Learn me being an Electrician

So I have an opportunity to start working for an Electric company as an Electricians Assistant. It starts at a very lowly $9/hr, but work is work. While I was planning on becoming a nurse, this has me thinking, how is being an electrician? I don't really know much about what it takes to become an Electrician though. Some school and some certifications I would guess. But how are the hours, the pay, etc? Can any past or present Electricians chime in here?

Drewsifer wrote: Can any past or present Electricians chime in here?

My family has an electrical contracting business that serves big commercial work. It is very profitable for them as owner/operators. The electricians are all union guys who make a good wage. The work is hard though - I worked there when I was a kid. Commercial/industrial wiring is digging trenches, installing giant transformers, running cable the size of your torso, pulling wires thru conduit. It can be deadly too - so you need to know what you are doing with regard to both electrical safety and paying attention to where the backhoe is going or what is under the snow-covered metal roof you are walking on.

So, summary: Good, hearty work with good pay and for a good reason. You earn it.

I know a guy who was a mortgage broker who quit and became an electrician. He's never been happier. I am not a tradesman, but here our my observations based on my career tangentially related to the building industry.

There are 2 basic ways you can go - you can do mostly commercial new work like described above or housing construction (day-in, day-out), or you can do the kind of single one-off repair/addition jobs typically done for individuals (sometimes on-call and emergencies). Some people get along with one kind of job and others like the other. Not to say you are ever locked in of course, but those are the 2 basic types for a journeyman electrician or plumber.

Like any construction trade it is going to be very volatile based on the economy. You may find yourself working 60 hour weeks or 12 hour weeks. You're going to need to be a morning person because during the hardcore summer building season, contractors want to be on the job before 7 and off by 3.

You're also going to have to decide what you think about unionizing and see how much power the local unions yield in your area. Here in Delaware it's a pretty even mix of union and merit shops, and there are good and bad examples of each. Just up the road in Philadelphia, the unions have the construction industry nailed down tight, with all the corruption, intimidation, and laziness that often entails.

Last I checked tuition at the best electrician trade school in the area was $33K for a two year Associate Degree, they have good placement too. Learning everything you can from the electricians at work while getting paid isn't a bad deal at all but you'll still probably need some schooling if you don't wanna be an assistant forever and if you had an apprenticeship that'd be the tits.

I keep thinking about becoming an electrician. It seems I am always just a few days away from my LME.

I wouldn't so much recommend the path of becoming a construction electrician. Industrial controls, drives and PLC's are far more interesting and if you really know your stuff very highly demanded. Plus you wouldn't get sent off a couple of hundred miles for a month at a time to wire a grocery store, get home and get sent 150 miles the other direction to wire up a new apartment complex, then come back to the shop for a few months and scrape by on the few hours you can get replacing light bulbs and flipping breakers for old ladies.

I'm not an electrician, but I work with them. (I'm a thermographer, and usually have an electrician opening panels for me.)

Safety is the big thing. There's a lot of opportunity to die.

The actual work depends on the industry. Working conditions vary. Some work in fairly clean places, but a lot of electrical work is in hard-to-access places. Climbing, crawling, and mucking about - literally - may be required.

One nice thing is that the skills are useful at home and for friends. Great for barter.

ditchdigger wrote: I keep thinking about becoming an electrician. It seems I am always just a few days away from my LME. I wouldn't so much recommend the path of becoming a construction electrician. Industrial controls, drives and PLC's are far more interesting and if you really know your stuff very highly demanded. Plus you wouldn't get sent off a couple of hundred miles for a month at a time to wire a grocery store, get home and get sent 150 miles the other direction ....

LOL, no, you get sent to Singapore for 11 months to wire up an assembly line or to Mexico City for 8 months to install x-ray measurement devices at a steel mill. Industrial electricians and engineers go where the industry is. It is not in your town. Ever.

If nothing else I would give it a try. At least you will learn something that you can put to good use in your own house if you decide to still go into Nursing.

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: LOL, no, you get sent to Singapore for 11 months to wire up an assembly line or to Mexico City for 8 months to install x-ray measurement devices at a steel mill. Industrial electricians and engineers go where the industry is. It is not in your town. Ever. **And you get stiffed because the pay and working conditions once you get outside the country are not what they promised to get you to sign on.**

FTFY, based on some stories from acquaintances.

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: Industrial electricians and engineers go where the industry is. It is not in your town. Ever.

Even our little burg of Eugene Oregon has 10 or so very highly in demand industrial guys and we need more! Their work is local and they are always busy.

I'm an electrician although I haven't worked with the tools for 15 years. I came into the trade after finishing University and not finding a job that paid well enough. Oddly enough it's my electrical license and hands on experience that has allowed me to end up working for an engineering firm now. I never regreted getting into the trade. I worked for a union shop that did large scale commercial projects, hospitals and car plants. I also live in Ontario where we still have a strong union environment as well as a regulated apprenticeship program so your results may vary. There is a fair amount of heavy lifting and dirty work but at the end of the day you can at least look back and see something physical that you've accomplished, even if it's just digging a ductbank trench. The danger is very real but most deaths, in construction, occur from falling.

I did it for 10 years. It sucks. The easy days aren't too bad, but they are few and far between especially on the industrial side. Running 4" rigid conduit 50 feet in the air off a lift isn't fun AT ALL. Most of your time will be spent running conduit or pulling wire. Spending days with your head stuck in a panel wiring the computer control side of an industrial plant doesn't sound like hard work, but it is. Residential is easier, but doesn't pay as good and no one is building houses right now.

I've done home loans for lots of nurses and electricians - BE A NURSE!

There is constant demand for a nurse. You can work evening shifts/holiday/weekend and get paid for 40 hours while only working 2-3 days. The rest of the time is your own.

