PICK YOUR BRAINS becoming a electrician,at the tender age of 30.

[10joe123]

Hi guys,
Im 30 years old,work full time within the tool hire industry and would like to learn to become a qualified electricain.
I am aware it might cost me a few grand to get qualified but im ok with that, i work full time and have kids and a mortgage so will be unable to quit work to learn, i will have to do it at nights or weekends.

What im asking is : what tickets i need
: where i can learn
: what is part p
: can i teach myself

: if theres anyone who doesnt mind me emailing them loads of Questions about it

I would really appreciate it , if anyone can give me any advice.

Thank-you.

 

[yamar1]

Dont bother mate, i wish i hadnt but to far on now,, read deskilling topic and realise how electrical contractors are treated by employers you might think again.

 

[10joe123]

Thanks for your reply yamar1, but im gonna give it a go.

Anything positively contructive what be appreciated here please,thanks guys.

 

[Specialist]

Hi OP: Firstly welcome to the Forum, before you enter into this please be aware that Paying someone a Few thousand pounds & getting yourself on a 5 day or 5 week short course might give you a couple of pieces of paper but contrary to what the Scam providers tell you does'nt make you a fully qualified Electrician. All it will do is give you a Basic understanding of Electrical installation in a Domestic environment, when you leave the course is when you really have to start learning. The Electrical trade can be an Interesting / Rewarding trade but it depends what you put into it. Part P is the building regs certificate that you need to Legally carry out most work in Domestic premises.

As for the Question: Can I teach myself: Please don't be insulting, the Electrical Trade is a Skilled & complex trade & getting more so by the Day.

 

[10joe123]

Thanks for reply, I am unable to quit work to learn, so i was planning to contact some local electricains and see if they would be willing to take me long on a saturday maybe ( for free of course ) so i could observe or maybe do the **** little horrible things.
I know this might take me a few years to learn, but its something i would like to do.

 

[yamar1]

fair enough but you have been warned,,

training centres,,, you will find the courses they are offering are usually the addons like 17th, pat testing, part p to name but a few, if you want to do it properly start with the new 2357 which is the underpinning knowlege stuff which realy is the first course you and anyone wanting to become qualified should be doing, its a 3 year course to. for gods sake dont throw money away at these conmen training centres they will tell you lies to get your money and leave you high and dry at the end,,, start with a college doing the course i named.

 

[Specialist]

Ok for the courses you need then your first port of call should be your local Technical college engineering section & they can give you the advice you need.
Nowadays you're going to be very lucky to get an Electrician to take you on as what used to be known as a Saturday boy, even for free. Unless of ocurse you know someone in the Trade or you go with a cowboy, there are just too many problems that can arise.

 

[10joe123]

Im sorry, i did not mean to insult you.
but you can only do Modern Apprenticeships up to the age of 25 and im 30 , so i would have to learn myself and fund it myself.

2 replys and you have both clearly got a cob on about something.

cheer up, its christmas.

 

[10joe123]

thanks guys

 

[GLENNSPARK]

fair enough but you have been warned,,

training centres,,, you will find the courses they are offering are usually the addons like 17th, pat testing, part p to name but a few, if you want to do it properly start with the new 2357 which is the underpinning knowlege stuff which realy is the first course you and anyone wanting to become qualified should be doing, its a 3 year course to. for gods sake dont throw money away at these conmen training centres they will tell you lies to get your money and leave you high and dry at the end,,, start with a college doing the course i named.

agree with the 2330....soon to become the 2357 being the underpinning knowledge n all that....but hold on here mate...you say that this has to be the FIRST thing you undertake....what a load of rubbish that one is!!.....I didn`t do it that way and it hasn`t done me any harm at all at college i can tell you......

 

[Specialist]

Sorry I obviously misunderstood your question, I thought you wanted honest answers & that's what you've been given. There is'nt any point in us dressing it up & lying to you about things, at the end of the day we see this question regularly from people who are under the impression that you can just buy the Qualifications / Skills that you need. As both Yamar & myself have told you, you need to contact your local Tech for advice / courses. The short courses will do nothing for you other than cost you a whole heap of money. If you take a Troll through the Forum you'll find a lot of posts on the subject & a lot of useful information.

