No way i could’ve done that?! Shit 😪 I just got a degree in underwater processing we make Underwater puppy pads and absorbent sheets…. Business hasn’t been great 😞
My father was an underwater welder. His ship was hit during the battle Midway. Him and another welder was lowered down the side of the ship and a crane lowered a piece of metal the size of a mattress. He told me he could hear and feel his ship firing it's large cannons and other artillery and could hear the the Arial combat while the two patched their ship. He was also a salvage diver after the war where he also did a lot of underwater welding. I know this is a welding video but I am very proud of my father's accomplishments and contributions to our country, fighting in WWII and the Korean War, I'm equally disappointed that people consider the Kardashians as heroes but couldn't begin to tell you who a real hero is.
I once knew a wet-welder who worked on rigs in the North Sea off the Scottish coast. I asked him if he enjoyed the work and he said not particularly, but he enjoyed having three houses and a villa in Spain.
Yup sometims, usually very few times a year not a enough times to make it your dedicated career it's a lot of training and obviously very dangerous that being said I'm sure it pays plenty and you'd probably be amongst some of the top welders
Its not a myth. It just aint exactly common practice in wyoming 😂 its not easy to get in to but the pay is good and work is consistent with the right company.
@@WesternWeldingAcademy broco/ burning or cutting is most of what goes on. Underwater demo after hurricanes is where the money is. Welding underwater is still used but not as much because it's not as stable or clean and a surface weld that can be lowered into the water.
Had a buddy work as an underwater welder in the early 90's for the shipping company Maersk....he made BANK and retired to the Bahamas after 18 years with them
@@jerrybanley7695the average American works 40+ years and is lucky of they get to retire. Moving to the Bahamas and being financially independent after 18 years sounds like a dream.
My Scuba instructor was a wet welder, especially for deep water, with a multi-tank trimix system plus welder.... he got called out once every few years or so, thats it. I mostly remember bc his assistant instructor had to take over for a week or so when he happened to get a call out to an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.
@@patrickmartin2689 I don't remember if I ever asked... I took the class a little over a decade ago. The real question is who gets paid more, the wet welder OR the dive partner who watches out for sharks with a spear gun?
@@chungadin 2 tanks of tri-mix... what's so outlandish about that? Trimix is just the next level of special blend air above the nitrox that I am certified for. Which all that means is that they re-balance the pressurized air that they put in your tank with pure gases to accommodate deeper and longer dives with (iirc) better oxygen absorption and less risk of the Benz. But this doesn't remove the need for a safety stop, everything is treated the same as a typical scuba setup; which is compressed air straight out of the atmosphere. However with mixed air, you might find that you don't feel as worn out or that your tank seems to last a little longer. (At least in my experience with nitrox)
I have a good friend who tried out underwater welding for about a year. He’s about 6’3” 285 lbs and told me one of the contractors just simply told him, “we don’t have any wet suits that fit you, and you’re too big and take up too much space in our sub” lol He eventually came back to the refineries with us in Houston.
@@tophernuttle420 yup. I'm "only" 6'2" and have all kinds of neck problems from having to look down on tables and things I'm working on for long hours with everything built for a max of 5'10".
I wanted to be a welder when I was in high school but my Dad insisted I attend University rather than go into the trades. Now I work for the federal government and watch youtube 8 hours a day making $50 a hour.
This is exactly the kind of person you want to avoid in your life bc all they’ll ever do is drag you down to their level and keep you there until you rinse your mouth out with a shotgun and then they have to find a new underling.
Yeah if you imagine that you can have a great career doing anything you want then you totally can be. If you also surround yourself with delusional people who also won't succeed you'll totally be better off. Good luck kid.
I do wet welding in the port of Los Angeles . Average 1200-1300 min minimum a day . Usually only work for 3-4 hours . Hard to get into but was worth it .
@@WesternWeldingAcademy I'm Australian I did my ADAS SSBA P1, 2, 3 plus closed bell and all prerequisites. I guess I got lucky as almost all of our population is near the coasts.
