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Construction Workers of NS

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Heinzler
Posts: 1931 - Karma: 125
Just seeing how many of us are in construction business. I am a pipe insulator and fire caulker- shit's itchy. what do you do?
Sep 18 2012 8:16PM
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CaelW
Posts: 400 - Karma: 108
I'm just a pipe layer;)
Sep 18 2012 8:16PM
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powderdrunkie
Posts: 2034 - Karma: 976
residential remodels.

I prefer finish work, and framing.

I prefer NOT to do plumbing, or install appliances, but people usually need that done if they're going to buy a house.
Sep 18 2012 8:22PM
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thewhiteprophet
Posts: 692 - Karma: 33
I specialize in the kind of construction where I stand in the road with my buddies and one of us does a bit of digging every now and then.
Sep 18 2012 8:23PM
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cornholio
Posts: 3952 - Karma: 3,057
concrete construction, i need to work on my spanish
Sep 18 2012 8:49PM
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howlongcanausern
Posts: 4982 - Karma: 1,737
why do canadians use the imperial system of measurement for construction? i thought metric was much more practical?
Sep 18 2012 8:50PM
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ALaw
Posts: 2616 - Karma: 1,552
I was doing general labor work on commercial buildings this spring. But in college now so I don't have to keep doing it :)
Sep 18 2012 8:51PM
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thewhiteprophet
Posts: 692 - Karma: 33
canadians use the metric system you nort
Sep 18 2012 8:59PM
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fupaface
Posts: 810 - Karma: 449
I work at the temp services and do construction for them, I have done everything from carpentry to demolition. But my favorite thing to do is landscaping
Sep 18 2012 9:01PM
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intifada
Posts: 931 - Karma: 263
Do the same thing in slc, shits rough.
Sep 18 2012 9:08PM
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SkiBum.
Posts: 3600 - Karma: 3,909
Hell no. They are in America, they can speak English. Just point to where they need to be or shovel and tell them to learn English.
Sep 18 2012 9:10PM
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sniche
Posts: 493 - Karma: 37
I'm 19 years old and remodel house's with my pops for his company. I've been doing this shit full time since I graduated and did it every summer since I was 14. My dad made me a project manager so I manage different crews of workers cuz I've learned so much about everything construction i.e. carpentry, plumbing, roofing, landscaping, masonry, pretty much everything. I am lucky as fuck that my dad taught me everything over the years.....Its not to bad when it comes to the money side of the job, 40-60 hours a week at $36 an hour plus all the benefits one could ask for. I would of never expected there to be any of us on NS though.
Sep 18 2012 9:12PM
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theabortionator
Posts: 51666 - Karma: 162,559
I want the gig of standing with the stop/slow sign for road work.
Sep 18 2012 9:16PM
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Lt-Aldo-Raine
Posts: 2309 - Karma: 120
I've been seeing more and more portable stop lights for this.

As for me i own a lawn and landscape business but im also going to school full time studying Construction Technology (carpentry). We're working on framing right now building roves(sp??) and its pretty fun. Cant wait to graduate and start working.
Sep 18 2012 9:28PM
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LoathesRaisins
Posts: 3612 - Karma: 4,735
Lost. The hell is a nort?? ahahaha
Sep 18 2012 9:31PM
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alex=
Posts: 1738 - Karma: 2,835
I want to be an ironworker so i can work at height. That's a form of construction. that's many many years off though.
Sep 18 2012 9:45PM
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ChucklesNorman.
Posts: 1197 - Karma: 719
In school doing framing, form work and foundations right now. Anyone looking into trades as a career path should look into BCIT in Vancouver. They have some awesome programs.
Sep 18 2012 9:46PM
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_DUSTY_
Posts: 1097 - Karma: 686
I worked for a guy this summer doing a bit of everything. Did some concrete work, framing, electrical, drywalling and plumbing. Just a summer job though.
Sep 18 2012 9:50PM
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NotoriousT.S.E
Posts: 1014 - Karma: 439
Yeah that stuffs really interesting to me, a friend of mine works for his dads best friends huge commercial building company in MA and he makes absolute absurds amount of money. Thats also the best possible outcome, but it seems like the business side of commercial and residential building is pretty lucrative. My dad also operates excavators and other large machinery so im slightly raised around that environment, although he doesnt recommend it because its gets physically draining after the years. But regardless im currently enrolled to major in Building and Construction technology with a minor in Economics in the spring semester so im interested to see how i will feel after making that commitment. / lifestory
Sep 18 2012 9:55PM
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Kekambas.
Posts: 904 - Karma: 485
i do this every summer.  Small town highway department's are what's up. 
Sep 18 2012 9:55PM
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DizzyG
Posts: 698 - Karma: 296
Did this too, but I dug holes and built rock walls
Sep 18 2012 9:56PM
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cubber
Posts: 1933 - Karma: 638
Heavy equipment operator oooooh exotic
Sep 18 2012 9:57PM
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Lt-Aldo-Raine
Posts: 2309 - Karma: 120
im jelly, what do you operate?
Sep 18 2012 9:58PM
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Heinzler
Posts: 1931 - Karma: 125
yeah, i'm the only white guy who isn't a boss. my name is "guero" to my coworkers
Sep 18 2012 10:39PM
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skiskate
Posts: 787 - Karma: 823
Im the prick from the engineering company who tests all your work and tells you when it isnt right. Mostly do bridge building, and highway construction though.

