neophyte wedlng "shop" setup question.

[billyO]

Hello all. I've got a question about wiring up my "shop" (I'll pause for those who know me to stop laughing at me for calling my small garage a "shop"...) for welding purposes. I've got access to all the 'big kid' welding equip I can think of, only my friend's shop is 7 miles away from my house. I've got 110V/35amp power to my garage, and am wondering if a 110V wire flux welding setup is useful, or do I need to re-wire my garage for 220V?

thanks
billyO

[Ries]

Useful for what?

I personally hate flux core, and dont own one, but I have used 110 volt MIG machines for 25 years, and, within their amperage limitations, they work fine.
Flux core is pretty messy, lots of spatter, fumes, smoke and hot crap flying everywhere.
Solid wire with gas is much cleaner and neater.

I still own an ancient Miller Sidekick, one of the very first 110 volt MIGs, and that thing has made me a lot of money over the years, both in the shop and on jobsites.
But you have to accept that its not a structural welder- for decorative stuff up to around 1/4" thick, its fine. I used to weld some products that were 1/2" round with it- the penetration isnt great, but if you are good weldor, you can make it work.

Much better, though, if you have the bucks, is a 110/220 inverter Tig machine, like a Miller Maxstar. These run great on 110, and, since they are inverters, you get a lot more bang for your amp- you get more welding capacity out for the same amperage in. And they will weld all kinds of metals, very clean and neat. I take one of these to jobsites whenever I can- no sparks, flying red hot balls, minimal smoke, and easy to control and get welds that dont require grinding. Comes in handy when you are working in a library, for instance- they kind of frown on sparks flying everywhere.

[billyO]

Thanks for the reply, Ries. You gave me the info I needed, that it wouldn't be useful for structural applications. But as in most of life, this answer gives birth to more questions. And don't feel that these were meant solely for Ries.

Which would be cheaper/easier/better (and I view my time and labor as cheap and easy), to have the power company run a 220 line directly from my meter to my garage (distance of about 30 ft), or for me to replace the 10 gauge line from my house main panel to the 2nd panel in my shop? and what gauge wire would y'all suggest, 6AWG or 8AWG?

again, thanks
billyO

[Neil Gustafson]

Good Morning,

It is cheaper to do the electrical upgrade properly, the first time. Ask an electrician in your area for advice, they are familiar with the Elecrical Code.

[Ries]

the electric company wont do ANYTHING past the meter. thats where their responsibility ends. so any wiring past the meter is your problem, on your dime.

get a real electrician, most will give you an estimate for free. ask what you can do yourself to make the job cheaper.

As a purely hypothetical example, if, for instance, a giant tree fell down on your property at 10:30 on Thanksgiving night, taking out the power to 4 of your buildings, and you had to replace all the overhead wiring, you could dig all the trenches for new underground wiring yourself. You can pound in the new ground rods yourself (I needed 5 of em) and, in some cases, the electrician will welcome help unspooling wires, holding things, and in other ways making paying an assistant unnecessary. This, of course, varies depending on the electrician.

Most times, an electrician will be able to buy the materials cheaper than you can. And he will already have bought multiples, meaning he doesnt have to make those last minute runs to Home Depot every two hours.

Hire a pro, bite the bullet and pay, and get a reasonable amount of amps.

A small, AC/DC stick welder, like a Lincoln tombstone or a Miller Thunderbolt is about the cheapest, most common used machine that will do a lot- they need a 50 amp breaker. An average, usuable Mig machine, like a Millermatic in its various forms, usually needs a 30 amp breaker. Old, transformer style Tig machines want a whopping 100 amp breaker. New, inverter Tig machines, which are the cats pajamas, and priced accordingly, usually require half that- 50 amps or so.
Wire size has to be calculated based on how big a breaker you are going to install.