Retraining as a Sparky..... two years in
Discussion
I thought I’d knock up a quick post about my journey so far, I’ve seen lots of posts on here asking about retraining later in life so I thought it might be a good read for someone. I left school at 18 and went straight into a job that paid well, offered overtime if I wanted it and was easy enough. About five years in I knew I didn’t want to be doing it for the rest of my life but I was happy taking the money and plodding along. I kept daydreaming about what else I could do but it never got further than that for a long time. I’d always fancied the idea of being an electrician but got bewildered by the options to train and get the qualifications needed. One day I realised my 30th was fast approaching and if I didn’t do something soon I’d be stuck where I was for the rest of my life. I was driving back from Germany with my uncle and I had a chat with him about it, he was a sparky a few years back and I found out my grandad was too. He gave me an idea of what it might be like, he didn’t sugar coat it but he did say he enjoyed his timing doing the job and missed it. I thought it could be a bit of me and it was time to seriously look at it.
A few weeks later I signed up for a short course run over a couple of weekends, it was billed as a taster course for beginners. Split 50/50, half practical and half theory, I really enjoyed it. We’d do an hour or two of classroom work then the same again in the workshop so it was a nice balance. I’d get home each day and feel like my brain had a real workout, at points I felt a little overwhelmed but spent a bit of time going over things again in the week and it’d sink in. I decided to go for it, I went down to three days a week at work and set about trying to decipher what qualifications I needed and what route to take. I decided to take a C&G 2365 course, starting off with level two then level three. My aim was to then get the regs exam out the way and try and find someone who would take me on as an improver/mate and finish the qualifications alongside that. I remember thinking the day before I started my level two that I would be out of my depth and struggle with it all. Thankfully this wasn't the case, I did have to put a fair few hours in with revision as the course was very intense but I kept up pretty well. I wanted to pass the tests with confidence rather than ‘just’ get over the line and I managed that, comfortably passing them all. We began the level three course at the start of 2020, obviously got delayed along the way and finally finished in October. Level three was a step up on the previous course, the science bit in particular was tough but not horrific.
So at this point I had gained a basic knowledge of what I needed to know and I decided before going further with qualifications I needed to get out and get my hands dirty. I bought a cheap van and had a few tools. My aim was to get a few days a week working with someone and build it up to the point where I could do it full time. This turned out to be tough, lots of jobs for experienced guys but nothing out there to get that first step on the ladder. The big frustration was the time wasters though, I had three different people offer me something only to totally ghost me shortly afterwards. One guy I chatted with for half hour on the phone before he went quiet.
I finally had a bit of a break, a guy who I’d emailed last year got back to me offering me a bit of a trial. Turned up for the first day and I was excited but really nervous. Those first few days I was going home feeling totally out of my depth and questioning myself and if I’d done the right thing and if I should just give up. Thankfully I didn’t though and at the end of the week I was offered a couple of days a week going forwards to see how I got on. I quickly realised the guy I was working with really knew his stuff, 15 years experience and a bit of a perfectionist, which is exactly the kind of person I wanted to learn from. I spent the next few months working a couple of days a week, listening, learning and taking in as much information, help, advice and tips as I could. I was still working three days a week doing my old job so many weeks I was working six days. After three months I was asked if I wanted to work full time on the tools, I was chuffed but terrified at the same time, worried that I’d make the jump and it all go wrong, so as a safety net I kept on doing my old job one day a week.
I got my wiring regs sorted, as I’d been spending lots of cash on tools I was a bit tight for money so I decided to teach myself via YouTube. There are some great resources out there for revision and stuff, I spent a few hours a week learning and practicing exams until I felt ready. Knocked it out of the park and only got a couple of questions wrong. Working full time in the industry had helped speed up my progress and I was really enjoying it all too. I finally cut the ties to my old place of work, giving it up completely. That was a huge step but felt really liberating, all the stress, hard work and worry had paid off.
This brings me more or less up to date. The company I work for covers all types of electrical work, domestic, commercial and industrial. This really is the ideal for me, both for learning and for variety going forwards. I’ve landed on my feet in that respect, the company is a small one but all the guys are great to work with and really support me. I knew from the off that you can only learn so much in a classroom and now I realise that even more so now, there is so much you just can't teach on a bit of ply in a classroom!