And to buddy saying you want to hold the stop sign. Flagging is the most boring job on earth. Its fun for about 5 minutes until you realize you will be standing in one spot for 12 hours.
Sep 18 2012 11:13PM
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theabortionator
Posts: 51666 - Karma: 162,559
I wish I knew somebody that built houses and what not. I could probably build one but it would be shady as fuck. I can make anything out of wood, but I want to learn the legit ways of construction. I'm not going to pay money and go to trade school or whatever. I would learn better just working with someone. Honestly it's not something I want to do anyway. I just love building shit and it would be cool to have a background in that just to know how to do it by the book.
Sep 18 2012 11:14PM
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max...
Posts: 1379 - Karma: 802
I was a fencer this past summer.

Digging post holes all day, putting up chain link, vinyl, wood, the works.
Sep 18 2012 11:21PM
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Skibumsmith
Posts: 5432 - Karma: 11,823
I'm doing fiberglass drywall right no. it's itchy.
Sep 18 2012 11:31PM
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corona
Posts: 12797 - Karma: 32,759
no we don't. not in construction. unless maybe you work for a township, city, province etc. but in the private sector good luck finding anyone who uses metric.
Sep 18 2012 11:37PM
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Skibumsmith
Posts: 5432 - Karma: 11,823
that makes no sense. why wouldn't you use metric?
Sep 18 2012 11:39PM
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MANDER
Posts: 4017 - Karma: 2,038
I work in hardscaping during the summers so making driveways and flagstone paths and shit. I hate it...
Sep 18 2012 11:39PM
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corona
Posts: 12797 - Karma: 32,759
firstly, almost all materials are in imperial. secondly, for construction purposes a base 12 system is mucho easier. you want a 1" and 3/16ths of something? then it's damned easy to measure out. you don't care to be wasting time trying to figure out what 1.1875 is. And you can't say that 'well you'd just use 1.2'. no you wouldn't. the natural progression of measurements in a human is to cut things in halves. symmetry is key to our mind. you cut something in half you get 1/2, then again 1/4, 1/8, 1/16 etc etc. it's jsut how our mind works best. especially in trades where visual is key, it's easier to cut something visually in half, then in half twice more than to estimate 0.125 with you eyes. also base 12 is much more dividable. you don;t need crazy fractions to get 1/3's for instance.
Sep 18 2012 11:54PM
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corona
Posts: 12797 - Karma: 32,759
and a foot is a much more useful measurement than a meter.
Sep 18 2012 11:55PM
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J_Christoph
Posts: 2519 - Karma: 8,752
My dads a general contractor and my grandpas an architect so I work for them...I do a lot of carpentry work/ excavator jobs
Sep 18 2012 11:57PM
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Heinzler
Posts: 1931 - Karma: 125
ouch. that sounds brutal
Sep 19 2012 12:00AM
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SkiBum.
Posts: 3600 - Karma: 3,909
Just FYI, the metric system is used by the entire world pretty much, except for the USA. The metric system is much easier to use, read, work with. We (Americans) are just used to our own system and are to dumb or lazy to figure out the metric system.
Sep 19 2012 12:00AM
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saskskier
Posts: 4774 - Karma: 10,005
I spent my last four summers (not including this one) landscaping and most of my time was spent doing paving stone driveways, patios, paths, walls, etc. I loved it. Hard work with good friends and a crazy tan making creating something to be proud of was fantastic.

