help needed on the right course

[samtiler]

So your saying im wasting my money

 

[Gazzer]

The courses will set you on the right track but I doubt you would be able to tackle any job as no 2 jobs are the same. 35 years on the job and I still learn all the time.

 

[Diamond Pool Finishers]

I guess the hundreds and hundreds of tilers on this forum that have trainined on a short course then started their business and produce excellent work a lot of which is in the forum gallary must all be micky mouse waste of timers then.
You obviously have never been on a good course so therefore it is just an opinion that you have in your head

Darren i think saying (hundreds and hundreds of tilers on this forum ) is stretching it a bit lol.................. a few is a better term.....

 

[UKTT Darren]

If there are thousands of members on here and a lot of them has come from short courses i would say that hundreds would be the right number, not just a few, The nature of this topic has been argued many times before and im sure will be many times again, nobody is saying that you will be a master tiler in two weeks but a good course will certainly teach you how to set out, fix tiles correctly, cut and shape, cover all background preparation, and adhesive selection, from there its down to how good you are naturally to pick the skills up, The comment on saying that i would not dare to tile a splash back after a year an a half is rediculous, you have had the wrong training if this is the case, we all make mistakes along the way but you learn from these and this can only be done out in the real world by yourself, how far wrong can you go with a splashback anyway, its one of the most easiest jobs to do in tiling, most people do their own tiling splashback with no tiling training or knowledge and still end up with a good job.

I have run the tiling program now for over 7 years and some people will never make a tiler as they are just not cut out for practical skills, but most can pick it up with enough skills to leave, take on some straight forward jobs, do a good job and build from there.
I agree that it is not an easy business to be in down to the fact that it isnt just tiling skills that you need, there is the marketing, sales and drive also needed to be successfull, you could be a great tiler but without these other elements you will fail.
Everyone has their own opinions mostly based on assuption, mine is based on fact as we have had the people in and trainined them, know what training knowledge they have received and tracked their progress. Granted there is a lot of people fail but there is also a lot of people that succeed and sustain a business. I would have thought the same numbers would apply to people that attended 1 day a week in a college at a snails pace, most of them drop out after about 6 weeks.

 

[DHTiling]

how far wrong can you go with a splashback anyway, its one of the most easiest jobs to do in tiling,​

Now that i disagree with, it has various variables from ceramics to mosaics to stone... such slap dash comments really makes tiling a joke to some.


IMHO Tiling needs to be a licensed trade to do away with this.. about time tiling was recognised a highly skilled trade and not a skill picked up when you have spare time to do a short course.


​

 

[bugs183]

My carpenter friend has been on a job where they have loads of tiling, all in large format porcelain.He recommended me and their reply was 'it's ok we're doing all the unskilled work ourselves'.
Bless 'um.
I'd say do the course, but train alongside a skilled tiler. As Siramic says, every job is different and you are always learning.

 

[UKTT Darren]

Its anoying to think that other tradesman regard tiling as just a semi skilled trades, it goes back to the days when everything was 6 x 6 inch tiles and just one type of adhesive, it was usually plasterers that did tiling as they used to cover it in the old days as a wet trowel trade as they did their plastering apprentiship.

Things have obviously changed a lot with the natural stone and multiple products, weights of tiles now, sealers etc, the old school wont change their mind though, too much set in there ways to learn about new procedures and applications,
The only way to learn is in a college or a fast track training centre as this is where you will find out all the latest techniques, tools and materials, i personally think that colleges are a bit old school and dont prepare you enough for self employment and the real world, we produce a 40 page course manual that goes with the practical training that gives you the bullet point step by step knowledge of what to do when you get into different situations that cannot be covered in the centre. I know its no substitute for being there and doing it yourself but its a start.

Working along with another tiler sounds good and is better than nothing but he wont have the time to talk you through different subject problems and how to overcome them, too busy grafting, unless you are up to speed with him he wont want you along with him anyway as you will slow him down and if you have very little skills to start with, you will have no practice time as he wont let you touch his work or do part of the job, so in theory working with another tiler is great but reality is they cant be bothered to teach you and spend the time with you.. which again leave the training centre the best option to get your feet off the ground. You just haver to start slowly and build up your skills from there, There is no easy ways of making money and the only way you can is through your own abilty and desire to succeed

Regards
Darren

 

[DHTiling]

But your remarks above Darren did diss the tiling trade.. think about what you wrote..?

 

[Andrew Case]

Im on a course next week, so may be a good person to speak to this time in 2 weeks with regards what you can learn etc. I didnt choose the cheapest course nor the closest.

I think its all down the person attending the course. If you are silly enough to think that you can attend a short course and then go and tile a large floor area in natural stone with all the obstacles etc, charging pro rates, then more fool you.
But if you do the course and build up, family, friends, your own house, try different approaches on your own place etc. Then do some paid work, splash backs and small floors, refusing work if it's "too much" for your ability, then i cant see how you can go wrong.

I know others who have done an apprenticeship, old school, in all manner of subjects and they dropped out a year later as all they had learnt was how to brew up.
I also know some who have done a short course and now work in an office because they didnt have the drive and enthusiasm to continue their learning.
Both routes can cause failure, or success.

There will be some who think a course is a good start, there will be others who think its a waste of time. Take their comments and do your own research.
Darren doesnt know this (well he does now), but i'm very good at snooping around the internet and tracking people down. I found several people who had trained at NETT in the past and contacted them directly for their opinion.
Every one came back and are still in tiling business. Some have branched out to plastering etc, others are just doing tiling. All of them were realistic and said their first couple of years were a sharp learning curve with little money, but all of them are now tiling and doing well.
I can credit check companies for free where i work and even checked one of them out - company is doing very well and his work appears to be good. Profit is up etc.
i even checked one of his references out under the pretence of wanting tiling work done myself.
Theres no way im going to pay money on a course just to waste it. But then again im the type of person who will work my arse off and WILL make a success of it. Im also the type of person who doesnt lie and will only do a job if i can do it well.

Dont be fooled into thinking that you will do a 1 or 2 week course and go straight into tiling swimming pools and commercial contracts like some of the people on here. It aint gonna happen.
BUT i have no reason to think that you cannot start with small jobs and build up. Use this forum to continue learning.
Ive signed up with BAL, Maipei, Schluter and their online training programs. I will go on more courses as money allows. Learning doesnt stop at the end of the course.

The people on a forum who say there is no chance of doing a course and then earning money are as dillusional as the people who think they are going to earn a fortune from day 1. It can be done, ive seen it, but it takes a certain person, with an aptitude for learning and business.

Thats my input.

P.S I really do like this forum.

 

[UKTT Darren]

Thanks Andrew, glad your comming on the course so you can give your honest oppinion when you finished, it will still never change the mind of the non believers though
See you soon
Regards
Darren