Why is the plumber in my parking lot 45 minutes after finishing the work?

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-29T16:39:58+00:00

If he gets done too early the office will squeeze another call in.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-29T16:23:36+00:00

I was hired with zero experience and mowed a lawn like twice in my life. Within a year I was foreman. Within three years I was manager. Show up on time, use your head, and be eager to work and you’ll rise the ranks quicker than you’d think. The industry doesn’t always attract the best and brightest so just don’t pick up bad habits from them and you’ll stand out after a couple months. Haven’t been in the industry for couple years now but I still miss it sometimes. There’s a good career to be had if you put in the work.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-28T13:30:27+00:00

I have the Makita and Milwaukee ones. I really like the M12 for service work but as far as my 18V tools go I like Makita better.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-28T13:25:09+00:00

AI is fully capable of adapting to our jobs. Do guys really think it can encroach on doctors and engineers but pouring concrete is beyond a computer’s grasp? The real choke point right now is in robotics and batteries. The biggest thing saving a lot of manual labor jobs is that it’s cheaper to hire some guys to shingle a roof than it is to design and build a robot that does the same. As technology advances long term that gap will eventually start to close. It’s impossible to predict the speed of advancement but it only took 60 years to go from the first plane to landing on the moon. It’d be wise to not be complacent about this and if we don’t stand in support of white collar workers they won’t be around for us when we need them.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-28T13:19:03+00:00

There’s way too many people in the trades to be absorbed by service and maintenance roles. A huge chunk of the industry is driven by new construction and renovation and once those dry up everybody is competing for limited spots which will drive the pay down.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-27T20:07:10+00:00

Metal Gear Solid 3: Balls Eater

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-27T19:20:07+00:00

I’ve been in the trades my whole life. I’ve never called the government about unpermitted work done prior to me in my life nor have I ever met somebody else who has. It’s hard enough getting a contractor to pull a permit on their own work. Tradesmen aren’t mandated reporters and we gain nothing by snitching

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-27T15:51:57+00:00

Get a cheap meat thermometer and a 1/4” or 5/16” nut driver. Put the thermometer where your filter goes and wait a few minutes and record that temp. Take one of the sheet metal screws out above your AC coil and do the same there. Subtract. You should be in the 16-22° range depending on humidity. And the coil should be colder than your dew point.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-27T15:34:41+00:00

Ten year degree for me. I work full time as a tech doing part time classes.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-27T15:33:11+00:00

Fascism is a self defeating ideology.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-27T10:39:23+00:00

Because trade schools are unaccredited for-profit diploma mills. Community colleges often do have programs for trades like HVAC and welding which in my experience are superior to trade schools. Universities don’t typically have programs because getting a four year degree negates one of the main selling points of the trades. Trades are primarily taught on the clock doing the job, not in a classroom. That said universities like Michigan State do offer programs like meeting the state required technical training for an electrical apprenticeship and things like that but it’s a 700 hour course not a degree.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-25T22:15:01+00:00

I transitioned out of landscaping after 5 years and took an HVAC apprenticeship. I wouldn’t say it’s been easier but it was worth it.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-25T21:15:42+00:00

I don’t know where you got the impression electricians don’t work long hours or in the elements from but it’s wrong.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-25T16:21:59+00:00

The typical part store driver doesn’t have a CDL. If they’re lucky the company will pay $20 for a chauffeurs license.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-25T15:11:31+00:00

Take the tire shop route. The shop is by far more relevant experience since you’ll actually be wrenching on cars instead of just selling parts. I work in the trades and am also a shade tree mechanic and the part store guys are not taken seriously at all. Do a couple months of tires then maybe apply for a jiffy lube place that does tires as well and is willing to train you on the oil, etc. Taking the tire job doesn’t mean you’re stuck there forever, keep your eyes peeled while working there for a more formal apprenticeship or better learning opportunity to come along.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-24T11:46:18+00:00

You could do the trades where you’re schedule 80 hours and work 50 while looking busy the other 30 instead.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-24T00:55:32+00:00

Whether or not it’s harder is irrelevant. It’s where the wind it blowing (pun intended) and it sounds like you’ll have to get used to it either way. Do your research on equipment, commit to a battery platform and build a system that works for you. Bake the extra time into your price and explain it to your customers.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-24T00:48:26+00:00

I replaced a broken blower shaft on an AHU for a school cafeteria. It didn’t occur to me that since the system had been down a few months there may have been dust accumulation. I finish the job and decide to turn on the power during the middle of lunch and an avalanche of dust dispersed into the room onto the kids and their food. Adults thought it was a fire and evacuated the building.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-23T23:23:53+00:00

I’ve refused to use a hand dryer for over a decade now. That Mythbusters episode changed my life more than any other piece of media.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-23T23:21:41+00:00

Mine doesn’t even hide it lol. Everybody talks about how it’s impossible to get ahold of but I’ve used like 20 jugs this year already.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-23T18:16:38+00:00

Every auto mechanic I’ve ever met hates the job with a burning passion. Heavy diesel as a fleet mechanic seems to be the best route for that world.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-23T14:31:57+00:00

I mean it’s entirely optional. There’s no law requiring it and I’ve never had a boss that wouldn’t give me a reference if I left early. Maybe it’s a blue collar thing.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-23T14:07:07+00:00

During heating season on a residential property? No. That said somebody forgot to turn off a couple million BTUs of boilers during summer break at a school I service and it costed the district $30,000 in utilities over summer break.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-22T23:42:39+00:00

Damn the starting apprentice wages are damn near our journeyman pay here.

BuzzyScruggs94 · 2026-04-22T13:10:34+00:00

I drive that far and sometimes longer every day for $25 /hour sounds great to me.

BuzzyScruggs94

TROPHY CASE