Like any other machine, rust and dust can invade your welding machine after a certain amount of time. This process will happen even faster if your welder is put in a damp and dirty place without any cover.
A good welding process is greatly influenced by proper cleaning. It affects quality because imperfections or dirt on a material’s surface can cause inclusions or problems like porosity. Surface cleaning and preparation can also affect how the final weld will look and how much labor and rework will cost overall. Cleaning can sometimes be accomplished using a cloth or chemical solvent, while other tasks may call for the use of an abrasive substance.
Depending on the application and demands for the completed weld, interpass and post-weld cleaning are also crucial elements in the process.
Hence, under any circumstances, you will need to learn How to clean welder. No need to find any guide out there, the most detailed instruction for you to do this is here. Keep reading to learn!
How to Choose?
Weld cleaning has a wide range of alternatives. When choosing, bear these things in mind.
- Desired result. How to clean can be affected by any surface finish specifications or aesthetic criteria for the weld, such as if it needs to have a mirrored finish. To get the proper finish, post-weld cleaning may call for a number of different products. Starting with the coarsest grit or grain permitted by the application, work your way up to a finer grit as you go. For instance, if the material will be painted or powder-coated, the operator may begin by cleaning a weld with a 40-grit flap disc and conclude with a fine-finishing 80-grit flap disc. Usually, the better the finished weld, the smoother it is. A damp cloth may be used to clean the weld surface after welding stainless steel and to get rid of any loose iron. This aids the passivation process, which involves treating or coating a metal to lessen its surface’s chemical reactivity. Typically, acids or pickling paste are used in this procedure.
As few processes as feasible should be used while cleaning welds to save time and money. It’s a balancing act between productivity and surface quality needs because using a product with a finer grit would take longer.
- Substance kind. Different types of material are best suited for various abrasives. For instance, it’s crucial to properly clean the material before welding stainless steel or aluminum since these materials are less tolerant of dirt and debris during the welding process. Use caution while rubbing these materials with abrasives of higher grit. For aluminum, bronze, or other non-ferrous metals, a 24-grit or 40-grit flap disc may be excessively abrasive. The general consensus is that the finer the grit, the better. Isopropyl alcohol diluted to 70% is frequently used to clean base materials and filler rods prior to welding.
To prevent contaminating the weld during interpass cleaning, look for instruments made for use with stainless steel, such as stainless steel brushes or grinding wheels. These wheels can also be used on other contaminant-prone materials including copper, brass, or aluminum.
The bottom line: No matter the kind of material, cleaning before and during welding is usually important to prevent introducing dirt and debris into the weld, but some materials demand special care.
- The rules of the code. Code requirements for weld inspection may apply in some welding operations. For instance, the number of inclusions allowed in the completed weld may be specified in the weld standards. These are crucial elements to take into account while picking the best cleaning chemicals for welds.
Common Tools for Cleaning
Bonded abrasives/grinding wheels, coated abrasives/flap discs, wire brushes, and wheels are typical solutions for cleaning surfaces and welds. The decision is made based on the application’s needs and the operator’s preferences. Wire brushes and abrasive goods operate and serve different purposes. Wire brushes are not intended to remove base material, whereas abrasive materials are.
Bonded grinding wheels and abrasives
A grinding wheel can be used for interpass cleaning to remove part of the weld material in addition to the inclusion, as in the case of slag inclusions or porosity in the weld. Since the wheels will remove more debris faster, these devices are frequently used to clean mild steel as well as for sloppier welds that may have a lot of slag or spatter. The performance of grinding wheels is influenced by a combination of the grain type, grain size, and bonding agents (resins and additional fillers). Bonded abrasives demand a greater level of operator expertise to prevent damage, gouging, or undercutting since they tend to be more aggressive and remove material more quickly. The thickness of the wheel is determined by application demands.
Coated abrasives/ flap disc
The same sorts of grains are used in coated abrasives and flap discs as in bonded abrasives, but they are fused to a backing fabric rather of being pressed and molded into a hard grinding wheel. Its fabric is stacked to create a flap disc, and this construction makes flap discs feel softer and more forgiving. Flap discs can be used on mild, carbon, or stainless steel for small material removal during pre-weld cleaning as well as for blending and polishing the surface after the weld (however be sure to use a finer grit). In situations when the completed product needs to be painted, primed, or powder coated, they are a wise choice. When utilizing a flap disc, be aware of the spin direction.
How To Clean Welder?
First of all, bear in mind that you need to unplug the device before taking any further steps whether it is MIG, TIG, SMAW or stick welding machine.
The drive rolls
Normally, there is not much dirt accumulated in the steel drive rolls. Nonetheless, if you often weld, the frequent running wire will collect a lot of dust, which affects the electrical conductivity.
Using compressed air to blow the dust is a great solution. Trust me! You will be surprised at the result of this cheap method. The second way for careful people is to remove the rolls then use a wire brush to rub them, which is cleaner but more time-consuming.
The gun liner
Since the wire does not only run via the drive rolls but also the gun liner, you can do the same thing to the gun liner. A trick here is cutting the liner in the appropriate length as a short liner will make the space between it and the retaining head get dirty.
The nozzle
Next, avoid covering the nozzle by spatter by applying the nozzle dip gently. Nevertheless, notice that you should not completely submerge the nozzle unless you want to damage the porous insulator in the nozzle’s interior. It is better to dip the tip instead.
The diffuser
You may find a diffuser installed inside the gun tube of the nozzle. Just like the nozzle, if it is rusty or blocked, the shielding gas can hardly work smoothly. Therefore, we recommend you to check it regularly and wipe it with a wire brush or a rag until it is squeaky clean.
Other parts
For the external details, of course, we should clean them whenever there are stains. They are very easy for you to wipe out. But don’t forget to use a dry towel, brushes, cotton swabs, and compressed air instead of making them wet. This is as important as when you clean the internal items.
In the long term, you may want to get your welder checked and cleaned by a professional tinker in complicated parts such as PC boards, cooling fans, transformers, wirings, etc. If you do not know well about them, do not risk your device.
Last but not least, try to store your welder in a cool, dry, and well-ventilated place with to keep it unblemished over time.
Final Words
Finally, we have guided you through a brief yet comprehensive tutorial on how to clean a welder. Furthermore, we have also added some tips and tricks to maintain their good condition.
What you need to do is only sticking to our simple steps to have a spotless welding machine for long-term use.
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