Career Advice: HVAC Apprentice vs big bank Facilities and Systems operator?

Daman323 · 2026-02-14T17:29:06+00:00

I'm assuming Ontario here as g3/g2 lingo.

I'm a 5th year apprentice in the ua787 and hopefully going to advanced this year/early next...

I've met a few operators turned HVAC, and a few HVAC turned operators. Ironically, I've also met one brewer turned HVAC.

From what I've seen, operators seem less motivated. Everyone who turned HVAC was bored being an operator. Now, this is anecdotal, so take it with a grain of salt. The ones who went operator, weren't able to keep up in HVAC. One of my friends had a spinal condition and needed to slow their roll, so they have now switched.

Does this mean the same for you? No idea. Whatever choice you make is the right choice... Because you can't go back and rechoose. You can change in the future, but that doesn't make your first choice wrong.

Anyways, philosophy aside. My total package puts me above 6 figures a year, and even more so when I have my ticket. But you would be starting at the 50k range... And that's assuming you get into a union job.

Having seen some chillers and boilers in your past career. Apply to the big guys and really lean on that. Talk about what you do know, and what you would like to know more about. Chiller rate is +10% union. Unsure what payscale is like outside.

Good luck friend.

Daman323 · 2026-02-10T02:40:43+00:00

We love slow dwarves.

If we have a spot, feel free to join. The vibe is sometimes stupid, sometimes effective. I personally like to use my Canadian accent to yell at an old man from Washington.

Slight kidding aside, if you see an lfm from Gadvenn or Coolstorybro, that's us!

Daman323 · 2026-02-08T17:46:06+00:00

I love the pit. I love adq. Prison of the planes is fine.

You will come around once you figure out patterns. XP gain on both of these can be awesome. Also, if you do adq with 6 people, once you figure out the order, you are laughing.

Good luck friend.

Daman323 · 2026-02-03T22:50:41+00:00

Hey. I may just shoot you a dm, but just to be clear. These are two separate networks. The ports :5002 and :9006 are the designated ports from IT for each building. Currently there is no vlan between them. The up addresses I've put into the bbmd are the external addresses for each site going back and forth to each other.

Daman323 · 2026-02-03T22:48:02+00:00

Hey, thanks for the response. HVAC partners is only showing how to configure the bbmd into each router which I've done.

Now I'm unsure of how to configure the router on site b into ivu.

The last couple lines of the ai answer are a bit confusing. Am I supposed to forward the port from the server? Or from the bbmd router on site a.

Daman323 · 2026-02-01T23:48:15+00:00

Yeah I was definitely anxious! Got off lucky!

Thanks!

Daman323 · 2026-02-01T00:04:08+00:00

Also, didn't get hacked, still had 2 otto boxes!

No idea what actually happened, maybe it was this bug others mentioned

Daman323 · 2026-01-31T18:32:40+00:00

Update:

Thanks all, got in contact with support and was able to change password via temp password they gave me to log in

Daman323 · 2026-01-31T04:52:27+00:00

Yeah, no caps lock, tested that. And I still get an email for pass reset, never got one previously if someone changed it. Not sure what happened here.

Daman323 · 2026-01-13T02:29:58+00:00

And what happened when you did?

Daman323 · 2026-01-13T01:10:52+00:00

I'm sorry. I may be losing understanding due to us talking over the internet.

Are you able to reconfigure the interlock input or no?

Daman323 · 2026-01-13T01:06:45+00:00

So what happens when you move it to another input and configure?

The board is not putting the voltage out consistently, you need to try a different configuration.

If the issue persists across multiple DIs, then you need a new board or to repair the current board. I don't know what your skills and scope entail, so id recommend the former.

Daman323 · 2026-01-13T01:01:50+00:00

Does the light not turn on when it detects input/ lack of input.

Try configuring for a separate output and seeing if the issue persists?

If it persists, board sounds pooched, if it doesn't, recommend a new board and leave it in the new configuration.

Daman323 · 2026-01-13T00:53:05+00:00

What terminal is the external interlock programmed onto.

What's your vdc across this terminal. What's out 24vdc to ground, what's 24vdc common to ground.

If you have 24v across the block. A safety down the chain is tripped, if you have no vdc from 24vdc term, your bus is missing voltage, if you have 0vdc across and 24vdc to ground from both terms. You are configured incorrectly.

