What you need to weld aluminum

 

 

Welding fan I salute you

 

The most important facts about what you need to weld aluminum!

 

 

 

Here I give you a guide to what you need to weld aluminum

The first thing you need is a welding machine that can AC and not just DC,

because aluminum is welded with alternating current in order to

the oxide layer of the aluminum.

It is therefore a welding machine that can weld AC/DC, alternating current and direct current.

You can use it to weld stainless steel and steel. In most cases, the devices are somewhat more expensive than those that only have the DC function.

 

 

 

Free video welding tips

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What else do you need to weld aluminum?

 

Depending on what you plan to weld and how much & how long,

depends on whether 200 amps is enough or whether you need 300 amps. Whereby you usually have to work with a 300 ampere power connection. The advantage of 300 amps is that in most cases it is sufficient as a current strength.

However, with 200 amps you sometimes reach your limits.

It really depends on what you want to weld.

 

 

 

 

 

A small tip I can give is that anyone who welds aluminum with a lot of amps and also welds for long periods should consider buying a water-cooled hosepack.

However, this only makes sense if you are welding in one piece for a really long time, otherwise the normal one is sufficient.

So next you need a special tungsten electrode for aluminum.

These are marked with a green color, so you know

that these are for aluminum. Stainless steel is marked with gold, for example.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we have the option of working with a 2.4 needle or with a 3.2, whereby I use a 3.0 from a current of 170 amperes. The needle should protrude a maximum of 0.5 mm from the gas nozzle.

The topic of grinding the needle is always very controversial. Many say it must

the needle should be sharpened at the front, although in the meantime I have found that the ball forms best for me when it is a straight surface like the original at the front. Which brings us to the issue that the ball is very important when welding aluminum.

Once you have got the tungsten needle into the welding tape, I always recommend breaking off the first piece at the front with pliers or a vice. So that you have a uniform arc during welding. The throttle setting for aluminum should be between eight and nine liters. Too much gas makes the weld pool unstable during welding.

Now we come to the topic of filler materials,which again depends on what exactly you want to weld, whether cast aluminum or normal aluminum profiles.

For cast aluminum, I recommend AlSi 5 or AlSi12. For normal Alumnium profiles AlMg5.

Recommendations:

 

AlSi5

AlMg5

 

 

I recommend a good welding helmet as equipment, you shouldn’t save money, unfortunately the good ones cost a bit more, but it’s worth it. Why, because they already switch off at frequency, i.e. when you switch on the torch, the helmet darkens and not like cheap welding helmets that only switch off at light or high brightness. Here is my recommendation

 

 

 

 

 

Then in any case soft leather gloves with a long shaft, that is

good for not burning your arm when you put your arm down to weld and the material heats up.

 

 

 

An important safety tip for your health would be suction.

Recommendation: Kemper you are welcome to contact us

If you don’t want to invest that much, you should at least wear respiratory protection!

Recommendation:

 

 

And then we come to the setting of the 2 or 4-stroke welding machine, you have to try it out and find out for yourself which you get on better with.

 

I would start with 50-70 amps and then it depends on your welding speed or more or less amps.

 

In the heart area I would start with 60Hz, which is the standard setting and you can simply try out what happens when you go in the respective direction.

 

Yes, then I would start with a few practice sheets The best way to do this is to use approx. 3 mm aluminum sheet, if you have the aluminum sheet on a steel table for welding, for example, you have to keep in mind that the steel draws the heat from the aluminum and you have to weld with more amperes than if you put the sheet on an aluminum profile, for example, because it does not draw the heat like steel.

 

 

 

 

 

It is best to start with a 3mm sheet with approx. 50 amps and then work up and feel your way.

 

Stay relaxed and practise practise practise and if it doesn’t work at all, take a break and do something else in between

 

 

 

 

 

So I hope I was able to help you with the article What do you need for aluminum welding? I would be delighted to receive your feedback. And if you would like to find out and see more about welding, then take a look at our channels. Welding is a daily topic there.

 

 

 

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