my new job as a smoke tester....

[smiles 0]

pretty exciting to have a new job with excellent pay-


$24.00 hr. cnd. is considered fair wage by the city to contract out this job. Don't ask me why they are paying to have smoke testing done as most cities will never get around to "fixing" their problems. I do not understand why engineering department of cities do not do there own smoke testing- rather than contracting work to private company.

Smoke Testing??
requires a truck, huge furnace fan gas operated, signs to direct traffic, loads of liquid smoke and home made smoke blower, .....good shades, steel toed boots, educated enough to read city provided maps of sanitary sewer subcatchment (know the sewer manholes compared to storm drains), good video equipment, radios, vests and binoculars for staff, knowledge how to open manhole covers and a few tools.

I am employed as a smoke tester- and my pay covers travel time, food, motel room, gas, ferry cost. Basically I walk the streets checking for smoke coming out vents on roofs of homes while smoke is blown into sewer line. Hop in the back of truck to drive around to the next block or next manhole. Smoke comes up from catch basins, gutters, cracks in streets/sidewalks, telephone poles- when home is cross connected with storm drainage.
Each home has to be walked around which means access to back yards....a few dogs, beauty gardens.... checking for smoke and recording with video camera the problems- editing of the video afterwards and records are all sent to city.

To my surprise I was given position to also access roofs over 4 stories to check vents up top that couldn't be viewed from the street. (That is why when I was hired they asked if I was afraid of heights!) This means access to roofs of highrises especially- and a beauty view (just finished James Bay, Victoria B.C.)

One thing I am unable to figure out is why when opening cover to manholes I could smell reeking strong odor of cannabis?? A home or homes in that 1 block radius was a grow op for sure. The only way I can figure is that grow ops are dispersing odor into sewer lines?????

Anywho- luv the job, the pay, and peoples remarks when I try to explain what a smoke tester is!!



SMiles

eustress. : a positive form of stress having a beneficial effect on health, motivation, performance, and emotional well-being.

[Anvilbrother 0]

For the love of god call in a work order to the fire department or whoever before you start smoking the sewers. We get calls once a week and send 4 trucks lights and sirens to reported house fires b/c of smoke crews. We show up, and smoke is comming out of the vent pipes on the roof, and the workers are like DOH sorry we forgot to file a notice. They are supposed to notify our dispatch that lets us know ahead of time that smoke crews are in the area.

Postes r made from an iPad or iPhone. Spelling and gramhair mistakes guaranteed move along,

[SpeedRacer 1]

damn, i get paid to clone up mutant HIV!

MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

Speed Racer
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[smiles 0]

ya- some people driving down the streets were freaked about smoke- thought it was toxic fumes...some elderly people were upset also in old folks home where smoke was blowing up shower drains. 1 high rise had smoke inside from 8th floor up- a fish factory had smoke coming up inside floor drains, elementary schools also had smoke inside from floor drains....what a mess this old city is in....

All homes were notified 2x, city workers, fire department, police---we were featured on the local news daily, in the papers, ...........the city hired us, it is thier responsibility to notify all.

SMiles

eustress. : a positive form of stress having a beneficial effect on health, motivation, performance, and emotional well-being.

[Buried 0]

any 10+ story buildings there you have roof access to?

Where is my fizzy-lifting drink?

[Smokis 0]

Quote

I do not understand why engineering department of cities do not do there own smoke testing- rather than contracting work to private company.

The reason is overhead. Instead of going out and spending lots of money on equipment, trucks and all that other B.S. that is needed, they find someone else to spend the money on it.

And if testing is something they no longer think they want to do, they just don't bother renewing the contract and they also aren't holding the bag with all the expensive equipment.

It also looks bad on the city when they are the ones that have to tell the workers they are laid off. This way its the private guy laying the people off and not the big bad municipal government.

[masterrig 1]

I think, I 'tested' smoke at a 'Stones' concert!


Chuck

[smiles 0]

All high rises I had to wait in the lobby for personel that had the "roof keys" and was accompanied up by them but once up top they usually left me with instructions to "lock up" the hatch on the way down.

Did check out a few 10+ stories where the + story was the penthouse, also checked out 2 "newbies" with cranes that were close to 10+ from the top of other buildings close by. They appear to be under construction for higher than 10 stories and of course with the crane up top- figure one could just wear a hard hat, steel toe boots and access as construction worker at "shut down time" on the ground level....hide until workers gone, and access top and crane. (My gut would tell me the higher the better) Some buildings had completely flat roof, others had walls of 3-4 ft.

Funny as I have no fear of heights- as soon as I used binoculars on roof of 10 story- started feeling queezy- without them felt fine. Sure got adrenaline rush being up top- have yet to experience BASE jump.

SMiles

eustress. : a positive form of stress having a beneficial effect on health, motivation, performance, and emotional well-being.