Things that rookie nukeworkers should know

[SloGlo]

iffen yinz ain't got a pen, ya batter hav a mop.

[HousePuke]

Disregard about 95% of the stories you hear in the breakroom.  No one saves the plant, outage or other "heroic" deeds as portrayed in breakroom stories.

I have to agree that a great deal of good suggestions have been put forth in this thread.

Be on time, ready to work, do your job, be honest and most important...be safe.

[Brett LaVigne]

1) Grab samples are NOT performed with a large rad bag running down the hall.
2) You do not have to provide a bio-essay smaple by pooping into a 1 liter poly bottle when you get on site to support a normal refuel outage.
3) You do not have to speak into the hp 210 probe to tell it "frisking hands" or "frisking feet".
4) You are not required to duck every time you hear a "bing" on the refuel floor to avoid the in-coming neutrons.
5) If an operator says that they don't expect to see any water...you'll probably see several gallons of water jetting out in a fan formation wetting everything within' a 15 foot radius.
6) Deconners are the MOST fun to have sex with, I don't care what the previous post says.
7) The annulus really is an area of the plant and not a 70's dirty movie.
8.) Build a relationship with the recruiters, if there is a problem, deal with it in a diplomatic way.
9) Try not to pee in containment, but if peeing in containment keeps you from peeing in the pcm's...then by all means, pee in containment.
10) If you are a coffee drinker and smoker, please chew gum before you come back into containment from your break.

 

[JustinHEMI05]

1) Grab samples are NOT performed with a large rad bag running down the hall.
2) You do not have to provide a bio-essay smaple by pooping into a 1 liter poly bottle when you get on site to support a normal refuel outage.
3) You do not have to speak into the hp 210 probe to tell it "frisking hands" or "frisking feet".
4) You are not required to duck every time you hear a "bing" on the refuel floor to avoid the in-coming neutrons.
5) If an operator says that they don't expect to see any water...you'll probably see several gallons of water jetting out in a fan formation wetting everything within' a 15 foot radius.
6) Deconners are the MOST fun to have sex with, I don't care what the previous post says.
7) The annulus really is an area of the plant and not a 70's dirty movie.
Build a relationship with the recruiters, if there is a problem, deal with it in a diplomatic way.
9) Try not to pee in containment, but if peeing in containment keeps you from peeing in the pcm's...then by all means, pee in containment.
10) If you are a coffee drinker and smoker, please chew gum before you come back into containment from your break.

 

Boy, I would probably pay to hear the stories behind those.

Justin

[cincinnatinuke]

Rumor has it a guy waited too long yesterday to go through the PCM and SAM his articles out.  By too late, I mean he left puddles of poo in his wake.  He had more patience than I could have mustered up.

[vikingfan]

i bet he wishes he could run away and bury his head in the sand somewhere ! at least he'll be famous huh??

[justatech]

i bet he wishes he could run away and bury his head in the sand somewhere ! at least he'll be famous huh??

Not sure about that.
Worked a site where an older contractor worker came out - he really had to go..............literally.
As he was finished counting the tech informed him he had not frisked his underarms and sides of body first (at that time the site did not trust the PCM-1's to count these areas correctly - prior to the purchase of PCM-2's) he jumped out hurried up and frisked, jumped back in as he was finished counting the tech informed him he had not SAM'd his hat out - he jumped out again - all the while words where being exchanged. By the time he finished the third count he was contaminating the portal monitor with his bodies waste products. The man was sick with the flu and the bathroom was less than 100 yards away. The worker called a meeting with RP Management - the tech finished that outage and has never been back since. Nor have we seen the worker-bee. He actually was a very nice hard working happy go lucky sort - unlike the tech.

Courtesy and respect for another can go a long way in any field.

[tennbuck]

the gps is a must. i bought a garmin nuvii 200 for $168 at walmart. i had it mounted and working in 5 minutes in the walmart parking lot. push a button to find the the next gas, food or hotel. a great road tool.

sunflower seeds keep me awake also.

[RADBASTARD]

There are only 3 rules you need to know

#1 Who to suck up too !

#2 Which techs you have to watch out for who will stab you in the back,to make themselves look good by making someone else look bad.
Because they can't do it on their own merit!

RULE #3 see rule #1 and #2

Thats the only rule's a rookie should know.The rest will come later.

[Rennhack]

the gps is a must. i bought a garmin nuvii 200 for $168 at walmart. i had it mounted and working in 5 minutes in the walmart parking lot. push a button to find the the next gas, food or hotel. a great road tool.

sunflower seeds keep me awake also.

I've made a POI (point of interest) file for the garmin nuvi that hass the location of all the nuke plants.  I have attached it to this message.

[delkinto]

Times for the rookies to be worried:

   If the RP says it's "probably not contaminated"

   If you asked the RP whether it was contaminated after you stepped in it

   
   

[Camella Black]

Be aware of your surroundings. Just because the town looks like a quaint little village and the people are all so nice doesn't mean trouble isn't lurking around the corner; use common sense when out in unknown areas, even the grocery stores, etc.

