Episodes

  • How to Become an Electrician: Apprenticeship, Union and License Steps

    How to Become an Electrician: Apprenticeship, Union and License Steps
    12 Oct 2026
    How do you actually become an electrician in the United States? This episode explains the usual path step by step: the entry requirements, how a four-to-five year apprenticeship works, the difference between union and non-union programs, and how licensing works from state to state.
    Facts are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook and the U.S. Department of Labor apprenticeship site. Licensing rules differ by state and sometimes by city. Always check with your state's licensing board. This is general information, not career or legal advice.
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    13 min
  • Which Skilled Trades Pay the Most? What the Government's Own Wage Data Says

    Which Skilled Trades Pay the Most? What the Government's Own Wage Data Says
    11 Oct 2026
    Which skilled trades actually pay the most, and how much? This episode walks through the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data for elevator installers, power-line workers, plumbers, electricians and HVAC technicians, and explains what a median wage does and does not tell you.
    All pay figures are from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook and Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 data. Pay varies widely by state, employer, union status and experience. This is general information, not career or financial advice.
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    15 min
  • Maintaining Your Septic System Before It's Too Late

    Maintaining Your Septic System Before It's Too Late
    18 Jun 2026
    Your septic system's biggest threat is the maintenance most homeowners skip until the yard shows symptoms worth $15,000 to fix. In this episode of Torque & Tape, we walk through how septic tanks, distribution boxes, and drain fields actually function — and why drain field failure is almost always preventable. We cover the real pumping schedule based on your household size, the D-box inspection most homeowners have never done, the septic additives that disrupt your system's biology, and the water use habit that quietly extends field life by years. Plus: the mentor mistake that nearly sent solid waste into a healthy drain field — and the rubber plug that's been in the inspection kit for fifteen years. Torque & Tape — The Blue-Collar Skills. New episodes weekly on all major podcast platforms.
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    15 min
  • Repairing a Cracked Sink Basin | Torque & Tape

    Repairing a Cracked Sink Basin | Torque & Tape
    14 Jun 2026
    11 min