120v welders

[nobbie48]

@nobbie48 thanks for the info! I absolutely will not do more than .125"....for now. I would only be welding light-duty stuff, but I also don't like buying things twice. If it means I have to wait a year to get a more expensive (capable) tool, I will.

I'm almost positive I have 100A service coming into the house (1800sqft), I'll have to check later when I get home. I really like @GreyGhost 's suggestion of running a separate panel to the garage. I have a retired family friend electrician (he wired up our old house and got it ESA stickered) - i'll consider reaching out to him for help. He REALLY doesn't want to work anymore so I haven't bothered him.

I appreciate the advice.

If he isn't a licensed electrician he can't legally do the work. ESA will want to know who did. If your friend does it and you take the permit the inspector may quiz you on hows and whys. Have your friend explain things to you as he works so you sound knowledgeable.

 

[GreyGhost]

If he isn't a licensed electrician he can't legally do the work. ESA will want to know who did. If your friend does it and you take the permit the inspector may quiz you on hows and whys. Have your friend explain things to you as he works so you sound knowledgeable.

Or it's a learning opportunity and Stang does the work with guidance. That would be legal.

 

[backmarkerducati]

I have the Lincoln 140 at home, set up for FCAW (flux core) and GMAW (MIG). I mostly use FCAW for most steels to not bother with gas and I weld outside (never inside), unless gas is really needed. It will come down to how thick the steel is you are welding (and what steel), and you can pre-heat etc.. I would stay away from the powerfist, mastercraft and other no name boxes, there are other good brands beside Lincoln like Hobart, Miller, etc. If you have the skills (or when you get them) you can do very good work (staying within its limits) with a good 120V welder. A bigger box is more forgiving if the skills are short. In the early 90s I was a production welder in a Japanese auto plant and also worked in a racing welding shop during the same time frame (TIG, MIG all kinds of materials), and I have a degree in manufacturing engineering for what that is worth....I know a little about joining materials together. I bought the 140 as I only had 120v outdoor outlets at the time (at home), it is a hobby not production frame building and I do not need to do heavy duty stuff. Really this is for steel. Other metals---there are better options. The box will support an aluminum spool gun, but I would not bother.

I do regret not buying the dual voltage Lincoln 180 for a little more as it would have been more flexible and future proof. Sooner or later I will have a garage NEMA 14-50 outlet. At the time I bought the 140 I had no thoughts of ever having 240V available outside.

Lots of the "all junk comments" IMO come from the experience with no name brands, trying to do thicker material than the box is capable of, pushing FCAW (if there is slag you drag), boxes set-up with the wrong polarity, etc.

People also poopoo FCAW, BUT it has a big advantage working outside as it can be used in some wind....

Cost benefit, four figure or multiple four figure machines to learn on or use as a hobby machine, not worth it IMO.

The Lincolns and Hobarts go on sale from time to time.

 

[stangn99]

To be quite honest the ESA is pretty corrupt. The retired electrician I speak of was the lead for Pacific Mall way back when.
He did the work in my old house and called the ESA agent to come and slap a sticker on the box...and the agent did just that. Didn't check a single outlet.

Same goes for City of Toronto fire code checks. Had the basement apartment checked to get my certificate so potential tenants can't sue me if something happens. The lady that came literally pressed the button on one smoke detector and asked how much rental was in the area. She left me with a notice that my certificate will be mailed. I received my "up to code" certificate in 3 days. Cost me $300 for a 2 minute visit.

 

[Delboy]

Contrary to some of the above and in agreement with Nobbie, I have a 120v Lincoln and use it a lot.

The challenge with 120v is that its probably limited to a maximum gauge of 10 or 11 so about 1/8 inch or so - unless you want to do 2 passes. But for motorcycles you probably will never need to weld anything thicker.

I use it for small frame repairs, adding saddles and new brackets and even sheet metal for tank repair. I do patching on tanks using 24-26 gauge and prefer it over the TIG as it doesn't put as much heat in the sheet metal and it does not warp as badly. I think warping on tanks is a big problem as you can't get a dolly into the tank behind the metal to hammer it out. 23 thou wire and DC positive electrode gives a good result.

I also have a TIG that is 240v. That definitely takes a lot more practice. I tend to use that for major frame repairs and bracing where you can actually strip the bike to the bare frame and get it up on a table so you can sit down. Its next to impossible to TIG on the floor as you need to hold the torch, feed the wire and operate the pedal so there is no way to do that balancing on one knee.

If you want to do Stainless or Aluminium TIG is pretty much the go to welder.

If you are looking at a TIG, I made the mistake of buying a cheap scratch start one and ended up having to sharpen the tungsten every forth or fifth time I struck an arc. Spend a bit more money. I know if you go to a welding site someone will argue that miles of xray quality weld is run every day with scratch start. That may be true, but not by someone with skills like mine... LOL.

