r/UtilityLocator

How do you guys open a cev att??

I just started a new job locating fiber/copper. The company that hired me basically didn't train me, they gave me the gear and told me what frequency to go on and then I've basically been running nonstop projects ever since.

I've been running into these handholes with fiber splice enclosures lately, and I've been having trouble trying to locate the fiber lines within. Some of them I get good continuity on, but when I try and locate some of the lines I get absolutely nothing when I try and hook up to the bolt or try alligator clips, nothing works. I have this clamp thing but no one has told me how to use it and I've just been out on my own all day.

I tried calling my trainer for some advice but the guy just doesn't answer my calls. I asked another guy and he told me to just hook it up to another line with good continuity and crank it up all the way and try and find it further out, but I feel like when I do this I just end up picking up other shit in the ground. What do I do with those underground splice enclosures in the hand holes for those lines I can't get a good signal on?

I just got an offer letter for a tech position in telecommunications for like 50% more than I make now, so I'm just trying to hold out for a couple weeks and I'm trying not to cause any fiber cuts in the meantime. Any advice would be appreciated

I’m starting a 3 month corse for utc underground in 2 weeks. We will be getting all the standard osha, and trench shoring, safety, cpr, etc. certifications. Were are supposed to be heavily focused on heavy machinery operation and I have some questions for anyone who works in the field.

#1 what PPE would you recommend. I’d assume steel toe, good gloves, maybe coveralls but what kind of gloves?
#2 as I’m going mainly for the training on machinery how realistic is it that I get a job afterwards with machines. Is it more likely that I will be a laborer digging in trenches with hand tools or will the experience allow me to work spicificly with backhoes, horizontal direction drills ETC.
#3 how would you best advise somebody looking for work after the classes.

My background is in combat engineering, where one thing gets drilled into you early: readiness isn’t something you create in the moment. It’s something you build beforehand.

When the mission shows up, you’re not getting ready—you are ready.

I’ve been wondering why we don’t think about utility locating the same way.

A one-mile gas main ticket doesn’t become hard when it lands in your bucket. The difficulty was determined weeks or months before by your conditioning, your habits, and how you’ve been taking care of yourself.

If carrying your gear for a mile, dropping into dozens of service locates, and getting back up repeatedly wrecks you… that’s not the ticket talking. That’s your current readiness.

I’m working on an Operation Difficulty Assessment (ODA) that’s less about “fitness” and more about operational capacity. The idea is to establish a monthly baseline using a simple field assessment, then compare daily workload against that baseline through an Operational Difficulty Index.

Not because everyone needs to be an athlete.

Because when that one-mile ticket shows up, you don’t rise to the occasion—you fall back on your level of preparation.

Curious what the rest of you think.

If your company measured operator readiness instead of just production numbers, would it actually improve performance, or is this overthinking a trade that’s already hard enough?

__

For a little context, this idea came out of necessity—not theory.

Earlier this year I was rear-ended in a company vehicle. What followed was months of complications that put me behind a desk instead of in the field. After spending that much time sitting, I realized how quickly your operational capacity disappears if you don’t deliberately maintain it.

Coming back wasn’t about getting “gym fit.” It was about becoming capable of doing the job again—walking miles, carrying equipment, getting down on services, getting back up, and still being able to do it tomorrow.

That’s what led me to build the Op Difficulty Assessment and Op Difficulty Iindex.

It’s less about fitness and more about having an honest way to answer, “Am I actually ready for the work my tickets are going to demand today?”

I’d genuinely like to hear where you guys think this misses the mark, because the people doing the work are the ones who’ll know first.

So I’ve heard repeatedly that the summer is the busiest part of the year. I also hear that fall and winter things really die off. Especially winter. So much so that it’s hard to get full time hours.

Maybe a couple hours a day. This is leading me to believe locating is a late spring and summer job. Not a full employment year around job.

I’ve never worked during the fall or winter time though…. And I want to know if I should apply for jobs for the fall and winter and come back to locating in the summer.

Any advice on how to handle the slow down during the fall and winter would be great. And does it really slow down that much?

Why is it so incredibly complicated? And then when it breaks you have grovel to your supe

I am a utility worker that has to locate water and sewer lines. Whats a good long lasting paint? It seems like when we find a good green the same brands blue is terrible and vice versa.

Also, our paint wands are garbage and constantly either dont engage of stick on.

How random are the drug test at usic? I started may 11th and just certified today and had to quit because I of course got picked out of like 200+ people for a drug screen. I knew I wasn’t going to pass and luckily my sup was a cool guy and understood, we live in a legal state so of course I was smoking way before I got this job but when I figured out there was random test I stopped. He said he would make it a self resigning, and had a family emergency so I wouldn’t lose my license, but a part of me just doesn’t feel like I was just the unlucky guy and kinda feel like of course the day I certified I get tested. He said in 6months we can try again. I just honestly feel very stupid and genuinely loved working for usic and definitely wanna try again, but just wanna know what are the odds? Thanks in advance.

Hey, I’m a state employee for approximately 8 years and sorta burned out from the job and all it entails. I’ve been looking a utility locator jobs (ELM Utility services). I just want to know qualifications and what a typical work day looks like.
I’m in Texas and in my area ELM starts at $26-$30/hour
Thanks in advance

Had a rough night on call last night. Got a call pretty much every hour or 2 for almost the entire night, and obviously did not get much sleep. My last call came in at around 5:20 am, and for this one I decided I’m going to try and get some rest before heading there, since it was just a no show and the contractor wasn’t even gonna be there. Ended up finally peeling myself out of bed at about 7, and was on the clock the entire time. What do i say to my supervisor when he asks why i clocked in at 5:20 but didn’t leave until 7😐😂