Ten Tools- "Day 5"

OK, so the whole ten day thing didn't work out at all but I am going to continue with my list of Ten Tools you should all have in your tool bag.  Today's tool is a flashlight.

There is one sure thing in maintenance, if it can happen it will and it will happen at the most inopportune time.  During my first winter working as a maintenance technician I got a no-heat call from a new resident.  It was about 11pm on Friday when the call came in so I headed out without all my tools, just my on-call bag, hoping it was something simple like a flame sensor.  When I arrived I found the gas valve was sticking.  I started to take it off so I could match it up back at our shop.  Somebody had put thread lock on the union threads so it was coming off real hard.  I gave it one final twist and the whole pipe came out of the floor!  You could hear the gas running out of the 3/4" pipe and I had just snapped off the shut off valve. 

I calmly (at least I think I was calm) asked the couple to step out into the hall while I ran downstairs to find the shut off.  Nobody had trained me to where the shut offs where for the buildings so I started making phone calls but nobody answered.  Because I didn't have my full tool bag I also didn't have much in the way of light.  I went running around the building, digging through the snow next to the gas meter's with a little pen light.  I had to get down on my knees just to see with that small light.  I finally found the valve about 10 minutes later and shut down the gas to the entire building.  I was soaking wet and freezing cold and had another two hours of fixing the pipe, fixing the gas valve, and relighting stoves for the entire building (my luck, it was the only building we had not switched over to electric ignition stoves) before I could go home and get warmed up.

The moral of the story is:  There are times when you need light and a lot of it.  I see most people using the flashlight from their cordless kit, which is great but they don't fit into an on-call bag very easy.  I would suggest everybody carries a quality hand held flashlight that isn't too bulky.  I have a Craftsman LED 160 lumen flashlight (Model #41-5900) that I love.  It is made of aircraft grade aluminum, is water resistant, and has a battery level indicator.  The flashlight puts out a ton of light also.  The aluminum is durable yet light and the design of the flashlight makes it real easy to put into your small bag. 

I have found that you can never have enough light.  Whether your crawling through a crawlspace, climbing through an attic, or stuffed into a base cabinet nothing is more frustrating than not being able to see that tiny screw head that has 10 layers of paint over it.  That is why I look for tools which incorporate a LED light. 

My screwdriver, cordless drill, and even my multi-meter feature a tiny work light.  I covered my cordless drill and multi-meter in my previous posts so I'll let you go back and look at those if you wish, however I think I should mention my screwdrivers here.  I have two screwdrivers which feature LED lights built into them.  The first is a Craftsman 6-1 lighted screwdriver (Model #35722).  It features a #1 and #2 Philips and slotted bit along with a 1/4" nut driver.  The handle is aluminum with rubber grips which is great for its durability but not so much fun out in the snow or when around electrical wires.  I also wish it had a 5/16 nut drive with it.  The three l.e.d. lights work great.  I also have a very similar screwdriver from Kobalt but I lost a bit and can't find the proper replacement.

Another great source of light is the head lamp.  I have had one in my small on-call bag for the last few years and they can be great while working on a furnace or under a sink.  Hands free operation is the key here.  I would suggest looking beyond the cheaper models here and go into a sporting goods store.  They sell high quality headlamps to sportsman for night fishing and animal tracking.  These models are heavier duty and more comfortable than the "Harbor Freight" specials. 

There are many different types of flashlights out there and I have tried a ton of them.  Tiny pen lights that you can keep in your pocket, magnetized, hooked, and flexible lighting, tripod lights, lights in your baseball cap, and even some that clip to the side of your glasses.  You are going to need to find out what is most comfortable for you.  Just remember not to just jump into something because it looks cool sitting on the hardware store counter.  Look at lumen, battery size, and other features to make sure that light is going to work the best for you.