I ended up getting a used Miller Dynasty 210 but even at 240v I probably would not want to weld any more than 3/16 - 1/4 inch.

 

[crankcall]

Years ago I was in trades and was papered to weld your unibody car together, mig w/gas so I can if I had to weld. In the garage here I have a CTC 120v fluxcore welder. I'm not welding anything over 3/16 mild steel and its a hobby. The welds are ugly but I own grinders and then they look nice. I made some bases for live edge wood slab tables and a BBQ stand and some special brackets to hold some paddleboards on a trailer. For $189 from the CTC flyer its been great and these things are used everywhere.
However nothing I'm doing now is life dependent , would endanger anything or cause thousands in damage if there was a fail.
If I needed serious machinery for real work I would acquire a 220v gas mig setup, but I amuse myself quite nicely with this machine.

 

[Mad Mike]

I have a 120v 15A Hobart -- works like a charm on body metal, and plate up to 1/4".

I kinda disagree with others telling you to get a monster setup to start. If you're a beginner, a 120V mig is a good place to start -- you need experience before you tackle any welding over 1/4" IMHO. If you have the cash to buy a decent model (Hobart, Lincoln) it's worth it -- they keep their value and there is a pretty big quality difference between those and the Amazon/CTC/PA cheepies.

You can't fab a car frame or weld girders on a skyscraper, but you can do anything on a motorcycle (or any powersports equipment), exhausts, sheet metal, yard and iron art, and pretty much anything on powersports and small power equipment. The welders are inexpensive, flux core means you don't need gas (a bit messier but is way easier to weld outdoors). You can also take them places.

 

[SunnY S]

To be quite honest the ESA is pretty corrupt. The retired electrician I speak of was the lead for Pacific Mall way back when.
He did the work in my old house and called the ESA agent to come and slap a sticker on the box...and the agent did just that. Didn't check a single outlet.

if your electrician guy pulled a permit and is well known in ESA circles and on the "pre authorized" list, believe me, they won't even show up half the time and pass it automatically.

if you are serious about running a car charger and a welder, you really should upgrade your house service to 200amps.

otherwise, I wouldn't bother with a 30 or 50 service, might as well run a 60amp service and then you are are "future proof" with a little extra capacity for additional potential loads.

 

[bitzz]

I'm gonna suggest you're going to be disappointed with a 110v welder. They not very easy to use even if you know how to weld. Just not enough power.
And cheapo welders have cheapo components, (gas guages guns and wire feed) that distracts from you trying learn.
And if you're going to teach yourself how to weld you are MUCH better off with a multi process TIG. Go watch AVE or thisoldtony youtube clips, they explain it well.
If you're gonna teach yourself how to weld start watching "how to" videos on youtube. There's lots of them sponsored by the welding equipment manufacturers. The Lincoln guy is good.

There are LOTS of used welders on Kijiji. Most of them are new or almost new 110v MIG setups... but a quick check I saw 141A multi function inverter TIG with torch, guages, the whole setup for $700

Kijiji - Buy, Sell & Save with Canada's #1 Local Classifieds

Visit Kijiji Classifieds to buy, sell, or trade almost anything! New and used items, cars, real estate, jobs, services, vacation rentals and more virtually anywhere.

www.kijiji.ca

And buy the bottle. If you rent, you can only get it filled where you rent it; which quickly turns into a problem

If you check the electric code, wiring for a welder is a special instance.
A 50amp outlet, by code, has to put out 50A continuously without over heating. Because welders have a low duty cycle, typically less than 20%, the wire can be smaller guage.
You can basically define the quality of the machine by it's duty cycle. Cheapos can be as low as 7%.
If your house was built in the last 50 years it has 100A service. If you have electric heat you might have 150A service.
My house was wired for a X-ray machine. I have 200A service.
To upgrade to 200A service you have to replace the feed from your panel to the pole. You'll need a new panel and cut-off. COSTS = $$$$$$$
They're probably going to start wiring residential for 200A when electric cars become more popular.
If you plan on spending lots of time in the garage it is a good idea to pull a pony board in the garage. That way you run ONE big circuit (wire is expensive) back to the big panel and when you pop a breaker in the garage you don't have to walk all the way to the basement to reset it.

I went backwards.
At the shop I used to have a REALLY OLD 600V 3 phase TIG. The only adjustments on the machine: amperage or off. ... but it would put out HUGE amperage, it was like holding a lightning hose.
When I moved up here I bought a new fangled fancy-dancy Esab inverter. You can adjust voltage, amperage, pulse width, frequency, ramp up, ramp down, pre and post gas and a bunch of other stuff.
I can't make the stupid thing work. I set it at max amps and 60Hz, 50/50, the setup you would get from a non-fancy-dancy inverter and go to it. Works for me.
I recommend the fancy-dancy inverters.

