Commercial Divers

[scubanut]

Anyone a commercial diver in the area or know one?  I'm looking for advice in that field around this area.  I'm thinking about furthering my education, and with my technical background (welding, installation, and quality inspection) I'm thinking about combining my career and my number one hobby into one.  If you love what you do, you never work a day in your life right?  Just researching right now, putting the toe in the water so to speak.  Job market is still pretty flat and very competitive yet, looking for a leg up, or a new direction!

Chris

[jasondbaker]

You could call these guys: 

I know they do quite of bit of training for midwest commercial divers. The divers I have talked to with commercial experience have told me that it is not easy to get work in this region.  It seemed like most of the work was on the coasts, overseas, oil rigs, etc.

Good luck

[dwitt2n]

...I have a nephew that is (was) a commercial diver who lived in Minnesota & Washington (state) & it was just that - weeks away at a time. He found the time away wasn't working out for family. Enjoyed it, but put it on a shelf for now......

[scubanut]

Thanks for the replies, I've already looked at the school in Minn. Looks like a nice facility.  Problem I'm having is the family time issue, I have two young boys, and I'm going to be committed to them for the next 16 years.  Was looking at  job opportunities in Florida in my field, and they look more plentiful than around here, but not sure of the wage to cost of living ratio of what I was looking at.  Plus I'd have to sell my house in this hot market!!!  I could always dig a moat around the place and advertise it as waterfront property. ;D 

[Tamara Thomsen]

Randy Wallander's son, Tyler, just finished up training at that above mentioned Minnesota commercial diving school.  I believe that he has found work here in Wisconsin (although I don't know the company by name- maybe one of the Manitowoc guys can chime in). Also Kimm Stabelfeldt's son, Derek, went to a commercial diving school in Seattle.  Derek was able to find work here in Wisconsin but has since moved out to Boston area to be around his wife's family.  I believe that he worked for a company in the Fox Valley called Onyx. 

I can email you contact information for these guys if you want to send them an email or give them a phone call.  Talk is cheap and if working underwater is your passion, a commerical diving career may be a good fit.

[scubanut]

That would be awesome, I'd like to talk to these guys and find out who, what, where, and how.  Like I said any info would be appreciated.  It would be really cool to get first hand knowledge of opportunities in the area and inside knowledge of the schools they went to.  This decision could possibly uproot the whole family and I'd like to get all the info I can.

[Tamara Thomsen]

PM sent

[Jay]

I have been doing work as a commercial diver for a couple of years now.  My background is in structural  engineering and I have been inspecting bridges and marine facilities.  The company I work for decided to send 4 of us to commercial dive school, where I am currently.  I have been a the Minnesota School of Diving (MSD) the last few weeks working on my ADCI Training.  This last week we have been doing alot of rigging and lifting.  The biggest thing I have lifted so far is a 20 foot boat.  Today we where learning how to work the chamber and doing chamber dives.  The surface supplied air is nothing new for me but it is nice to try some of the different helmets that I haven't used.  Next week we will start welding and burning, which I will probably never use, but is part of the required training.  MSD program is shorter then other schools but you do more then the minimum requirements for ADCI.  Alot of the other schools have longer programs, but a large part of that is so they meet minimum time requirement for student loans.  If you have any questions send me a PM. FYI the next class for MSD is not until next spring.

[scubanut]

PM sent thanks

[deep thought]

Commercial diving invokes everything from the scuba diver who retrieves a lost boat motor (so they claim..) to the mythical "saturation divers" who make the big bucks!  Truth is commercial diving is not the glamor job as dive magazines show Bikini clad women and some diver holding a helmet... It's most often construction labor in a leaky drysuit, cold freezing, dirty water.  The last job I did was in Cottage Grove municipal sewage pond #1 (yes, that's where it all goes first) in 17 foot depth to install an expandable pipe plug.  Vis was "Shi tty" ;-) .  Other memorable jobs included stuffing gunny sacks in cracks of hydro dam gates so they could service turbins??  My advice is don't do commercial because you enjoy diving, the work just happens to be inconveiniently located underwater...or Steve/Sally construction worker would do it.  If your still stubborn as I was 25 years ago and enroll in an academy, don't choose long curriculum as I did with Divers Institute Seattle, pick shortest possible.  Once you get the official (Bar Napkin) certificate, you will apprentice...don't screw up...get real experience...now you are a Com'Diver.  And if you see any of the magazine babes, let me know.  P.S.  The MN commercial diving school top notch!
Enjoy

Deep Thought