The Construction Life

We open with must be the worst version of Easy, and rolled right into why we are not drinking on a Sunday morning. Larry Serpa from Key Tile Co and Key Surfaces is back. He was traveling back home to Pico Azores with a stop in Toronto so we had a chance to stop by for him to meet some of the Portuguese trades in Toronto. Fabio @fabio.andrade51 who was late to meet up with us on the current job site. Joe from @jrentrysystems Gary and the Old Man from @marescarpentry Tony from @tc.installations.inc and lastly Omid and his crew from @thetileguy.gta

On today’s show, we get technical about tiling and Larry shares quite a lot about his many years of experience and working with so many different types of tiles, slabs, mosaics, mortars, substrates and more, don’t want to miss this one. We begin with old school and how things were done and how tiling as a trade does take a toll on your body and it really is a young trades game. Tiling always leads to discussing health and safety and all tile setters must understand you’re not only responsible for you and your crews safety but every other trade on site, don’t be cutting tile and or backer board with no proper protection.

We discuss interior and exterior installations and understanding BC and specifically Vancouver has a climate that only 2% of the world has, where you have rainforest conditions with freeze thaw and a lot of the time in the same day. So many factors apply to tile, stone, slab installs, and experience is important to best understand techniques. Larry walks us through the products and tricks of the trade he has built his business on, things like dry mixing products because the ingredients do settle at the bottle of the bag/box. We discuss, mixing ratios and shelf lives of the products. Larry shares his thoughts on shower pans, dry pack, drains and so much more and how things have evolved and where they might be headed. We close out the show with a lot of talk on project function over project design, never forget the function of the room.

Shared and Discussed Links

https://laticrete.com/en/tile-and-stone-care-and-maintenance/stonetech-protect/stonetech-bulletproof-sealer

https://www.winklerchimica.com/en/

https://www.juliesawchuk.ca

https://www.kohler.ca/ca/round-shower-drain-for-use-with-plastic-pipe-gasket-included/productDetail/shower-fittings/420322.htm?skuId=1284599

https://ebbe-america.com

https://www.annsacks.com

http://trufig.com

Thank you so much Larry for being on the show again and getting way more techincal, making the time while visiting the Toronto area and sharing so much insight into the tiling trade and more. Reach out to Larry at www.keytile.ca his email [email protected] and on IG and FaceBook @keytileco and @keysurfaces

TCL has and always will be about giving back to the construction industry.

We open the show with a little Rob Base and it takes two, not the best version but we did it and it’s fitting for today’s show. A couple of shout outs to @hh.concpets sharing a few messages about preparing for a potential recession. @summitexteriorsidaho discussing moving his business from Canada to the States.

On with the SHOW we talk about Side Hustles, and we will be doing a series of these shows featuring tradespeople that have worked on other things outside of construction. I wrote a novel, a love story, a romance story set in Toronto about a woman, Hayley who recently has a breakup and is fed up with relationships discovers hundreds of love letters that belonged to a couple from a decade earlier. That is the basic premise of the story, and we are along for the ride to search for Amabel and the man in her life, Joshan. I began writing this story Dec 25, 2018, and it took me about 6 months to write out a 160-page script. I shard the story with a few friends from the film business, they loved it, they had a lot of questions, to be honest so did I. I sat on the story for another 6 months and then decided to write the novel. I suppose I was hesitant to write the novel because I’m not a writer and there are rules to writing and the literary world is a different and very pretentious world that a contractor really has no business being in. Then I realized, wait, I am Manny from Hardcore Renos, and The Construction Life and I really don’t care what people think. Fear should never be a reason for you not to do something. I embraced it and began writing the novel. Another year and I had a 600-page story, I worked on all those missing pieces of the story, and without sounding egotistical, the story really did write itself, the characters and the connections just flowed across the page.

