/biz/ - Business & Finance

[Anonymous No.755237]

I think I want to be a plumber. What should I keep in mind?

[Anonymous No.755238]

Do not send any coins to this address: DSK1ngm95oGkNiWKm4SHmgHicY1vw9nbwy

[Anonymous No.755239]

>>755238
Why not?

[Anonymous No.755241]

>>755239
because >>755238 is commercial spam, instead you should report him

click the blue arrow for the report button

[Anonymous No.755264]

>>755237
Can I get some actual advice here?

[Anonymous No.755266]

>>755264
No

[Anonymous No.755267]

>>755237

Contractor here

Good fucking luck

Everyone and their brother has started their own plumbing/electrical/HVAC business now.

Most states have gotten rid of the apprentice-journeyman-Master license and now you just get a general contractors specialty license. It's easy as fuck to get too. You just pay someone to sign an affidavit that you worked for them and take a test designed for people with a grade school education.

You'll also have to compete with the major brands and franchises in your city. These are companies that spend more in advertising than you'll make your first three years combined.

The reason there are so many new businesses is that no one is going to hire you with virtually no experience and you pay what you're going to demand. There are tons of tradesmen pouring out of community colleges, who have never gotten dirty or done any real hands on work, and think they're going to be making $17-$35 working for someone else. None of them ever get hired to my knowledge

[Anonymous No.755270]

The problem with working in trades is that you will have to work with tradesmen. Most of these guys are fucking neanderthals with no brains or ambition. I'm not some elitist who shits on people without a university, I just know what I have seen when doing construction jobs to work my way through university. Even if you are smart and end up being the boss or supervisor you will still have to deal with these people and be liable for their stupidity. Just make sure that you are okay with that sort of work culture.

[Anonymous No.755272]

>>755237

See your op picture? That is now your bread and butter. Specifically, going elbow deep in that is your bread and butter.

Still want to be a plumber?

[Anonymous No.755275]

>>755270
Don't forget that you will have to learn a second language to communicate with your minions. That said, I know one successful plumbing contractor that is very happy with his army of Hispanic dudes.

[Anonymous No.755278]

>>755270

I've never met anyone that was completely incompetent. Everyone that I have ever worked with has always been a complete bro and very good at their job. Many are good enough that they shouldn't be working for anyone but themselves.

You are completely correct about the no ambition part. Virtually all of them are just going through the motions of 9-5. A lot of them are just beat up from life. Everyone seems to be a chain smoker, heavy drinker every night, are divorced and paying alimony/child support, and a few have problems with the law.

Most of them have all the skills and tools to do their job, but they will constantly complain about their pay and hours, year after year after year, and never do anything about it.

This is just my experience building one home at a time. I have heard some horror stories about those contractors who build entire subdivisions with nothing but illegal spics and no one has a license.

[Anonymous No.755280]

>>755267
Every guy with a truck can call themselves a contractor nowadays. The handymen will take all the simple jobs because homeowners always say licensed plumbers/electricians/whatever charge too much.

[Anonymous No.755281]

You're going to do one of two things as a plumber.

>Start your own business, take on all the responsibilities of it, taxes, office work, finding jobs, and working until you're 65. and can afford to retire.

>Work for a large company, under their rules, retire at 50.

[Anonymous No.755282]

>>755237
try to get in a union apprenticeship program

[Anonymous No.755288]

>>755275
I live in a mid-sized Canadian cities and we don't get a lot of foreigners here who aren't graduate students, but in my experience the white tradesmen around here can barely comprehend their first language.

>>755278
I never said they were completely incompetent, they scrape by and get the job done, but everything else you said is true. Chain smoking, alcoholism, and other fuckery is very common with these men.

[Sage No.755342]

>>755288
Sounds like Hahahalifax

[Anonymous No.755346]

Stay away from mushrooms

[Anonymous No.755358]

My buddy is a plumber, he fucks a lot of women he meets on jobs. It's insane. Good luck, friend.

[Anonymous No.755360]

>just learn a trade bro
>its a lot better than a degree

t-thanks biz

[Anonymous No.755407]

>>755360

You're never going to find some magic ez mode get rich job.

A person with a mediocre education, mediocre skills, and mediocre drive, will be just as bad off as a tradesman as they would be with a chemical engineering degree.

[Anonymous No.755520]

This is like the worst job.
I was on a job doing electrical work and I had to work next to the plumbers, I could not breathe because of that toxic chemical they use to glue pvc pipes. This stuff should be banned. No wonder why so many plumbers develop cancer cells in their bodies. Pic related

[Anonymous No.756262]

>>755237
Here in VA, you can work at a shipyard while advancing; they not only pay for everything, they also pay you pretty well. If that's where your sites are set OP, you should definitely look into moving out this way. I also recommend that you get a little college under your belt so you stand out. There's a fair amount of competition.

My friend started as out at almost 19/hr, full benefits, and retirement. Not to mention it's gov. contracted so there's a lot of down time, and security checks.

[Anonymous No.756281]

>>755360
I've got friends who went into trades, one of whom is a plumber, and most of them are earning more than almost all graduates. This is in the UK, where top graduate schemes start at around £28-32k. I've got friends who have been clearing that since they've been 21.

That said, if you're quite academic it might not be the best move. They make good money but they've got no cultural interests as such.

My plumber friends never have to deal with shit, or toilets that have been used. They work on building sites and so on. You can be a plumber without ever seeing shit. There's great money in boiler repair, for example.

[Anonymous No.756288]

>>755520
we had plumbers doing the pipes in a house we're building this whole week, that purple stuff is the absolute worst, it feels like your throat is dissolving

[Anonymous No.756450]

I'm in an unrelated field but I've heard this more than once, maybe from union members:
Three things to remember as a plumber:
1, shit runs downhill
2, eat with your left hand
3, payday's on Friday

[Anonymous No.756458]

trades are a better bet these days than many bachelor's degrees. Plumber isnt bad, but perhaps you would like something a little cleaner, like electrical or low voltage wiring?

[Anonymous No.756519]

Shipyards are fucking depressing. That is a horrible suggestion

>Tfw angry usn vet

[Anonymous No.756532]

I was a plumber for almost 6 years before switching to HVAC because I was moving to Texas and more money was to be made in HVAC there. 90% of your work will be fixing water leaks from washer and dryers or water tanks, not dealing with shit. In this economy, most families fix small issues like clogged toilets themselves. They can't afford professional service to fix a simple problem anymore.

[Anonymous No.756548]

>>755237
Don't bite your fingernails.

[Anonymous No.756978]

>>755237
It's a shitty business OP.

[Anonymous No.757331]

>>756458
I am curious about this. Compared to other trades just how filthy and backbreaking is an electrician's job?