Tradie Advice area?

[Tasmaniak]

We have a lot of great and well respected tradespeople on here that I've often come to for advice even though its not vehicle related. I just find it easier to ask one or two trusted people here then join a home reno forum or something similar and ask my question, treated like an idiot for not knowing how the forum works when all I wanted to know was something like how deep a hole has to be for pergola stumps or some shizzle like that.

Now obviously information would have to be taken with a grain of salt for no recourse back to the forum if something goes wrong, but let's face it.... That's really no different to giving out car advice.

Some recent examples on the forum have been a member wanting to know how to rip up his tiles quickly... Following the advice given in the thread, I think he learnt that his floors were uneven and saved thousands buy rectifying before trying to lay the new floor.

I learnt from an electrician on here recently that a PowerPoint in my house was just as unsafe as I thought... He ended up getting the job to come and fix it.

Some of our mods I know are tradies... Well one admin for sure and an ex mod lol but both Airstrike and Troy711 are experienced tradespeople.

Just a thought.

 

[Garth]

In most cases it is illegal to provide advice to a end user, i.e. it is illegal for me to provide any form of repair advice on any electrical based product or fixture.

could be the same with building and plumbing but im not 100% sure, is a good idea though. might be good for other trades/services.

 

[Darren]

I didn't know that Garth? How is it the discovery channel so give you a how to do your electrical work and the likes? Just a really quick example there and I'm sure there's others.

I have no issues putting this as a sub section in the pub section and see how it goes.

Update: http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/tradie-advice/

If you can think of a better description by all means let me know.

 

[the_boozer]

In most cases it is illegal to provide advice to a end user, i.e. it is illegal for me to provide any form of repair advice on any electrical based product or fixture.

could be the same with building and plumbing but im not 100% sure, is a good idea though. might be good for other trades/services.

Where has that ever been inforced? Where is it written in AS 3000 or any of the service and installation rules or any other reg?
Its a myth they told us at trade school.
If a person asks they are probably going to go it anyway I don't see any thing wrong with giving advice .
Yes i have found power points wired in speaker wire ect. The people that ask at least use the right gear for the said job.

 

[wraith]

It's probably more a case if some one stuffs up you don't want to be liable for anything. For example you give advice on how to do something. They do it wrong stuff things up and then demand you help because it's all your fault for giving dodgy advice.

 

[Reaper]

In most cases it is illegal to provide advice to a end user, i.e. it is illegal for me to provide any form of repair advice on any electrical based product or fixture.

could be the same with building and plumbing but im not 100% sure, is a good idea though. might be good for other trades/services.

All plumbing and electrical works need to be performed by licensed tradesmen. I don't know of any piece of legislation or regulation that prevents anybody sharing knowledge on how to do something or confirming a standard or regulation.

Ie. This sort of thing needs to be done by a licensed electrician and watch for these things when he goes about the repair (or whatever).

Same goes for building (I am a licensed builder). All of the standards and regulations are public documents and the knowledge behind them is 100% free although much of it must be carried out by licensed tradesmen with the appropriate permits in place.

Where has that ever been inforced? Where is it written in AS 3000 or any of the service and installation rules or any other reg?
Its a myth they told us at trade school.
If a person asks they are probably going to go it anyway I don't see any thing wrong with giving advice .
Yes i have found power points wired in speaker wire ect. The people that ask at least use the right gear for the said job.

It's not. The only areas where advice must be given by a licensed advisor are things like financial planning, legal and similar regulated industries.

 

[monkey]

In most cases it is illegal to provide advice to a end user, i.e. it is illegal for me to provide any form of repair advice on any electrical based product or fixture.

could be the same with building and plumbing but im not 100% sure, is a good idea though. might be good for other trades/services.

Bunnings, and just about any retailer, would be in deep doggy if that was the case.

I think its a good idea Tas, plenty advice going around on many a topic here so why not. Ill get the ball rolling on the section Darren set up.

 

[Drawnnite]

I like the idea as long as it doesn't involve people going indepth and possibly getting up that creek with no paddle for whatever advice.

ie there should be a disclaimer or something else along the lines of "liable for their own actions".


could be good for other basic advice and so forth.
ie showcasing your timber projects and other crafts.
teach people how to do some of those crafts and see what they can make.


the main issue which as been brought up is the idea of "licenced trades" which should come down to said tradespeople also being smart and not delving too deep.
for example. ill point you where in the AS Books it says your not allowed to put a powerpoint, but im not going to tell you how to wire it up and all the rest
for example, reap was redoing his bathroom, wanted advice on where some outlets could go, showed him where in the AS, so he could make up an appropriate design to code for his contractor to install it.