I needed to hear this. Starting welding classes soon and having trouble managing my expectations. I try to take (sometimes mythical) leaps when often baby steps are the most productive. To all my fellow providers and heads of household trying to get our first leg up in securing a future worthy of your children; always listen to advice when someone has already walked your path. Im finally learning at 25 that Im not going to be successful by letting my own ego decide my path forward.
This man is 110% correct. I followed the same pipe dream. First of all there’s no such thing as an underwater welder. We are commercial divers who sometimes weld. Welding is like 10% of our job. We are glorified construction workers who start off at $18 an hour in the Gulf of Mexico as tenders and if you are looking for a badass job go be a roughneck. That’s where I started. Wish I stuck with it!
Its almost all topside or bell work. You get a dry habitat around the work and you get to work. Its really nepotistic too and i feel like alot people dont think about it. Most companies that do this stuff have a list of close friends and guys waiting for an opening.
When I was a kid I was told the most needed professional on the planet was underwater welder. There was such a huge demand and only a handful of people doing it. 25 years later I found out that underwater boom lasted about 3 years.
Worked for a bridge repair company for 7 years... 2004-2011 during this time I was paid to underwater weld column sleeves in place for cement repair. After only a year working as a regular grunt I showed enthusiasm and work ethic so they sent me to trade school for welding then scuba academy while getting paid full time. Afterwards, I went into business for myself, and now make triple what I was making before. Starting pay was $84 hr now it depends on the contract but it's between $1100- $2800 a day
True. Maybe back in the day. But with modern technology you have so many options to make it easier/Safer. Be it a pressurized container under the water they weld in, or straight up taking the peice outside if at all possible
Commercial diving/ underwater welding is a single man's game. You travel a lot and your first job you'll be choking hose on deck as a tender or sweeping shop floors making a little more than min wage in the Gulf.
I think its a great service your doing spreading awareness about lack of work in that field. To spend copious amounts of money on training and not have work in the end is a tragedy. But maybe on the other side give recommendations.
Out of a 10 year career, I spent one summer in Alaska welding anodes out under the pier. Other than that, didn't do much else underwater welding. We did all of our own topside welding too.
I know someone who works full time as an underwater welder. But it's pretty much all in water tanks, rarely ever any kind of open water. We live in a landlocked state though.
I guess my cousin got pretty lucky. His two most recent job were fixing up one of the ships that was bombed on pearl harbor, and the other was taking appart an oil rig, both of which were completely underwater
Im not a welder or want to be but i wish more people would be this honest with more young people when being mentors or teachers 😊 stay safe wish you the best
He’s only being partially truthful, though let’s keep it a buck. He’s welding. School is in Wyoming and there isn’t a single ocean or really any large body of water in Wyoming so the demand for underwater welding is going to be low meaning that there’s not gonna be a lot of jobs in his location, but if you’re somewhere in Florida, where I live there’s going to be more jobs not a lot but more I’m gonna assume he unintentionally told a half truth
I sailed for 30 years. 1 time, once, we needed a team to temp patchwork we could get to drydock for repairs. And even then it wasn't welding, it was the only instance I'd ever heard of on the great lakes from 1990 to 2020.
A high school (1989)chum went from high school to welding to underwater welding. He lucked out also. He got into it when a big project came up across the pond. He may have made enough $$$$$$ to retire( partially because no more work) but his health went to shit after that contract. His dream job ruined his short life.
I went the other way. The first time I ever welded anything was in the welding tank of The Ocean corporation dive school in Houston Texas. Once I got my first commercial dive job, my boss really taught me over the shoulder how to weld. That led to me being a top side welder in the military.
I worked with a guy back in the 90's who did under water welding in Alaska on oil rigs. He said the pay sounded good, but the problem was that you couldn't work a full 8 hour shift. You only worked a couple of hours at a time, and you were lucky if you got 6 hours a day. On top of that, the company he worked for took money off the top for rent and food. In the end, he was bringing home less money than he did welding in a weld shop on land. That was why he ended up in our shop as a welder.
I could be mistaken but I believe that the extended underwater welding jobs that are out there( they are rare) keep you out posted somewhere so they also have the main negative of truck driving. Imo young kids see the money get excited then are miserable from the isolation.
