Appetite for Construction

Send us Fan Mail Tim and John try out the new chill Friday podcast as they talk about whatever is on their mind, really. They step away from the seriousness and business of the industry and take a chapter out of Aaron Rodger's playbook and R-E-L-A-X. Sit back and joy this short snippet as the boys talk about the most chill places to live, and the most stressed. Subscribe to the Appetite for C...

Send us Fan Mail The boys travel to Washington D.C. to talk with Dain Hansen, Executive Vice President of Government Affairs, the IAPMO Group. One of the hardest working people in the industry, Dain talks about policy, IAMPO's mission, his journey into the government affairs world, and we take a deep dive into the new American Jobs Plan and the Texas crisis. #notdeadyetpodccast #NDYpodcast #I...

Send us Fan Mail Tim and John test drive the new NDY (Indy) news format (Mondays and week in review on Friday), and while we say these will be shorter in length, this introductory one goes a bit longer as we touched upon some BIG topics. We'll still be doing our regular, longer guest formats on Wednesdays. Here, we discussed the new ambitious American Job Plan proposed by President Biden, sti...

Send us Fan Mail As we reach the halfway mark of season 2, Tim & John make a major announcement to their podcast format. They also discuss stuck cargo ships, weather apps, truckin', fishin', boatin', NCAAs, NASCAR, and going commando? This laid back episode is just what the doctor ordered as they make the turn to the clubhouse on season 2.  #NotDeadYetPodcast #NDYPodcast #plumbi...

Send us Fan Mail The boys are back from their Wisconsin planning session and share a bit on their weekend work activities as well as John's upcoming family vacation to the Outer Banks. After the cross talk John and Tim bring in their guests Chris Carrier with Reliance Worldwide Corporation and Ed Brady with Home Builder Institute.  Chris and Ed share the details of their recent partnership in...

Send us Fan Mail The boys head east as they cross over into Indiana to talk with newly appointed Executive Vice President at NIBCO, Ashley Martin. She discusses growing up all things NIBCO and now working with her father, Rex Martin, and she reminisces about her late mother, Alice. She talks about her new role, how the company navigated through COVID, the future of the NIBCO and Webstone, boarding...

Send us Fan Mail We celebrate the life and career of trade journalist Bob Mader. Some of his close friends and cohorts share some stories about Bob, from the various trade shows to traveling overseas. He was a giant in trade journalism, and one of the best to put pen to paper. But most of all he was a dear friend and he will be missed. Subscribe to the Appetite for Construction podcast at any of y...

Send us Fan Mail It seems that every week we talk about fitness and how it intertwines with everyday work functions—mobility, strength, etc. The boys visit John's home town of Sycamore, Ill., to talk with Carl Balentyne and Chris Robinson of Sycamore Crossfit to discuss the importance and fitness and health. Not only is strength and endurance important, but also the psychological boost you ge...

Send us Fan Mail Tim & John head into the social media zone and talk with the guys that run Hydronic Heating Techs, a Facebook group that celebrates the hydronics industry and its 5000+ member base. Mike Crompton, the creator of the group, and Ron Parshall discuss moderating the group and the ins and outs of running a successful social media page. Both contractors, with years of experience, ta...

Send us Fan Mail Anna Pearson is a rising star. The Not Dead Yet crew head to Las Vegas to talk with this first-year apprentice who has what it takes to make an indelible impression in the plumbing trades. Anna (@theplumbingprincess on Instagram) and the crew discuss her journey, championing for women in the trades and the recruitment of young, skilled women, dispelling sexist overtones on the job...

Send us Fan Mail The boys head up to one of the most beautiful, yet fairly frigid places in the world as they cross the border to the foothills of the Canadian Rockies in Calgary, Alberta, where they talk to the warm and toasty Bob Baker, Baker Plumbing. We run the gamut of topics, ranging from beard or no beard,  working with his boys—and now daughter—to his journey into the trades, coping with t...

Send us Fan Mail Talk about alliteration! The boys have a menage a trois with arguably the best trainers in the business. John Barba, Dave Holdorf and Rick Mayo talk about their journey—how they crossed paths and worked together at Wirsbo—eventually Uponor—and how training has evolved in the last 25 years, especially during the last year through COVID-19. They also talk about Taco After Dark and t...

Send us Fan Mail The boys head out to Falls Church, Va., to talk with Michael Copp, Executive Vice President, PHCC. Michael talks about how the PHCC-NA has navigated through the pandemic, describes the many benefits of being a member, the live, in-person CONNECT trade show planned for October and the state of the industry. We also get to know Michael a bit better as he tells us his journey into hi...