Here we are now, a finished 525-page novel, a story that I wrote, and published and I am very proud of. People are now reading it and the feedback is very positive, women are crying several times, connection with the characters and the scenarios, their actions and they love how it begins and how it all ends. Sure, there will be people that won’t like your written words and that is fine, the story of Amabel isn’t for everyone but as a contractor I had this story inside me and I felt obligated to put it down on paper and share it with others.

This show is about Side Hustles and in construction I believe everyone in this amazing industry has a lot to offer outside of swinging the hammer. Find other passions and don’t be afraid to embrace it, build it, share it, believe in it. The rest is simply going to shape more happiness into your life. I hope you get a chance to support the book and read it, share it with others and tell me what you think of it. I honestly want to know. Thank you so much for your time.

Shared and Discussed Links

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Q07y1JFeEE

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5GYjyMGBsYiUb4nLdoPSjw?si=0k99u5kHQDWaU-AwamMccg&nd=1

Thank you, Laurie, for reading the book and sharing your thoughts. Check out the book at www.theamabelletters.com[email protected] on TikTok, Pinterest @theamabelletters and on IG @theamabel_letters

TCL has and always will be about giving back to the construction industry.

DISCLAIMER The following show is in no way advice on how you should invest into cryptocurrency, always do your own research and source out the information for yourself. Shawn Silva, an Engineering Technologist who created A3C to help others navigate the blockchain landscape and Marco Carlini, a salesperson in the concrete industry are here to share a lot about cryptocurrency, blockchain, NFT’s and a whole lot more.

On with the show. What is Blockchain? A blockchain is a distributed system that achieves security through cryptography and consensus without relying on trust.

Nearly two years studying and investing in blockchain, Shawn has learned a lot from his initial $1000.00 investment in a few currencies and he has stuck with Cardano. He believes in the Cardano mandates as he dives deep into the founder, Charles Hoskinson, please look him up.

Shawn and Marco discuss the Terra Luna crash over 3 days, where it went from $160.00 to worth 0.000019 and a lot of people lost their life savings and people committed suicide. Where did that money go? That is the fear.

There are two types of Blockchains, Proof of Work and Proof of State and the guys break it all down. They discuss DeFi, there are two types of exchanges, secs and decs. When you create a blockchain there is a 3-pillar system, Security, Scalability, and Interoperability. Lessons to consider when investing, diversify and have one meme/joke coin because you never know. We discuss hot and cold storages and how to set them up and the term KYC Know Your Customer. Bottom line, do your research and source out the information and make informed decisions and never look at crypto as the quick rich entity that has been portrayed in the last decade.

Shared and Discussed Links

https://www.youtube.com/c/charleshoskinsoncrypto

https://messari.io

https://koinly.io

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vW2BPQ15OSw

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRvqjQPSeaWn-uEx-w0XOIg

https://www.youtube.com/c/CryptosRUs

https://empowa.io

https://www.beeple-crap.com

https://cardanotrees.com

https://www.cryptoboons.com

https://www.claynation.io

https://www.unsigs.com

https://trezor.io

Thank you Shawn and Marco for sharing so much about the digital currency age quickly approaching all of us. Find Shawn at the following @ShawnA3C on Twitter and his YouTube Channle – A3C Crypto Club Inc and on Facebook at ShawnA3C and on his email at [email protected] and the website at www.A3Ccryptoclub.com and contact Marco on his email at [email protected]

DISCLAIMER

Let’s begin the show by saying that the information shared on this show is in NO WAY legal advice to any of our listeners, please schedule a meeting with a lawyer to further discuss your particular legal issues.

Operating his own private practise for 2 years now, graduated University of Ottawa, worked for an investment broker dealer after he did his article for a sports and entertainment firm. He was planning on moving to Chicago but then the pandemic had other plans, he stayed in Canada and now on his own with Regalia Law. We get discussing the reasons why Essa became a lawyer and that leads to at some point in your construction career you will have to have a meeting with a lawyer to either defend or protect yourself.

