Underwater Welding Experience

[big bubba]

Any veteran underwater welders? Not just anecdotal stories, but direct field experience: Why so dangerous? Where does most of the work occur? Improved safety & equip through the years? Your story
almost became one right out of welding school back in the day. Missed the underwater welding school in Long Beach by a few days & went the path of general fabricator/machine shop stuff above water.

Given the income, did i make a mistake? still basically arc here, but above the surface & enjoying retirement (without eye or respiratory issues thankfully), regards

 

[ratflinger]

My nephew does it out of New Orleans, makes good coin when he's out, but that doesn't always happen. During the last oil bust he was stuck with a land job until it came back.

 

[California]

Given the income, did i make a mistake? still basically arc here, but above the surface & enjoying retirement (without eye or respiratory issues thankfully)

Father of a friend learned underwater welding in the navy of a South American country. He turned that education into a successful welding/structural fabrication business. Now 50 years later his health is poor, he was obviously in pain when I attended the son's wedding.

I don't think you made a mistake.

 

[big bubba]

thanks on that. had no idea that many hazards, no wonder the pay is high.

 

[Rockbadchild]

You also have to assume that hypothermia would be a risk as well and also for the high pay you have to consider once you go down you don't come back up for lunch or secretion you weld until your job is done that alone is worth a buck or two in my opinion.

 

[big bubba]

you'd think robotics would now start replacing dangerous welding work like that. guess it's all about the $

 

[Rockbadchild]

I robot vacuum style robot for welding that's a idea !!!... but yeah the challenge for robots and to find and asses the damage in order to fix it too many variables. Robots do weld on pipelines but it is meticulously prep and set up by humans. In the automobile industry, robots are program to do the same weld over and over not much variables there.