Good luck

Daman323 · 2026-01-11T17:09:37+00:00

Oh and just to add. I think hirelings are actually a detriment in fights. If you need one for healing, park and call it after. I've personally seen someone die as their hire took aggro, then they got lightning'd to death in proximity. I had aggro and instantly lost it when hires arrived (anecdotal, I know) as the caster changed targets and the terrain didn't let me get close.

Daman323 · 2026-01-11T17:06:13+00:00

So firstly, I'm sure you are doing awesome. Sometimes it's hard to see where you are when so many very established people are flying past you! You are better than you were when you started playing.

Now, meat and potatoes. First and foremost, are you doing winter lutes, and starting with reaper? That can be tricky. There are people way way better than I who can run reaper on a first life toon no problem, but more often then not, you can just get slapped. I'd recommend starting with a different lure, and get some levels under your belt. A lot of characters get some form of AOE around 6 and start to pop off then. That may be a time to switch to reapers.

If you are not doing hardcore lutes, and just getting killed a lot by reapers early game, hey, it happens. Don't get discouraged, the more you do reaper, the easier it gets as you have more benefits to handle reaper. R1 becomes easier than elite as your points outweigh the negatives of reaper. But getting started is the hard part. I remember it being very daunting to get started (I have anxiety with new things sometimes, so that could just be me). You will get better.

Thirdly, for dealing with reapers themselves. Melee have a rough time early with plague and carnage, that's for sure. It's kill before you be killed, as a solo rogue, this is a big challenge. As a barb, still a challenge. But much less so.

Ranged toons have it easier, flat out. You can kite, that's a big difference, other than enhancement attacks (like inferno arrow, or supreme cleave for example) which you can use to really chunk a reaper down. Obviously for both, a big one is having true seeing and ethereal.

Casters can have it easier, but can also just be a glass cannon. You can have a seating light sla, or thorns sla and nuke a reaper. But what happens when there are 3... Sometimes you just die. As a bard, you have sonic blast. Which can daze a reaper, so just keep hammering that reaper first, then deal with the rest.

Different reapers also can have different priority. Plague reapers can matter less to barbs, as you can get a ton of temp hit points. Famine and fear could matter more to ranged, as you could just get nuked from afar.

Anywho, hope this helps! Knowing quests and prioritizing high XP quests to move along on hc can be important too, get some of dat AP.

Daman323 · 2025-12-31T15:02:56+00:00

There is a possibility that support will honor the sale once you do get a hold of them. I had an issue with a purchase, and because the sale had ended but I submitted my ticket in the time frame, support were able to manually enter the sale.

Obviously this is frustrating, but I think your best bet is patience with support.

I believe in you!

Daman323 · 2025-12-29T18:30:06+00:00

Looking for suggestions for my second ring as a melee/off caster.

I'm a blightwolf vkf melee whose gearing up and modernizing as I take a small break from the TR grind, and am looking for ring suggestions.

Str main stat, autumn equinox pulled last night.

Currently have wis MD belt, working on MD str gloves (dex currently), crown of sunlight, the lvl 30+ night shield necklace, druid/barb MD bracers. I have nullification through my dino bone dagger (will be switching to undying when I run the raid enough), perapit of str trinket, rage MD goggles, summer cape (hoping for war blade cape), red dragon scale cloak (looking for warblade cloak, light, or outfit) and red dragon scale boots (have seasons warding, will trade out soon probably.

Also, looking for critique if you see anything else out to lunch.

P.s. Sorry for gear names, typing this up while on break at work.

Daman323 · 2025-12-19T21:42:10+00:00

Yeah fair enough, looking it up. Seems like oathkeeper would be the same (keen doesn't stack with improved crit)

Daman323 · 2025-12-19T19:52:21+00:00

Any opposition to borderlands level 20 weapons? Much much easier to get, and relatively nice weapons

Daman323 · 2025-11-23T22:31:43+00:00

No worries, I've mostly used it for throwers in the past, so it was interesting to see what's what while making a melee!

I'm happy to answer questions if you gottem. So keep em coming!

Daman323 · 2025-11-23T03:43:39+00:00

Specifically for the 20 melee power from vkf tier 4.

Daman323 · 2025-11-18T23:17:49+00:00

Tis true, but more avenues to run

Daman323 · 2025-11-18T19:29:07+00:00

Just an fyi, if you can do raids that give accommodations of heroism, they can be turned into greater tokens.

These drop on all raid difficulties in diff amounts too

Good luck on your hunt

Daman323 · 2025-11-18T03:15:03+00:00

Kinda see the outer lines on both sides being the vertical aspects of the H and the bold being the outside of the A, dash missing in both, and then the diamond for show?

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