I used to be a journeyman plumber. It makes good money and I suppose I could control the hours in which I work but there are drawbacks.
1. It is dirty, germy work.
I am glad I haven't gotten sick from germs but you can get hepititus and infections when your skin is cut.
2. Money isn't everything.
When you get older you do lose some strength and agility. There are jobs that take too long for one person and I am not the type of person to hire a helper.
3. Insurance premiums for plumbers has gone up.
I do worry if something might go wrong. I suppose I sleep better when nothing can go wrong.
4. Plumbing is for people (men and strong women) under 60.
One of my father's plumbing competitor died under a house from a heart attack. I still do work under houses and in hot attics. I would not want to do those things alone and have the customer find me hours later dead.
Comments (18)
Sounds to me like a very good idea to find another source of employment.
Plumbers are so precious we have to keep them safe . Take care of you .
In friendship
Michel
Some food for thought, I suppose.
I think you made a great choice. I've never been good at plumbing. If I connect two pipes and they don't leak I wonder what I did wrong. hahahaha
I am alone so much that I am used to the idea that my body will be found by someone after four or five days had passed.
It is true, the plumbing can be hard on people over 60. If you are not that strong, it is better to find something else.
as we get older every job is harder to do.
I started nursing school at 18yrs old and worked at a long career and now I'm tired.
Plumbing is very hard for us girls. It takes a lot of strength. I have found it hard to lift a toilet to replace the wax seal. it is heavy. and turning the old joints that are stuck together for so long takes man muscles or a hammer. It gets even harder as I get older. Thank God I have strong sons to help me when I get stuck. Luckily, my plumbing problems are little household ones. I hire big strong men for the big problems. I would rather do my real job any day.
Sounds like you have thought this through and are making a good decision.
Plumbing is very hard work.
Please take care of you!
HUGS!
Time away from work has more value than money when you get older. That is a significant aspect of my career choices now.
I have been amazed at the filth that plumbers have to work through in order to solve a problem. A plumber is kind of like a butt doctor. You're always dealing with a back end that's backed up.
I would not want to be a plumber, I know that. Most of the time, the sink or tub or toilet is clogged because of something disgusting. I don't blame you for getting out of the job.
@leaflesstree - I almost have a perfect record of no sex for plumbing. The exception was my ex wife, I certainly was glad to do the plumbing for all of her family and both sex and not bad money helped make me a cheerful plumber.
I could not imagine doing sex when my hands are dirty.
Plumbers, Electricians and the like are the aristocracy of the working class. "Tradesman" is an honourable title, even though it is coined by "professionals"to demean in comparison. The training required equals the practical stuff taught in universities. Any yet, university trained people often in my experience, look down on "tradesmen". It's a perceived "class" thing.
Now that I've sucked up :) (actually, I meant every word) I'd like advice on a plumbing problem since last night. It's now morning. My kitchen water tap (a joint hot and cold tap on a pull-out flexible pipe like a shower) is not working, it must be frozen somewhere local in the house, because it was bloody cold last night and yet all the other taps in the house are working, even in relatively cold areas like downstairs next tot he cellar.
I figure to wait 'n see if the tap works after the warmth of the day. I left the radiators on all night and the house was warm this morning although still freezing outside, so I'm not feeling hopeful but it is too early to call a plumber. It is strange to my untrained mind in such matters, because of course, the kitchen is just about the warmest room in the house, so the frozen pipe must be in the wall but close by, seeing as as I said, all other taps are working even in relatively cold areas.
Sorry to have bothered you on this. I came across your plumbing post again on my morning jaunt through the subscriptions. Beats running in the park on a frosty morning.
@Lovegrove - I am literally a fair weather friend and basically little knowlege of Icy temperature plumbing. I only know that people have to drain out all the water in their plumbing in anticipation of ice cold temperatures.
Water expands when freezing and could crack your pipes. I suppose you could get a heat gun (used to heat off paint) or a blow dryer on part of the exposed pipes and see if something will melt enough. I've also read that you can wrap a warming element around pipes to get them warm. Some folks try to run a garden hose from the water heater to another connection to try to get circulation going.
Pipes in the wall are real difficult to get to. Usually you change pipes if they get too old. (Old galvanized pipe used to last 50 years, newer import pipe from Korea and other countries last about 20 years). Pipe used for hot water get to be insulated for energy saving and I suppose cold water pipes in areas of icy temperature should be insulated just so the pipes won't freeze.
@PPhilip - Thanks for the quick advice. My plan is to wait to see what happens as the weather improves. The pipe was running great yesterday and was just out as I tried to boil a kettle late at night. I'll let you know if it starts flowing again soon. I don't want you to lie awake at night worrying. But then, if you are by nature a "fair-weather friend", you won't. :)
My hopes are high because I live in a typical French house, with the living area over a downstairs built-in garage and storage area. The assumed frozen tap is upstairs and as I say, all the others upstairs work, including a downstairs tap close to the outside source. Therefore, any frozen part is extremely local to the tap itself; I've left the tap turned on and I'm within earshot. Hopefully, the pipe will give itself an enema soon and the liquor of life will flow unto me once again soon.
It's like Canada here. I put boiling water in the bird bath outside my window when I arose from the depths of my duvet a couple of hours ago to ensure that local feathered brothers and sister can quench their thirst, and it is already frozen.
Still, their is always someone worse off. At least I'm not a brass monkey.
i think plumbers are among those under appreciated for the job they do. i can only wish i have the skill n know how. such is greatly needed when one's plumbing system gone haywire in the middle of the night. hope you found something that is more suitable for you.
@rudyhou - I like reading Mangas and have the standard reply: "Shut off the water and I will come down in the morning". However emergency rates sounds very tempting to get me out of bed.
@PPhilip - LOL LOL....