We shift gears to discussing the housing crisis, Blackstone entering the Canadian housing market, stocks, crypto, lending rates, and so much more, there is something going on and if you are not having conversations about it, you might be left in a bad situation one day in the near future. Essa brings up the recent court case going on right now regarding the travel ban for any unvaccinated Canadians where the court will be hearing arguments in Sept 2022 by the last living signatory of The Charter Of Rights.

Towards the last third of the show we dive into the legal language and potential situations tradespeople could find themselves in one day, we begin with, how to find a lawyer that you can work with and have represent you. We discuss small claims, the legal procedures, contracts, people being spiteful and so many more reasons why the courts are so back logged and why people go the litigation route. Essa sheds some light on Piercing the Corporate Veil, basically there is a way that a lawyer can go after you personally regardless if your business is incorporated. A good contract will have a clause, in the event of a dispute, you mediate first, then you arbitrate and then you litigate and if clients decide to breach the contract, then you have grounds to argue the clause they ignored and decided to clogged the courts and this could have the claim dismissed.

The show wraps up with Manny revealing what his realistic representation of a renovation show would look like and it’s worth the listen.

Shared and Discussed Links

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSTNhBlfV_s

https://www.ontario.ca/document/your-guide-employment-standards-act-0

Thank You so much Essa for sharing so much about the industry and other areas that are dramatically affecting everyone. Find Essa at his contact email [email protected] and his website www.regalialaw.com and he is also on LinkedIN and shares quite a lot about what’s going on in the world.

Want to reach out to Manny, text him on his mobile, 416 433-5737 and or email him at [email protected] or [email protected] Please let him know who you are and then ask away.

TCL has and always will be about giving back to the construction industry.

This show will relate to so many tradespeople working in the industry, please give this show a listen as Bradley shares why and how he got into construction and the path he took, or you could say the path that took him. Thank you so much Bradley for sharing so much and opening up, I know there are a few other tradespeople listening that have or are going through similar struggles. This show we will discuss the industry, business owning and running, union strikes, economy, mental health, addictions and more.

Bradley began his career with Local 183, who are currently on strike as they should be when they have not had a change in their contract since before the pandemic. Before starting his own business, he worked with a number of builders and had a chance to see the bad and good sides of the business, unfortunately more bad than good, that is how many of us learn. Bradley has plans of growing his business to custom home builder and even gated communities.

The topic of mental health comes up and Bradley opens about his past and the struggles he has gone through. In his late teens, a hockey star, the popular kid, partying, became an alcoholic and quickly followed with an addiction ecstasy at the age of 19, carried that along until he was 23 and was introduced to cocaine. Once Bradley was hooked on cocaine, he would wake up in the morning, start his day with a beer and more cocaine before heading to work. His life became darker and darker, he never thought it would end, he figured this was his life for the rest of his life, he knew what he was doing was wrong and his thoughts led him to consider suicide, driving his truck off a bridge. February 19 2021, Bradley finally said to himself, enough, enough. He just finished a 5 day bender of booze and cocaine and he thought of his family, his nieces and nephew and his family helped him back and helped him survive. Arriving on the job site, he hid and cried, nobody on the jobsite knew what Bradley was going through, nobody really knows what any of us are really going through. Bradley called his Mom and she put plans in place and he was quickly admitted into a crisis centre for 72 hours and that was the beginning of his recovery. The hardest part of quitting the addictions for Bradley, was finding himself. For the last few years he put this façade for everyone else and never realized he needed to find his true self.

