What do plumbing and starring in reality TV have in common? They’re both about finding the right fit, as Tom Calleja discovered.
The 2022 The Block contestant never thought he’d become one of Australia’s more well-known plumbers, but being thrust into the limelight certainly changed that.
His first foray into tradie stardom took some getting used to, much like his journey to finding the right environment to pursue his love for plumbing, which started back in 2005 when Tom did year 10 work experience with a plumber. “I asked him for an apprenticeship and he said, ‘mate, go back to school, finish year 12 and I’ll give you a job’,” Tom said. “Sure enough, he gave me a job and I stayed with him for five years before plumbing in London for a year.”
Sweet Connection
Tom said the variety of work during his apprenticeship really appealed to him, and kept him invested in taking it up as a long-term career. “I like the diversity of plumbing, I was lucky enough to do an apprenticeship that taught me everything there is to plumbing, whether it was hospitals from start to finish, high-end homes and roofing which is normally another apprenticeship,” Tom explained.
“I got a taste of everything and I liked that – as opposed to doing a roofing apprenticeship – I got to do all aspects of plumbing apart from cooling. “You’re at a build from start to finish, so you can learn aspects of other trades too, and I think that was a key factor with us on The Block.” Once he was back down under, Tom found himself working for a commercial outfit, but quickly found it wasn’t for him. “I sorta got sick of just being a number on site and just having my skills go to waste, so I thought I’d go out and do my own thing,” he said. For about a year and half, Tom operated his own service. However, he ran into a few blockages when it came to getting a home loan, so he decided to return to commercial work. “The same thing happened. I just got sick of being a number. The commercial industry was so unstable and inconsistent,” Tom said. “I thought I’d give being out on my own a red-hot crack again, and I haven’t looked back. It’s been the best decision I’ve ever made.” Tom’s business – TRC Plumbing and Roofing – operates out of north-west Melbourne, and consists of himself as owner along with an apprentice and two subbies.
DYNAMIC DUO
Tom knew of The Block, but never really considered being on the show, despite his mates encouraging him to sign up. “It never really appealed to me – the idea of working in crowded rooms with small timeframes with high pressure,” he said. It was when Tom’s partner Sarah-Jane was looking to sign up for quiz show The Chase that the application for The Block presented itself. “We saw the season would be set in Gisbourne. We love Gisbourne and have always wanted to move there for a few years – [so we thought] let’s give it a crack,” he said. “I thought we had Buckley’s chance of getting on. We’re no different from the average Joe Bloggs person. We did the video at home and handed it in on the very last day…one thing led to another and we got called up to an interview, then we got called up to another interview and another. Then, a few months later we got called up to be on the show.” While their time on the show provided plenty of challenges, Tom said he and Sarah-Jane had a blast. The couple won a car one round, and Tom even found the demanding workload to be part of the fun more than anything.
“You get into this weird routine fuelled by adrenaline. Provided you have really good and happy tradies, you can keep a good and clean worksite,” he said. “A lot on the show came easy to us. We never really hit a point where we were going to pull the pin or argued with the tradies.” One highlight that had Tom feeling nostalgic was working with legendary tradie TV personality Scotty Cam, along with other Aussie personalities such as Shelley Craft. “I grew up as a kid watching Scotty on Backyard Blitz so being able to have a beer with him was cool,” Tom said.
“The whole experience was awesome. We wouldn’t do it any different if we did it again.” For now, Tom’s back at TRC Plumbing and Roofing and getting some rest from a hectic 2022, with plans to grow his business gradually heading into 2023.