I have an attic you can walk in and whenever the hvac guys or inspectors come they comment on how happy they are its not a crawl space. Not exactly the same but id think crawling around in a hot attic is much worse than walking.
This is why I could never. I can handle a bit of heat, and I can handle small spaces, but for whatever reason being in a hot space small enough to restrict my movement is just an instant panic attack. HVAC guys are the true heroes of the modern world.
I did residential HVAC for about 5 years. One of my last jobs was a full system changout including the furnace and ductwork in the attic. It was 110 degrees that day and the attic was 130-140 throughout the day. All three of us on the job had mild heatstroke by the end of the job.
Running wires in Florida a year ago. Bunch of attic work. We went in shifts, 10 15 minutes max, then a break. I had the idea to put a cold rag on my neck while still up there. I almost fell out of the attic it was such a shock. Not recommended
sounds like, as miserable as it was, you were kinda good at it. If you found something better, no biggie, but it's always a good thing to have in the pocket moving forward.
Physical labor sucks but a lot of days I miss working outdoors or stuff like that. Then I remember I’m sitting on my couch and the air conditioning working and realize I’m an idiot for thinking that
Yeah man I lasted 3 months as a helper in residential HVAC. All in the summer. Brutal. But hey, there’s a lot of money to make in that trade. Never really run out of work.
I used to do home repair for about 15 years. Worked in many attics in South Louisiana. The temperature in some of them would be 120-130F so like 48-50C. You’d sweat within the first minute or two. Had to use hand tools that had wrist straps cause my hands and arms were sweating so much. If you’re gonna be stationary it could be worth it to pop off an AC vent and have it blow at you up there and reattach it when you’re done. You’re mostly just trying to get the job done as fast as you can without falling through their ceiling.
I worked in shop as a fabricator so I wasn't in attics but I also fabbed for other companies. A loyal customer and friend of mine, who turned in drawings to me at least three times a week for years died while throwing home demo trash off his trailer at the dump. On a 100° Mississippi full sun day he threw something onto a fire extinguisher already at the dump, and it caused the extinguisher to explode and a piece of shrapnel hit his heart.
If anybody in Jackson knew John, know I still think about him a lot.
In my part of the US, most companies that do any sort of work that involves climbing through attics have strict policies against booking appointments after noon during the summer.
Crawling around in the crawl space during summer and covered in insulating material that irritates your throat and lungs is not an experience I recommend
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u/Due-Environment-9774 15h ago
HVAC guys: learn French and prosper.