And thus it begins.

Well, I figured I was overdue for another update so here it is. Things have been going very well. So far we haven't hit any concepts that I couldn't understand, so I am feeling pretty good about everything. I had a private meeting with my teacher this week and she told me she didn't have any concerns about my work either. I'd tell you more about the meeting but then it wouldn't be private any more.

A little background on my class. I was hoping that maybe there would be some older guys in the class (by older I mean close to my age) but everyone is in their early 20's or younger except for the next oldest guy who is still 10 years younger than me. As I am writing this his wife is having their first child. She was supposed to be induced today but we are still waiting to hear about the little one actually popping out. Good luck to Patrick and his wife and their new baby. A very exciting journey is just beginning.

Anyway, getting back to the class, I took a couple of pics of the classroom and workshop. To the right is our classroom. There is 8 desks with two chairs each and a computer on each desk. These computers are linked with each other and the instructors computer, but we don't have any internet access on these machines. We have had a couple of chances to look at the refrigeration simulators and practice circuits on these units which will be very helpful for designing and trouble shooting as we learn more about how the systems work.

The next picture is of the workshop, or at least part of it. The room is at least twice this size and has a bunch of simulated A/C and refrigeration systems as well as actual heat pumps and air conditioners. We also have a hot room where we do all the soldering and brazing that goes with plumbing refrigeration systems (lots and lots of copper tubing). We each have our own toolboxes (the day class has to share theirs) and work benches. This is where the fun stuff happens. I'll post some pictures of the things we are working on when the projects are complete.

We also have a computer lab at the University Campus (these other rooms are at the Cowichan High School) that we use on Thursday nights. Those computers have full internet access so we can research different projects and concepts.

Our subjects are moving fairly quickly right now, but not so quick that it is hard to keep up. Actually a large part of what we have been doing so far is math. All the math I learned in high school and thought I would never need is haunting me again. We have to calculate the unknowns in DC circuits, and figure out the values for pressure, temperature and volume equations. Other than that, it has mostly been learning and understanding definitions relevant to the industry (types of heat, heat transfer, states of matter, specific heat, gravity and pressures - you know - refrigeration stuff).

Anyway, its getting late so I think I'll wrap it up. I still have some reading to do before tomorrows class so I had better get to it.

Talk to you again soon,
Rob

P.S. One of the first things I learned is that the word "refrigeration" doesn't have a "d" in it. I always thought it did.

HVAC: The beginning.

Well, the first two weeks are done and what can I say? How about a little background on the course?

 I decided to get into HVAC after a couple of different conversations. I was visiting my brother in Victoria one day. He is a machinist and works at the dockyards in Esquimalt. He mentioned that from time to time, they post openings for apprentices in different trades and mentioned that Refrigeration tech's earn quite a good living. We talked about it a little but I was happy at work and had lots of other things going on in my life so I didn't spend a lot of time thinking about it.

Later that year I ended up getting laid off from my job and found myself looking at the possibility of changing careers. After about 6 months I talk to my career councillor about maybe retraining for something different. I mentioned that I had seen a course on HVAC on VIU's website and his eyes lit up. I got the feeling he thought that was a good trade.

I spent a couple of months researching the trade and filling out an application to be sponsored to go to school. The application went in through an agency that works with the provincial government to get people educated and employed. They are called Amber Educational Services but their contract with the government expires in March so they won't be around much longer. However, there will be some kind of agency that will apparently take over as the program is very popular and effective.

At the same time, I started getting my application in to VIU to see if there was still room in the course. I found out that the daytime class was full, but they offered an evening course as well. There was still space available in the evening course, but it was almost full as well. I did the required assesment test to prove that I was smart enough to go back to school. The test was based on math, reading comprehension and mechanical reasoning. I did a lot of practice on the math as it has been awhile since I had to think about converting fractions and percentages among other things, but it went very well and I passed.

Finally I got all my approvals (there is more involved with this, but I will save that for another time). The other thing about the course was that it is taught in Duncan. I looked at some possibilities for staying in Duncan during the week, but it is only about an hour drive so I decided to wait and see if there was someone I could commute with from Parksville or Nanaimo.

I got to Duncan for the first night and found out that our teacher is a woman. Normally that's not a big deal, but during my research on the trade I found out that there are very few women working in HVAC/refrigeration (less than 5% I think) so it was a bit of a surprise. However, our teacher has been working in the industry or teaching since the early 80's, so she is very experienced and knowledgeable about the trade.

The other thing I discovered is that due to an error at administration, we only had 8 people registered for the class and only 6 showed up. Out of those 6, two were from Duncan, two from Victoria and one from Cowichan lake. So much for commuting. Since then we have another guy join who lives in Nanaimo that I am working on setting up some kind of drive sharing but I haven't worked that out yet.

Anyway the classes are really starting to get interesting now. The first week was a little slow because we spent a lot of time just going over the rules and safety regulations. On a side note I was laughing to myself as we went through the safety regulations because I have worked quite a bit with my father-in-law over the years. He is an extremely experienced and knowledgeable contractor, and I learn things from him every time I work with him. However, safety has never been his strong suit. I think almost every item listed on the first two pages are rules that I have seen him or someone working with him violate on a consistent basis. Love you, Doug!

We have been working the last week on basic refrigeration which has meant we have started calculating the BTU's needed to melt and boil water as a basis for learning about refrigerants. We have also starting working on calculating voltage, current, resistance and power for basic circuits. In our tools class we practiced cutting, flaring and bending copper tubing, something we will be doing a lot as HVAC/R techs. I had done some plumbing before working at home and in the restoration business, but it is a lot more precise when you are plumbing for refrigerants as they are a lot more sensitive to imperfections in the copper.

As we start to go over new things in class I am getting a sense of the depth of this course and I know it will get very intense very soon.

That's about all for now, I will try and post more info soon so it is not such a long and dry read.

Talk to you soon,
Rob

If my kids can do it, why can't I?

Ok, so, last year Miranda started a blog about her adventures in her first year of college in Ontario. It was fun to see how her year was progressing and how much fun she was having with her friends and classes.

This year Jessica is in New York for her dance apprenticeship working with a very progressive and exciting young choreographer and she started a video blog for all those that take interest in her career.

I am sitting at home feeling lonely because girls have moved away, my wife is a partner in a business that is keeping her busy pretty much all the time, and I'm not seeing much of my son or our exchange student because they are going to school during the day, and I am going to school in the evenings.

I find myself waiting with great anticipation for the girls next blog to come out just so I get a different view of what is going on in their lives, so I thought maybe some of you that I have always felt great support from (especially in the last couple of difficult years) might want to know how my new life is progressing.

So here it is.

On September the 6th, I started an 8 month foundations course to become a certified HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) and Refrigeration Technician. It is a 5 year apprenticeship with this course giving me the basics to start work in the industry in May. I am really excited about it because it is an opportunity to learn a varied and constantly evolving trade that is challenging and should help me provide for my heavily artistic family (there's good money in the performing arts).

I will try to put up some regular updates as I learn interesting new things in my classes, and if you are curious, you can check it out to see what is going on.

That's it for now, I will post a new entry sometime next week. Maybe after my first couple of quizzes so I can let you know how I'm doing.

Talk to you soon,
Rob