Electricians of Reddit

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/stick-it-inside on 2024-01-19 02:42:55+00:00.

in my area we are oversaturated with electricians. domestic and international level. there is zero way to get into the industrial side/plant jobs without having prior experience. There are immigrants with 15 years experience who get paid average wages and aren't even ticketed

My initial thought was to watch a bunch of YouTube videos and lie about my experience, I already have studied about motor control, have commercial troubleshooting experience and know ABOUT plcs/vfds and instrumentation but havent actually touched one ever. My hope here would be that i would get past the intial interview and hope that the employers/coworkers see that i am trying my hardest to pick up on the knowledge

What i do see are listings for apprentices in these industrial companies ( my thought being they want apprentices to be groomed to be the perfect j-man who does things the company way and a cheaper investment if person doesn't work out)

my other option was to lie about being a 3rd/4th year apprentice and make my resume reflect that of the best apprentice ever and try to get into an industrial job that way.

any thoughts?

ps- not trying to get into big industrial construction where you just bend rigid all day and pull cables for months. I'm talking about small company industrial where its mainly small projects,service/troubleshooting or plant work

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/anonvxx on 2024-01-19 02:20:16+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/snowglig on 2024-01-18 21:30:35+00:00.

Hello! So I'm looking to get into this field and plan on starting an apprenticeship asap, however I unfortunately am going to be moving to another state in May and am therefore hesitant to start an apprenticeship here knowing I'll have to drop it in a few months and probably won't be able to transfer the hours over.

In the meantime though I still want to get a feel for the trade and start learning in person (for anything construction-related really) rather than just watching Electrician U videos-- what would you guys recommend as far as hourly jobs go? I was thinking maybe applying to Home Depot or another hardware store for as hands-on a job I can find, but I don't know if that'll actually be helpful or if there's a better way I could use my time.

Any advice would be very helpful, I have virtually no practical experience in any trade as is (I've been working as a server for the past year and a half since I made the wise move of graduating with a history degree) but I'm excited to get started! Thanks in advance!

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Pure-Honey4946 on 2024-01-18 20:38:43+00:00.

What are some of your favorite tools to carry in your bag? I’m also curious as to what others prefer for their plier handle type, whether it be straight, curved, bowed, or ratcheting.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/OhmThatHertz on 2024-01-18 17:50:28+00:00.

I'm still an apprentice but at my place I've got a subpanel that's making buzzing noises, and looks like a mess. What would you do here?

The panel is fed from a 30 Amp doublepole off the main. The subpanel is a complete mess, and I'd love your advice. I'll monitor questions and will try to respond ASAP.

Thank you in advance, sparkies!

~OhmThatHertz

Where do I start?

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/FollyOxenFree on 2024-01-18 16:58:37+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Audiofyl1 on 2024-01-19 01:36:04+00:00.

Interior electric devices non functioning. Mobile service van.

Power source is on board generator.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Lucas_Hernandez_Art on 2024-01-19 01:33:51+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Alive-Okra-4983 on 2024-01-19 01:21:12+00:00.

I am currently a 3rd year with all commercial experience, I want to be as good as I can be and very well rounded. Woild it be beneficial to move to say service/residential or industrial to better myself in your opinions or can I learn everything where I am now if I want my own service buisness someday?

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Aggravating_Basket82 on 2024-01-19 01:14:29+00:00.

I passed my Journeyman exam! I haven't been this amped in years. Long time lurker first time poster but now somehow I feel like I belong here. 2nd times the charm, first time I went in shooting from the hip and failed but I picked myself up off the floor, signed up for the next exam (about a month away) and studied like my children's lives depended on it (because in a way they did, I kept a picture my daughter drew for me over my study area for when I didn't feel like studying anymore to remind me) and BOYS I FUCKING DID IT.

I'm with a good company that already pays me very well especially for rural northern wisconsin but I'm going to be making almost 35 an hr MINIMUM as a first year jman with good bennies, realistic work expectations, big christmas bonuses, guaranteed yearly raises of over a dollar up to 40, paid drive time yadda yadda yadda. Keep in mind this is an area you can still buy a 3 bedroom house on 3 or 4 acres for 80k (at least for now the Midwest is booming yall, if you can handle the cold they got some conduit to run and wire to pull for yall up here)

I can honestly say all the bullshit I've dealt with over the years, all the times I've been so close to quitting this trade and looking for something easier, it's all paying off.

Forgive me for ranting, I just had to share, I'm off to grill me a big ass steak and drink a cold one that's been sitting outside in 8° snow.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Ralstoon320 on 2024-01-19 01:10:33+00:00.