Going forwards I have some qualifications I’d like to work towards gaining and carry on with my progression in the trade. I’m gaining confidence every week but I still have lots to work on, to learn and improve on. It's a really good feeling though, I'm enjoying my first Christmas off at the moment (with a few little private jobs thrown in) and it's great. Sunday evening is strange, I would dread the week of work ahead of me but I look forward to it now, getting out of bed is easier, I'm happier and looking forward to the future more. If there is anyone out there considering making a career change then push yourself if you really want it, it's worth it in the end in my experience.
Apologies for the long post, should have posted as I went but I didn't feel like sharing the journey until now tbh! A few pictures to end the waffle, nothing exciting as I'm actively avoiding using my phone too much at work but the first book I bought to get me started
and some snippets, clipping cable, practicing a bit of testing and some conduit work.
A few weeks later I signed up for a short course run over a couple of weekends, it was billed as a taster course for beginners. Split 50/50, half practical and half theory, I really enjoyed it. We’d do an hour or two of classroom work then the same again in the workshop so it was a nice balance. I’d get home each day and feel like my brain had a real workout, at points I felt a little overwhelmed but spent a bit of time going over things again in the week and it’d sink in. I decided to go for it, I went down to three days a week at work and set about trying to decipher what qualifications I needed and what route to take. I decided to take a C&G 2365 course, starting off with level two then level three. My aim was to then get the regs exam out the way and try and find someone who would take me on as an improver/mate and finish the qualifications alongside that. I remember thinking the day before I started my level two that I would be out of my depth and struggle with it all. Thankfully this wasn't the case, I did have to put a fair few hours in with revision as the course was very intense but I kept up pretty well. I wanted to pass the tests with confidence rather than ‘just’ get over the line and I managed that, comfortably passing them all. We began the level three course at the start of 2020, obviously got delayed along the way and finally finished in October. Level three was a step up on the previous course, the science bit in particular was tough but not horrific.
So at this point I had gained a basic knowledge of what I needed to know and I decided before going further with qualifications I needed to get out and get my hands dirty. I bought a cheap van and had a few tools. My aim was to get a few days a week working with someone and build it up to the point where I could do it full time. This turned out to be tough, lots of jobs for experienced guys but nothing out there to get that first step on the ladder. The big frustration was the time wasters though, I had three different people offer me something only to totally ghost me shortly afterwards. One guy I chatted with for half hour on the phone before he went quiet.
I finally had a bit of a break, a guy who I’d emailed last year got back to me offering me a bit of a trial. Turned up for the first day and I was excited but really nervous. Those first few days I was going home feeling totally out of my depth and questioning myself and if I’d done the right thing and if I should just give up. Thankfully I didn’t though and at the end of the week I was offered a couple of days a week going forwards to see how I got on. I quickly realised the guy I was working with really knew his stuff, 15 years experience and a bit of a perfectionist, which is exactly the kind of person I wanted to learn from. I spent the next few months working a couple of days a week, listening, learning and taking in as much information, help, advice and tips as I could. I was still working three days a week doing my old job so many weeks I was working six days. After three months I was asked if I wanted to work full time on the tools, I was chuffed but terrified at the same time, worried that I’d make the jump and it all go wrong, so as a safety net I kept on doing my old job one day a week.
I got my wiring regs sorted, as I’d been spending lots of cash on tools I was a bit tight for money so I decided to teach myself via YouTube. There are some great resources out there for revision and stuff, I spent a few hours a week learning and practicing exams until I felt ready. Knocked it out of the park and only got a couple of questions wrong. Working full time in the industry had helped speed up my progress and I was really enjoying it all too. I finally cut the ties to my old place of work, giving it up completely. That was a huge step but felt really liberating, all the stress, hard work and worry had paid off.
This brings me more or less up to date. The company I work for covers all types of electrical work, domestic, commercial and industrial. This really is the ideal for me, both for learning and for variety going forwards. I’ve landed on my feet in that respect, the company is a small one but all the guys are great to work with and really support me. I knew from the off that you can only learn so much in a classroom and now I realise that even more so now, there is so much you just can't teach on a bit of ply in a classroom!
Going forwards I have some qualifications I’d like to work towards gaining and carry on with my progression in the trade. I’m gaining confidence every week but I still have lots to work on, to learn and improve on. It's a really good feeling though, I'm enjoying my first Christmas off at the moment (with a few little private jobs thrown in) and it's great. Sunday evening is strange, I would dread the week of work ahead of me but I look forward to it now, getting out of bed is easier, I'm happier and looking forward to the future more. If there is anyone out there considering making a career change then push yourself if you really want it, it's worth it in the end in my experience.
