Buying my first Arc Welder

[MikeyWorld]

Every year Aldi and Lidl punt a cheap arc welder. Every year I'm tempted. Every year I think it'll blow my electrics and don't buy one.

Does an arc welder work ok off household plugs?
Would an inverter welder use less energy ie be better for household use?

Is it possible / better to buy a generator and run it off that?

[ReformedCharacter]

Every year Aldi and Lidl punt a cheap arc welder. Every year I'm tempted. Every year I think it'll blow my electrics and don't buy one.

Does an arc welder work ok off household plugs?
Would an inverter welder use less energy ie be better for household use?

Is it possible / better to buy a generator and run it off that?

Some answers here:

https://www.welduk.com/faq

have you considered a MIG?

RC

[Archtronics]

I’ve run one off a standard plug with no issues, granted it was in a shed so minimal chance of burning the house down.

They are fine for quick functional welds on thick metal but pretty useless if you want to learn it properly or weld thin metals.

[Sobraon]

I am very much an occasional welder and learnt using Oxy Acetylene ( no longer practical for home use IMO) so I have had a little arc welder for more than 20 years. The problem is an arc welder is always too 'brutal' for the jobs I have to do. Examples jobs being fencing, wheelbarrow frames, lawn mower accessories, hose reels etc. Three years ago I bought a second hand Clarke MIG 145 (originally from Machine Mart) and the arc welder never gets switched on now as I very much prefer the control the MIG with the flux cored welding wire offers. I am sure that for skilled welders this is a bit poor ( the fluxed wire) but it works for me.

In terms of power I have always used the arc and MIG welders from the shed supply and never blown any fuses. But I rely on the sub circuit RCD rather than the more sensitive plug-in RCDs I normally use with tools ( i.e. I plug the welders straight in).

Just to add the auto darkening welding masks are brilliant ( got mine from HK via ebay).

[MikeyWorld]

Thanks

I learnt Oxy Acetylene at school and did a bit of arc welding.

I found a Youtube video demonstrating power consumption vs a grinder.
Low level is less than a microwave, mid range is less than a two bar fire, and full whack is about 3kw.

I tend to suffer from feature creep, so I'll probably end up with a MIG, but I need to see if it gets used first.
I liked how small and light the ALDI effort was.

[bionichamster]

I have MIG and have never had any issues, I can't see a stick welder being much different. If you run it continuously for a while it will start to heat up but there is a thermal cut out to protect the machine (and the supply) along with the 13 amp fuse and the circuit fuse or cutout device if there were issues. These devices are specifically designed to operate on a standard mains circuit and should do so safely so long as you adhere to the operations manual.

All I do as a precaution is make sure that there aren't any other high draw devices running at the same time (i.e. I would weld on the same circuit I was running an electric heater on or the air compressor at the same time)

BH

[Imbiber]

Check the Duty Cycle before buying, a Duty Cycle of 30 % mean the welder will cut out after 3 minutes and take 7 minutes to reset. Duty Cycle is based on a 10 minute period so 60% means 6 minutes welding 4 minutes waiting. In practice welding time may be longer due to breaks for rod changes, slag removal etc. It can become frustrating when everything is tacked up and you want to crack on, after a few cut outs the recovery time will probably increase.

[Archtronics]

To add, tho I can’t really preach this since I’m guilty of welding without a mask and just looking away.

But spend some money on a decent mask or borrow one from someone if your just dipping a toe, arc eye is bloody painful and best avoided.

[bionichamster]

To add, tho I can’t really preach this since I’m guilty of welding without a mask and just looking away.

But spend some money on a decent mask or borrow one from someone if your just dipping a toe, arc eye is bloody painful and best avoided.

I've got one of those automatic ones, it has small solar panel that detects the bright light and darkens the visor instantly, never had a problem with it, but If it's not been used for a while I always test it first by sticking my head out the shed and looking at the sun or using a bright light (well you never know).

You can buy them quite cheaply, and in fact I think Lidl may well sell them too.

BH

[jaizan]

The small welders all come with and work fine with a 13 Amp plug. Mine gets occasional heavy use when I have a project on the go never any problems.

[Yoda]

Having welded a bit as a hobby mig, tig and arc I will offer a bit of advice. Your household plug will handle the AMPs no problem but I would buy a mig welder before a stick welder as it is much easier to learn and weld with for the occasional job. All you need is some gasless multipass wire and you will be good to go. Also don't buy a super cheap welder as you will regret it.

[quelquod]

Having welded a bit as a hobby mig, tig and arc I will offer a bit of advice. Your household plug will handle the AMPs no problem but I would buy a mig welder before a stick welder as it is much easier to learn and weld with for the occasional job. All you need is some gasless multipass wire and you will be good to go. Also don't buy a super cheap welder as you will regret it.

+1 for MIG. If you buy a simple arc welder, cheap or not, you will spend lots of time getting discouraged chipping away at what looks like a nice shiny weld run just to find it all fall away leaving a row of blobs and holes!
(Or blow holes in thinner sheet )

[gryffron]

Just to add, An inverter welder has a higher starting current, so should be easier for a novice to learn than a cheaper non-inverter. Although it still takes a bit of practice to strike up the spark.

In the 21st century, anything with a standard mains plug on will work off a standard socket. The penalties for non-compliance with CE marking are brutal. Not like the old days - thankfully.

Gryff

[Yoda]

@quelquod arc welding is terrible for thin stuff! Tried it many times. It shines at thick stuff but most of what you weld at home with be thin.

[quelquod]

@quelquod arc welding is terrible for thin stuff! Tried it many times. It shines at thick stuff but most of what you weld at home with be thin.

Got the T-shirt (with a few burn holes )

[Imbiber]

Without a lot of experience 3mm is as thin as you would want to go with Manual Metal Arc welding, aka Shielded Metal Arc welding or stick welding. Below that MIG, Metal Inert Gas welding, fairly easy to learn or TIG, Tungsten Inert Gas welding, a more time consuming and costly process to learn , also a more complex process.
It also depends on the type of weld, butt, fillet or lap weld. I assume we are talking welding mild steel, other metals may require more specific methods, particularly stainless steel.

Watch that duty cycle, don't buy cheap and look at other costs, electrodes, shielding gas etc. buy an auto darkening helmet, so much easier when learning.