You want to do some small house renovations? Or even build your own house? Power tools can help you save tremendous amounts of time and gain accuracy. But for that, you’ve got to know how to use them correctly!! Yoann, with over a decade of training and experience in construction under his belt, will be gladly showing you how to best use a wide range of tools.

You will learn the name and the usage of all these mysterious and scary tools, and you’ll practice handling them safely. If you already have a project in mind, then Yoann will happily guide you through the purchase of the most adapted tools within your budget, and you’ll focus the practice on mastering them. If you’re more generaly curious and eager to discover them all, you’ll also have the opportunity to explore a wide range of power tools.

From rough chopping and cutting tools to fine finishing sanders, for wood, concrete, metal or gypsum, you’ll familiarise yourself with the most popular tools used in general residential construction and renovation

Course objective:

Each student should leave the course with a solid understanding of the correct use and handling of a wide variety of construction-related power tools. Safety, preserving and maintaining the machine, precision and productivity will be the key values vehiculed by the teacher (in that order of importance). For your best experience, we’ll adapt the course to student’s levels, requests, questions and interests, on an individual basis as much as possible. Beyond 8 students, we’ll recruit a teacher’s assistant to insure a smooth and safe class.

Level required:

We welcome people with any experience, and we will help everybody make progress.

Course language:

The teacher will be giving the course in french, and will be able to translate the difficult parts. However, if you need full time translation, thank you for noticing us. We cannot promise it, but if several students need it, we’ll arrange something.

Accommodation:

The price includes a camping spot (an 8’x10′ platform) for the Friday and Saturday nights. Please bring your own caping gear.

Alternatively, you can reserve one of our eco-cabins, just visit https://terraperma.ca/sejourner/types-hebergement/ or call the reservation center: 1-514-291-6368

Material necessary:

Each student must come with the following gear:

• Construction boots ideally (steel toes) , {we will tolerate solid hiking-like boots, but if you seriously want to do construction at home, we encourage you to invest in a good pair of working boots.}
• Individual safety equipment: (dust mask, safety googles, ear defenders, construction gloves) {For hygiene sake, we cannot lend these equipment, but we’ll be selling a whole kit  on site, we havent determined the price yet}
• Working clothes: Have to be tough, strong, adapted to the weather and you shouldn’t mind dirtying them. They musn’t hang loose at the sleeve, the neck, the belly. Have a spare in case of rain.
• Camping gear: The course spans on two days, a camping spot (8×10 plateform) is included in the course’s price. (Friday and Saturday nights). Bring the camping gear you see fit (tent, mattress, sleeping bag etc…), and extra things for the evening (music instruments, etc… )
• Food for your stay: Meals are not included in the course’s price. You’ll have access to a collective kitchen, equipped with propane stoves and a range of cooking gear. However, depending on the group size, it might become difficult to cook all together. We strongly advise that your meals be prepared in avance. Please be aware that we don’t have access to a fridge. If everybody agrees, it will be possible to proceed with a potluck formula. WE’ll discuss this possibility shortly before the course with all the students.
• Swimsuit and towel: the course price includes access to the whole Terra Perma parc, that includes a private, pristine, protected lake. Bring what you need to enjoy it! Soap, sunscreen and bug reppelant are banned from the lake, please be considerate ????
• Your own construction tools (optional) We’ll gladly lend you our tools!! However, if you have tools you’d like to familiarize yourself with, or that you want to explore deeper, it will be more interesting for you to come with them.

The price includes: 

Participation to the workshop for one person, camping spot, access to a collective kitchen, access to Terra Perma’s parc

Possible supplement: Safety gear kit (disposable dust mask, safety googles, ear plugs (2 pairs), construcion gloves.) (price to be set)

Teacher Yoann Gonzalez

(English bellow) Yoann a passé huit ans en France à apprendre la charpente et la construction bois an alternance, ce qui signifie qu'il a à la fois la théorie et l'experience pratique. Arrivé au Québec en 2012, il s'est très vite intéressé à la construction durable et a participé à plusieurs projets écologiques au travers du Québec, ainsi qu'à la Earthship Academy Ushuaia, ou il a participé avec les autres étudiants à la construction d'un earthship complet. Depuis son arrivée à Terra Perma, il est impliqué dans la majorité des projets de consrtuction et dans la mise en place de l'Ecole. "J'estime que donner l'exemple et partager les savoir-faire sont essentiels pour permettre aux gens d'effectuer une transition vers un mode de vie plus durable et en harmonie avec notre environnement. English: Yoann spend 8 year in France training and working as a timberframer and carpenter. He's got theoretical and practical experience in building. He arrived in Québec in 2012 and quickly got into sustainable construction. He participated in many ecological projects in Québec and attended the Earship Academy in Ushuaia, where, with the other students, he participated in the construction of a full Earthship building. Since his arrival at Terra Perma, he's involved in most building projects, and in setting the school up. "I think that leading by exemple and sharing know-hows are key elements to help people transitioning towards a more sustainable lifestyle, in harmony with the environment."

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