Apologies for the long post, should have posted as I went but I didn't feel like sharing the journey until now tbh! A few pictures to end the waffle, nothing exciting as I'm actively avoiding using my phone too much at work but the first book I bought to get me started
and some snippets, clipping cable, practicing a bit of testing and some conduit work. Congratulations and well done on what you have achieved.
I’ve spent 25 years in the RAF as an Avionics Tech fixing aeroplanes. Funnily enough our qualifications count for nothing towards getting a civilian licence to fix civie aircraft.
I have 5 years left to do and am starting to consider what to do next.
My brother is a sparky, has been for 20 years although he only does commercial stuff. He lives out in Germany now working for Amazon wiring in power for all there data centres.
I keep toying with the idea of converting to a sparky. Wiring up aircraft electrical systems seems sort of a cross over to sparkling in civie street.
My brother says don’t bother. He got fed up of Eastern European teams coming in quoting way under what they could do employing people legally. They would then do a s
t job and he would have to go around fixing the mess. Not to mention the robbing of tools from sites as well.
He says it’s a young man’s game and I’’d be 50 by the time I start training. That does seem to old for me.
I’ve spent 25 years in the RAF as an Avionics Tech fixing aeroplanes. Funnily enough our qualifications count for nothing towards getting a civilian licence to fix civie aircraft.
I have 5 years left to do and am starting to consider what to do next.
My brother is a sparky, has been for 20 years although he only does commercial stuff. He lives out in Germany now working for Amazon wiring in power for all there data centres.
I keep toying with the idea of converting to a sparky. Wiring up aircraft electrical systems seems sort of a cross over to sparkling in civie street.
My brother says don’t bother. He got fed up of Eastern European teams coming in quoting way under what they could do employing people legally. They would then do a s
t job and he would have to go around fixing the mess. Not to mention the robbing of tools from sites as well. He says it’s a young man’s game and I’’d be 50 by the time I start training. That does seem to old for me.
MB140 said:
Congratulations and well done on what you have achieved.
I’ve spent 25 years in the RAF as an Avionics Tech fixing aeroplanes. Funnily enough our qualifications count for nothing towards getting a civilian licence to fix civie aircraft.
I have 5 years left to do and am starting to consider what to do next.
My brother is a sparky, has been for 20 years although he only does commercial stuff. He lives out in Germany now working for Amazon wiring in power for all there data centres.
I keep toying with the idea of converting to a sparky. Wiring up aircraft electrical systems seems sort of a cross over to sparkling in civie street.
My brother says don’t bother. He got fed up of Eastern European teams coming in quoting way under what they could do employing people legally. They would then do a st job and he would have to go around fixing the mess. Not to mention the robbing of tools from sites as well.
He says it’s a young man’s game and I’’d be 50 by the time I start training. That does seem to old for me.
The east europeans were a thing but it's been hectic for years now, most people even including an Albanian builder I do a bit for have worked out some things are really best done by someone who knows what they're doing, see lots of bodgery still but you can walk away if you want.I’ve spent 25 years in the RAF as an Avionics Tech fixing aeroplanes. Funnily enough our qualifications count for nothing towards getting a civilian licence to fix civie aircraft.
I have 5 years left to do and am starting to consider what to do next.
My brother is a sparky, has been for 20 years although he only does commercial stuff. He lives out in Germany now working for Amazon wiring in power for all there data centres.
I keep toying with the idea of converting to a sparky. Wiring up aircraft electrical systems seems sort of a cross over to sparkling in civie street.
My brother says don’t bother. He got fed up of Eastern European teams coming in quoting way under what they could do employing people legally. They would then do a s
t job and he would have to go around fixing the mess. Not to mention the robbing of tools from sites as well. He says it’s a young man’s game and I’’d be 50 by the time I start training. That does seem to old for me.
I get you on the age too it's a young man's game, looking into moving to Australia where I'll be nearing that age, and be required to do a year as an assistant, and wondering if training is required then something else instead might be better. Mind, I fell into the trade at 16 as despite having super GCSE grades I had to get a job, and have been pondering fulfilling my potential ever since.
OP, if you don't, get some proper deadbolts on your van, lots being done right now, even in daylight outside jobs.
Buzzfan said:
Maybe specialise in access control, intercom door entry systems, intruder alarms, fire alarms etc where there’s less competition.
Or build up a network of private clients.
