welder / house electrics help ?

[sandlerandle]

hello i have had a small cheap stick(craft mate i think) welder in the back of my garage for the last few months. a frend gave it me he said he had never used it and wasnt going to. over the last few weeks i have starte a project and now are in need of useing a welder. so i pluged it in tonight to try use it and worked fine for a few seconds then blow the trip fuse in the house. i flicked it back and started to use it again it triped it, 3rd time lucky and it blow the fuse (13a). has any one had this problem befor is it the welder or is it the fuse box ? thanks for any help michael

 

[fingers99]

Could be either. Trips will usually go faster than old fashioned fuses. If you can, a cooker spur is usually better/fused higher.

Do you need the welder on full amps?

 

[sandlerandle]

yes need it on full i did try it on low first with the same result, been thinking of getting a better welder may be a strong second hand gas mig. will it use same sort of power as a stick. one i have is a 130amp. its pi$$ed me off as i was looking foward to getting on and finishing it.

 

[Paul.]

You will be very unlikely to run a transformer buzz box flat out on a 13 amp plug, I have a couple of 140 amp welders, rarely used nowadays, they will run 2.5s at about 100 amps but any more will blow fuses, the inverters are different again I have an essetti 140 amp inverter running off a 13 amp plug and it will run flat out with 4mm electrodes, you either need a dedicated supply or a better welder I'm afraid.

 

[sandlerandle]

thanks for the replys time to find a better welder

 

[fingers99]

Not exactly scientific, but I've had my baby TIG at 130amps and my 150amp MIG on full without issues on domestic power (13amp).

 

[FRANKIE BOY]

AC transformers

Hi.. you have probably got an ac weder ( heavy ) good advice so far........ if you were to have a inverter ( DC current small and light ) you will be able to run it at full power ( 130 / 150 amp ) no probs.........:conect the "tongs" to the +ve or positive for most jobs... it helps to get the rod hot... some electrodes like to be conected to the -ve........ read the electrode pack for the best running characteristic.... all the best Frankie.......

 

[johnakay]

Not exactly scientific, but I've had my baby TIG at 130amps and my 150amp MIG on full without issues on domestic power (13amp).

you've been lucky.
check your cables for any signs of heat colouring etc and also you may find that the plug will get very hot.
I did what you did and I have a 150amp mig.
kept blowing fuse's then it stopped. worked fine till my wife came and told that she can smell rubber burning in the house.
yes it damage the wiring from the fuse(15amp) box to the garage.
the cable wasn't big enough to take the load. had to get it rewired and into it own fuse box with a 40amp fuse in.
I was lucky to have a nephew(time serve sparky) who did it all for me.
he said it needs to have it own fuse,you cant plug it into an ordinary 15amp socket.

 

[fingers99]

The circuits I used were all 30amp ring mains -- using a 15amp spur is marginal at best. Add to that that the TIG is an inverter unit......

 

[pointer2null]

2.5mm Twin and Earth cable used in domestic wiring can carry about 20A max if in free air. If it's in a conduit you have to lower the rating as the cable will overheat.

If your welder draws too much current the fuse may not blow immediately* but the wire will start to get warm. As it warms up it's resistance increases so it's rating drops. Very soon a vicious cycle develops which ends when either the fuse blows or you notice a lot of smoke coming out of the house.

*The standard 13a fuse, BS1362 is only rated to break its circuit after carrying 24.7 Amps for 30 minutes!

 

[fingers99]

Ring mains are designed -- and fused -- at 30amps (always were). That'll cope with a 150 amp inverter or a small MIG if not used continuously.

 

[pointer2null]

Ring main - yes I agree. Spur - no, single run of cable and may not even be 2.5mm; max rated 15A (unless its the shower or cooker spur).

Ring main assumes two 2.5mm T&E each downrated to 15amps as often buried in walls and both properly connected to the fuse box.

 

[fingers99]

Yep.