Thread 2950797

Has anyone heard about these self-paced HVAC, carpentry, electrical, and construction courses with certificates? Supposedly they're free. Is it worth it to attend to learn more about DIY?

For those of you that have certifications or degrees, how long did you go to school?

>>2950797 (OP)
Are the certs worth anything? Are the accredited by anybody?

Somewhat related, I did SkillCat for my EPA certification, and their HVAC, electrical, and plumbing courses. For $10/mo, I actually recommend it if you want a little extra knowledge. It’s not really a trade school degree, but it counts as continuing education and is accredited and I actually rolled that into some NATE certifications. So like 200hrs of online work and I had half a dozen certifications to put on my resumé and it cost me like $100.

>>2950838
Do you have to be accredited to do the work and offer your services on Craigslist and by worth of mouth? Why would Home Depot offer cert courses that wouldn't allow you to do the actual work?

>>2950841
That’s more of an insurance thing…

But as far as those courses on SkillCat, as somebody who has taken tons of residential stuff apart, I learned a lot about larger air handlers, wiring diagrams, refrigerant bullshit, etc. I never knew what lift stations were and now I’m very familiar with them. And modules I knew like multimeter use and stuff, I could cruise through.

>>2950797 (OP)
Hey cool, thanks for making the thread. Just signed up.

>>2950866
Hey Bepis, would you recommend SkillCat or HD classes to someone who only wants to gain knowledge/confidence in being able to inspect a house for purchase? I wanna make sure I'm not being screwed by lazy inspectors/real estate agents/sellers but not sure how in-depth I'd need to go with it.

>>2950873
>>2950866
Yeah this question. I just want to be able to point stuff out or fix things in my own home. I'm a computer nerd/structural fitter by trade so I know may way with a measuring tape, but don't know anything about electrical or hvac.

>>2950873
The SkillCat app gives you like a 3 day free trial. You can bounce around different modules. Go spend an hour looking at it and see if it’s worth your time.

It’s not really going to teach you how to inspect a house though. Shit is either broken or it’s not. The courses might help repair the broken stuff but it’s not like “How to spot termites and water damage”, it’s “how to wire an outlet” and “how to change a blower motor”

>>2950797 (OP)
>how long did you go to school
i had to go to school for 3,5 years to become a certified industrial electrician
after that it usually takes people 1-4 years of work to be able to do shit on their own
doing household wiring requires less insight in elektronics but there is still alot of stuff you can fuck up and shouldn't be done by amateurs

t b h i would not even trust you to change a fuse if you told me you got your degree from some home depot

>>2950797 (OP)
I have a degree in electrical engineering and thought I could rewire a bedroom.
I have discovered that I spent a lot of time and money learning to do math, and little else.
I have signed up for their electrician classes. Thanks for the heads up.

>>2951353
It's my house and I'll do what the fuck I want. I don't have any respect or regard for your ilk after 4 of the previous 5 constructions sites I was on had "licensed pros" who didn't speak english and did a shit ass job. I don't even need to mention the modelo bottles and piss filled gatorades left around and in wall spaces getting closed in because that's a given. Worthless, just like you.

>>2950797 (OP)
>For those of you that have certifications or degrees, how long did you go to school?
i have zero certifications and training

>>2951763
Keep adding romex and push fit outlets until the 15A breaker pops, then buy a 20A and rinse repeat

>>2951811
>"adding outlets increases load no matter what regardless of use factor or whatever gay fucking argument I'm trying to make"
In what way are you even trying to seem superior? You do know the NEC hasn't had specific restrictions on the number of 15 amp outlets per circuit since 1996, right? Residential electric is fucking easy. Literally any White Man can do it.

>self-paced
they're gonna send you a $300 textbook to read and two years later if you haven't forgotten about it you can challenge an exam

Going to point something out now since this probably fits in better than in other threads.

Why is the union trades education system so bad. Having talked to journeymen in a ton of trades it seems like people talk a lot about how in 5 years you will turn out and be fully functional, but from talking to other guys it seems like at 5 years the contractors and employers want you to get another half decade before they will bring you on for stable work. It seems like a clownish system.

>>2953664
>different employers want different levels of experience
wow you don't say

>>2953664
I'll offer two observations: many non-trade schools also suck ass and the laziest sacks of shit I've ever worked with across several job fields were protected by unions.

>>2950797 (OP)
Are any of these courses offered in the English language? I don't speak Mexican.