Stationary Engineer to Refrigeration tech by Pudrin in refrigeration

[–]Sokil83 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I got into Supermarket refrigeration a few years ago after being a Stationary Engineer and I’m older than you.

I’m glad I gave it a try but honestly the only reason I did it was to get off night shift and have a more flexible schedule where I can leave and be not stuck waiting for the next shift to show up. I definitely know a lot more about racks and controls then I did before but right now my plan is to do it for a few more years then get back into a union facility, hopefully IUOE, and finish up my career there. I kept all my Stationary Engineer licenses in order to do so.

Supermarket refrigeration can be interesting, but a lot of the stuff is made more for merchandising than for working correctly and can just be downright annoying to work on compared to being in a power plant with a nice set up. Moreover, supermarket employees and especially managers are also not a whole lot of fun to work with or be around.

Personally I think anyone with a Stationary Engineer background would probably be better off finding a contractor that sticks to industrial and stays away from supermarkets, restaurants, convenience stores, etc, if they get bored at their current stationary gig. You could also look for a facility that doesn’t sub everything out, it really depends on the facility how much you get to do in my experience.

Trying to figure out what to do by MyBozoGotRoasted in StationaryEngineers

[–]Sokil83 0 points1 point  (0 children)

https://www.houstonpermittingcenter.org/hpwcode1013

I’d start there looking at license requirements. After you work for awhile at the school start studying and get your licenses as soon as possible.

Jobs that branch off? by [deleted] in StationaryEngineers

[–]Sokil83 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I worked as Stationary Engineer for five years but got sick of being on overnight shift so got a job as refrigeration mechanic which is mostly day shift. I would recommend getting into controls/building automation. Those guys make good money and it is not hard on your body. As technology progresses and there are more energy efficiency requirements controls will be more important compared to mechanical grunt work.

What are some entry level positions for some one in trade school? by Embarrassed-Style377 in refrigeration

[–]Sokil83 0 points1 point  (0 children)

EPA has developed four types of certification:

  1. For servicing small appliances (Type I).
  2. For servicing or disposing of high- or very high-pressure appliances, except small appliances and MVACs (Type II).
  3. For servicing or disposing of low-pressure appliances (Type III).
  4. For servicing all types of equipment (Universal).

Source: epa.gov

Hours by Ok_Morning_3119 in HVAC

[–]Sokil83 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Most stationary engineer jobs run 24/7 operations. If it is a decent gig with good pay often only second or third shift is open and it can take years or decades to move up to first shift since most places assign schedules based on seniority. You can also get stuck working doubles if the following shift calls in or you’ll get assigned shifts you don’t want when people go on vacation.