Welder

[eezelife]

Hey Guys.... just bought a cheap welder from Aldi.
160 amp with mask,rods and wire brush for £34.99

 

[Fez_uk]

not bad, but you will have trouble with thin metal on that.

 

[eezelife]

Sorry....it goes from 55 amps up to 160 amps, so good on thin metal too

 

[supergnome]

They sold out before I got there. and the diamond discs. David.

 

[solarman216]

Still got loads of em in my local Aldis, Rick

 

[TONUP]

Power Demand?

So... after reading this thread I went around the local Aldi's until I could find one selling them.

I finally got one and feeling very happy with the bargain I had bagged took it home.

I then read, on the outside of the packaging, that it doesnt come with a three pin plug, and shouldn't be plugged into a domestic socket, but a fused spur with a 30amp rating.

Will it fry my home electrics if I try it, or should I take it back?

Regards

Alan

 

[supergnome]

Most cookers have this rating. Look in your fuse box to check its got this fuse or trip. Most welders have a thermal cut out which works before it trips out the house. David.

 

[TONUP]

Most cookers have this rating. Look in your fuse box to check its got this fuse or trip. Most welders have a thermal cut out which works before it trips out the house. David.

Thanks. I'll take a look tonight and see if its worth hanging on to.

Regards

Alan

 

[rayf3262]

So... after reading this thread I went around the local Aldi's until I could find one selling them.

I finally got one and feeling very happy with the bargain I had bagged took it home.

I then read, on the outside of the packaging, that it doesnt come with a three pin plug, and shouldn't be plugged into a domestic socket, but a fused spur with a 30amp rating.

Will it fry my home electrics if I try it, or should I take it back?

Regards

Alan

IF, and only if, you are using the welder at it's 160 AMP max will it draw it's maximum current from the supply, this is likely to be in the order of 20AMPs or so.
Your final ring main with 13A sockets is most probably protected by a 32Amp Type B MCB, or if older, a 30A rewire-able fuse.
When using the welder at midrange or lower the current the load on the 13A socket will be within the capability of a BS1362 plug, or higher for shorter periods.

So,.. use a good quality plug top, ensure all connections are well made and check that the fuse clips are clean and tight. DO NOT use an electrically or mechanically deficient socket outlet either.

 

[rustic]

Now how many customers of Aldi are capable of wiring this correctly into a 30 Amp spur?

I really don't think that Aldi should be selling these.

OK if you went to Machine Mart then fair enough.

Who wants a welder that is fixed to a point in the corner of a damp garage,( if you are lucky), you need one that is portable.

What type of extension lead would you want?

If you went for the blue caravan connectors as per hook up, they are rated at 16 Amps, there is a much larger blue connector rated at 32 Amps, that is more appropriate, see screwfix catalogue.

 

[solarman216]

first off do not expect to weld at full power for more than a few minutes it will stop on overheat, but in any case what on earth are you going to be welding 12 mm plate? how many on here are welding that sort of gear, I have 180 amp oil cooled beast that I can weld all day with, and have done when welding a new top on my narrow boat (3 mm steel) and stuck some 10 mm plate on the stern swim where it was worn a bit thin, but most of the time am using around 60 to 80 amps for normal stuff, Rick

 

[TONUP]

Ok then, if I used it sttraight from a 2Kw generator, with a short lead and blue caravan plug would that work?

Regards

Alan

 

[rustic]

Ok then, if I used it sttraight from a 2Kw generator, with a short lead and blue caravan plug would that work?

Regards

Alan

Well for very very low amps then barely, but Watts = Volts x Amps

So 2000 watts divided by voltage 230 = 8.7 amps which is not enough to run the welder even on low power.:doh


.

 

[solarman216]

Well for very very low amps then barely, but Watts = Volts x Amps

So 2000 watts divided by voltage 230 = 8.7 amps which is not enough to run the welder even on low power.:doh


.

Rustic, thought better of you, 8.7 amps (on your calculations) at 230 vols = roughly 60 odd amps at welding voltage of 30 to 40 volts, Rick

 

[ssteve]

Rustic, thought better of you, 8.7 amps (on your calculations) at 230 vols = roughly 60 odd amps at welding voltage of 30 to 40 volts, Rick

but striking up the arc powered by a small genny is going to be fun

ssteve

 

[kitchenman]

I had that problem with a portable bench saw, almost stalled the engine, never did get up to full power
1800 watt saw, 5KVA [wot ever that is in real money] deisel gerator, the guy that hired it to me said it meant 5 kilowatt, I think he was fibbing

 

[rustic]

Rustic, thought better of you, 8.7 amps (on your calculations) at 230 vols = roughly 60 odd amps at welding voltage of 30 to 40 volts, Rick

Well Solar man, I thought better of you thinking better of me lol...

It would need more like 20 amps from the mains at full power then should give you 160A welding.

Now since the welder is an inductive load, the power factor will be much lower than 1, So I would guess that 60 Amps welding will require 10+ amps from the generator, which would cause an overload.

So to be safe, a welding current of 40-50 amps is probably more realistic using a 2kW gen set.

Also a 2kW genset may have a duty cyle of less than 100% so you can't use it for all the output for all the time.


I think....

 

[(RIP) PLANK]

I had that problem with a portable bench saw, almost stalled the engine, never did get up to full power
1800 watt saw, 5KVA [wot ever that is in real money] deisel gerator, the guy that hired it to me said it meant 5 kilowatt, I think he was fibbing

He was fibbing, a 5kva generator will run 4000 watts of load (4 kilowatts)

There is a handy calculator here.

http://dieselserviceandsupply.com/Power_Calculator.aspx

 

[niks_terrano ii]

.

hi guys just a quicky really would one these cheapy welders be good enough to use to weld a winch mount ?

ive never really welded before but its something i want learn and im alway needing a bit of welding here and there.

like i say ive been quoted stupid prices where i live to make up a winch mount and perhaps if i do a diy job i'll save a few quid and get some practice in at the same time, might not look the best but the self satisfaction element is also a bonus.

just not sure if making a winch mount with this type of welder is good enough ?

 

[Bee Elzebub]

It won't work off a genny - I tried with a slightly lower range arc kit some time back, with a 2.5 kVA genny - it stalled every strike, due to the surge!

Do you have one of those old-fashioned cooker point boxes on the kitchen wall, equipped with a socket? Taht's your starting point - then you'll need a couple of 32amp in-line connectors (socket for extension lead, plug for welder), and some hefty 2.5mm flex.... That little lot worked on my old kit (180amp max output), though in all honesty, if you're working above 140amp in normal use, what the hell are you welding? The chassis on a Bedford TK???