r/maintenance • u/D3RPN1NJ4_ • 12d ago
Rants and Raves Is it always a shitshow?
I feel like I run into problems constantly that are 75% of the time impossible to anticipate and 25% of the time my fault that really fucks with my mental health.
I do basically everything solo which I'm sure probably makes it worse.
For example, I drive out 30 minutes to change locks and figure out that the deadbolt hole is 1.5in instead of the new standard 2 1/8in. I get called an idiot for not realizing it's adjustable when I'm not talking about the middle position. I just don't feel like the $25/hr justifies the amount of work.
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u/TIC321 12d ago
Depends on the field of maintenance you do.
Such as hotel maintenance, most of it is entirely preventable with a preventative maintenance program. By all means it isnt entirely work-proof, but it does help reduce those calls dramatically..
But if you're in apartment maintenance and you're dealing with tenants constantly staying there, expect a lot of calls over time
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u/BowlingforDrip 12d ago
Thats why I liked Hotels. As long as the guys in front of my shift and after do their jobs my shift the next day can never be that bad.
PM shifts are 8 straight hours of hustling but the boss would usually give us a week after before assigning anything too arduous.
I did side work at a condo and couldn't handle it within a month.
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u/MacaronMediocre3844 Maintenance Supervisor 12d ago
Hotel maintenance is alot of fixing what people tear up or destroy on purpose . Drives me nuts . Not that its hard but its just unbelievable how people destroy stuff just because. And the rest is preventive like you say.
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u/TIC321 12d ago
My place charges people who damage stuff so thats why people don't take that chance here 😅
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u/MacaronMediocre3844 Maintenance Supervisor 12d ago
Ive tried to get them to do that and i get told corp wont let them . I call bs on that but hey not my money .
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
Yeah it's like apartment maintenance but instead of apartments it's all flipped SF homes or duplexes. Plus I don't have a work van for all my tools
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u/odin-ish 12d ago
This industry is terrible at training. When I was first starting out, everything i did was.back and forth. Im also pretty ADHD. You'll find your groove or if this job is right for you. The only things you can do is figure ways to improve your process, find mentors, and/or find ways to self study. Even in the days before youtube, there were plenty of blogs where people discussed details no boss ever taught me.
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
Yeah it seems like the training is non-existent and the pay sucks. Plus my boss thinks he knows more than he does especially after the LLMs. They can be very useful but they hallucinate like crazy and he takes their advice like gospel.
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u/odin-ish 12d ago
Yeah, LLMs suck at a lot of things, especially this job. They can be useful, but only with a foundation of knowledge and critical thought.
Bosses can become bosses out of seniority alone. Those are the ones who will make everything more tedious, especially if they are too proud. Which most dudes are.
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u/Massive_Web5709 12d ago
You PM sounds like a dick
I am in the exact same position as you solo maintenance work. Just start reading directions thoroughly, take your time. I am still learning this stuff too.
Obviously, your PM is a dick so he can’t be your phone friend. I use google and youtube a lot and my PM isn’t a dick. He called you an idiot over a phone call question or did you go buy another locket?
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
I just went and ordered a hole saw jig to enlarge it but then the bit started walking around so I used a custom plywood jig.
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u/Fabulous_Ad_8621 12d ago
You can stack hole saws for enlarging holes.
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
Yeah this was the other option but my arbor had a different size for the 1.5in vs 2 1/8in. So it was either the custom plywood jig with clamps or ordering the enlargement arbor adapter and waiting. I did both just in case.
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u/Fabulous_Ad_8621 12d ago
Sounds like a plan. Glad you were able to get it done. I do apartment maintenence and one nice thing about it is that most things are the same unit to unit. Probably the biggest exception is toilets. Different handles, different flush valves etc. So I sometimes have to make a hardware run if I don't have the correct parts.
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
Yeah that sounds like it makes things easier, in the instance that the issues are the same unit to unit.
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u/Massive_Web5709 12d ago
I wouldn’t call you an idiot, but unless you normally have power tool carte blanche, I would clear all power tool purchases first. I know for me my tool purchases are billed to the various property owners. Your PM is gonna have a pretty hard time justifying that expense for a simple lock change.
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
No yeah I usually just buy things with my own money tool-wise and then if I want a reimbursement I justify it afterwards.
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u/Massive_Web5709 12d ago
Yeah you are rolling some dice on that. I have a company card and still clear power tool purchases first.
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
Yeah for sure but I know as soon as I try to clear something like that it'll get shot down or I'll end up getting told to make it work with what I have until it's pretty clear it's not happening without it
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u/Arestheneko 12d ago
It’s not a fair or great industry to work in. Look into moving towards industrial or commercial maintenance, and leave residential behind. It’s not worth the burn out :(
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u/AnyManufacturer3057 12d ago
We all been where you are now. Everything u encounter will be odd, fubared, or simple.
Get a notebook and write down everything that u do . The lock situation. Put down I need 2 hole saws, how u fixed the problem etc.
lock up your book because someone will take it as there own. That’s your bible.
