I had the best teacher in the HVAC industry
I was quite fortunate enough to have a great teacher in the industry. Long before I got my certification I was what my good friend and I call a service “helper” which is basically the sidekick and assistant to an HVAC tech. My Uncle Sam had been in the industry for 4 decades, and however he was retired he was still a source of costly information, but Sam told myself and others that my job as a helper was to listen and learn. I was getting paid for the work of course, but it was also free training for the rest of my work. Many HVAC techs begin their careers as helpers in the HVAC industry, this is the way it has constantly been because of the complexity of the work. Uncle Sam called some of his old friends in the local HVAC community and landed myself and others a sweet starting position as a helper to a certified tech. I did my best to follow the advice of Sam, and paid close attention to everything the certified HVAC tech did and said. I even brought a small notebook to jot things down. At the end of the work week I would go hang out with Uncle Sam, who would roll a few joints and discuss heating and cooling details with me. Even while completely stoned on killer cannabis, Uncle Sam knew more about the industry than my certified HVAC tech did. Between the various of them I managed to receive an incredible amount of heating and cooling service over the period of a few weeks. Pretty soon I think I’ll be ready to go for an HVAC certification myself.