Shared and Discussed Links

https://www.instagram.com/eq_construction/

Timmy from Virginia.DC metro area is looking for a contractor for a master bathroom renovation anyone listening in that area and interested in learning more, please reach out to him at [email protected] Hopefully someone will reach out to him. Thanks

https://www.instagram.com/mississaugahardwarecentre/

https://www.instagram.com/stuccoskocontemporary/

https://www.instagram.com/tool.academy/

https://www.instagram.com/agdrywallandtaping/

Thank You so much Bradley for sharing so much about the industry and opening up the way you did, the mental health stigma really does need to change. Find Brandley at the following @bradthebuilder94 on IG and contact Bradley on his email at [email protected]

What a great show we have, I first met Gwladys and the Grad Concept crew over 2 years ago at IBS, I knew about them through Thermory and the PaCs clip system and trust me, once you use any of the Grad Concept systems, you will never look back at any other type of system for all of your projects. On the show we dive deep into the products and the ease of use, the countless uses for the clips for decking, siding, features, interior use and so much more and remember they have a key that allows you to unlick the clip and free the board in the event the board was damaged, or you need access behind the board.

Just over 2 years ago, Gwladys had 3 weeks to put together a first impression in the North American market and off she went, up for the challenge she organized everything and was placed at the show in Las Vegas right next to the major players and Grad held their own because it is a great product. In that first year, they had sales of $7,000.00 in 2019, not much of a market share but then this year, they are over a million and still growing. Gwladys understands when it comes to construction most products are incremental when they arrive on the market, with Grad, the product became disruptive, and it is now changing the landscape.

16 years of innovation allows the clips to assist with board movement, adding longevity to the boards, ease of removal, ventilation is promoted, there are so many benefits to using this clip system. With the growth they have experienced in the last 2 years it is now time to set up shop in the USA and they are, building an office in Houston with plans to manufacture in the US very soon. Grad believes that the company should be here and not just ship here.

Grad Concept USA has their own software to help you with take offs no matter the size and or shape. They also carry pedestals and the pedestals are designed to accommodate the clip rails, it really is Lego for tradespeople. The even have privacy fencing, the products continue to grow as Grad Concept USA works on keeping up with the creativity of the industry.

They are also hiring for the Houston office so if anyone is interested in working for a great company and being a part of changing the industry please reach out to Gwladys.

Shared and Discussed Links

https://burgeretcie.fr

https://www.booa.fr

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv8Fhii4h8wIkrT3eqoBaUg

https://www.poolspapatio.com/en/home.html

https://www.iccsafe.org/products-and-services/i-codes/2018-i-codes/irc/

Thank You so much Gwladys and Jon for sharing so much about the clip industry. Find Gwladys at the following @gradconcept_usa on IG us.gradconcept.com and contact Gwladys on her email at [email protected] and find Jon at the following at www.deckprotect.pro and his email [email protected] on IG @deckprotectinc and on FaceBook Deck Protect Inc.

TCL has and always will be about giving back to the construction industry.

Amazing to have John on the show talking the fencing business for the past 50 years, from humble beginnings as an immigrant with his grandfather, working on smaller residential projects to full scale commercial and industrial projects of today. So much to discuss on this show, but first up, we discuss the economy and I must say, it is refreshing to hear from a 26 year old like John that feels there is something bad coming our way, he has heard the stories from his Dad, from his GrandDad from the past, how difficult it was to get work during those lean years, John offers up a lot of great insight.

We have a great conversation about welding and the skill attached. John shares the proper footings for his posts, from resi, to commercial to industrial, sometimes they are working with posts that are 3/8” thick steel for security purposes behind correctional institutions. John brings up so many great points behind profit and understanding your profit margins and what you and your business is really making because most tradespeople don’t really know, they just assume they are making money. Right now John is keeping the business lean because he knows to be safe than sorry.

John shares a number of stories on how is Dad built the business with relationships, being knowledgeable on the job site has an advantage, communicating with engineers and architects, and finally coming to the conclusion that everything works on paper but never on the jobsite, that is where the skills come to play. So many products have been developed by tradespeople handling things on site, figuring how to make things better, more efficient, boots on the ground is incredibly valuable, don’t ever forget that. We finally get a chance to discuss locates and job site duties. We end the show discussing the why of construction, understand the why, when your business isn’t what it used to be, go back to the why, when you have those bad days, bad clients, go back to the why, always go back to the why of construction.