A good family friend of ours is a sat diver supervisor, hes been doing it his whole life and is near retirement. He says exactly the same thing, its too expensive and impractical unless the welds are done in a hyperbaric chamber where its dry. Most pipelines are fabricated on the service and joins are connected with bolt up flanges.
Very true. You are a mostly commercial diver/underwater construction. There is welding work but the competition for these jobs is high and requires a lot of experience.
I live in north east Florida on the coast. There is a welding school here and they recently began advertising and teaching underwater welding. Not sure about Wyoming, but I would imagine the market is better here for underwater welders.
At the river terminal and repair facility I worked at. Underwater welding happens 3 to 5 times a month, maybe a few hours to 1 days time. Mainly barges, and occasionally boats, some specialized projects also
My city college offers an underwater welding course. Santa Barbara City Colleges marine tech program. Plenty of underwater jobs because we have a lot of offshore rigs and a lot of boat maintenance. It's a good source of wet welding here.
Also underwater welders have the highest fatality rate. More than any other occupation. Also underwater welders have a significantly shorter lifespan than most other occupations/careers. I heard somewhere that the average underwater welder dies around age 45
As a current diver in the field I can vouch for that. Very few companies do it on a regular basis. Phoenix international is one that is the main stay for wet welding. Ucc does have some wet welding jobs nut not many. Mainly just flange work and your basic construction
As a commercial diver I can back him on this. Actual welding underwater is less than 1% of what divers do. You'll do more cutting/ burning underwater than actual weld applications. Cutting/Burning underwater is similar to air arc or gouging.
I was a commercial diver (deep sea diver) for the offshore oil industry in the Gulf of Mexico. Underwater welding is extremely rare and the industry avoids it. Be a commercial diver if you want but don't waste your time and money learning to weld underwater.
Besides the salary, underwater welders also receive an average bonus of $2,370 per year. The starting salary for an entry-level underwater welder is $71,416 per year. Entry-level underwater welders have one to three years of experience. Experienced underwater welders can earn up to $124,875 per year.Jul 17, 2023
When I worked as a commercial diver I saw one job in about 4 years that involved underwater cutting like this. I believe they were called exothermic rods that were used to do the cut. Pain in the tail because it wasn't big open space. And no special pay either... For us it was just another job.
It's easier to teach a diver to weld than it is to teach a welder to dive. And you're right, there is not a lot of wet welding going on. Under water welding is still common in the offshore oil industry but it is usually done in a habitat, both SAT and non-SAT. Better quality, faster, can be inspected, more comfortable, less complicated equipment, etc etc.
When i was getting out of the navy, there was a school that was heavily advertising at the time for underwater welding down in Charleston, SC. I think it specifically was a commercial diving school, as opposed to a weldong school, though.
this is a story from my youth.i am 59 now. i trained when i was 13 padi certified. my instructor was semi retired. he did one oil rig job. six months of welding. insteaf of pay he took stock options. the well hit big. so he did dive instructing. organized dive trips around the world. and lived comfortably, not lavishly but well.
Im not a welder and I have no interest in becoming one. Just stumbled upon this video. However, it’s great to see veterans in their line of work giving this kind of advice to the young people
My brother was an underwater welder for a time. Hes got a few close calls with death. Worst part is most of those stories are somebody else not doing their job or doing it wrong. Stay safe in your profession guys and remember safety rules are written in blood.
My buddy went on to full time underwater welding right after the army! He was already trained and competent in welding and scuba diving, so when he got out he just went to school for a few months on the actual underwater welding part to put the two skills together. The big thing is you need to either own setup or get hired by a bridge builder or oil rig. He started with bridges for a couple years and then moved on to oil rigs..
you want underwater welding your best bet is enlisting with the navy as a diver. you’ll do more than just welding (a lot more) but you’ll probably end up welding the most than any job private without a huge stroke of luck
had a neighbor who only did under water welding here in the gulf but his work was sparce quite a lot but the money he made and the life he lived he didn't mind
This was so helpful. I really wish thet would tell kids stuff like thisore often so they dont waste their time! Awesome teansparency thanks for being honest 😂💯❤️
That's why I got my Degree in underwater basket weaving.