 

[GLENNSPARK]

I did the 17th edition and the 2392 BEFORE starting at college and found i had some underpinning knowledge that has helped throughout my time at the college i attend....alright i had some previous experience but so what?......the one thing i wouldn`t recommend though is to replace/substitute college with these "add on" short courses....then go around convincing yourself (and everyone else) your a spark.....without the relevent college quals (2330, 2356, 2357 etc) your not.........

 

[10joe123]

I have worked at my current job for 14 years, i completed the first 4 years as a modern apprentice. I am well aware you cant buy knowledge.
I would like to sometime in the next maybe 3 or 4 years leave to do something else, that something being an electrician .
I guessed i would have to go to college at night times , which i will have to pay for because i am over 25 and work.

 

[10joe123]

cheers lenny , you ok today or have you got a cob on.

 

[telectrix]

the 2330 ( now becoming something else, 2357, i think,) has up till now been able to be taken 2 evenings a week. takes a good while, but , like has been said before now, much better way forward than the 5 week, £5000 short courses, which are about as much use as a chocolate fire hose, without the intense knowledge required.

 

[GT1]

Learning the theory is very very important. If not THE most important aspect.
Far too many guys out there doing the work without a clue as to WHY they are doing what they are doing.
And they fall over at the first real hurdle at something even slightly out the ordinary.
You will have to decide how best to achieve that from the many options there are.
On top of that though is the practical hands-on aspect.
If you have a general engineering background, come from industry, from another trade ? Then you have a good chance to be able to achieve the competence needed.
Don't let the age thing stop you. I came into it aged 40.
However 3 years later and many thousands of pounds spent, I'm just able to say I'm confident with the everyday stuff, and every job involves pulling the books out making sure my calcs are correct.
I'm nowhere near broke even yet and won't be for some time.
Good luck. Stick with it if your determined to. But dig in for the long haul.
Remember the course providers only want your money. Be wary of extravagant claims.

 

[GLENNSPARK]

Learning the theory is very very important. If not THE most important aspect.
Far too many guys out there doing the work without a clue as to WHY they are doing what they are doing.
And they fall over at the first real hurdle at something even slightly out the ordinary.
You will have to decide how best to achieve that from the many options there are.
On top of that though is the practical hands-on aspect.
If you have a general engineering background, come from industry, from another trade ? Then you have a good chance to be able to achieve the competence needed.
Don't let the age thing stop you. I came into it aged 40.
However 3 years later and many thousands of pounds spent, I'm just able to say I'm confident with the everyday stuff, and every job involves pulling the books out making sure my calcs are correct.
I'm nowhere near broke even yet and won't be for some time.
Good luck. Stick with it if your determined to. But dig in for the long haul.
Remember the course providers only want your money. Be wary of extravagant claims.

got handed this PIR a few weeks ago by a chap who had employed a "sparky" to do said PIR on his home.....took a look at it then gave the property a look round.....couldn`t accept half of what was on that PIR.....now,..maybe this guy was just trying to generate some work for himself needlessly,
.....not on in my eyes.....or maybe he was undertaking PIRs without the theory/background knowledge and thus simply didn`t know what he was looking at...but still undertaking PIRs.....not on in my eyes.......

 

[fuzzydunlop]

Glenns right in doing some certain courses first I did my 17th between 2330 lvl 2/3 and it made a huge difference in the way I think, also made the written exams a piece of ****

As for what course doing the 2357 seems a no brainer to me, I can't for the life of me see why people do a "Part P" course for a similar amount of money

 

[rugbynick]

Go for it! As said by many other replies,the best way willbe via local colleges. I have just trained two adult trainees and their course fees were about £800/year for 3 years on day release followed by the NVQ 3 and the AM2. They were paid based on the JIB labourer/adult trainee rate. Look at it as an investment in your own future. Deskilling or not- there will always be a need for good electricians.

 

[GLENNSPARK]

I see the sensible have decided to attend this thread.....good to see.....