learn a trade - plasterer

t3rm3y

I am very very keen to learn a trade, i have done poffice work for last 10 years, and am sick of it, (account management, on telephones , new business dev -cold callsetc)
i have looked at various training courses and colleges, but am out of work at the moment, the college course tend to be part time over x amount of years, and a specilist training centres are a bit far away and want a large amount of money, then i rang one yesterday, and mentioned i was interested in becoming an electrician or plumber, he said they are 2 of the hardest nuts to crack, and if im looking for work straight away then plastering is the one to take, its a 6 week course and £1700.

i am interested, but can anyone tell me if after the 6 weeks i would be qualified and able to go out doing jobs on my own, its no good if i pay that money then still have to find someone to take me on as an apprentice, so i earn very little if i do manage to find someone, i have a 1 year old so cant really afford that route.

edit - just rang the bloke, he tells me i ill be city & guilds qualified, and to become nvq quailifed i need to have my work assessed. is this going to get my a job or am i going to waste my money?

vicshippers

Having that qualification won't mean you can work on your own straight away - it will mean that you are more likely to get an apprenticeship.

Plastering is an art form, it takes years of experience to be really good - not something you can learn in a 6 week course.

Rockporkchop

Plastering is much harder than it looks. As vicshippers said, it is an art form and takes years to perfect. My DH did a course years ago as we were fed up of spending money on plasterers. Even after the course and loads of practice, he could still only do small areas and even they needed sanding down a bit before painting.

Maybe you could do an evening class at your local college, it shouldn't cost much. At least that way you can find out whether it is something you enjoy doing and want to continue with. Or take plumbing or electrics if you prefer the idea of that - I reckon the guy only tried to put you off them so he could sell you the plastering course.

t3rm3y

ok, im reading variuous places and all seem to say that it is an art and takes years to learn, but being 27 and with a baby, i cant afford to go to college at the moment, or take an appreciship at low pay, i just want to do a course and then maybe go out doing jobs and learning more as i work, are the companies tha twould take me on if i got a c&g in plastering? surely that shows a desire to learn, and as long as im goetting a pay im able to live on i`ll be happy learning with professionals until i can go out on my own.

rock - thanks for info, plumbing or electrics i reckon would be a longer course as a lot more to learn? i would ideally like to learn more then one over time, and build upon my knowledge.
ive got positives and negatives on this course, a friend did a 1 week course (he is already a qualified carpenter) and said it means he knows how to plaster but isnt qualified, and he reckons if this is a 6 week course i should be qualified at the end? - but then on the other hand i am worried that this bloke is trying to sell me the shortest course for an easy 2 grand and i wont get work out of it as easily as he reckons

vicshippers

What you're asking is - what is the minimum cost and time I have to devote to something to be able to make a good wage? Unfortunately, there is no answer to that. Trades are difficult and they take time to learn and even longer to master.

Think of it from a customer's perspective - would you have confidence in someone that only had 6 week's experience to plaster your house? Of course not, you would want the guy with 20 years experience.

While I applaud your enthusiasm, as well as the research you are doing - there really is no easy answer. Unless you have a talent at something or you can do something that not many people can (artist, good driver, great teacher etc) then you will have to devote the time to learning a skill.

Oldernotwiser

t3rm3y wrote: »

just want to do a course and then maybe go out doing jobs and learning more as i work, are the companies tha twould take me on if i got a c&g in plastering?

And who's going to be paying for the mistakes you make while you're learning/practising?

ive got positives and negatives on this course, a friend did a 1 week course (he is already a qualified carpenter) and said it means he knows how to plaster but isnt qualified, and he reckons if this is a 6 week course i should be qualified at the end? - but then on the other hand i am worried that this bloke is trying to sell me the shortest course for an easy 2 grand and i wont get work out of it as easily as he reckons

There really aren't any shortcuts to learning a skilled trade - would you want to work in an office alongside someone who'd only done a week or two's college course in office skills? If you don't have qualifications at this level already, a college evening course at level 2 would be free and then you could move on from this and develop your skills over time.

Zazen999

Sorry, it's not good news but the time to study any construction related craft is really not during a recession, if you want to earn a decent wage quickly.

There will be lots of craft professionals being made redundant who have lots of experience in the trade.

It takes 3 years to become properly trained in plastering if you want to work alone; 2 years if you want to work supervised. 6 weeks really isn't going to do it.

Welshwoofs

Sorry, but bad news from this side as well. My other half was a plasterer up until a couple of years ago when he left the business and retrained as a hypnotherapist.

Now is NOT the time to train in the trades. Naturally the learning centres you're phoning will tell you differently because they want a few £k of your money. When it comes to the trades, people want time-served professionals rather than people who've done a 'quickie' course. My other half used to help out on a forum about plastering and you wouldn't believe the number of posts from people who'd done a quickie course and then were totally stumped the first time something untoward happened (like a particular patch of a wall 'sucking' the plaster dry faster than elsewhere on the same wall). You'd also not believe the number of jobs my OH got where he was basically skimming over the bad work of a rookie self-employed plasterer.

Your best bet if you really want to do plastering would be to get an apprenticeship, although realistically in this economic climate and at your age you may find it very hard to secure one unfortunately.

A lot of people think that plastering is easy. It isn't. My OH used to do everything from marble plastering (using a marble dust mix and colourants to produce an effect like sheet marble), to molding plaster reliefs to replace damaged stuff in period homes, to external rendering effects (and there are dozens of those), to lime plastering to panel work with dash. It is an art and it takes years to perfect. It's most definitely not a quick way to earn money (or even an easy way) and if you go it alone you'll find that in current times you'll have lots of 'cowboy customers' who get the work done with no intention of paying.

I'd think really hard before you go down that road...

jeff_chandler

Im a plasterer and gained City and Guilds way back in the early 70s. Although I now have my limitations I know when someone has been on a six month course. All they tend to learn is skimming. Skimming is easy but try putting the backing plaster on a full wall and get it level, then they shy away from that. Plastering is an art, a fine self satisfying profession, nothing like looking back as to what you have just done.
By all means try a course, it all depends how well you adapt.

cannoncon

if u decide to learn a trade maybe try one that doesnt need hand skills. ie sparks if you are naturally gifted maybe u can learn to be a plasterer but there is a huge shortage of work. i have been in b/trade for 38 yrs and am multiskilled and struggling.the bottom line is price not finish. good luck

Hammyman

t3rm3y wrote: »

i just want to do a course and then maybe go out doing jobs and learning more as i work, are the companies tha twould take me on if i got a c&g in plastering?

Good luck with that. The companies would only be interested in someone qualified for non-apprentice roles if they had experience.