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College Education vs Skilled Trades photo

College Education vs Skilled Trades

By education, Plumbing Company, skilled trades No Comments

You’ve heard the advice: Get a college education so you can get a good job.

 

While that’s great advice, it’s not always easy to follow. After all, it takes time and money to go to school. Even if you get your associate’s degree, you’re still looking at a $10,000/year bill to pay, and when you graduate, there’s no guarantee you’ll have a job waiting for you.

Despite the advice, college isn’t the only route to a good career. In fact, the skilled trades are one of the best ways to get started on the next chapter of your life. “Give me someone who can show up on time, have a good attitude, and be willing to learn,” said a local machine shop owner. “I can teach them the job…but they have to be ready to do the work.” She’s had unfilled job openings for the last three years.

“I can’t find younger workers,” she said. “As an owner, that means I have to use the staff I have and pay more overtime so I can fill my orders. It’s frustrating to know the company can accommodate more work but we don’t have the staff. As a result, we’re turning down orders or delaying them.”

Her corporation isn’t alone, either. Right now, there are “Help Wanted” signs posted across the United States, but not nearly enough people to fill the positions. Predictions only show the gap widening. According to a study conducted by the Department of Labor in January 2019 , there was a deficit of 1.1 million skilled laborers.

The lack of workers means if you’re a skilled tradesperson, you’re in a great position to find your dream job. If you’re interested in becoming a skilled tradesperson, however, you’re in a great place to acquire the necessary skills. “If you’re reasonably mechanically inclined, we could find you a place and train you on-the-spot. Our starting salary is very competitive!” The machine shop owner said.

It’s not just her place, either.

Most employers who rely on the skilled trades will provide on-the-job training. And in many cases, they’ll pay you while you’re training. “An apprentice can make a fairly decent paycheck, depending on who they work for,” a local plumber, Norm Oke of Norm’s Plumbing, said.

“They’ll learn on the job, and develop the skills they need to be successful. It may take a few years to develop that experience, but the whole time, they’ll be earning a paycheck and be well-equipped to handle any certifications or licensing required.”

Once skilled tradespeople are licensed and certified, they’ll see a jump in pay and have some freedom that a desk job may not be able to provide. “Every day is different,” said Norm. “Even when I was an apprentice, I always liked how much variety there was. And I can make my own hours. A lot of time, that means I work longer. As a business owner, though, it also means I control my workflow…and I like having that control.”

When asked about whether skilled trade jobs could be outsourced by artificial intelligence, thereby eliminating those positions from the job pool, the machine shop owner and Norm both replied with a resounding “NO!”

Norm elaborated, “There really is no substitute for hands-on, skilled people at the job site. A lot of times, the job requires collaborating with others to determine the best way to plumb a sink or provide a vent. It means knowing what questions to ask, how to read the blueprints and even coordinating eyes, ears, touch and smell – as awful as that sounds – to detect a leak. Today’s robot can’t do that.”

The machine shop owner agreed, “Right now, we have a lot of processes automated, but there’s no replacement for a trained eye. Will a part fit? A lot of times, it will in theory but in practice? It’s a bust. And a skilled machinist can think outside of the box to find a specialized solution. There’s no way to program creative thinking.”

Follow that advice: Get your education and get a good job. The skilled trades are willing to train, and able to pay while you learn. Take your apprenticeship to the next level and you can be your own boss, make your own hours and even control your workflow. That sounds like a great start to a great career.

Bill Harden New Owner

Exciting Announcement – Change of Ownership

By Owner, Plumbing Company No Comments

To our valued customers, 

To start, I wanted to express my thanks for all our customers, friends, and partners for turning to City Wide Plumbing over the years for your plumbing needs. We’ve built a great many relationships in our community over the years and all of us at City Wide are very grateful for the trust our clients place in us. 

We have some very exciting news to announce: In September 2021 we finalized a change in ownership! Bill Harden, a Tempe native, and Fraternity brother of Tyler, Kevin and myself, purchased City Wide Plumbing and has immediately gotten to work serving our customers. Bill has worked for over a decade in Real Estate with his family here in the Phoenix Metro area and has run many home repair, flips, and remodels jobs in his time. The transition has been incredibly smooth, as all our staff will be staying in place at City Wide and are each dedicated to new growth at the highest level of quality and service. 

Bill will be adding some new technology to City Wide’s daily operation – tracking invoices, receipts, job details and photos for every new job which will make your service history readily available every time you call. I will be sticking around with City Wide as an advisor to Bill, so please feel free to reach out to the office if you have any questions for me. 

City Wide Plumbing has been a great constant in our family and everyone here is committed to keeping that high level of service and care for our customers as our main priority. Thank you again for years of your trust in City Wide Plumbing, we appreciate all of you immensely. 

– Larry C Quinn

Residential Plumbing Maintenance Program

Residential Plumbing Maintenance Program

By maintenance program, residential plumbing No Comments

Home sweet home!

It’s where we go to take a hot shower on a chilly evening, or water our gardens after a stressful day. Now that many of us work from home, too, it’s where we eat, sleep, work, laugh, love and live. And to fill that tall order, all of your household systems need to be on point and stay there.

One of the easiest ways to keep your household systems running is to do the preventative maintenance. It lets you spot the trouble spots before they spot you. Or spot on you, and then you have a mess. 

Here at City Wide Plumbing, we think that life is messy enough. That’s why we’re proud to offer The Residential Maintenance Plan. It’s a really great way to stay on top of your plumbing maintenance tasks – without investing in special tools or teaching yourself from a self-professed guru on the Internet. Instead, let us do the work. Once a year, one of our certified, fully licensed and trained City Wide Plumbing Technicians will:

  • Inspect and flush your water heater
  • Check your faucets, toilets and showers for leaks and proper operation
  • Determine your drain flow rate with an under-sink drain inspection
  • Evaluate your water hardness
  • Provide an “angle stop” valve operation inspection at key points in your home

You’ll get a heads-up on any problem areas, and have the chance to make an informed decision. That way, you can minimize those surprises, saving your pocketbook and your belongings from irreparable damage. 