Or build up a network of private clients.
this
Friend does HV and is kept busy, also look at ups or daa wiring for houses.and EV connections are very profitable too....
I wonder if it’s worth building up a specialism around solar/battery/V2G/ASHP/EV charging for the domestic market. All complementary technologies, likely to be a growth market for many years, and one where there’s scope to design and work with the client instead of just ‘quote the smallest figure’
Regarding being too old.......
I fell into the commercial electric world at the start of this year at the ripe old age of almost 51. I wouldn't say it is a young mans game, more that it keeps you fitter than the need for a gym membership! You soon get used to being up and down a ladder a lot, and carrying/using heavy equipment. If you have been desk bound for years, then yes, it would be a bit more of a shock .
I was one of the furloughed to unemployed, and a friend who is a commercial spark, offered me self employed work, job by job.
Now at nearly a year in, I'm thinking of the exams as per the OP. It will allow for me to be charged out at a better daily rate, even if I never see the gold card at the end.
I would add to the OP and say that if you go down the spark route, that having the tools beforehand will be a great advantage, and the basic CSCS card to get you onto building sites is pretty much a nailed on requirement.
18v Makita/DeWalt, impact gun, drill, multi-tool, grinder and SDS drill with chisel covers most of the heavy stuff, and a good selection of hand tools.
All of the first year work I've been doing has been more in construction than wiring, and is very interesting if you are the kind of person who likes making stuff from scratch. Metal trunking to be cut, conduit bending and threading. Stitch drilling large holes in walls, fixing noggins and basketwork for the containment and the such.
All of that can be achieved whilst unqualified, but makes you invaluable to the team.
I fell into the commercial electric world at the start of this year at the ripe old age of almost 51. I wouldn't say it is a young mans game, more that it keeps you fitter than the need for a gym membership! You soon get used to being up and down a ladder a lot, and carrying/using heavy equipment. If you have been desk bound for years, then yes, it would be a bit more of a shock .
I was one of the furloughed to unemployed, and a friend who is a commercial spark, offered me self employed work, job by job.
Now at nearly a year in, I'm thinking of the exams as per the OP. It will allow for me to be charged out at a better daily rate, even if I never see the gold card at the end.
I would add to the OP and say that if you go down the spark route, that having the tools beforehand will be a great advantage, and the basic CSCS card to get you onto building sites is pretty much a nailed on requirement.
18v Makita/DeWalt, impact gun, drill, multi-tool, grinder and SDS drill with chisel covers most of the heavy stuff, and a good selection of hand tools.
All of the first year work I've been doing has been more in construction than wiring, and is very interesting if you are the kind of person who likes making stuff from scratch. Metal trunking to be cut, conduit bending and threading. Stitch drilling large holes in walls, fixing noggins and basketwork for the containment and the such.
All of that can be achieved whilst unqualified, but makes you invaluable to the team.
essayer said:
I wonder if it’s worth building up a specialism around solar/battery/V2G/ASHP/EV charging for the domestic market. All complementary technologies, likely to be a growth market for many years, and one where there’s scope to design and work with the client instead of just ‘quote the smallest figure’
AbsolutelyI was the building custodian at my last base. I got talking to a guy doing the PAT testing on the entire base. Basically he worked solid for 6 months, made enough and then swanned off for 6 months.
like someone previously said, he was suggesting fire system testing/pat testing/spur testing ? I think he called the last one.
He said basically if your qualified in these three things there is always work out there and if you work fast it pays ok.
like someone previously said, he was suggesting fire system testing/pat testing/spur testing ? I think he called the last one.
He said basically if your qualified in these three things there is always work out there and if you work fast it pays ok.
Great story. I retained a few years back going from a highly stressed over responsible office job I had to doing electronic security for an alarm installer.
I was too old for the company to send to college but one company took a chance on me. Started on £5 an hour with no contact or anything. It was brilliant totally different way of life.
If anyone is looking at this type of work electronic security is much easier to get qualified in and pay rates are similar to sparks. I actually had no qualifications at all as I couldn't get the funding to go to college I just built up experience. Did it for 11 years. Its 8 years since I left there I think I was on about 35k back then but wages have increased a lot at that company I think the top guys are in about 50 now. Contracting is where the real money is a couple of lads I used to work with are doing 80 to 100k doing fire alarms and access systems for big supermarkets etc.
Hopefully OP just keep building that experience up and go contracting when you are confident you can do it.
I was too old for the company to send to college but one company took a chance on me. Started on £5 an hour with no contact or anything. It was brilliant totally different way of life.