Smart guy here
🤣🤣
Your teacher told you that to😂😂
No way i could’ve done that?! Shit 😪 I just got a degree in underwater processing we make Underwater puppy pads and absorbent sheets…. Business hasn’t been great 😞
Mine is in underwater fire-supression
My father was an underwater welder. His ship was hit during the battle Midway. Him and another welder was lowered down the side of the ship and a crane lowered a piece of metal the size of a mattress. He told me he could hear and feel his ship firing it's large cannons and other artillery and could hear the the Arial combat while the two patched their ship. He was also a salvage diver after the war where he also did a lot of underwater welding.
I know this is a welding video but I am very proud of my father's accomplishments and contributions to our country, fighting in WWII and the Korean War, I'm equally disappointed that people consider the Kardashians as heroes but couldn't begin to tell you who a real hero is.
Respects to your dad man 🫡🫡
😊
Your dad is the man
🫡🇺🇸🇬🇧
Respect 🫡
I once knew a wet-welder who worked on rigs in the North Sea off the Scottish coast. I asked him if he enjoyed the work and he said not particularly, but he enjoyed having three houses and a villa in Spain.
as an underwater fireman i approve of this message
Tf bro😂😂
Interesting. I’m an underwater wet nurse.
I am guessing you don’t live near the Gulf of Mexico. I know an underwater welder who goes down as often as he is allowed.
😂😂😂😂😂
Does he charge by the inch or by the lb?
There are plenty of diving schools in texas and the gulf
Didnt you know? Wyoming is known for its aquatic features.
I know a few people who did it for a living, one still does. Its super dangerous, thats why it pays so well.
High risk high reward ig 🤷♂️
When it’s got you, it’s got you
@@Khan-1738delta p video comes to mind
What makes underwater welding so dangerous?
@@dendrosity water and electricity.
I know for a fact all those offshore rigs need welded sometimes in salt water…
Yup sometims, usually very few times a year not a enough times to make it your dedicated career it's a lot of training and obviously very dangerous that being said I'm sure it pays plenty and you'd probably be amongst some of the top welders
Yep and it's unrealistic to expect a company to employee a kid that went straight from high school to weld school
This the stuff i wanna do. Also high up.
Yeah, they are usually welded by robots, not divers
Me when the offshore rig needs welded:
Its not a myth. It just aint exactly common practice in wyoming 😂 its not easy to get in to but the pay is good and work is consistent with the right company.
Yeah yeah
@@WesternWeldingAcademy broco/ burning or cutting is most of what goes on. Underwater demo after hurricanes is where the money is. Welding underwater is still used but not as much because it's not as stable or clean and a surface weld that can be lowered into the water.
Thats absolutely true
@@WesternWeldingAcademy only kids wear your hoods😂
@@d.b.o.c.6852 LOL the shop I’m on literally has a brand new green kid rocking one
i live near the port of Baltimore i guarante you get a job wet welding that day
Lol, im guessing you dont work then?
@@Titantitan001Lovely comment, added to the discussion perfectly. Your mom and uncle must be proud.
Did u see a lotta bodies in the Baltimore water👀
@@Titantitan001I’m guessing your still living in your moms House?
@@therealman2016 old dr pepper bottling facility with two units and my shop and bed downstairs. Union construction.
Had a buddy work as an underwater welder in the early 90's for the shipping company Maersk....he made BANK and retired to the Bahamas after 18 years with them
Retired after 18 years doesn’t sound like “bank” to me. How about making millions after 10 years. Now that’s what I’m talking about!
@@jerrybanley7695 Living the dream life in the Caribbean running a bar and not a care in the world sounds sweet to me
@@jerrybanley7695the average American works 40+ years and is lucky of they get to retire. Moving to the Bahamas and being financially independent after 18 years sounds like a dream.
It's a different world back then
My Scuba instructor was a wet welder, especially for deep water, with a multi-tank trimix system plus welder.... he got called out once every few years or so, thats it. I mostly remember bc his assistant instructor had to take over for a week or so when he happened to get a call out to an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.
How much did he get paid for one gig though 🤔🤔😁😁✌✌
@@patrickmartin2689 I don't remember if I ever asked... I took the class a little over a decade ago.
