Want to be a plumber?

[karenmorgan]

Hahahaha now that made me laugh. I am not the best at tea and coffee!!! Don't know if jase158 comment was aimed at me for being female or just in general but either way it wasn't very nice! Oh and by the way, Finish only has 1 'N'!! anyway back to the plumbing, I love it and anyone who is willing to let me have a go is fine by me. I will be doing my NVQ soon and I have been with a plumber for around a year so I have a bit of knowledge. There is a lot to take in though. Interestingly, not wishing to stereotype but I'm much tidier than my plumber lol

 

[blayedrunner]

I like many was made redundant a while back from running nightclubs. So like many on here i thought what can i do....... Plumber it is. 1 year later and earning NO money with a wife an 2 kids i finally set up for myself. I did get a nice van sign written an have a good website. I believed that I had to make the right impression (I always turn up in uniform with logo on etc to a new job (screwfix t-shirts for tiling jobs lol) 9 months later an due to yell an website alone im out 5 days a week. It is tough as others have put, every job is brand new and never as quick or as easy as you first thought and no one there for advice (hence i also have a small library on the van). But after every job im a little better and I get a lot of referrals now. Customer service is KEY take your shoes off when your quoting for jobs!!!!

But it can be lonely which is why i love my podcasts on my iphone. Keeps me sane in a crampt bathroom all day. I also believe in diversifying, im gas safe inc LPG, oftec registered an tile as well.

Anyway ramble over, its tough early weeks are walking housing estates dropping off flyers, then a few months lkater your wishing days were longer.... BUT i never work weekends, those are for the kids

 

[jase158]

Hahahaha now that made me laugh. I am not the best at tea and coffee!!! Don't know if jase158 comment was aimed at me for being female or just in general but either way it wasn't very nice! Oh and by the way, Finish only has 1 'N'!! anyway back to the plumbing, I love it and anyone who is willing to let me have a go is fine by me. I will be doing my NVQ soon and I have been with a plumber for around a year so I have a bit of knowledge. There is a lot to take in though. Interestingly, not wishing to stereotype but I'm much tidier than my plumber lol

funny how every body hates fast trackers for not being properly trained and here is a person who has no training and is going out there stealing our work and we support it. This forum is a bit hypocrytical.

The comment was not sexist, simply saying that having no qualifications, you will make mistakes and I would like to have the customers that are unhappy with your work. I would never be sexist, every female plumber I have seen is actually a lot better then any male plumber I have met, but my issue is the fact that I have spent 2 years getting nvq2 and you are there working with no qualifications.

However if you have several years experience then fair play

 

[karenmorgan]

Stealing your work????? Are you serious????? Hahahahahahaha you can't be. If you took the time to read my posts you would see I do UNPAID jobs for people I know. I DO NOT go out and work for people I don't know unless I am with my employer. I have been with him for nearly a year and I am doing my NVQ after Xmas. I have my own little tool box which I use when I do jobs for friends UNPAID. As for people stealing work, if people are happy with you they will not go elsewhere!

 

[karenmorgan]

funny how every body hates fast trackers for not being properly trained and here is a person who has no training and is going out there stealing our work and we support it. This forum is a bit hypocrytical.

Please tell me this forum is not full of plumbers who share this view??? I joined this forum for help, support, maybe advice and general plumbing chat. I certainly didn't expect to be accused of stealing work less than a week of being on here! I'm not even qualified yet and I wouldn't have the confidence to be out there promoting myself!

 

[jase158]

Sorry if I have offended you. Well done for getting into plumbing, harder for woman, i believe, stick with it, very lucky to have a plumber to work with, ignore me. This forum is full of some very jealous plumbers, some very frustrated plumber, a lot of plumbers that can't spell and a general hatred for "fast track courses" yet there are some very nice plumbers on here who will work you through every step of a job. and some that are very nice and patient, I am still trying to find out, why plumbers come on this forum, but one thing for sure is that you will definetly sort any problem you have on this forum.

 

[Rickster123]

Is that the quickest back track in history jase?!:95:

 

[jase158]

Is that the quickest back track in history jase?!:95:

more important things in life.

 

[Rickster123]

Quite right mate. And its nearly the weekend!!

 

[karenmorgan]

I don't know what the fast track courses are. I am in my second year of college doing tech cert 6129. I have to do my NVQ level 2 alongside it. Is that fast track? We get an exam roughly every 2 weeks which is pretty fast lol

 

[jase158]

I don't know what the fast track courses are. I am in my second year of college doing tech cert 6129. I have to do my NVQ level 2 alongside it. Is that fast track? We get an exam roughly every 2 weeks which is pretty fast lol

I sense a lil sarcasm in your voice, but can not be certain, so I will rise to it.

"fast Track" is a course which creates gas safe registered plumbers with NVQ 2 & 3 in 6 months.

Good on you for going the right route, college is the best way, get to learn the small things and remember it all.

