The ABC's of Welders.

Having the ability to weld greatly expands your ability to repair and to build, but it can be daunting for the first-time buyer to select equipment. Consider the most common uses and applications for your welder: construction, farm/ranch, general maintenance/repair, home, auto body/repair, etc. Welders are designed for certain applications, depending on rated output, duty cycle and other features. For example, heavy-duty repairs in the field requires a welding package that can handle different types and sizes (thickness) of metal, whereas repairing a wrought iron railing can be done using a stick welder. Your equipment choice is based on different factors. Factors such as your power source availability, the type of material you plan to weld, the maximum thickness you plan to weld, do you want portability, and how hard do you plan to use the machine.

Most home shops will have 120 or 240-volt single-phase power. This is the typical power available for hobbyists who are setting up shop in their garage or an outbuilding. This also holds true for most light-commercial buildings. Higher-voltage machines enable you to weld heavier metals more quickly as well as run other kinds of large shop machinery. If electrical hook-up is not available, a gas-powered, engine-driven welding generator can supply welding and auxiliary power.

What type of material will you be welding most of the time: sheet steel, stainless steel, aluminum, or some other type? Be advised to think in terms of the long haul. Maybe you're buying a welder now to do a certain project, but in the future, you may want to do other kinds of welding. There are many kinds of welding projects out there you may want to do. Sure, you have to buy equipment to meet your present need, but include some forward thinking in your choice also.

The thicker the material you’re welding, if you want to weld in a single pass, the heavier of a welder you will need.. Different welding processes vary in the thickness they can weld. MIG welding is 24-gauge (0.025”) and up, flux-cored is 1/8” and up, stick is 1/8” and up, and TIG is 0.010” and up.

When you need to bring the welder or plasma cutter to work, you have possible options of inverter-based welding power sources and engine-driven welding generators. Inverters offer incredible weight savings. Lightweight, yet powerful output. You can have units weighting from 5 to 75 lbs and putting out from 5 to 400 amps. Note that optional running gear provides in-shop mobility for most welders, regardless of weight. Many welding generators fit in the back of a pick-up truck, enabling them to go wherever welding is needed.

Are your welding sessions long ones or short ones? Do you plan to work all day, or only for a short while? If you intend to really work the machine, you need to choose one with a high duty cycle. A welder's duty cycle refers to its ability to work at a given output based on a 10-minute welding period. The higher the duty cycle, the more time during a 10-minute period that you can operate the machine at the rated output without overheating it. A machine with a 60 percent duty cycle at 150 amps can weld for 6 minutes at that setting, but then it must be allowed to cool for the remaining 4 minutes before welding again. When considering duty cycle for a Stick machine, note that most Stick electrodes are consumed in less than two minutes. Further about 80% of all Stick welding is done with a 1/8-inch diameter electrode, which takes about one minute to consume. To see if a machine meets your needs, consider the following power classifications. Light industrial products typically have a 20% duty cycle and a rated output of 230 amps or lower. Industrial products typically have a 40-60% duty cycle and a rated output of 300 amps or lower. And heavy industrial products typically have a 60-100% duty cycle and a rated output of at least 300 amps.