The real question is who gets paid more, the wet welder OR the dive partner who watches out for sharks with a spear gun?
@@mherrmann81687 oh shyt didn't know that part 🤯🤯😳😳😫😫😭😭
If he's diving scuba "multitank tri-mix" he is probably a liar!
@@chungadin 2 tanks of tri-mix... what's so outlandish about that? Trimix is just the next level of special blend air above the nitrox that I am certified for. Which all that means is that they re-balance the pressurized air that they put in your tank with pure gases to accommodate deeper and longer dives with (iirc) better oxygen absorption and less risk of the Benz.
But this doesn't remove the need for a safety stop, everything is treated the same as a typical scuba setup; which is compressed air straight out of the atmosphere. However with mixed air, you might find that you don't feel as worn out or that your tank seems to last a little longer. (At least in my experience with nitrox)
All of the underwater welding is working for Ports, large global ports where you generally have to be good enough to get invited or know someone
Pad eyes yo tenders do that
Do you think welding with the seawalls are going to take off to "protect cities" will take off.
My grandfather was a underwater welder for the army. Among other things. Man the stories he told still have me captivated today
I have a good friend who tried out underwater welding for about a year. He’s about 6’3” 285 lbs and told me one of the contractors just simply told him, “we don’t have any wet suits that fit you, and you’re too big and take up too much space in our sub” lol
He eventually came back to the refineries with us in Houston.
When being tall becomes a hindrance 😅
first off, if your doing under water welding you would be using a dry suit. do some research.
@@CaptianCaleb
You can wet weld in a dry suit, in a wet suit, in a hot water suit, or in board shorts under coveralls. YOU do some research.
I'm 6'5 280#s and learned I was never a contortionist welder/operator...😂😅
Yawl smidgen folk got your entire world designed just for you...😂😅
@@tophernuttle420 yup. I'm "only" 6'2" and have all kinds of neck problems from having to look down on tables and things I'm working on for long hours with everything built for a max of 5'10".
Thankfully the underwater roofing business is more resilient
🙏🙏
I wanted to be a welder when I was in high school but my Dad insisted I attend University rather than go into the trades. Now I work for the federal government and watch youtube 8 hours a day making $50 a hour.
Good for you
Thank your Dad!
What is your Degree in?
@@micahbowman4013 Physical Anthropology.
@@DonKeecockwhat do you do? The irs?
This is exactly the kind of person you want to avoid in your life bc all they’ll ever do is drag you down to their level and keep you there until you rinse your mouth out with a shotgun and then they have to find a new underling.
Find the path. 🙌🏽
Bingo
Yet here you are doing the exact same thing 🙄
Yeah if you imagine that you can have a great career doing anything you want then you totally can be. If you also surround yourself with delusional people who also won't succeed you'll totally be better off. Good luck kid.
There are only about an estimated 50,000 container ships that will never leave the water again.
Facts. Dry docks are more common for work now. Good advice here. Very good info.
No doubt!
I do wet welding in the port of Los Angeles . Average 1200-1300 min minimum a day . Usually only work for 3-4 hours . Hard to get into but was worth it .
All I see is, it is hard to get into but no info on what to do. Please share the ropes of becoming a wet welder!
😯
@@WesternWeldingAcademy I'm Australian
I did my ADAS SSBA P1, 2, 3 plus closed bell and all prerequisites.
I guess I got lucky as almost all of our population is near the coasts.
How often are you home???
@@Swagnificient everyday I live in the port town San Pedro , we serve the port . It’s like a 5 -10 minute drive for me most days
There's actually plenty, you just need to be the elite
Literally be wet.
California has a couple places that offer jobs for wet welding. It's not common place but it's out there
Thanks for sharing
Underwater basket weaving is another story. That industry is BOOMIN!
It’s true. Underwater welding occurs but it’s rare and it’s almost never structural.