If anyone is looking at this type of work electronic security is much easier to get qualified in and pay rates are similar to sparks. I actually had no qualifications at all as I couldn't get the funding to go to college I just built up experience. Did it for 11 years. Its 8 years since I left there I think I was on about 35k back then but wages have increased a lot at that company I think the top guys are in about 50 now. Contracting is where the real money is a couple of lads I used to work with are doing 80 to 100k doing fire alarms and access systems for big supermarkets etc.
Hopefully OP just keep building that experience up and go contracting when you are confident you can do it.
Thanks for the replies!
I've heard of people having issues on big sites with tools being pinched and stuff, we have some new build work but even our biggest site is tiny in comparison to some places, while I'm still careful about leaving my gear anywhere, everyone knows each other by name so it's relatively safe.
Part of what drew me to the industry was the amount of options there are to diversify if I wanted to, all the types of work mean that if I want to mix it up in a few years I can do. As I said, I'm lucky that I'm currently getting experience in a wide range of areas which is decent. I'm just worrying about the basics for now though!
I had the chance to do some new build second fixing, I enjoyed it and I can certainly get down and second fix a socket/switch or whatever much quicker now but christ I couldn't just do that day in day out. Mind numbingly boring after a while, I don't mind doing it every now and then but I'd get fed up quickly doing it all the time.
I've learnt in a short space of time that unfortunately there are a lot of cowboys out there, people who either have no idea what they're doing or just don't give a st. It seems by simply turning up on time and doing a decent job you put yourself ahead of a fair few competitors. Throw in being able to chat to people and come across in a decent way and you're even further up the list. I don't dispute that it's a competitive industry, but reputation is everything, certainly in the domestic industry.
The guys that have mentioned getting into the trade via more hands on routes sounds decent, there's certainly more ways to get into the industry than how I've done it. Some of the guys I went to college with had already got their foot in using similar methods, as Bruce suggests, if you've got a few power tools to get you going even better.
I've heard of people having issues on big sites with tools being pinched and stuff, we have some new build work but even our biggest site is tiny in comparison to some places, while I'm still careful about leaving my gear anywhere, everyone knows each other by name so it's relatively safe.
Part of what drew me to the industry was the amount of options there are to diversify if I wanted to, all the types of work mean that if I want to mix it up in a few years I can do. As I said, I'm lucky that I'm currently getting experience in a wide range of areas which is decent. I'm just worrying about the basics for now though!
I had the chance to do some new build second fixing, I enjoyed it and I can certainly get down and second fix a socket/switch or whatever much quicker now but christ I couldn't just do that day in day out. Mind numbingly boring after a while, I don't mind doing it every now and then but I'd get fed up quickly doing it all the time.
I've learnt in a short space of time that unfortunately there are a lot of cowboys out there, people who either have no idea what they're doing or just don't give a s
t. It seems by simply turning up on time and doing a decent job you put yourself ahead of a fair few competitors. Throw in being able to chat to people and come across in a decent way and you're even further up the list. I don't dispute that it's a competitive industry, but reputation is everything, certainly in the domestic industry. The guys that have mentioned getting into the trade via more hands on routes sounds decent, there's certainly more ways to get into the industry than how I've done it. Some of the guys I went to college with had already got their foot in using similar methods, as Bruce suggests, if you've got a few power tools to get you going even better.
A timely thread as this is what I’m hoping to do with my career.
Only I’m 34 currently, have spent 13 years in the care industry and 9 months as an Amazon delivery driver for a change.
I’ve a feeling my age is likely going to work against me for getting in.
Time to have a look for courses etc and to see how to get my own foot in the door.
Only I’m 34 currently, have spent 13 years in the care industry and 9 months as an Amazon delivery driver for a change.
I’ve a feeling my age is likely going to work against me for getting in.
Time to have a look for courses etc and to see how to get my own foot in the door.
I went for it.
Found a company that does the stage 1-4 training so currently on my first week of stage one.
Done some basic circuit building and testing.
Need to get the routine of what each test requires as that’s going to be a big help and learn the abbreviations.
But enjoying it so far.
200 miles from home for the week is the kicker to it though.
Found a company that does the stage 1-4 training so currently on my first week of stage one.
Done some basic circuit building and testing.
Need to get the routine of what each test requires as that’s going to be a big help and learn the abbreviations.
But enjoying it so far.
200 miles from home for the week is the kicker to it though.
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