Hello everyone,

10 year Navy EMN (Electricians Mate Nuclear). Like nuclear reactors, not weapons.

Basic description without anymore detail:

Electrician's Mates, Nuclear Power (EMN) operate and control generators, switchboards, control equipment, and electrical equipment associated with reactor plants; operate and perform organizational and intermediate maintenance on power and lighting circuits, electrical fixtures, motors, generators, voltage and frequency regulators, controllers, distribution switchboards, and other electrical equipment; test for short circuits, grounds or other casualties; and repair and/or rebuild electrical equipment, including solid state circuitry and mechanical devices.

Mostly experienced with 450VAC distribution through mainline breakers. 120VAC lighting and disruption breakers and equipment. ~300VDC distribution (large battery system with alot of current for DC).

Trying to figure out how to translate this into civilian work once I'm out in ~2years. It seems most places want a Journeymans electrical license for the applicable state. I talked to one of the Master Electricians on Montana's Electrical Board and this seems like one of the only states that will allow my employer (My CO on my first boat) to submit an affidavit saying I've done at least 20,000 hours of electrical work experience (with 8K practical) then they'll allow me to take the journeyman's test with just this as a pre-requist.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Trexasaurus70 on 2024-01-19 01:07:50+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/SampleAccording6396 on 2024-01-19 01:04:11+00:00.

Tonight we had a test which was made up and it got me thinking and wondering how the state would feel I they knew our instructor made up a test himself not to mention how the jatc gets around ot having licensed teachers, just because your a journeyman doesn't make you a teacher, so how do they get around it

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/xdevapath on 2024-01-19 01:03:32+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/fenyerr on 2024-01-19 00:50:48+00:00.

I graduated my technical college a few months ago and we worked with habitat for humanity to get some hours logged, where would I go to check those hours? Can I check them out the L&I website?

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Wooden-Cranberry-633 on 2024-01-19 00:49:06+00:00.

I hear that the trades sucks and you should do something else. Do you feel that you made the correct decision to become an electrician?

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/No_Name_Canadian on 2024-01-19 00:40:59+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/theuderdog33 on 2024-01-19 00:40:46+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Both_Librarian7697 on 2024-01-19 00:07:39+00:00.

I'm considering venturing into the world of Network and Security camera hardware installations and am looking to start a business in Oregon. As I navigate through the legalities, I've come across the Low Voltage Electrician License and have some questions to ensure compliance before acquiring a license in the future

Specifically, I want to understand whether starting a business for Network and Security camera installations (excluding tasks like running ethernet and wiring) in Oregon requires obtaining a Low Voltage Electrician License. I want to make sure I'm on the right side of the law from the get-go.

If anyone has experience in the field or knowledge about the licensing requirements in Oregon, I'd greatly appreciate your insights and guidance.

Thank you in advance for your help!

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Shefik-Da-Freak on 2024-01-19 00:01:41+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/borkimusprime on 2024-01-19 00:00:26+00:00.

Is it actually worth it to strip all the wire for a bit more cents and is there a gauge that's just not worth it even pre stripped? all of this is in context of scrapping.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Sparkie7 on 2024-01-18 23:33:24+00:00.

As the title says I’m hitting a road block with my journeyman exam..been in the field long enough to test for my masters but I still can’t hurdle the journeyman exam. I’m always a few points off and I feel like I’m going no where..enjoy what I do and I’m very good at what I do in the field but every exam I’ve taken is 10x harder than any practice exam I’ve taken, I’m lost as what and how to study anymore..feelin down on myself lookin for any advice as to how any bad test takers like myself prepped or what you did or used to get that card. Thanks in advance

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/Overexposed13 on 2024-01-18 23:26:40+00:00.

My journeyman couldn't answer this question, so I was hoping to get some information here.

Today I replaced an LED fixture that wasn't working, and my journeyman let me dissect it afterwards as we had some spare time. All the wiring looked fine, but LEDs were clearly burnt out and it was all wet inside. While testing it to see if replacing the LEDs would fix it, we found that the load side of the drivers were putting out about 330V AC, as opposed to the very low voltage DC that we were expecting to see. The light is good for 120V-277V but was hooked up to 120V before we took it down. Tested it using a 120V plug.

Is it actually supposed to send 330V AC to the LEDs, and we both just misunderstood how these lights function inside? If not, what's going on?

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/aupad6 on 2024-01-18 23:19:50+00:00.

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The original was posted on /r/electricians by /u/killerkirby92 on 2024-01-18 22:58:37+00:00.