Tig Cooler Unit

[Carl Wilson]

Hi all,

I have been thinking about a future project to build a Tig Cooler Unit.

I was just wondering if anyone here had built one, what sort of components they used and how it went.

Carl.

 

[Richard.]

Built plenty of them Carl.
Have a nose at some of these pics

 

[optima21]

you can make something suitable for professional use like Richards, and he is the guru on this......

or for the tesco value version, you can go down my route, for occasional home use

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/...-to-use-with-wp20-torch-and-diy-cooler.65542/

 

[Carl Wilson]

Thanks chaps, all really nice work. Those pumps look large. I imagine you are going to need relatively high pressures to drive a sufficient flow rate through what must be quite small cooling passages inside the torch. A similar problem to rocket engine cooling, about which I know a little.

I'm definitely going to have a go at some stage, though the back burner is where it will reside for some time yet!

 

[Richard.]

The procons are big but they are the best tools for the job.
The grey cooler at the bottom is quite compact really at 350x300x150

 

[Carl Wilson]

Thanks. I was just musing on the possibility of using PC cooling radiators (as used by overclockers) in a parallel set up as the heat exchanger. I may also design and make my own.

If I said flow rates of 2-5 litres/minute for a water cooled torch would I be in the right area?

 

[addjunkie]

I built one too http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/cooler-finally-started.74556/

Cooler is a cheap oil cooler from the bay of evil.

 

[Hood]

Think 1 to 1.5 lpm is about the norm.
Here is mine, obviously it is not portable but it is not meant to be

 

[Hood]

This is my makeshift portable one done in a rush to keep me going until I made a better one, a year on and I still haven't done it

 

[Hopefuldave]

Interesting thread, as I've just accidentally bought this "spares or repair" (I'm a lapsed electronics tech and it was very cheap... no bugger outbid me!), now need to buy everything to wrap around it!

I won't be pushing it hard as it'll have to run off the phase convertor for my mill, have to keep it below 200A or it'll trip the MCB, but water cooled torches look The Dog's for working in awkward spots for more than a couple of minutes - I've a 8 x 10" cooling rad and some 5" mains fans rescued from The World's Best Skip as a start, not spotted a pump yet - are the Chinese 12v "125 psi, 6 l/min" as crap as I suspect? If I punt for humps on EvilBay, what's a good search?

Thanks all,
Dave H. (the other one)

 

[Jlg]

Interesting thread, as I've just accidentally bought this "spares or repair" (I'm a lapsed electronics tech and it was very cheap... no ****** outbid me!), now need to buy everything to wrap around it!

View attachment 139151

I won't be pushing it hard as it'll have to run off the phase convertor for my mill, have to keep it below 200A or it'll trip the MCB, but water cooled torches look The Dog's for working in awkward spots for more than a couple of minutes - I've a 8 x 10" cooling rad and some 5" mains fans rescued from The World's Best Skip as a start, not spotted a pump yet - are the Chinese 12v "125 psi, 6 l/min" as crap as I suspect? If I punt for humps on EvilBay, what's a good search?

View attachment 139153

Thanks all,
Dave H. (the other one)

@Richard. has a cooler in the for sale section would be worth a look before you buy parts it might work out cheaper just buying it

 

[Hopefuldave]

@Richard. has a cooler in the for sale section would be worth a look before you buy parts it might work out cheaper just buying it

But... but... then I wouldn't have made it myself!

I'll have a look though

Dave H. (the other one)

 

[Jlg]

But... but... then I wouldn't have made it myself!

I'll have a look though

Dave H. (the other one)

I made one myself then decided I didn't quite trust the pump I used so just bought a parweld cooler a lot more peace of mind

 

[Hopefuldave]

Can't find Richard's ad for a cooler - any idea when it was posted?

Cheers,
Dave H. (the other one)

 

[Jlg]

Can't find Richard's ad for a cooler - any idea when it was posted?

Cheers,
Dave H. (the other one)

Second page of the for sale section

 

[Hopefuldave]

Thanks, found it - a bit rich for me, though V nice

I've already got the rad and fans, box to put it in, hoses - just need to pick a decent pump!

Dave H. (the other one)

 

[Jlg]

Thanks, found it - a bit rich for me, though V nice

I've already got the rad and fans, box to put it in, hoses - just need to pick a decent pump!

Dave H. (the other one)

See if @Richard. has a procon or something

 

[Carl Wilson]

1 - 1.5 LPM is not a massive amount of flow. I imagine though that the pressure will need to be up in order to drive it through what will surely be small passages at a sufficient velocity.

Some of those pumps look like pressure washer pumps to me i.e. like a Neron pump or something similar, is that right? How noisy are the ones that are pictured here?

 

[addjunkie]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/230-50-A...139777?hash=item4633b3eac1:g:xu0AAOSwxYxU0Odf

Mine has one of these in but find it quite noisey. The Procon ones are reportedly far quieter.

 

[Carl Wilson]

Thanks for that. One thing I want is for any unit I make to be relatively quiet. My RTECH TIG unit is a 200 amp AC/DC one and it is noisy enough by itself. I want to try to do something about that too, perhaps with a quieter computer type fan or fans, as I think This Old Tony did on You Tube. The amount of bloody racket some of this kit makes is beyond the pale as far as I am concerned.

I haven't run any numbers on this but as a gut reaction I think some of these pumps are total overkill. One of the tentative ideas I've had is the possibility of using a dishwasher spray pump, i.e. the one that feeds the cleaning jets, not the one that drains the water away. This should provide sufficient flow rate and pumping power as well as being relatively quiet. What do the assembled luminaries think please?