How do I start welding?

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vtsteam:
Well if a person is worried about gas welding in a house, better save up for a plasma cutter, as well. Because you will want to avoid gas for cutting, too.

And if explosions and fires are a focus, please be sure not to allow anything containing gasoline in even an attached garage if a person reading this has one. A lawnmower for instance -- a cup of gasoline vaporized is reputed to have the explosive power of 8 sticks of dynamite, at least that's the usual disclaimer in boating circles. At least propane is lighter than air and doesn accumulate vapors in low areas like liquid fuels do.

Also spray paint cans, cans of lacquer thinner, denatured alcohol, starting fluid, etc. No propane or mapp gas torch, and look out for homemade steam engine burners, using flammable fluids, etc. Don't allow those in the enclosed structure of a house if we want to be consistent.

Then there are the detrimental gasses produced by welding, fluxes, molten metal and alloy vapors, persisting inside a modern low loss insulated house. Proper non-spark ventilation is a MUST in any case. Even wood working sawdust running through a static inducing collection system can be a concern.

Each person must make realistic and practical choices for their own situation re. safety, and many things we do are inconsistent when looked at logically. But there are often simple solutions to special needs. For instance, with oxy propane -- can the bottles be sited outdoors, or in a shed, or if small, in a small purpose built ventilated enclosure outdoors? As propane is sited externally in a vented enclosure,on a boat, or motor home (caravan). Propane for cooking is commonly sited external to a house.

I always weld and cut outdoors. Always, even though I have a shop separate from my house. Even in mid winter in Vermont. Cutting and welding or brazing are infrequent operations for hobbyists -- we aren't going into welding as a business. It's not a big inconvenience to step outside for a few minutes work., and I don't want to breathe or spread fumes in my shop, or drip molten metal on the floor.

Anyway. I believe with a common sense approach many things are do-able depending on your sense of risk and sensible means of risk reduction.

Fergus OMore:
Phil is quite right. The eBay item is almost identical to mine( wherever it went)

Basically, it was a pistol grip with a solenoid similar to that on a door bell chime and with a holder and griub screw for - I think- a 16 or 22 gauge coated rod.

The principle is fairly obvious but it avoids the beginner's problem of learning to strike an arc like a match.

Having struck the arc with the gubbins described, you then circuited it direct through the battery/welding set and onto the job in hand.

Obviously the amount of fumes is minimal. We, the City and Guilds Class of Dodos used fume cupboards to extract fumes from welding( and Woodbines)
'Woodbines' are - for our cousins-------fags. :lol:
Splutter, splutter

Norm

mattinker:

--- Quote from: Fergus OMore on November 05, 2013, 09:30:44 AM ---
'Woodbines' are - for our cousins-------fags. :lol:
Splutter, splutter

Norm

--- End quote ---

Norm, fags in the US aren't cigarettes, sort of equivalent to queers!

Regards, Matthew

Arbalist:
My brother gave me one his woodbines to try about 40 years ago, made me so dizzy I had to have a lie down Norman!

NeoTech:
I personally started welding few years back still learning.. I started with a cheap MAG welder (not a MIG, cause they can weld aluminium) and 5kg rental free bottle.. I watched welderseries amongst other on youtube and started to figure stuff out.. Then i got myself a stick welder with scrape start tig, and welded with 1kg bottles smallar stuff. In the end i got myself a AC/DC 200A tig welder.. I weld everything with that.. BUT.. if i hadnt start with the mag, wire welder.. i would prob. never learned what to look for when doing tig welding.

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