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Times Staff WriterJohn Strachan, 42, President, Crosstown Surveyors Inc., St. Petersburg.
What is a property survey?
Well, basically it's a survey of objects within the boundaries of a property. There's so many different kinds (of surveys) and they all serve a different purpose. You don't do the same thing every time. Some surveys look at things like elevations and locations of utilities; others might not.
Who is on a survey team?Basically you have a crew you work with, including a rod man who is the guy who holds the rod, and the instrument person - the one that has the instrument out in the road. Then comes the party chief, and from there you would move into the office as either a field supervisor or project manager.
What steps do you go through when surveying a property?A project starts with research, then fieldwork and then you do the drafting. You start by looking at the property appraiser's records to get the plat and legal description. Then we go out and walk through the property and find the property pins (corners). Those are usually iron pins in the ground. We locate your house and everything on the property, like fences and driveways. Basically we're making a map of your property. When we get the fieldwork done, we write it all up in a rough book and then have it drafted.
How do you locate property pins?I've got a metal detector and we dig around until we find them.
How long does it take you to survey a typical residential property?Research is probably about a half hour. Fieldwork is about an hour and a half to two hours. Drafting is probably about another hour. Sometimes longer if there are additional things do to, like elevation certificates for those in flood zones.
What tools do you need for your job?Your basic computer, for (online) research and records. Then you have your survey instrument, your transit and level. Then your measuring tapes and such.
What does a transit do?The transit shoots angles and (measures) distances. I have a fairly up-to-date model where you look through the sight and then you use another rod at the other end where the guy is holding it and you punch a button and it shoots a (light) beam and gives you the distance. The information goes into a data collector, which is like a calculator, and then you can upload that into the computer, then draw your survey.
How many sites do you survey in a day?Usually three to four.
Any hidden hazards of the job?Dogs, you know, in the residential part. If you're in the construction end, you have to be on your toes like any construction worker, looking out for machinery or anything that could be a concern. Obviously if you're working in the road, your (personal) safety is an issue.
Are there any perks of the job?You're not going to get rich doing this, but you're not going to starve either. It's a job to where you're always going to have one, for the most part. You gain a certain knowledge in mathematics, obviously, and if you like working outside, then that's one perk. If you like working in an office atmosphere, you can also do that. So you have a couple of different avenues that you can travel. And, frankly, we need more young people to get into what we're doing because there's a shortage of surveyors.
What kind of training do you need to do this?Now, to get the license that I have, you have to go through four years of college and then another four years of apprenticeship before you can even sit for the test. When I did it, you qualified through experience.
Do you have to get recertified every so often?Yeah, every two years you have to have 24 hours of continuing education and then you have to get recertified to get your license again.
How much money can someone make doing this?Starting out at the rod man level, $8.50 to $9 an hour. Up to the party chief range with some experience, it could be around $20 to $22 an hour. That's at the crew level, and then everybody else coming in at the professional (management) level is higher.