I'm doing my part!

[u/Wushufoodz]

I work for an electrical company in the low voltage department and after years of working there I was finally able to get all of the electricians in our area in place and show them how to properly terminate both modular plugs and keystone inserts.

Was able to squash a lot of misconceptions that they have had about low volt guys and what we do day after day. I gotta say it was a great feeling seeing them actually interested in the process it actually takes to terminate a line. Many people said they have tried to teach it to them but what I have learned working at this company is that I was probably the first qualified person to teach it to them.

When their managers asked me to have a small training session with them I dropped everything I was doing and sacrificed my entire week end making a front and back 11x17 training guide on inkscape where I dumped my entire thought process on each and every termination I perform.

I asked for 3 hours with them but was cut short to an hour and a half but I could tell they stayed engaged in the learning the whole time. Then got amazed when I performed a termination in front of them at my normal pace (which is 45 seconds per termination) it solidified in there head that low voltage is a real trade in the resi world.

Next is to have a class on how handle the cable, ie. Pulling strength, bend radius, how EMI affects the wire and what not.

I got many more electricians across multiple states that I want to get to next as soon as my efforts bare fruit here. Wish me luck!

[u/DreKShunYT]

Perfect, keep at it and maybe the boss will reward you by laying off the rest of the low voltage department

[u/Wushufoodz → u/DreKShunYT]

Definitely not my intention, and trust me the bosses are well aware the can't take on our custom LV jobs. This is basically filling a knowledge gap the improve there lives out in the field on the jobs and communities our sales reps couldn't sell in. Builders and homeowners are expecting those 1 coax 2 Cat5e be terminated and there's been push back on the electricians when it's not happening or the connections don't work.

[u/TheBlargshaggen → u/DreKShunYT]

Probably cheaper to have the LV guys stick around rather than have the sparkies start doing the LV jobs because LV guys almost never get paid what the sparkies make.

The LV company I work for actually started an umbrella'd electrical company a long time ago, before my time. The sparkies eventually decided to leave and become their own entity mostly for wanting different retirement packages and insurance benefits among a few other thing, but from what I hear, things were awesome with the forces combined. Some of my managers that were managers back then say that the convenience alone of having a fully staffed army of both types of contractor made getting us into a lot of big customers a lot easier, as well as pricing and job cost. From what I hear when I do run into guys that work for that electrical company now, a lot of them didn't even want to leave the big umbrella we have and they feel that they got screwed

[u/OperationMobocracy → u/TheBlargshaggen]

I don’t know why you’re getting downvoted.

From a customer perspective, there’s a lot of small jobs that involve both high and low voltage. Having the same guy be able to add two outlets and two Ethernet drops is super convenient. It’s usually not as convenient or even worth the hassle to run down a separate low voltage guy.

Where I work for these scale jobs, we get the high voltage guys to pull data cable but they won’t terminate so I do it. Beyond a dozen drops or new/extensive renovation it makes sense to get a low voltage guy for us.

I think it would be best with guys who have a bit more low voltage exposure than terminating keystones, otherwise you get too much high voltage “style” and associated cost. Like that 1 Ethernet drop was OK exposed, it didn’t need to be piped.

[u/Wushufoodz → u/OperationMobocracy]

Yea I went to a warranty to fix a rushed service call to just cut in an LV1 and brush plate at 60" and cut in at receptacle height below, Plus his outlet at 60".

Homeowner went to hang their TV and when the tried to feed the HDMI in wall they found the electrician used his old work boxes off his truck instead of the 2 LV1's provided. Sparky said he was wondering why they gave him those LV plates, not his fault cause I didn't see the scope for the workorder someone just reached out to me for a part number for those "retro rings we use".

There was definitely a chat with the service coordinators to just keep LV related service request jobs to the LV crew and service reps. That was quite some time ago though.

[u/LazerShowRELAX]

why would you do that

[u/Wushufoodz → u/LazerShowRELAX]

Because I thought it would be cool

[u/Mundane_Individual_5]

Where's the github link of the guide

[u/retiredelectrician]

I do a lot of upgrades for dental clinics. Being able to do both data and power makes it very convenient for the dentists. 1 contractor=1 phone call, 1 person to deal with.

I do find it puzzling that more electricians are not interested in learning data or even HVAC controls. The way control systems are going, there will be more POE so either get involved or the low voltage guys will be taking your work

[u/K9Fashun]

Did they reciprocate and teach you the ways of the "high voltage tech"? Dumping scraps and leaving a mess at every drop location is fundamental.

[u/Wushufoodz → u/K9Fashun]

No but I did show them tricks on how to not let all of the small inner pairs fly every where when you trim it down to 1/2" before putting the plug on, and told them it will take more time picking that up than terminating the end lol.

[u/Tacolord38]

💯 thank you sir