You will be a greater plumber for it.

 

[karenmorgan]

lol no sarcasm intended. I just didn't know what fast track was. How on earth can someone become gas safe and do NVQ in 6 months?????

 

[mikimac]

FUNNY!!!! You should read my other posts before you jump to conclusions!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't take it to heart..I'm sure you'll do just fine & if I may offer a couple of tips:
Be the best you can be. You'll be judged more than others & nothing silences doubters more than excellence. Read as much plumbing articles & info as time will allow. This site will help you no end.
Work safely. Don't do anything that might hurt you - immediately or in future. My rusty back & crunchy knees are a product of silly working practices & something I regret now.
Thicken your skin. You'll no doubt get a lot of comments in future & a great many will be unkind. Don't take them home with you. It sometimes helps to have a black humour & warped view of things. See first point for how to beat comments.

Good luck & welcome to the business.

 

[Dave (chris)]

Fast track courses can be OK for someone with on site knowledge - say an experienced Bricky who knows a bit about plastering and who wants to get his papers to get a job with a big contractor, that he (or she ) is capable of doing.

But some of them can be well dodgy. They'll charge you £5000 for a six week course and churn out "qualified" people who haven't got a clue in reality. Some of them just take the money, and promise you "on site" NVQs that never marerialise.

I was going to post a link to one that operates in Cardiff (which I think is better than most of them), but I realised it would break the "no advertising courses" rule, on the forum.

 

[karenmorgan]

Don't take it to heart..I'm sure you'll do just fine & if I may offer a couple of tips:
Be the best you can be. You'll be judged more than others & nothing silences doubters more than excellence. Read as much plumbing articles & info as time will allow. This site will help you no end.
Work safely. Don't do anything that might hurt you - immediately or in future. My rusty back & crunchy knees are a product of silly working practices & something I regret now.
Thicken your skin. You'll no doubt get a lot of comments in future & a great many will be unkind. Don't take them home with you. It sometimes helps to have a black humour & warped view of things. See first point for how to beat comments.

Good luck & welcome to the business.

To be fair everyone has been great so far. Especially customers! It's only the tradesmen that ever make comments but I can deal with that. It's no different from being in a pub on a Saturday night!

 

[Deleted member 25704]

If everyone thinks it's so lonely, then why aren't more plumbers more open to taking on apprentices? As a newbie, I can't understand why everyone has such a hard job finding a plumber to take them out FOR FREE!!!! I understand the insurance side and all that but if they're supervised what's the issue?

"What's the issue?"

Its a good question and I think it deserves a few responses.

 

[jase158]

"What's the issue?"

Its a good question and I think it deserves a few responses.

for me its thinking about the job, whilst trying to do the job at the same time, especially when you are puzzled and customer is there and apprentice turns around and says, "so how come its broke then".

ummm, errrr, ummm.

But once I am fully trained with a few years under belt, I will take on apprentices, but will tell them I won't be able to take you on afterwards.

 

[karenmorgan]

Yeh that's a good point actually. I have been guilty of saying things when we are on a job and he tells me to shutup lol. I have learned now what I can say in front of the customer and what I can say when we are back in the van lol

 

[fuzzy]

Excellent advice and reality checks in this thread for those of us starting out. I'm in a very similar position to Grovesy1000, and the reality is that you can make a go of it but it's hard.

But I've gone via a Further Education College as it's cheaper and I don't trust the "Fast-track" people.

By the way - send me £5000 and I'll tell you how to be a millionaire :joker:

whats your adrress whats your adrress WHATS YOUR ADRRESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CAN I SEND MY CREDIT CARD DETAILS

 

[jase158]

Yeh that's a good point actually. I have been guilty of saying things when we are on a job and he tells me to shutup lol. I have learned now what I can say in front of the customer and what I can say when we are back in the van lol

All down to patients really, I'm too young and not much patience.

 

[Dave (chris)]

The Fast Track Company I was talking about is ACCESS training - I did a Google search and found a thread about them on the tiling section of this forum.

Their reviews are pretty bad. Google

 

[claude_pecha]

I bet you'd be happier to work on your own rather than have some annoying customer there every 2 seconds over your shoulder and getting in your way.

I have been that annoying customer always asking what the plumber in my house is doing: because it is so interesting! So far luckily, none has told me to bugger off: I suppose they just charged me for an extra half hour!!!

 

[Guitarjon]

Great post, especially the bit about outplaying money. Lots of people want to go self employed but forget about the outlay. I used to work for myself detailing cars for a brief stint (in order to get out of my last job) I already had all the gear from being a hobbiest. However, people wanted more and specific coatings buying which weren't cheap and yes the then paid by cheque lol. Cash flow wasn't too bad at the time though so wasn't really a problem but I can see how it would be.

Vans are expensive, as is advertising. People completely underestimate the cost of advertising. A good website helps too although I guess plumbing advertisement is more word of mouth and news paper adds.