 

[GreyGhost]

I'm gonna suggest you're going to be disappointed with a 110v welder. They not very easy to use even if you know how to weld. Just not enough power.
And cheapo welders have cheapo components, (gas guages guns and wire feed) that distracts from you trying learn.
And if you're going to teach yourself how to weld you are MUCH better off with a multi process TIG. Go watch AVE or thisoldtony youtube clips, they explain it well.
If you're gonna teach yourself how to weld start watching "how to" videos on youtube. There's lots of them sponsored by the welding equipment manufacturers. The Lincoln guy is good.

There are LOTS of used welders on Kijiji. Most of them are new or almost new 110v MIG setups... but a quick check I saw 141A multi function inverter TIG with torch, guages, the whole setup for $700

Kijiji - Buy, Sell & Save with Canada's #1 Local Classifieds

Visit Kijiji Classifieds to buy, sell, or trade almost anything! New and used items, cars, real estate, jobs, services, vacation rentals and more virtually anywhere.

www.kijiji.ca

And buy the bottle. If you rent, you can only get it filled where you rent it; which quickly turns into a problem

If you check the electric code, wiring for a welder is a special instance.
A 50amp outlet, by code, has to put out 50A continuously without over heating. Because welders have a low duty cycle, typically less than 20%, the wire can be smaller guage.
You can basically define the quality of the machine by it's duty cycle. Cheapos can be as low as 7%.
If your house was built in the last 50 years it has 100A service. If you have electric heat you might have 150A service.
My house was wired for a X-ray machine. I have 200A service.
To upgrade to 200A service you have to replace the feed from your panel to the pole. You'll need a new panel and cut-off. COSTS = $$$$$$$
They're probably going to start wiring residential for 200A when electric cars become more popular.
If you plan on spending lots of time in the garage it is a good idea to pull a pony board in the garage. That way you run ONE big circuit (wire is expensive) back to the big panel and when you pop a breaker in the garage you don't have to walk all the way to the basement to reset it.

I went backwards.
At the shop I used to have a REALLY OLD 600V 3 phase TIG. The only adjustments on the machine: amperage or off. ... but it would put out HUGE amperage, it was like holding a lightning hose.
When I moved up here I bought a new fangled fancy-dancy Esab inverter. You can adjust voltage, amperage, pulse width, frequency, ramp up, ramp down, pre and post gas and a bunch of other stuff.
I can't make the stupid thing work. I set it at max amps and 60Hz, 50/50, the setup you would get from a non-fancy-dancy inverter and go to it. Works for me.
I recommend the fancy-dancy inverters.

I agree with your video providers. I would add Jody at welding tips and tricks. Ave is awesome, but I think the other two are infinitely better for welding knowledge.

Here's TOT's video on his TIG machine. It's not cheap but it is cool. He also goes through alternative control schemes that can let you easily tig without a pedal.

 

[Bobo]

If he isn't a licensed electrician he can't legally do the work. ESA will want to know who did. If your friend does it and you take the permit the inspector may quiz you on hows and whys. Have your friend explain things to you as he works so you sound knowledgeable.

Actually a licensed electrician can’t legally work on anyone’s house but his own.He must also have a contractors licence or be employed by someone that does.

 

[Bobo]

I'm gonna suggest you're going to be disappointed with a 110v welder. They not very easy to use even if you know how to weld. Just not enough power.
And cheapo welders have cheapo components, (gas guages guns and wire feed) that distracts from you trying learn.
And if you're going to teach yourself how to weld you are MUCH better off with a multi process TIG. Go watch AVE or thisoldtony youtube clips, they explain it well.
If you're gonna teach yourself how to weld start watching "how to" videos on youtube. There's lots of them sponsored by the welding equipment manufacturers. The Lincoln guy is good.

There are LOTS of used welders on Kijiji. Most of them are new or almost new 110v MIG setups... but a quick check I saw 141A multi function inverter TIG with torch, guages, the whole setup for $700

Kijiji - Buy, Sell & Save with Canada's #1 Local Classifieds

Visit Kijiji Classifieds to buy, sell, or trade almost anything! New and used items, cars, real estate, jobs, services, vacation rentals and more virtually anywhere.

www.kijiji.ca

And buy the bottle. If you rent, you can only get it filled where you rent it; which quickly turns into a problem

If you check the electric code, wiring for a welder is a special instance.
A 50amp outlet, by code, has to put out 50A continuously without over heating. Because welders have a low duty cycle, typically less than 20%, the wire can be smaller guage.
You can basically define the quality of the machine by it's duty cycle. Cheapos can be as low as 7%.
If your house was built in the last 50 years it has 100A service. If you have electric heat you might have 150A service.
My house was wired for a X-ray machine. I have 200A service.
To upgrade to 200A service you have to replace the feed from your panel to the pole. You'll need a new panel and cut-off. COSTS = $$$$$$$
They're probably going to start wiring residential for 200A when electric cars become more popular.
If you plan on spending lots of time in the garage it is a good idea to pull a pony board in the garage. That way you run ONE big circuit (wire is expensive) back to the big panel and when you pop a breaker in the garage you don't have to walk all the way to the basement to reset it.