💯
GOOD INFORMATION, I WAS TRYING TO BE A WELDER WHEN I WAS A KID
glad to be helpful
“I’ve never done it , so neither can you”
Sounds about right but this dude lives in wyoming witch is i like a desert if you where on the coast there are tons of underwater welding jobs
I needed to hear this. Starting welding classes soon and having trouble managing my expectations. I try to take (sometimes mythical) leaps when often baby steps are the most productive. To all my fellow providers and heads of household trying to get our first leg up in securing a future worthy of your children; always listen to advice when someone has already walked your path. Im finally learning at 25 that Im not going to be successful by letting my own ego decide my path forward.
best of luck to ya!
At least the diving suit didn't get imploded this time while doing underwater welding.
This man is 110% correct. I followed the same pipe dream. First of all there’s no such thing as an underwater welder. We are commercial divers who sometimes weld. Welding is like 10% of our job. We are glorified construction workers who start off at $18 an hour in the Gulf of Mexico as tenders and if you are looking for a badass job go be a roughneck. That’s where I started. Wish I stuck with it!
thats good to know cuz i thought there was alot of work with wet welding
Hey my friend keep up the good work, this younger generation needs direction 👏
Its almost all topside or bell work. You get a dry habitat around the work and you get to work. Its really nepotistic too and i feel like alot people dont think about it. Most companies that do this stuff have a list of close friends and guys waiting for an opening.
Gotta keep this in mind 👌
When I was a kid I was told the most needed professional on the planet was underwater welder. There was such a huge demand and only a handful of people doing it. 25 years later I found out that underwater boom lasted about 3 years.
Depends slick. Out in the GoM there's very little welding. Near shore and ship husbandry does it alone. But your big ass ain't swimming no ship.
Yeah there are factors
Thank this man for his honesty cause i thought I’d have to join the navy to get a career in underwater welding
No problem
Worked for a bridge repair company for 7 years... 2004-2011 during this time I was paid to underwater weld column sleeves in place for cement repair. After only a year working as a regular grunt I showed enthusiasm and work ethic so they sent me to trade school for welding then scuba academy while getting paid full time. Afterwards, I went into business for myself, and now make triple what I was making before. Starting pay was $84 hr now it depends on the contract but it's between $1100- $2800 a day
Welding is a great trade. Just be a great welder. That's what's most important.
True. Maybe back in the day. But with modern technology you have so many options to make it easier/Safer. Be it a pressurized container under the water they weld in, or straight up taking the peice outside if at all possible
👌
Yep! I went school in California. Back in the 80's. And I never did any under water welding. I went to Denver for pipe fitting
👍
Yep I had the same thought process and that’s when I learned what a dry dock is
Commercial diving/ underwater welding is a single man's game. You travel a lot and your first job you'll be choking hose on deck as a tender or sweeping shop floors making a little more than min wage in the Gulf.
Great point!
Wasn’t aware Walter from the Big Lebowski welded on Sundays.
I think its a great service your doing spreading awareness about lack of work in that field. To spend copious amounts of money on training and not have work in the end is a tragedy.
But maybe on the other side give recommendations.
Out of a 10 year career, I spent one summer in Alaska welding anodes out under the pier. Other than that, didn't do much else underwater welding. We did all of our own topside welding too.
See, this is why I learned underwater basket weaving. Much more in demand.
My welding instructor worked for the department of defense. He would set bolts for the anchor chain to attach to, to moor the ships.
I know someone who works full time as an underwater welder. But it's pretty much all in water tanks, rarely ever any kind of open water. We live in a landlocked state though.
I guess my cousin got pretty lucky. His two most recent job were fixing up one of the ships that was bombed on pearl harbor, and the other was taking appart an oil rig, both of which were completely underwater
Lucky him
A friend of mine was an underwater welder, he did a lot of it but worked for the welland canal lock system in ontario.
Im not a welder or want to be but i wish more people would be this honest with more young people when being mentors or teachers 😊 stay safe wish you the best
Thank you!
He’s only being partially truthful, though let’s keep it a buck. He’s welding. School is in Wyoming and there isn’t a single ocean or really any large body of water in Wyoming so the demand for underwater welding is going to be low meaning that there’s not gonna be a lot of jobs in his location, but if you’re somewhere in Florida, where I live there’s going to be more jobs not a lot but more I’m gonna assume he unintentionally told a half truth
I sailed for 30 years.
