For most of my life I have loved the building trades. My dad was a shop teacher so I got a lot of great exposure to tools. He would also bring me around to the different projects he would be working on. I never thought of going into the trades for a living though. It wasn’t until I saw my wife’s first house that I thougt about it. The real estate agent said it was built by someone who does million dollar homes. If unsanded drywall patches, rotted wood in the bathroom that was just retiled over, and a crew that floored right over the air conditioning vent that was in the middle of the floor is considered the work of a million dollar builder then the rich are getting screwed. This sparked that desire to work in the trades once more. I’ve always worked wood or read material on building things since I could stand and read, but I’ve discovered its quite difficult, for me anyways, to find that door to get moving on being a builder.
From the posts and books I’ve read most people suggest going to work for someone, which is sound advice and I agree with it 100%. But what do you do when you want some experience and the economy is in the tank? In my part of the country no one is building anything.
And did anybody out there ever start something promising by having a day job and then doing projects for clients on the weekends?
Replies
Side Work
In this economy I would think that would be the way to get your feet wet.
However, if you lived next door I would have an entirely different opinion.
Are you going to play by the same rules as those of us "really" in the trades. Will you get a license if necessary in your area? Will you get insurance to cover problems that do arise in doing business? Do you intend to file with the IRS, State and localities?
If yes, then you would be just like one would hope, the rest of us. It's a bitch to be beaten out of a job by a part-time guy not paying for the responsiblities of which we take care of day in and day out.
If in renovation, don't forget to familiarize yourself with the New Lead Rules taking effect in April of this year. Training and testing-100.00(Sherwin Williams in this area) to 300.00 and up and then 300.00 for certification by the EPA. Add to that the addtional lead containment and disposal costs in material and cleanup tools.
Sure, welcome aboard.
My goal is to build the skills that I already have into a small building firm. And with that, yes, obtaining a license, insurance, and the other items that I am sure I am missing. I would think that people would want an insured and licensed builder just for piece of mind. But that transition is where its going to be a little cloudy for me. The most logical thing seemed to do what I could on the weekends because, as you all know, there isn't a hell of a lot of work out there. What kind of work could I do that would be limited to three days (if I took a day off from my normal job) is what I've been asking myself. Putting in an opening in a wall, fixing and replumbing door jambs, some built in pieces, etc. What I do not want is to fall in to the realm of handyman. Though I'm not a professional I think of myself as a craftsman and I care immensly about the work I do.
But there are those contractors out there, especially in my town, that don't care. Maybe they are burnt out or maybe they are just greedy, but the work suffers. I had a roommate who bought a house in a new neighborhood and for the price of the house I was surprised to learn what problems he began to have. Most of the windows leaked, the ceiling was about as wavy as the North Atlantic, and the plumbing leaked through the ceiling where the bathrooms were. I can remember on the back porch one of the double joists wasn't long enough, so they splice on another board to make up the difference of about 15". Me, I would have gotten another board and put it up there right.
I am reading David Gerstel's book for a starting point. It has a lot fo great information in it. But today's mentallity of build it fast, build it cheap seems to be hurting the industry more than helping it, and some of the topics in his book seem like they would be difficult sells nowadays (cost planning).
Why is it that people look at the building trades as a last resort for people as a means of employment? "You'd better do good in school or you'll end up working in construction." These are the things that I experienced working in them during the summers. Its things like this that detered me in beginning. No one talked about the challenges you would face or the skills you would learn. And the strange heiarchy that was in place when you actually worked there. I know that low guy on the pole does his share of grunt task but it seemed like an act of God was need for someone to give you a hammer.
I just want to build things and enjoy working with my hands but at the moment it seems becoming a doctor would be easier.
A little more clarification
All I meant to convey was that even at a couple days a week if you want to play by the rules you do that from the onset. Admittedly that sounds foreboding, but it is the right way to go. When I started I partnered up with another guy and we fixed things. Soon we graduated into building things. Non of this licensed, because in our state and county no license whether tested or bought was necessary in the non talented trades-i.e.-not plumbing or electric. Anyone with a saw was a carpenter.
However, shortly after we started we found a business card from the local tax man-"if you work in the city, you need to come see me" was written on the back. Well, we went in and he explained we needed registered with them for tax purposes and so we did just that. He asked how long we'd been in business....................easy to remember as it wasn't long. He gave us a quick crash course on how "HE" would do it. The one most important thing he suggested-Insurance. So we did that too. Next came a permit we needed to pull. Found out we needed a surety bond in order to file for the permit. OK.
So in the matter of a few months we went from just doing it to being in business. That was 38 yrs ago. I've been on the straight and narrow since and have no regrets.