Send us Fan Mail Season 2 has begun! This week the boys head to Missouri & Utah simultaneously (what?) to talk with Bob Rohr and his son Max about the industry, how he got his nickname, the Grub Steak Restaurant, Max's return to Caleffi and the new Shop Talk webinar series in 2021 with a Showdown twist. The Rohr family has been an influential and important name in the plumbing, HVAC and h...

Send us Fan Mail As the boys finish Season 1 of the Not Dead Yet podcast, they reflect on the past year, and Mechanical Hub's Eric Aune joins the guys to talk about an array of different topics — the Make Trades Great Again podcast, the future of mankind, roach motels, colonoscopies, the pros and strangeness of Air BnBs, having fun getting together at trade shows, missing their friends in-per...

Send us Fan Mail This week the boys head over to northwest Indiana to talk with Danny Gronendyke, Gronendyke Plumbing, Inc., Merrillville, Ind. This rapping plumber talks about his burgeoning rap career, his entrepreneurial spirit, his professional journey, advice he would give people starting in the trades, what the industry can do to better itself, service calls during the Cubs World Series and...

Send us Fan Mail This week the boys head deep in the heart of Texas to visit with Joel Frederick, president of Quarter Moon Plumbing, San Antonio. Joel talks about the state of the plumbing trade in Texas with licensed plumbers, promoting the trades in his area, Texas BBQ, Dallas Cowboys and random Texas football thoughts, as Tim shares his woes of Big 8 football and witnessing the fall of an unde...

Send us Fan Mail This week the guys talk with Nick Sattler, partner and executive director of MechanicalXchange, Egan, Minn., and Mark Perrone, purchasing manager, JC Cannistraro, Watertown, Mass., a top 100 mechanical contractor out of the Boston area. The MechanicalXchange connects manufacturers and contractors on a one-on-one level. It gives contractors  the relationship and control in their su...

Send us Fan Mail This week the boys head to Chicago's western burbs as they talk to the bearded magician, Coach C, Alan Carlson (@alan_carlson on IG). One of our favorite follows on the Gram, Alan discusses his family roots in the plumbing trade, life as a service tech, the Bears' ongoing futility as a franchise, social media etiquette and the need for better industry marketing to attrac...

Send us Fan Mail Want to know what it's like to live and work in Alaska? This week the boys head up to the Last Frontier to talk with Everett Knudsen (@907plumber on IG), owner of 907 Heating & Plumbing. Everett talks about living and working in extreme conditions, as he navigates the Alaskan climate, funky daylight changes, and some encounters with the free-roaming wildlife. He also tell...

Send us Fan Mail No one ever accused us of not having real talk with our guests. This week the boys head to South Florida to talk with Omar Harris (@omartheplumber on IG), plumber with Broward County Facilities, Broward County, Florida, as they discuss diversity in the trades. Are we doing enough as an industry? Omar talks about his path to the trades, his work, and his influence on others to join...

Send us Fan Mail As the boys reach mid-point of season 1 of the Not Dead Yet Podcast, they go pantless, I mean, guestless, as they reflect on the first 12 episodes, conduct their own Mount Rushmore of movies, music, cocktails and bucket list travel destinations. Get to know the hosts better as this lesson in free association is chock full of good stories, including their craziest work experiences....

Send us Fan Mail The Not Dead Yet crew talk tankless water heaters with Brian Fenske, Director of Commercial Sales, Navien and Eric Silva, owner, Silva Mechanical. Silva, a plumbing and mechanical contractor from West Bloomfield Township, MI, just outside of Detroit, is an avid tankless installer and Navien loyalist. Silva knows tankless, but too "high profile" for the union? They talk a...

Send us Fan Mail With Veterans Day right around the corner, Chaunte Hall joins the boys. Chaunte Hall is a U.S. Air Force veteran, an adjunct college professor, executive career coach, CEO of Centurion Military Alliance, and most recently, became the president of Victory Trades Alliance (VTA). Victory Trades Alliance is an organization that focuses on helping veterans service members in transition...

Send us Fan Mail The boys head to the Great Northwest to talk with Steve Murray, a 35-year industry veteran, who discusses why his employer, CPI Plumbing & Heating, has chosen to invest heavily in developing the tech skills of local high school grads, working with various vendors and suppliers to create a 2,500-sq.-ft. learning facility from scratch. Part of the success of the Training Lab cam...