I went backwards.
At the shop I used to have a REALLY OLD 600V 3 phase TIG. The only adjustments on the machine: amperage or off. ... but it would put out HUGE amperage, it was like holding a lightning hose.
When I moved up here I bought a new fangled fancy-dancy Esab inverter. You can adjust voltage, amperage, pulse width, frequency, ramp up, ramp down, pre and post gas and a bunch of other stuff.
I can't make the stupid thing work. I set it at max amps and 60Hz, 50/50, the setup you would get from a non-fancy-dancy inverter and go to it. Works for me.
I recommend the fancy-dancy inverters.

I’m pretty sure that all new homes ,starting Jan.1/2019 are required to have a 200amp service with a 1” conduit running from the main panel to the garage for future charging stations

 

[Bobo]

To the OP, bite the bullet and spend a few more bucks and get a dual voltage welder and install a 240v outlet when you are able to. Hobart makes some nice ones. Check the TSC flyers, they go on sale every few weeks. The Hobart Handler 190 is a nice little unit.The 120v units are a dime a dozen on Kijiji.Guys Sell them when they realize that they should have bought the 240v unit. Buy once,cry once as they say

 

[nobbie48]

Actually a licensed electrician can’t legally work on anyone’s house but his own.He must also have a contractors licence or be employed by someone that does.

Correct. I meant to write LEC. Licensed Electrical Contractor. No more retiring to the cottage and making beer money.

The sad downside is that I completely rewired the family home ripping out all the knob and tube. It passed with flying colours. However since I'm not an LEC I can't help the elderly widow across the street by changing a receptacle or light switch.

As I understand it, a journeyman son can't even change a switch for his mom unless he moves back home. We need a little flexibility.

 

[Mad Mike]

I’m pretty sure that all new homes ,starting Jan.1/2019 are required to have a 200amp service with a 1” conduit running from the main panel to the garage for future charging stations

I think a lot of places are already wired for 200 to the meter box. My place was built in the 60s, it had 3/0 to the meter box then 2/0 from meter to panel. When I upgraded the panel I went to 200A by changing the meter to panel wire to 3/0.

When I built my garage I went 6gauge to a 60amp pony panel in the garage.

 

[GreyGhost]

Correct. I meant to write LEC. Licensed Electrical Contractor. No more retiring to the cottage and making beer money.

The sad downside is that I completely rewired the family home ripping out all the knob and tube. It passed with flying colours. However since I'm not an LEC I can't help the elderly widow across the street by changing a receptacle or light switch.

As I understand it, a journeyman son can't even change a switch for his mom unless he moves back home. We need a little flexibility.

I thought device replacement (switch/receptable) like with like was kosher? Adding a receptacle or light would be a clear violation.

 

[Baggsy]

They used to have a course or at least a welding room at George Brown. Did a course that had a welding component decades ago. Guys teaching the courses had been in the trade a long time, (my dad had worked with at least one of them), and decided a teaching gig was more suitable at that point. You might get some pointers and some hands on from something like that.

 

[nobbie48]

They used to have a course or at least a welding room at George Brown. Did a course that had a welding component decades ago. Guys teaching the courses had been in the trade a long time, (my dad had worked with at least one of them), and decided a teaching gig was more suitable at that point. You might get some pointers and some hands on from something like that.

I took a two weekend course in MIG at Centennial quite a while back. There was a guy that seemed to be trying different venues to find a career. Previously it was electronics related with USB voltages and currents. When the instructor said 50 amps the guy actually gasped.

 

[Mad Mike]

They used to have a course or at least a welding room at George Brown. Did a course that had a welding component decades ago. Guys teaching the courses had been in the trade a long time, (my dad had worked with at least one of them), and decided a teaching gig was more suitable at that point. You might get some pointers and some hands on from something like that.

I did a 6 night community night course a few years ago at the local high school, we met one a week. After week one, we mostly welded practice lines then pubs. After week 4 it was pubs first, then welding.

I can weld body metal as well as anyone I’ve met at a body shop, weld anything on a bike, and cut with a plasma torch like a chef.

it’s not rocket science.

 

[Mad Mike]

Works like a charm.