HVAC trade here in ontario canada.

[h2045]

538 views in 3 days. Give the people what they want!

[sonc]

Originally posted by lowtemp
TSSA stands for technical standards and safety authority and they pretty much police the HVAC trade here in ontario canada.

Boiler cops ehh???...you'll never catch me...you coppers..

[Edited by sonc on 08-09-2004 at 07:53 PM]

[scrapper]

You know, the only thing I do know,is that I dont know ****..Thanks to all who replied to this lame thread.Esp Paul in Pa. and Lusker.. you guys are right on.I look forward to gleaning more info from the vets here in the future.Lusker , that link to the other breakout tech was hilarious..please have patience with us newbees!!!Thanx HVAC TALK

[ts ac tech]

O.K. all you book learned, certified, certifiable veterans of this highly technical, cuting edge tenchnological feild...there is something to be said about OJT!! I've been in the feild for about 13 years now. The company I started with (and still work for part time) consisted of the owner, a parttimer who was a firefighter, and me. The firefighter took me to a couple of installs and a month later, in a pinch, the boss sent me on my own in my own personal truck. He reimbursed me for my gas and gave me the necessary tools for the job that day. A year later, after watching every move the boss made and asking a billion questions, I was doing simple service calls and asking lots of questions still. Any time our product line offered a class, I went. I learned fast and retained all. But, I am an exception to the rule. I now have my State's stamp of approval in the form of a license and am in charge of an HVAC maintanence department.

Over the years I've trained many installers...some are still installing and can't figure out how to read a set of manifold gauges with me pointing at the numbers and telling them what they mean. Some found greener pastures elsewhere, some are in prison, some should be in prison or dead. Some came directly out of trade school and I had to undo what the trade school did. Like teaching them how to wire a condenser fan motor...isn't that first week fundamentals? Anyway, my point is, training depends on the person. I happen to be the type of person who does good both in the classroom and in the field. But there are many out there who totally rock in the field but couldn't read a book to save their life. Does that make them any less a good tech or mechanic if they have the fundamentals down, regardless of how the fundamentals got there?

Don't get me wrong, I am getting as much book learning as I can now, now that I know the "how" and "what" of the trade...I'm learning the "why" of things. This may be backwards learning, but it is making me a better tech every day.

So Scrapper, if you want to be a tech, ask a ton of questions and pay close attention to everything you do. There is a reason you install the way you were told to install...someday you will understand why, until then, keep on learning how!

Sorry this post was so long. I'm very good at what I do and know I still have a lot to learn...but I haven't stopped learning which sets me apart from some of my counterparts!

[operator]

SONC Where in GTA are you?

[sonc]

Hi operator,
Haven't updated my profile in awhile. I used to work for an engineering company in Mississauga (Royal Windsor), but I packed it in about 6 months ago. Now with another union shop in St. Catharines, but still run Toronto 2 or 3 days a week. You a downtown Vet?