1 time, once, we needed a team to temp patchwork we could get to drydock for repairs. And even then it wasn't welding, it was the only instance I'd ever heard of on the great lakes from 1990 to 2020.
A high school (1989)chum went from high school to welding to underwater welding. He lucked out also. He got into it when a big project came up across the pond.
He may have made enough
$$$$$$ to retire( partially because no more work) but his health went to shit after that contract. His dream job ruined his short life.
Oof
What did the job do to him?
@@joshhiggins8132 I believe it had something to do with decompression
I went the other way. The first time I ever welded anything was in the welding tank of The Ocean corporation dive school in Houston Texas. Once I got my first commercial dive job, my boss really taught me over the shoulder how to weld. That led to me being a top side welder in the military.
😮
When i finished high school, 1st thought wasnt underwater welding
Instead welding IN SPACE
Nice, good to be honest with the younger guys.. RESPECT
Thank you
I worked with a guy back in the 90's who did under water welding in Alaska on oil rigs.
He said the pay sounded good, but the problem was that you couldn't work a full 8 hour shift. You only worked a couple of hours at a time, and you were lucky if you got 6 hours a day. On top of that, the company he worked for took money off the top for rent and food. In the end, he was bringing home less money than he did welding in a weld shop on land. That was why he ended up in our shop as a welder.
I could be mistaken but I believe that the extended underwater welding jobs that are out there( they are rare) keep you out posted somewhere so they also have the main negative of truck driving. Imo young kids see the money get excited then are miserable from the isolation.
Yeah, it’s a lot more pressure washing piles, and taking marine growth off of stuff!
Still fun and a good time blowing bubbles! 👍🏼💪🏼🙏🏼
If the pays the same, I’d even flip burgers.
A good family friend of ours is a sat diver supervisor, hes been doing it his whole life and is near retirement. He says exactly the same thing, its too expensive and impractical unless the welds are done in a hyperbaric chamber where its dry. Most pipelines are fabricated on the service and joins are connected with bolt up flanges.
Very true. You are a mostly commercial diver/underwater construction. There is welding work but the competition for these jobs is high and requires a lot of experience.
right!
I have a couple buddies that make their living welding underwater, but they were navy divers first.
I live in north east Florida on the coast. There is a welding school here and they recently began advertising and teaching underwater welding.
Not sure about Wyoming, but I would imagine the market is better here for underwater welders.
As an Underwater Firefighter.... can confirm
right!
And a dedicated, responsible one.
At the river terminal and repair facility I worked at. Underwater welding happens 3 to 5 times a month, maybe a few hours to 1 days time. Mainly barges, and occasionally boats, some specialized projects also
My city college offers an underwater welding course. Santa Barbara City Colleges marine tech program. Plenty of underwater jobs because we have a lot of offshore rigs and a lot of boat maintenance. It's a good source of wet welding here.
And SBCC is one of the more well reguarded schools in the industry, they also don’t charge kids $30k to get their certs
It makes sense that it would slowly be phased out with drones as people at crush depth is an uncomfortable situation but will always be needed
not wrong
Facts. Blew a lot of money for additional training only to find this out too late 30 years ago.
sorry to hear that
I met some under water welders once. They were carpenters 11 months out of the year.
I appreciate this. Lots of kids asking about it
anytime!
Yeah there's got to be a big demand for that in Arizona and New Mexico.
yea amazing
💯Fact.
Also underwater welders have the highest fatality rate. More than any other occupation.
Also underwater welders have a significantly shorter lifespan than most other occupations/careers. I heard somewhere that the average underwater welder dies around age 45
There is a good way to get into it and have consistent work doing it. The US Navy UDT's or UCT's are going to be the most consistent way to do it.
UBC piledrivers occasionally work bridge foundations etc.
As a current diver in the field I can vouch for that. Very few companies do it on a regular basis. Phoenix international is one that is the main stay for wet welding. Ucc does have some wet welding jobs nut not many. Mainly just flange work and your basic construction
I did some underwater welding at SeaWorld. Had to weld shamoo's dorsal fin back on.
I've been a dive welder for 18 years and have never been busier.