Many of the electricians are constantly having to change jobs. Plus in the summer it sucks due to the heat.

Also I've never had an electrician who made as much as a nurse unless the nurse is part time.

Toyman01 wrote: I did it for 10 years. It sucks. The easy days aren't too bad, but they are few and far between especially on the industrial side. Running 4" rigid conduit 50 feet in the air off a lift isn't fun AT ALL. Most of your time will be spent running conduit or pulling wire. Spending days with your head stuck in a panel wiring the computer control side of an industrial plant doesn't sound like hard work, but it is. Residential is easier, but doesn't pay as good and no one is building houses right now.

I agree with some of this. It may not be the place you want to still be working at into your later years but you can move up into the project management side if you have the ambition. The knowledge will also last you the rest of your life.

carguy123 wrote: I've done home loans for lots of nurses and electricians - BE A NURSE! There is constant demand for a nurse. You can work evening shifts/holiday/weekend and get paid for 40 hours while only working 2-3 days. The rest of the time is your own.

My sister is a nurse and does the weekend work thing as she juggles a husband and 3 kids. You are correct in the money. My sister-in-law did home health care and did well as a nurse. Then she became the scheduler and worked from home with a laptop and did well with that too.

I could see myself being in a trade but it takes a certain person that can be a nurse and I am clearly not that person.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LKx40qYXJo

My dad is an electrician with the big city union and has been for years. He's reaching retirement age, so he has seniority and good benefits - but it took a long time to build up to that. He's on his feet, often outdoors, every day. I you don't like weather, don't like being dirty, or don't like work that involves manual labor, keep looking. On the other hand, electrical work is a field desperate for sharp, skilled foreman in the field. For those that can make it work, they can make it work well. It also helps if you're willing to learn some Spanish.

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: Industrial electricians and engineers go where the industry is. It is not in your town. Ever.

Not necessarily...I'm an electrical engineer and in my youth I was a road warrior, but these days most all my projects are local so the electricians working on them are sleeping in their own beds every night.

It is hard work, particularly in the wintertime, but they can make a decent wage at it. However, like any career I think you should pursue it only if it's something that interests you - the money doesn't matter if you hate your job.

Besides going to tech school, many areas have an apprenticeship program through the local electrician's union. You need to check around to see how things work in your area.

I'm back on the tools now (took a job close to home), but I supervised a dozen maintenance electricians for a number of years. None of those guys worked too hard. They had busy days, and the odd day pulling wire, but for the most part, it was troublshooting CNC equipment, changing sensors, drives, motors, cables, and typical industrial maintenance. They don't work as hard as the millwrights, but the pay is the same. Where I am now, it's taken over a year to fill 5 elecrtricican vacancies in the department. They are paid $31/hr with full benefits and have their choice of overtime.

E=IR
lectrics is simple.
I wanted to be an electrician for quite a while, ended up doing cable work for a bit instead, but cars are the best. Hoping to make my way up at work and prove myself so I can just be the go to electrical diag guy, eeeeeasy money!
(I do not work at WalMart anymore as of thursday, thank god. Start a job as a tech at a Subaru Dealer next week=])
I really like doing automotive electrical work, house electricity is a little broader, but just as cool. making things work is always a cool job to have.

I am an electrician. I have however not been the typical practicing type for the better part of the last 15 years. I do odd work here and there in the residential field,but that seems to be less and less lately. I went to high school for this field,and then got my Journeyman's license 4 years out of school. I have not regretted it one bit,and would recommend it to any young person looking for a good trade.

What I did while working for a contractor before my current job was mostly commercial/industrial. It is a vastly different world than the residential world,and in my opinion much more fun,but a lot harder on the body. Residential work isn't easy by any stretch of the imagination especially old work,but running 4" pipe and pulling 750mcm cable is a lot more demanding. None of it is boring though if you ask me,but sometimes a large job can get a little mundane if you are doing the same task over and over again,but that can be said of any industry.

What I do now is maintain the telephone network for one of the largest telco companies in the world. It involves working on diesel generators,switch gear(highly dangerous),rectifiers,inverters,batteries(large storage type wet cells),and all other AC/DC electrical systems. It isn't the same as looking back at the end of the day and seeing a large pipe run you installed,but it is still rewarding knowing that your work makes sure the communications system works without a hiccup. It can get really hairy when the weather is the worst,but that is when I am my happiest as it gives me something aside from normal routine stuff to do,and I love it.

I would say go for it!! You won't regret it,and if you do you could always go back to nursing. You will need to go to school though to get your license,and in my state it is a 4 year program as well as working 4-5 years. Not an easy thing to do,but you get paid to do the training so it works out. You will be doing menial tasks for a little while though so beware. Oh and please be safe it isn't a job you want to screw up on.

Chris

I would much rather be an electrician than a plumber ;) I have a lot of respect for those who work in the trades. It's hard work and we need them.

Just don’t let the live wires hit the water when you’re in your canoe.... 9 year old necro thread. 

Nine year old thread and those guys are up to $40/hr now - and still doing berkeley all

My Son-in - law is a Low voltage tech.  that's computers, TV, Audio Visual stuff, Smart House , Sound systems, etc. much easier than commercial high voltage stuff.  Plus it's nearly all indoors  ( nice when winter gets to 40 below )  

He's making $75,000 + a year plus benefits and paid vacations, Bonus.  In addition he gets a company truck etc.  if he wanted overtime he could seriously add to his income but his family is more important. 
 

Stable working conditions. State/Federal/ schools/ commercial/ Bars/ homes etc. 

When you're on the job site, your first job is to find any flat workbench-like surface and pile stuff on it.