Plumber

ironman,

To work in the VI as a plumber you'd need to obtain VI board certification. Full-time pay for plumbers here is about $35,000. Your remodeling experience may be the most useful of the skills you've listed as there are always parts of houses and condos that need replacing due to the havoc wreaked by the salt in the air.

Come to St Thomas then is you only make $35k a year on St Croix. My plumber makes $60 an hour and it took me weeks to get him, and he was the only plumber that returned my call to virtually EVERY plumbing company in the phone book. You will do FINE. Math is not my strong suit but if you can keep yourself booked 1/2 the time at $60 an hour $1200 a week $62k a year.

Thanks Local. I've been assuming St Thomas was an option.

One Love Ironman

Wow, Local, do I ever feel blessed to be on STX, where we've found the greatest plumbers we've ever known. We discovered a leak from our water pump on a Sunday morning and called for help. They, a wonderfully friendly and fun father and son team, came within hours -- leaving a family party to help us out -- went to the local hardware to get the parts they needed, and fixed the problem, all within an hour, and then charged us their regular rate instead of their emergency off-hours rate. (These plumbers share a policy with my former tattoo artist -- price is dependent on attitude -- and I'm honored to say that these fine gentlemen took a liking to me. *blush*)

If these plumbers do earn less than the folks you used on STT, it's because they're genuinely nice guys who take care of those they consider their neighbors, and not because they are less skilled or responsive to their customers' needs.

Best of luck to you, Ironman. Do investigate both STT and STX, not only for business opportunities but also the individual atmosphere each offers. For some, it's worth trading off a higher salary for other quality of life issues (I swear that I'm not trying to deprive Local access to a better plumber!). I'm sure you do well wherever you land.

--HC

ironman,

The plumber I referred to is on St. Thomas and it is unlikely that plumber's pay on St. Croix is higher. Local's math makes plumber's pay here sound terrific but you should take a look at the pay statistics available on this board:

https://www.vimovingcenter.com/employment/wages.php

I don't see plumbers listed but in the "Construction" section, electricians, who must also be board certified, are listed with an annual mean income of $34,970 for year-round, full-time work. These numbers were last updated in November 2005, so the information is current. I seriously doubt you will find half-time work here that will pay you $62,000/year.

Two weeks ago the plumber I hired to repair a major leak billed me $585 for labor and materials. He had two assistants and the job took most of a day and a half including the drives into town to rent an electric jack hammer and the second trip into town to go to the hardware for parts.

It is maddening that plumbers on STX don't seem to carry even basic fittings with them to job sites so every job is interupted by the drive to the hardware.

In any case I don't think you can bill $60 for plumbing.

The contractor whom I am going to use to remodel my place only bills me $25 per hour for skilled labor.

You might be able to charge a premium for showing up promptly and being able to finish a job without a visit to town.

Jim

Thanks for the input. Since i've already been on my pmv I just wanted to know if people on this board felt there was a need for plumbers on island. If I may, let me explain mean income as far as plumbing is concerned. The pay scale of $30-35,000 a year is usually that of a mechanic with years of experience working for an employer for wages. Board certified masters are normally lead men and get a higher wage due to the responibility which comes the position. You do not have to be certified to work for an employer.
Also, $30,000 is the basis which insurance companies use to base your first year of being in business. In other words, according to the the insurance industry you are not going to make less than that if you are in business. Also I hate to tell you this but $62,000 ayear for half time work is not all that doubtful. Of course you have to understand what half time work is to a plumber.
I also had people tell me on the phone they have been trying to get a plumber for weeks and no one called back. I always answered my phone no matter what time day or night
Kudos to the plumber that helped HipChip.
I'll be moving down soon, if I can't find plumbing work maybe I can get a job washing dishes (hee,hee) close enough.
One Love ironman

Yes Ironman you are right these people don't understand the difference between working for yourself and for someone else. You will only make $35k working for a shop (although for a master it ought to be higher) but if you work for yourself which is what I ASSUME you would do since you are a master plumber you definitely would make that pay.

And HipCrip please send those plumbers over here. I was new to the island and had to use yellow pages, now I know the best guys are the ones without a listing. But they still charge a bunch, but are definitely more responsive.

I feed my contractors beer food whatever if they do a good job and show up....at all! Helps later down the road when you are in a crisis.

Ironman much more commercial work on St Thomas too...I'm sure this will spark some controversy but its true.

my only plan at the moment is to get a job. Get a foothold on island and, take it from there.
Thanx everyone
One Love Ironman

My husband is a licensed plumber and we are thinking of starting our own plumbing business on stx. I am an accountant and could run the books of the operation and help him too. Does this sound like a pliable option considering need on stx?