Dirty Jobs

2005 - 2023

Chinatown Garbage Collector

Episode 1

Garbage collector/recycling separator, shark catcher/tagger, car recycling

Sewer Inspector

2nd August 2005

Episode 2

Sewer inspector, disaster cleanup crew member (basement sewer), demolition worker (office building interior)

Pig Farmer

9th August 2005

Episode 3

Pig farmer, removing chewing gum from sidewalks (New York City), pigeon droppings removal (New York City)

Chick Sexer

16th August 2005

Episode 4

Baby chicken sexer, beer brewer, oyster harvester

Vexcon

23rd August 2005

Episode 5

Exterminator, crab fisherman, blacksmith/farrier

Sludge Cleaner

30th August 2005

Episode 6

Mike Rowe gets dirty as he works with surfboard shaper Matt Barker. Mike masters the art of shaping a surfboard from Styrofoam. And Mike goes underground into a greasy pit of sludge as he joins an environmental company that recycles the gunky grime.

Hot Tar Roofer

27th September 2005

Episode 7

Mike first heads off to Pasadena, California and discovers the difficult step by step process in patching up a roof. Then Mike goes to New Jersey and helps move a 60 ton, 225 year old house.

Ostrich Farmer

4th October 2005

Episode 8

Mike visits a coffee plantation in Hawaii and learns about the long process in how to make coffee, from picking the beans to roasting them. Mike then goes to Sausalito, CA to be a marine mammal rescuer and help rehabilitate some injured seals.Finally, Mike learns about ostrich farming, from their daily upkeep to collecting their eggs.

Cheese Maker

11th October 2005

Episode 9

Mike visits the San Francisco Zoo and learns what it's like to be a zookeeper, essentially feeding the animals and collecting their poo.Mike then goes to Vermont to a haunted cheese making factory and learns not only how to make cheese, but the art of patience.Finally, Mike learns how to be a volcano ash mud bath mixer (spa technician) in Calistoga, CA and takes a mud bath after a very dirty day. That's not all - Mike also journeys to a live volcano in Hawaii and gets up close and personal with some very hot lava.

Shrimper

18th October 2005

Episode 10

Mike goes to South Carolina and learns about shrimping. He also helps study the shrimp population in order to find out when it's time to open the shrimping season. Mike then goes to the swamps of Louisiana to catch some crawfish. Finally, Mike goes to Washington to clean up an illegal tire dump and recycle some tires.

Bio-Diesel Man

25th October 2005

Episode 11

Mike goes to Washington and helps build a house out of cob, which is basically a combination of sand, clay, and straw.Mike then heads to California and works alongside Dave the bee man to get rid of some bee's infesting a church.Finally, Mike goes back to Washington and helps clean out the old oil from a deep fryer at a Mexican restaurant and then recycle the oil into fuel or bio-diesel.

Micro-Algae Man

1st November 2005

Episode 12

Mike begins by traveling to Palo Alto, CA to learn how to be a pet groomer, from cutting hair to giving baths. Mike then goes to Hawaii to turn happy green algae into unhappy red algae to be used as antioxidant gelcaps for human consumption. Finally, Mike goes to Missouri to learn how to be a charcoal factory worker. Mike ends the day with a barbeque and introduces us to the crew that help make the show.

Chimney Sweeper

8th November 2005

Episode 13

Mike first goes to the Chimney Safety Institute of America in Plainfield, IN and learns how to be a certified chimney sweeper. Mike then goes to Ontario, Canada to salvage underwater logs, which are then used to make furniture. Finally, Mike visits a scrap metal recycler in St. Louis, MO and learns how to separate different metals and operate some big machines.

Top Cast

Host and everyman Mike Rowe gets the grimy scoop on downright nasty occupations.

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Mike Rowe

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