Shared and Discussed Links

https://www.morgansmetal.com

https://fencearmor.com/collections/stain-seal-wood-stain

https://streetsoftoronto.com/19-condo-towers-and-up-to-10000-residents-could-land-at-yorkdale/

Thank You so much John for sharing so much about the industry. Find John and the Arctic Crew at the following @arcticfence on IG www.arcticfence.ca and contact John on his email at [email protected]

Want to reach out to Manny, text him on his mobile, 416 433-5737 and or email him at [email protected] or [email protected] Please let him know who you are and then ask away.

Find Carlito @theconstructionliferenos and reach out to him at [email protected]

Reach out to Joe and Trevor at the following info. www.venturesxcanada.ca find them on Social Media @venturesxoakville reach them at 289 644-2393 and email [email protected]

TCL has and always will be about giving back to the construction industry.

Finally have Mike Valchuk, the man, the myth, the contractor on the show and what a show it is. We begin by discussing his 8 years of construction and how during the beginning of the pandemic Mike and his partner Grant O’Neal felt they needed to pivot, shift gears, an idea that will carry through this episode and has been brought up on so many other TCL shows. Mike and Grant decided to seek professional coaching and they have never regretted it. When they realized the business was creating mirrored years and didn’t see sales grow, they knew something needed to be done. Upon doing a little google searching they sourced out two possible coaching business, one in Australia and one in Canada, they opted for the Canadian one, the links are below.

Mike shares some great tips on structuring your business, looking at profit and understanding that $100.00 isn’t what you get to keep, you need to understand what to do with that money and something the younger trades are doing is investing some of that money, building your business and personal equity. Passion vs Profit comes up once again and it will always come up and Mike shares an interesting story speaking to a business coach of his, you better have that passion because this is the hardest industry to be in, he’s right. Clients will use the emotional card to get those extras, to make you work harder for no extra money, that is not right, you have to train your clients on how to behave is what Mike has been taught.

Mike shares his thoughts on Hamilton area and how it has been developing nicely over the years and a lot of people from the Toronto area are moving out there and building, renovating adding to a very thriving industry in the Hammer.

Of course, we get chatting about tools and the Building Dreams Team is mostly red but Mike has an interesting story to share about their SkilSaw table saw with a very interesting ending. Must listen. We discuss the potential recession that could happen and how to prepare your business for it. As we wrap the show Mike shares his history before construction where he was an owner of 4 locations of Pita Pits over 10 years and how he learned so much from the way they ran the business and he appreciated continuing being a student and how he took all of those lessons into construction.

Shared and Discussed Links

https://theprofessionalbuilder.com

https://www.btacademy.com

https://www.guestplumbing.com

https://www.instagram.com/guestplumbing/

https://www.eagleviewconstruction.com

Thank You so much Mike for sharing so much about the industry. Find Mike and Grant his partner at the following @buildingdreamscontracting on IG www.buildingdreamsinc.ca and contact Mike on his email at [email protected]

Want to reach out to Manny, text him on his mobile, 416 433-5737 and or email him at [email protected] or [email protected] Please let him know who you are and then ask away.

TCL has and always will be about giving back to the construction industry.

Nearly 2 decades in the business Natalia has seen and experienced so much, she is WELL AP, AKBD, CLIPP certified and recently completed her first book, hopefully 1 of 3 of a series of renovation books to help the industry and clients. Natalia is a kitchen and bath designer and there is a difference between her and an Interior Designer and even a decorator.

Off to the designing races, Natalia shares that there should never be a microwave over a cooking surface, the same with a TV over a fireplace, plus cooking fans should be oversized and a conversation with HVAC should always happen because that exhaust will affect the building air flow.