Here's some of the stuff we did.

Click for larger image
Click for larger image
Sep 19 2012 12:00AM
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corona
Posts: 12797 - Karma: 32,759
I'm Canadian and live in Canada. a metric country. yet in a lot of field imperial still dominates. construction being one of them.

both systems have their particular uses. in sciences, metric is far superior. in a more hands on construction setting, imperial wins.

I use both systems, it just depends what I'm doing and what system is better tailored for the specific needs.
Sep 19 2012 12:16AM
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applejuice.
Posts: 5506 - Karma: 1,512
My family owns a steel fabrication business. It rules.
Sep 19 2012 12:17AM
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tronned
Posts: 1098 - Karma: 790
i was a welder for 2 years before becoming a mechanic.

i worked in a fabrication shop for welding, it was hands down the worst shop i have ever seen in my life.
Sep 19 2012 12:21AM
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caucasian_chad
Posts: 4078 - Karma: 3,625
I do something somewhat similar. I'm an engineering student and I intern for the city on the survey crew in the summer. We do a wide variety of different things, staking street projects, preliminary surveying, and maintaining survey monuments within city limits. I really like it, there's a lot of variety. You might be hiking through the woods in a city park looking for monuments one day, and out at a job site the next.

I think I might try to get into inspection next summer though because I want more hours, and more money.
Sep 19 2012 12:45AM
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rudager
Posts: 11335 - Karma: 4,624
Currently doing warehouse/inventory/shipping receiving duties at a power plant build site. Certainly isn't the construction job I was thinking of, but the pay is awesome, and I love who I work with.

My roommate is an engineer on the site too
Sep 19 2012 1:00AM
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b.utters
Posts: 321 - Karma: 99
I don't think you understand how the metric system works.

In construction all measurements are in millimeters, not meters (you will NEVER see anything marked on a plan in meters except RL's and FFL's etc.)

So your first point - Materials are measured in mm, you have probably just never heard of them being referred to in these terms.

Second point - Measuring out mm is pretty easy too. To measure 1.187 you would pull out your tape and measure out 1187mm.

Third point - No trade will ever cut anything by just looking at it with their eye and guessing, that's retarded.

Fourth point - The metric system doesn't need to use fractions in measurement as the mm is small enough to measure pretty much anything you will ever come across.



Back on topic:

I'm a cost planner/estimator working on retail projects (shopping malls) ranging from $5 millon to $600 million. It pretty much involves colouring in plans all day and playing with excel spreadsheets. Not the most exciting thing in the world unless you are based on site.
Sep 19 2012 1:52AM
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Toasty.
Posts: 6196 - Karma: 2,302
you make bank? seems like a lot of electricians do well off
Sep 19 2012 2:08AM
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HaydenWrong
Posts: 986 - Karma: 2,165
fence builder whaaaa whaaaaaaa haha
Sep 19 2012 2:16AM
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_DUSTY_
Posts: 1097 - Karma: 686
Haha it's assholes like you that made me end up doing an extra 15 hours of cribbing. In all honesty though it's good we have engineers designing buildings, if my boss had the option he probably would have skipped the engineering process and have his house fall down.
Sep 19 2012 2:16AM
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Skibumsmith
Posts: 5432 - Karma: 11,823
well shit goddamn
Sep 19 2012 3:55AM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
i worked for a landscaping firm but basically only did removal, ie. chainsaw/axe down trees and bushes, break up or dig up stuff with the mini excavator, etc.
also worked a couple days in their motorpool as an assistant, it was fun !
Sep 19 2012 4:05AM
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Skiing.Nz
Posts: 279 - Karma: 49
I debating weather to stay at school and go to university or just go to poly tech, get my pre-trade and get my apprenticeship as a mechanic. I've been working full time in the summer for two summers now at this mechanics, and it's pretty cool.
Sep 19 2012 5:51AM
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applejuice.
Posts: 5506 - Karma: 1,512
Just wondering, why didn't you choose to join a union? Our company is also a non union shop but we're in a union dominated industry (erectors/steelworkers/etc.) which makes things difficult for us on occasion.
Sep 19 2012 8:37AM
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twoplankerbean
Posts: 780 - Karma: 47
I've been doing masonry for six years. I build cool shit.

Sep 19 2012 11:28AM
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