Oil Well Fishing-Tool Technician

If you’ve ever lost your wedding ring down the sink, or had to clear a clogged shower drain, you know what it’s like to be an Oil Well Fishing-Tool Technician.

That’s because it’s your job as an Oil Well Fishing-Tool Technician to “fish” things out of oil wells, which are basically giant-sized drains in the earth. Although they transport oil instead of water, those drains can get clogged — and things can get dropped down them — just like the pipes in your house can. When that happens, oil companies do what homeowners do: They call a Plumber.

As an Oil Well Fishing-Tool Technician, you’re that Plumber. When oil-drilling equipment gets lost down wells’ boreholes, it’s your job to recover it. And when wells aren’t producing enough oil — the equivalent of poor water pressure — it’s your job to increase oil flow by removing obstructions, such as stuck pipe, casing, liners, screens, and tools.

In collaboration with Well Pullers, Oil Rig Operators, Well Drillers, and others, you do your job by examining wells and assessing their conditions, using special equipment to determine the size and depth of blockages, or the location of lost items. Then, once you know what you’re dealing with, you direct drilling crews on how to recover equipment and remove obstructions. Techniques you use include installing pressure-control devices onto wellheads, drilling around lodged obstacles, flooding pipes to flush out blockages, using explosives to remove jams, and using derrick pulleys to fish out lost items.

Just like your title implies, you’re essentially a Fisherman. Instead of fish in the sea, however, you’re after objects in oil wells!