As a commercial diver I can back him on this. Actual welding underwater is less than 1% of what divers do. You'll do more cutting/ burning underwater than actual weld applications. Cutting/Burning underwater is similar to air arc or gouging.
🤝
That is the honest truth I know from experience. And you make more welding topside.
I know a guy who does it.. gets paid $500 hr. He was a navy seal. (Chicago) tons of work out on the west coast and oil rigs.
Bros eliminating Future competition
I was a commercial diver (deep sea diver) for the offshore oil industry in the Gulf of Mexico. Underwater welding is extremely rare and the industry avoids it. Be a commercial diver if you want but don't waste your time and money learning to weld underwater.
Besides the salary, underwater welders also receive an average bonus of $2,370 per year. The starting salary for an entry-level underwater welder is $71,416 per year. Entry-level underwater welders have one to three years of experience. Experienced underwater welders can earn up to $124,875 per year.Jul 17, 2023
When I worked as a commercial diver I saw one job in about 4 years that involved underwater cutting like this. I believe they were called exothermic rods that were used to do the cut. Pain in the tail because it wasn't big open space. And no special pay either... For us it was just another job.
😮
Sounds like something a Underwater Welder would say to keep all the work for themselves
I always call it "Rockstar welding" because the odds of a person getting into it are about the same as someone becoming a rock star.
Yes I’ve been a welder for over 10 years and have never seen a job add for under water welding
It's easier to teach a diver to weld than it is to teach a welder to dive. And you're right, there is not a lot of wet welding going on. Under water welding is still common in the offshore oil industry but it is usually done in a habitat, both SAT and non-SAT. Better quality, faster, can be inspected, more comfortable, less complicated equipment, etc etc.
Are you kidding? I can teach someone to dive in about 5 minutes, whereas it'd take weeks or months to teach them to weld.
When i was getting out of the navy, there was a school that was heavily advertising at the time for underwater welding down in Charleston, SC. I think it specifically was a commercial diving school, as opposed to a weldong school, though.
My shop teacher in his used to under water weld in reactors. Seemed really cool
This is true. Underwater basket weaving is a much more practical and safe occupation
That's the story arc for EVERY career path
lmaooo
There is. One of my buddies worked in Alaska on oil rigs underwater for 15 years
this is a story from my youth.i am 59 now. i trained when i was 13 padi certified. my instructor was semi retired. he did one oil rig job. six months of welding. insteaf of pay he took stock options. the well hit big. so he did dive instructing. organized dive trips around the world. and lived comfortably, not lavishly but well.
good for him tho
Im not a welder and I have no interest in becoming one. Just stumbled upon this video. However, it’s great to see veterans in their line of work giving this kind of advice to the young people
🙏🙏🙏
My brother was an underwater welder for a time. Hes got a few close calls with death. Worst part is most of those stories are somebody else not doing their job or doing it wrong. Stay safe in your profession guys and remember safety rules are written in blood.
Sheesh glad your bro is safe!
My buddy went on to full time underwater welding right after the army! He was already trained and competent in welding and scuba diving, so when he got out he just went to school for a few months on the actual underwater welding part to put the two skills together. The big thing is you need to either own setup or get hired by a bridge builder or oil rig. He started with bridges for a couple years and then moved on to oil rigs..
thanks for the info!
100% of what you just said is wrong. 😂
you want underwater welding your best bet is enlisting with the navy as a diver. you’ll do more than just welding (a lot more) but you’ll probably end up welding the most than any job private without a huge stroke of luck
had a neighbor who only did under water welding here in the gulf but his work was sparce quite a lot but the money he made and the life he lived he didn't mind
This was so helpful. I really wish thet would tell kids stuff like thisore often so they dont waste their time! Awesome teansparency thanks for being honest 😂💯❤️
Glad it was helpful!
Even if you can't find work as an underwater welder there are still lots of positions available for underwater fire watch.
Whoever I tell someone who know nothing about welding that ima welder, they always say, “I hear underwater welders make a lot of money”
Welding is infrequent in commercial diving but it’s not “unicorn” rare, it depends on the company you work for.
It was hard for me to realize that after i got my underwater aviation mechanic degree