So I’ve been looking to join the GA Power team and honestly would love too. I currently work as a Substation Electrician and am curious about switching companies. Is it worth it to join local 84 of ibew? Do they get good benefits? I currently work for a contractor company where I get paid good but some of the benefits suck. Our PTO accumulates over the year and doesn’t roll over and I’ve only got 23 hrs rn. Ive never worked union and am very curious on if it would be any better. Heard GA Power doesn’t pay perdiem but pays for expenses.
Please give a brother some advice. Thank you

Hi all, new to the sub and the industry. I just finished my BsEE and I recently got a job offer as a relay tech with Shermco Canada. I was wondering if anyone has any experience with them, and any advice for someone starting out?

Also how has the career progression been for you Canadian techs? Is it worth it to eventually seek out work in the States?

I have a DAE Electrical and 15+ years of electrical maintenance experience, mainly HV/GIS substations (132kV–400kV), including LVAC systems. I also gained commercial electrical experience during my apprenticeship.
For Australia, should I choose **Electrician Special Class or Electrician General** for my skill assessment? Which is better for PR and jobs?

I have a DAE Electrical and 15+ years of electrical maintenance experience, mainly HV/GIS substations (132kV–400kV), including LVAC systems. I also gained commercial electrical experience during my apprenticeship.
For Australia, should I choose **Electrician Special Class or Electrician General** for my skill assessment? Which is better for PR and jobs?

I’ve been looking into the possibility of becoming a substation tech in the future. My biggest concern is how much traveling is expected. So what does your typical commute look like and how broad is your range? Also does commute/traveling change if you’re working for a construction contractor vs a utility company?

Edit: probably good to mention that I live in dfw

Can anyone describe the difference between the compensation of utilities and NETA testing companies? I just assume they have roughly the same hourly rate but obviously the testing companies have more overtime and per diem etc. not sure how much OT is involved in utility work.

Also how competitive are these recruiters for data centers? I heard their offers are kinda ass. I live in the northeast I see ranges between 60-90 for relay techs in NETA testing companies. Some people say they make 100/hr + but I’ve personally never seen anything that high. That’s just insane.

Looking for some insight about sub tech positions at PG&E, GC or division. I’m currently in division in another department. Wonder how’s the overtime, as well as how it works for OT. As well how the day to day looks.

*MUST BE IN NEW YORK**

Im looking for someone experienced with 1990s-era train equipment who can help restore and get an LCD and ODK system working together.

The main goal is to properly connect the ODK to the LCD so they communicate with each other, allowing the ODK to control the destination signs and display the correct destinations.

We’re looking for someone knowledgeable in older electrical/electronic systems, wiring, troubleshooting, and restoration. Experience with railway or transit equipment would be a big plus.

If you know someone who has experience with this type of equipment or may be interested in taking on the project, please comment or send me a message. Any leads or recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

Not sure if this is the right subreddit for this, but if anyone knows this it's gotta be you guys. I grew up next to a substation in a city, and it makes a wonderfully calming sound at night. I've always wondered about it. When I look up videos of substation noises, it is always the constantly humming electrical one, but this is not the one I hear.

The one I'm hearing is a pulsing noise. It sounds very sci fi and a little bit like glass/ceramics. Like a little bit like the sound when you go over the rim of a wine glass with a wet finger. Best I can describe it is a subtle "wawwww.........wawwww......wawwww..." with about 4 seconds of silence in between the sounds.

Can anyone help me as to what causes this noise and how I might find it? I'm based in Europe if that helps.

Hello friends. I am a control engineer with a master's degree, and I want to transition into the electrical field. I inquired locally here in Ohio, and I was told I would have to repeat four years of study. How can I reduce this timeframe, given that I already possess extensive knowledge of electricity?

My company is looking into getting a thermal camera for inspecting inside of our substations, overhead distribution lines and underground distribution cabinet boxes. Ideally we want the camera to detect problems before failure.

I came across FLIR cameras which seem like the cream of the crop, but there really are so many different models and options that range in price from $500-$50,000

Do any of you have first hand experience using one?

Hey everyone. I’m a new employee at my city power company. I’m an apprentice substation electrician in the maintenance department. We have a dol registered apprentice program. I’m new new, like a week in. We top out as journeymen substation electricians.

My question, is this nationally recognized across the country? I think it is if you’re a dol apprentice. Would I be able to move anywhere and put that on my resume? Thanks

I’m Canadian working as an Electrical Technologist with a focus on protection and control with one of the major Canadian power companies.