You mention "handyman". I cringe when I hear that term too, but........
Having been doing this and whatever else I could learn over all those years has made me what my mother would call-pretty handy. Unless you were a prima donna or dumb as a stump you can't help but be that, doing what a carpenter does as a trade. The key is to be good at what you do. Lately I've been asked to repair alot of things. From rot to that fancy wood patio umbrella that fell over in the wind and broke a spoke. Now the rot repair is one thing. Correcting what caused it is quite another. That's the right way. The umbrella-shoot-pretty handy to save them a couple hundred dollars and space in the landfill. Those little things that take experience and talent will fill in all those slow weeks in between the sweet jobs.
It's not all glory buddy. There's quite alot of shit that needs done on the way to building memorials of art.
You also need to know when to draw the line. Working commercial I inhaled the Union line (to a point). There's your trade and then there's the other trades. I sub the plumbing and electric. Period. I may do a very small repair but for the most part I honor the other trades area of expertise. As the contractor I need to warrant all work done. For me it's easier to sleep at night hiring the full professional for things other than carpenter.
If any more lumber yards close and I have to push a shopping cart to get material-I may think of going into medicine.
Sorry
Welcome to Breaktime.
Here you'll find people that care about what they do (admittedly in the last couple months you'll find "less" people and not because bogus sheister goofballs have showed up).....................You read through the posts of a couple months and you'll get the idea.
Best of luck.
Calvin I hope you didn't think that I was agressive with my post. I really do appreciate the info and someone of your experience giving me some guidence. I get passionate about this though, but passion isn't everything in building.
As a builder I want to strive to only do good work. And I can see your point about fixing things here and there. Its pretty cool to make someone's day and help them out. But that word! Handyman...blech!
Again I really do appreciate it. If you were in town I'd buy you a beer or two.
Listen up pal
I took no offense at all. This forum stuff shows no facial expression and it's damn hard to pick up emotion too. Stuff typed oftentimes has absolutely no similarity to the spoken word. You did fine and as you plod through this place you'll get the hang of alot of things.
Be slow to react-remembering that quite often things said in jest come across the wrong way. But, be careful too in that on occasion this place has some pretty goofy retorts to almost anything. Some advice is experienced and good, some not so.
That's why it's a good idea to fill out the My Profile, located up there in the left column. You don't have to go into explicit detail but simple stuff like location (so when advice is given -and include it in a posted question-it might be location specific). You know, don't give a whole lot of Amazon Rainforest advice to someone living in Death Valley.
Experience is a good one too I guess-separates the trades people from the DIY's. I mean what might sound good if only done once or read about or my brother in law says...................might not be something to follow w/o further investigation.
So yeah, welcome-feel free to offer beers anytime-but remember, I'm part italian and I'll some day call you and call that favor in. I'm in NW Oh., that in your neighborhood?
The South
I'm not located in Ohio. I'm down here in the deep south. You may know South Carolina for our many shining moments of 2009. You know, the man who was caught having sex with a horse...twice. Our Governor who took it upon himself to use state funds to fly to Argentina to be with his mistress. Or the famous representive who shouted "You Lie!" to the President. Yeah, that South Carolina.
Come to think of it the trades down here seem to have a different kind of community. Its not a brotherhood that seems to exist up north. I don't think unions are allowed in our state, which seems unfortunate and makes for training in the trades few and far between.
How did you get into the business? I'm 32 at the moment and it feels like I need to do something soon or it won't happen at all.
I had a saw
And back in 72 after 4 yrs of college, a friend of mine wanted to build a headshop...............
I got started because a buddy of mine was doing a remodel and he needed some help. After having a taste of construction I never wanted to do anything else.
Take small projects, get into it, figure things out, ask questions, (skilled people love to help), graduate to bigger projects and so on. Don't plan on growing any bigger than you need to be to get whatever work comes your way done, ever. That's most people's biggest mistake. I know a guy that bought a $70,000.00 table saw for his small shop a year or two ago and now he's sleeping on it. Ridiculous. If you take care of the job you're on everything else will follow. By tools and such as needed. Stay lean and hungry for good, interesting work and you'll do just fine. Clients will find you. My cabinet guy is booked solid right now because he's good. Other guys are closing up shop. Pay attention, that's all.
There's nothing wrong with being a handy man. If you're motivated everything will follow. It's about developing that client stream. Meeting people, exercising good social skills, being dependable, honest, fair and doing the best job you know how to do will put you ahead of most everyone else out there. It's not rocket science, that's for sure. Just stay on it and, like I said, you'll do fine.