As a City Wide customer, you’ll benefit from our exceptional service, but when you’re on our special Maintenance Plan, you’ll also receive priority scheduling and your trip fee is included – that’s almost a $70 value!  Plus, you’ll receive a 10% off any service during your maintenance agreement.

Call City Wide Plumbing today:  480-966-8795.
We’ll tell you more about how our special customized plan can work for you.

Hard Water Wreaks Havoc

By backflow device, backflow prevention No Comments

It can seem like a no-brainer: The hot water in the shower isn’t getting hot enough?

Turn up the temp on the hot water tank. Problem solved, right?

Well…yes…but was it the right solution for the problem?

At first, the answer was yes. It worked very well. The water in the shower felt hotter and everyone was happy…but over time, the solution was actually the cause of more problems. 

In a few short weeks, the hot water tank became simply a water tank, and the homeowners were in the market for another hot water tank…even though the one that they just bought a few years ago was a good one.

So what happened?

When the homeowners turned up the temperature, they didn’t realize that there were two temperature controls. Inadvertently, they adjusted only one control. That meant one control worked harder than the other one to maintain the new, higher water temperature. And when one control is forced to work harder, it wears out faster. In this particular instance, there was another underlying issue that created the perfect storm: hard water calcification buildup. 

Higher water temperature settings accelerate the calcification process. More calcium deposits build up on the hotter heating elements, forcing them to use more energy to heat the water, and remain hotter much longer to maintain the higher setting. 

It becomes a vicious circle: More heat = more calcium buildup = more energy.

More heat = more calcium buildup = more energy.

After a few weeks, the easy thermostat tweak on the hot water heater became the number one reason the heating elements stopped working…and why they were in the market for a new water tank. 

 

When they called City Wide, they learned the real reason they weren’t getting enough hot water, and it had nothing to do with the hot water tank. Instead, the problem was with the shower faucet. Hard water deposits built up within the tap, limiting how far it would turn. 

 

When your hot water isn’t so hot any more, call in the experts at City Wide. They’ll keep your showers at just the right temp, diagnose the problem at the source and give you the options you need to make an informed choice. 

Call City Wide Plumbing today:  480-966-8795.

One size toilets doesn't fit all!

Tall Toilets for Tall People

By bathroom remodeling, tall toilets, toilets No Comments

Did you ask for a “taller toilet?”

One of my customers is a large man, and now that he’s getting older, he just requested that we replace his old 15-inch toilet with a taller, 16.5-inch “handicap” toilet.

“My knees aren’t what they used to be,” he joked, “and so I’d really like to have a taller stool – one that isn’t quite so far down for me.”

While the 16.5-inch toilets are usually marketed to handicapped people, I could see how a taller toilet would be more comfortable for someone with his proportions. I could imagine his 6-feet, 3-inch, 300-pound frame would certainly benefit from the increased height of the taller toilet.

A few weeks later, I checked to make sure that he was still happy with our work. “I am,” he said, and I could hear the smile in his voice. We talked a little while longer and he wrapped up the conversation with a great suggestion:

“You know, I should have upgraded to one of these [taller toilets] years ago, but I didn’t even think about it until my knees started giving me trouble. You should market toilets with the added height to guys like me – you know, bigger and a little older. I’m sure they’d appreciate one as much as I do – maybe more.”

The 16.5-inch toilet can be a great addition to any household with taller family members.
Let us know if City Wide Plumbing can help you with any of your plumbing requests! 

Call City Wide Plumbing today:  480-966-8795.

City Wide Plumbing Tempe, AZ.

When in Doubt, Call in the Plumbing Experts

By backflow device, backflow prevention No Comments

drinking water

A licensed back flow plumbing technician can save you
time and money!

It’s easy to take clean running water for granted.You turn on the tap and there it is. When the flow stops running altogether or your water quality degrades significantly, it’s time to call in an expert. You’ll save time, money and peace of mind.

I had a restaurant call me to certify their brand-new backflow.

Backflow preventers are used to keep your water supply from becoming contaminated. A properly installed device helps keep fresh water flowing into your water lines while keeping possible contaminants out. Another company recently installed this backflow preventer, but the technician wasn’t licensed and couldn’t certify the work.

When our licensed backflow plumbing technician arrived, he knew right away that it wasn’t the correct backflow for that installation. Since city requirements change all the time and there can be new ordinances, he tried to call the municipality to double-check if they would accept that backflow for the restaurant.

Our technician was unable to get a hold of the city’s official, but there were only two options: Replace the backflow completely or chance it and pay to have the backflow certified. The customer decided to gamble on the city accepting the backflow at inspection and paid for our tech to certify it.

Gambling can pay off, but it can also cost more money, time and effort in the long run. When the city official inspected the work, the backflow preventer did not pass. In order for the restaurant to continue operating, it had to have the right backflow preventer installed, certified and then re-inspected by the city.

More time. More money. More effort.

The restaurant owner paid for two backflow preventers and two certifications, and was closed until the restaurant passed its inspection. It was a costly mistake that could’ve been easily prevented. This happens a lot, especially in restaurants, because each city has different requirements. Only licensed backflow testers know these regulations. Their continued training and licensing demand it.

Our motto is and always has been to do it right the first time. In the long run, you’ll save time, money and peace of mind.

Call City Wide Plumbing today:  480-966-8795.

Call 480-966-8795

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