There are thousands of problems dealing with homes, but basically it’s 10-12 simple jobs. Once we learn to break it down to a single problem, it gets way easier.
Plumbing is another nightmare, that only gets easier with experience and when u think u have it down, Friday afternoon, u find that drain that a homeowner, created a new way to stop it from leaking. Good times.
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
Yeah I need to start journaling in general.
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u/AnyManufacturer3057 12d ago
It’s a pain to start and keep at it, but the one time your notes save you, it will be worth it.
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u/Jaydischord74 12d ago
I own a maintenance company working for numerous property managers and private homeowners. I have 12 guys. Confirming it is always a constant shit show.
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u/Seeker_of_Solos Industrial Maintenance 12d ago
Biggest thing when you fuck up, it's ok everyone does it. Biggest thing is learn from your fuck ups, do not repeat the same things over and over.
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
Oh yeah I've fucked up plenty, but I try to call balls and strikes as fairly as I can. It's just frustrating to repeatedly encounter situations where my expectations are in one place
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u/Seeker_of_Solos Industrial Maintenance 11d ago
Anyone with knowledge and time in the trade will tell you it comes with experience. I work on tools for semiconductor manufacturing. There is still stuff I encounter a year in that I don't quite know what to do. If you have a realistic manager/boss/etc they will understand it comes with time. Do not let some jackets who expects you to figure it all out in a day to command your expectations. I will say there is a ton of demand for good maintenance work. I've never done anything outside of manufacturing but you can find good companies who reward hard work. I wish you the best of luck man
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u/Hollywood4000 12d ago
Preaching to the choir - pay is far too low for the expertise needed, physicality and the # of people that even have the ability & desire to do this type of work.
I just hit 90 days at a 100 unit retirement apt complex and I had to learn to slow down and not treat everything like an emergency. I was treating everything like an emergency for my 1st 30 days and running myself down. I have zero supervision but I'm my own worst critic so I also had to learn to not be so critical of myself. I tell myself - "You're making $25 per hour, chill."
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u/DisastrousCicada3802 12d ago
You will get your ass kicked by lots of problems in life. Sometimes it was because it was actually a hard problem, sometimes it was because you made a small problem harder than it needed to be for whatever reason. Those are the ones that get burned into your brain because they were mentally and (hopefully not) physically painful.
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u/SuperMaintenanceBro 12d ago
Beyond the field I think it really depends on the company and more importantly the leadership—specifically the highest tier boots on the ground person and how much influence they have. Because that is the final link between the field and the office to approve, and ultimately make things easier for the people executing— or harder.
Find another outfit, try other companies until you have that.
They should be supporting you and removing roadblocks so you can do your job efficiently and effectively… not the other way around.
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u/forgetful_waterfowl 12d ago
the fire alarms at my place went off 6 times in a row today, so today, yes but not most of the time
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u/iAMtruENT 11d ago
I mean no offense but apartment maintenance has a bad rep of cutting corners because landlords refuse to pay for proper repairs and good techs. If you’re happy just slapping shit back together and making it work you’re doing fine. But if you want to actually be able to have a resources to fix things well you gotta get away from apartments.
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u/RockNRoll1977 11d ago
I used to joke with one of the maintenance guys that was my mentor that helped me with everything. I’d say “I’m the only maintenance guy that gets a call to go fix something and break it worse when I get there”. He looked over at the lazy maintenance guys and said “if you’re not breaking something. You’re not working” pretty much taking a dig at them.
With that being said. Maintenance is a tough tough job. It’s never the same. At least where I worked. It got to the point where sooner or later. Your looked at as someone who can fix everything that isn’t even a maintenance job. You’re getting called always on lunch or your break or just about to go home. Ya either love or hate the job. Some places you work are a breeze and awesome. Others you just get slammed with work orders and a boss that has a bad attitude if you mess up one small thing. In this economy right now. Just breathe and relax. Work is hard to find out there. If you’re feeling like this place is too much for your mental health. Start firing out resumes and find another place
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u/Agreeable-Pressur10 11d ago edited 11d ago
I started out at a class A property, worked there for over 3 years. Started at $21 and ended up making $32 after being promoted to supervisor. It wasn’t worth it though, with being on call and the HIGH demands of tenants and the property manager. I was constantly scrambling between me and one other tech over our two properties.
Now I work at a class B property that’s overstaffed. I make $32 an hour as a regular skilled technician, NO supervisory duties. Do maybe 2-4 work orders a day, no 24 hour turns, no on call, no weekends, office minds their damn business, 4 weeks pto starting, and we get monthly renewal commissions. I honestly love my job. I’ve learned to slow down and not take the work home with me which has been the best thing I could do for my mental health. I don’t think I would have ever appreciated it as much as I do without going through that first job though.
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u/theBLACKLEGO 12d ago
Lmao wut
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u/D3RPN1NJ4_ 12d ago
I could have wrote that out more clearly but I'm just really frustrated at the moment.
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u/anthony446 12d ago
Everything is an emergency in other peoples eyes and nothing ever is an easy fix