I was out shopping last year and someone stole my billfold out of my purse, I was in an unfamilar town, Henry was at work and I had no way to contact him, no money, etc.

Make sure you have a back-up credit card/cash and an emergency number for loved ones.

[Whalla2U]

With the fall season soon upon us, I feel that there's some great information posted here.

After reading all the post, something that I can think of that every nukeworker on the road should get is a hands free device for their cell phone.  When I start out on my trips, I attach my hands free device to my ear before leaving the driveway. 







 

[Smart People]

when i was a deconner i learned where i was going to be for the rest of the week whenever an HP came up to me with a "5 minute job".

[UncaBuffalo]

Don't step on the floor drains.

[HydroDave63]

Don't step on the floor drains.

Those poor drains need deconned SOMEhow....

[SloGlo]

Don't step on the floor drains.

know, noe, no!!!  step onna floor drains, walk all over da playce, frisk yer booties at da sop (caws ya wanna sho da hp dat yer con sea enshus, 'n git moor work!  duh....

[UncaBuffalo]

Pay Attention
Think First … Speak Second
Think First … Act Second
Take Responsibility for Yourself and Your Actions
You Always Make A Difference
   Only you can determine if the difference is positive or negative.
Never Stop Improving Yourself
   You are the only one capable of elevating your value.
Respect Earns Respect

A lot of people probably look at this and say, "Yeah, great...but that doesn't sound like me..."   

But, here's the cool thing...when you go to a new outage, no one has any expectations of 'you'...so you can be any 'you' that you want to be.

Try to lose one vice, or improve one habit, every new place you work...it's the only time in your life that you won't have to live down to any negatives that are enforced by your 'normal' world. 

[namlive]

Never eat yellow cake or yellow snow.

[DrewBuckeye85]

Music...music...music...have an iPod or Zune (if you're into crappy quality, not that I'm a Mac guy, but the sound quality and compatibility mean everything). Get a 30Gb if possible and load that sucker up, then purchase an FM Transmitter, preferably one that connects from your 12V/Cigarette Lighter to the bottom port. The battery powered adapters are garbage and have terrible reception with any station.

[UncaBuffalo]

www.hotpads.com

Most of the rentals listed are long-term, but they also have some vacation rentals in certain areas...worth a look if you need a place to live during an outage...

[UncaBuffalo]

www.hotpads.com

Most of the rentals listed are long-term, but they also have some vacation rentals in certain areas...worth a look if you need a place to live during an outage...

Saw that they have added a 'Hotel' tab on HotPads.  Lets you see hotel locations on a map, so you can pick one with easy access...and then gives you a rate quote for the dates you input...

[WIFEY26525]

I would venture the advice to rookies of simply:
1) asking questions of the experienced people
2) try to watch or work as many job types as possible in the first few outages (s/g, radwaste, refuel, etc.). That way you gain a feel for which jobs you enjoy.
3) save as much money as ya can as fast as ya can. you'll never know when the jobs disappear or you get hurt.
4) work with the people you are covering on the jobs, be flexable, be creative. If they are comfy / happy, they will make your job easier also.
5) find a job or jobs that you are good at and enjoy and don't be afraid to ask for that job. I used to tell supervisors "if you give me refuel, reactor bldg or s/g....I'll be adequate, but if you give me nightshift radwaste or turbine bldg, I'll come early and do a hell of a job ! and if you put me on dayshift.......I'll die!" that usually worked to get me where i wanted to be.

6) VERY IMPORTANT ! If you see a senior HP/RCT/RPT covering his job and you disagree with how he is doing the job.........unless he is being a radcon nightmare that will result in death or massive NRC fines.........DO NOT SNITCH HIM TO THE SUPERVISION !!!!!!!! ASK THE TECH QUESTIONS IF YOU HAVE A CONCERN, BUT LET HIM RUN HIS JOB HIS WAY !

7) My opinion of what my job was defined as :
I was there to keep the plant, the workers and the public safe from radiation and nuclear unpleasantness while striving to interfere the least amount with the successful completion of the work being done.

[Content1]

If you see a Senior Rad Tech carrying a ion chamber meter and running to an exit, stopping to glance at it, and then runs faster, it may be wise to follow.

[Smart People]

About not having cash at the beginning of the outage:

I deal with the problem this way:  I opened an account at a bank that I seemed to see at almost every plant I went to (such as Bank of America or US Bank) (don't forget the debit card for paying for gas and lodging).  That account only handles my perdiem so that I can keep it separate from my paychecks (they go to my regular bank).  Spend what you need for the job you're on and leave the rest for the beginning of your next job.  Over time, that account's balance will grow into a tidy sum (if you're reasonably prudent) that can be used to clear out debts or get some new toys.  I never let the balance in my "travel account" get below $2,000 between outages so that I always have enough cash to get started without having to ask for a perdiem advance.  And, should you run into a contract that only pays every two weeks, you will be sitting pretty while everyone around you is whining and complaining and begging for an advance.