My flirtation with comercial install

[timmay]

SOMEHOW, things have been slow on the service side in my lovely town. So to keep up lonely techs busy we've been going on large installs.

Well i had my first taste of Commercial installation and have gained new respect for our insulation inhaling bretheren. 6 days of hanging flex duct, cutting holes for boots, hanging inline electric heaters. Wrapping duct. wrapping grease vent duct with heavy heavy duty fire resistant wrap. Sucking in drywall dust and all the other other things that I've never had to deal with. I have a new respect though. That is some hard dirty work.


Give me my van and 7 customers a day please.

[amickracing]

Just think... commercial is a lot more fun than residential installs too. At least in my opinion.

But, someday perhaps I'll get to become a slacker... uh, I mean service man too

[R12rules]

Friday was so darned crowded in the mezanine we were all working in ..... if I was crouched down doing a drain line and a sparky wanted in to do a disco switch, we'd have to swap places just so he could fit where he was goin' and then I'd go back in and continue my work.


It was like this in most of the spaces I worked in.

It was a literal maze of equipment.

There was NOT five square feet of vacant floor space anywhere to be seen, much left stood still in .... if you weren't moving, you were being bumped against!


And Thank God it wasnt as hot as it had been ... someone got a couple of the airhandlers crankin' BTU's outa there so it took the edge off.


Oh yea ... breathin' dust, fiberglass particles, smoke from burnt armor-flex .... "BO", the heat ... the confusion of five seperate routes to run the condensate lines .... there simply is NOTHING quite like commercial install work to make you wish you were back doin' service again!!!

The best part about the install work is there aint no paperwork to fill out or time sheets to turn in. Simply show up and begin to be busy.
Do the best you can at whatever you do and hope for the best outcome to be the result.


Cause you aint da man in charge any more!
It aint on your shoulders how a job is gonna turn out!


Not all installs are like that .... just the one I am on right now.


But I am growing to like the people I work for and with.

[trane]

R12 I know what you mean. I thought I had seen it all until we started a 57 unit apartment complex. We get 16 apartments at a time and they have to be turned over in 30 days. We go in and demo the split systems and after they paint we install the new while the electricians , plumbers, and about 50 mexicans are installing carpet, siding, windows, and new trim. What a rat race.