Natalia discusses appliances, specs, her favs including a new style and type of range hood Fotile, the link is below. How important these conversations are way ahead of the first day of demo. Air quality leads us to chatting about Wellness and Natalia has worked with Linda from Living in Place who has been on the show twice now. She dives deep into the client and construction relationships and what to do when things go bad and they will go bad. Lighting and lighting designing and why electricians are so stuck in their ways with lighting plans based on symmetrical placement of lighting? We discuss lumens, cone, purpose of lights, style of lights, color temp of lights and much more.

Plenty of links down below and please check them all out, you will love the information you gain for you and your business.

Shared and Discussed Links

Listen to Natalia’s podcast - Renovation Secrets find it on Buzzsprout - https://www.buzzsprout.com/1150556 (has links to Apple, Google Podcast, Sticher)

Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/renovation-secrets/id1520444767

https://m.miele.ca

https://www.dacor.com/home/

https://ca.fotileglobal.com

https://www.wellcertified.com

http://www.aqmd.gov

https://www.wolseleyinc.ca/brands.html

https://www.ketra.com

https://www.flwright.org/visit/robiehouse

https://usenaturalstone.org

https://nrc.canada.ca/en

https://chopvalue.com

https://www.nkbaottawa.org

Thank You so much Natalia for sharing so much about the Design, Kitchen, Bath and Wellness industry. Find Natalia at the following @detailbydesign15 on IG detailbydesignottawa on FaceBook, @detailbydesign on Twitter and www.detailbydesign.ca and contact Natalia on her email at [email protected] Natalia Pierce, WELL AP, AKBD, CLIPP

What a great show we have, Paul is here to share his insight into the wonderful world of kitchen repairs and contractors mistakes and of course, we are talking about those short cuts that eventually lead to failures and homeowners are left with dealing with the builder, warranties or bringing in a professional like Paul to get it done and get it done properly. His business and reputation grew very quickly because Paul found by dealing with smaller scope of work, he was able to fulfil the solution and make the client happy, his reviews grew fast and furiously and the word go around, Kitchen Fix was the brand to work with.

Anyone in this industry knows you can never please every client and they will leave bad reviews, even bad reviews on your quote and Paul has learned, move on, just accept you can’t please everyone and go find another client. Paul has built his business on efficiency, clients submit a pic, he reviews the scope, he brings what he needs, they fabricate on site, set up his tools in the underground, parking lot, down the street, not matter as long as he has the space to build what he needs and always wraps up the day by cleaning everything up, keeping the home safe and clean. All about the final impression his brand leaves his clients.

Paul is very clear on how he works, the skills he provides, and he does get a lot of clients asking for ballparks, he doesn’t do that, he asks for pics of what the scope is, he determines the work and cost and presents it. He never goes back to fix any of his work, he has his standards and clients feel he is high, he tells clients that he is high but the work will never have to be done again. Set your standard and build from that level. Paul calls it “Deceptively Complex”, this industry, you are the brand and once you wrap your mindset around that, you will be hugely successful.

Shared and Discussed Links

https://www.blum.com/ca/en/company/about-blum-canada/

https://www.salice.com/us/en/products/hinges

https://www.grass.at/1404.html?L=1

https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca

https://www.richelieu.com/ca/en/

https://www.hafele.ca/en/

Thank You so much Paul for sharing so much about the industry. Find Paul at the following @kitchenfix on IG and www.kitchenfix.ca and contact Paul on his email at [email protected]

Want to reach out to Manny, text him on his mobile, 416 433-5737 and or email him at [email protected] or [email protected] Please let him know who you are and then ask away.

Find Carlito @theconstructionliferenos and reach out to him at [email protected]

Reach out to Joe and Trevor at the following info. www.venturesxcanada.ca find them on Social Media @venturesxoakville reach them at 289 644-2393 and email [email protected]

TCL has and always will be about giving back to the construction industry.