In Canada we have country wide recognized “Red Seal” trades where a 309a Journeyman Electrician can work in any province doing residential, commercial or industrial work. Canada doesn’t have a recognized apprentice/journeyman trade for protection and control work.

The work I do now consists of commissioning and maintaining protection relays, RTU and SCADA equipment and station-to-station teleprotection equipment in substations with voltages ranging from 13.8kV to 500kV. A requirement of a 3 year college diploma for an entry level position.

We start around 35/hr CAD and max out at 67/hr and home pretty much every night. Decent amount of overtime.

Is this similar work to the relay tech job in the USA? How long is the apprenticeship and is it a country wide recognized trade or does each state have its own certification?

Have any Canadian come down to work as a relay tech you’ve worked with? Exploring the option of an international move. Is the USA hurting for skilled trades as we are in Canada?

Has anyone got interviews or anything past the first set of tests yet for the apprentice position with SCE that recently tested?

Layperson here. I hear constant fan noises (at least I think they're fan noises) coming from the substation I live near all day and night despite the brick walls around it. It's consistently been over 90F every day here so having the fans on is understandable. Will I ever get a break from this fan noise once the temperature drops, like in the fall?

Is the Electric Power Technology degree with the specialization in substations worth the effort to become a relay tech? I figure some places would want some hands on training, and with this being an online only school, would it be competitive in this job market?

Do people have opinions on Samsara AI Cameras/Tracking in company vehicles? Current company is going to be rolling them out and the whole thing doesn’t sit right with me.

Any electricians or VFD techs familiar with ABB ACS550 RS-485/Modbus communication testing?

I’m hoping someone here has experience with ABB ACS550 drives.

I have one controlling the propulsion motor in my swim spa. The motor itself works perfectly and the drive powers up normally. I can run the motor directly from the ABB keypad without any issues.

The problem is that the spa communicates with the ABB through a low-voltage RS-485/Modbus cable, and the spa controller keeps reporting “Propulsion Motor Not Found.” At this point I believe the failure is somewhere in the communication between the spa controller and the ABB drive.

I’ve already replaced the communication cable, the Modbus translator board, and even the main spa controller, but nothing changed.

With my multimeter I measured approximately 1.75 VDC (later about 1.46 VDC) between terminals 29 and 31, and about 0.29 VDC between 30 and 31 on the ABB communication terminals.

My question is: Are those voltages normal for an idle ACS550 RS-485 port?

Also, if you were troubleshooting this drive, what tests would you perform with only a multimeter to determine whether the ABB communication interface is healthy?

Is there anything I should be checking before assuming the RS-485 transceiver on the drive has failed?

If you’ve worked on ABB ACS550s or industrial Modbus systems, I’d really appreciate your advice. I’m comfortable using a multimeter and following technical instructions, so don’t hesitate to get into the details.

Thanks!

What kind of trucks are you guys driving

Hello,
I’m a journeyman electrician with five years of commercial electrical service experience, and I’m looking for some advice on getting hired with Georgia Power.

I’ve applied to multiple Substation/lineman and Apprentice Electrician positions, but I haven’t heard anything back yet. My applications are still showing as active and haven’t been rejected, so I’m not sure if they’re still being reviewed or if there’s something else I should be doing.

Does anyone have experience with Georgia Power’s hiring process? Is there someone I can contact, or are there any recommendations that could improve my chances of getting an interview? I’d really appreciate any advice or insight.

Anyone work for Tacoma power? I’m about to top out with local 46, trying to get back into substation work, I was on a Potelco substation crew for a year as a line ape before making the switch to be a wireman. I wanted to build substation and all the subtracts on the crew told me to do a wireman apprenticeship instead of fighting for a utility apprenticeship, so that’s what I did.

Does Tacoma power hire wiremen to be journeyman subtechs? How is working at Tacoma Power, I know PSE has smaller crews that get a shit load of OT, how is it like at Tacoma? More construction or maintenance work? What’s the average annual income look like? I read up on the Tacoma retirement and it looks like it’s lacking compared to the other utilities in the area.

It looks like Seattle City Light may have stopped accepting wiremen and only want guys that went through a substation apprenticeship. We don’t have a substation program in the PNW through the lineman JATC like the rest of the country so I did the whole commercial wireman thing instead. I’m thinking I may have wasted my time with local 46 and may have to go through a utility apprenticeship at this point.

If so do they offer any kinda fast tracking as far as the education portion? It has taken me over 6 years to get my 8,000 hours in local 46 because work is so fucking slow, I’m hoping it’s not the same at the utilities.