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I'm looking into either a 25-foot or 50-foot extension cord for a Lincoln Power MIG 255. There are plenty on Amazon or eBay. But I noticed they all use 8-gauge or 10-gauge wire. Will that be a problem? My 220-volt outlet uses 6-gauge wire from the electrical box to the outlet. Will the lesser gauge on the extension cord limit the electrical current?
Reply:There are several good threads on extension cords. Here is one:https://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthrea...extension-cordHere is another:https://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthrea...extension-cordOne of the electricians can offer more specifics if these don’t answer your question. I believe because of the derating allowed for welders you could use the 8 gauge up to 50’ with no problem, but wait for one of the professionals to confirm.Last edited by wb4rt; 06-26-2020 at 10:38 AM.Burt _____________________Miller Syncrowave 250Millermatic 211Miller 375 Plasma Cutter Hobart Handler 12010FtDrillBit.com
Reply:8 gauge wire will be adequate.
Reply:I found a 50' 6-gage used boat cable for my melding cart. And also another 50' 4-gage used boat cable for a separate extension cord.The heavier the wire--the lower the voltage drop.
Reply:
Originally Posted by M J D
8 gauge wire will be adequate.
Reply:I run a 6ga drop cord for the welder. It's plenty of capacity, AND I can use it to run two 5000w heaters in the shop. Never envisioned running heaters with that cord, but sure enough..........it came in handy. Bigger is better, because you really never know what you'll be doing a few years down the road.
Reply:I've used 30' 8ga cords alone and hooked together coming off of a 100 amp recepticle. Never had an issue during "General" welding. Never tried on anything over 1/2". 6ga is good but you start getting into Horse c--k size to wrap upThermal Arc 320SP ( Lorch )Cobra PythonsThermal Arc 300 AC/DC ( Sanrex )ESAB 301i AC/DC ( Lorch )Thermal Arc 161STL ( WTL )Thermal Arc 190S ( Sanrex )Cut Master 82, 42. Cut45 ( WTL )Victor Gas Apps.Boxes and boxes of welding crap.
Reply:Seen this? -> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CJHRNXN
Reply:I'm pretty sure it would work fine, but the specs just look odd...https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CJHRNXN100% PVC on Jacket, 100% copper in conductorImportedUL & cUL approved and Listed, Heavy-duty for Welder, 100% copper conductor inside.Welder 3-prongs NEMA 6-50 lighted connector right-angle, 50 Amp / 250 Voltage.STW 8AWG/3C stranded wire extension cord, support max 40 AMP overload, Max Rate 10000 Watt (250V).Molded with electroplate copper terminal in order to avoid surface oxidation effectively.Universal to All Other Brands 6-50 Welding Machine 3-pole. Length : 25 FT (25 Feet).I think the 40 amp overload Max rate 10000watt 250v is their way of getting around the 6AWG .Airco 250 ac/dc Heliwelder Square waveMiller Synchrowave 180 sdMiller Econo Twin HFLincoln 210 MPDayton 225 ac/dcVictor torchesSnap-On YA-212Lotos Cut60D
Reply:+1 farmersammm. I don't de-rate my extension cords either. If I grab one with 50A ends I expect it can handle it. They may be originally for a welder but needs do change. I de-rate welder connections in the shop and they are labeled and dedicated as welder only. That said, you'd be fine with 8 gauge, just label it welder only. Now if your welder is 100% duty cycle... de-rating become a mute point.
Of course we've all likely scabbed something together way sketchier in a pinch.
Reply:I'm no electrician, but I researched sizing extension cords recently and here's what I came up with:- Understand how much current your welder draws- Size the circuit breaker to the welder- Use building wire and an outlet sized to the breaker that protects it- Size the extension wire gauge to the length and current draw required (or larger, but never less than the breaker)Voltage drop is important. I found 8-gauge cords of 25 or 50 feet were good up to 30A before voltage drop exceeded 3%. 6-gauge easily handles 40 & 50A loads. More here: https://welditu.com/gear/safety/what...xtension-cord/DaveWelditU.comLincoln Weld-Pak 140HDHobart Handler 140
Reply:The electrical wire in your walls going to your outlet is 6 gauge so it does not overheat and catch your house on fire. It also might be longer than 50 feet from the electrical panel. More wire means less likely to have voltage drop. Extension cords are out in the open. If they overheat it wont be between walls where you cant see the fire. It is only fifty feet so voltage drop is not likely. If you do have unacceptable voltage drop, you simply buy a heavier cord. If the wire in your house had a significant voltage drop and you went to upgrade your wire, you can imagine the cost and labor for that would be high. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Reply:A minor point to add to this: get a garden hose hanger to put on the side of your cart or near the outlet you will be plugging into. These cords are HEAVY and it gets REALLY ANNOYING.
Reply:When I wired my new shop I wanted to add a couple of circuits for my Millermatic 180 (220v). This machine, according to the specs and confirmed my Miller, pulls just 22 amps at max output. However, as with ALL Miller welders at the time, the 180 came with a 50 amp plug. According to the City Inspector that required a total 50 amp circuit, 6 gauge wire and a 50 amp circuit breaker. I knew that that would be a potential problem and I contacted Miller about switching out the pigtail to a one that would plug into a 30 amp circuit. They told me that doing so would void the warranty but they also recommended against any circuit breaker greater than 30 amp for safety.A dilemma for sure. So I called the Department of Labor and Industry (L&I) in my state (Washington) and they also advised me not to use a circuit breaker greater than 30 amps. When I told them that the Inspector wouldn't sign off on it they told me there was a "work around". Use 10 gauge wire if less than 50 ft, a 30 amp circuit breaker and a 50 amp receptacle AND THEN JUST LABLE THE OUTLET "Welder Only" and refer the inspector to them or ask him to look up the State Code.So I did as they suggested and passed the inspection. Since the primary circuit was only about 15 ft from the circuit breaker I made up an 25' extension cord using 10 gauge wire. Works perfect.Bottom line - before you make an extension cord OR wire a circuit, make sure it will support the max amp draw of your machine(s) and NOT have an excessively high breaker. 6 gauge will work and lessen any voltage drop BUT is a LOT more expensive. I saved over $100 in wire alone sticking with 10 gauge in the two circuits and extension cords.Last edited by reefera4m; 12-24-2020 at 05:32 PM.
Reply:
Originally Posted by reefera4m
When I wired my new shop I wanted to add a couple of circuits for my Millermatic 180 (220v). This machine, according to the specs and confirmed my Miller, pulls just 22 amps at max output. However, as with ALL Miller welders at the time, the 180 came with a 50 amp plug. According to the City Inspector that required a total 50 amp circuit, 6 gauge wire and a 50 amp circuit breaker. I knew that that would be a potential problem and I contacted Miller about switching out the pigtail to a one that would plug into a 30 amp circuit. They told me that doing so would void the warranty but they also recommended against any circuit breaker greater than 30 amp for safety.A dilemma for sure. So I called the Department of Labor and Industry (L&I) in my state (Washington) and they also advised me not to use a circuit breaker greater than 30 amps. When I told them that the Inspector wouldn't sign off on it they told me there was a "work around". Use 10 gauge wire if less than 50 ft, a 30 amp circuit breaker and a 50 amp receptacle AND THEN JUST LABLE THE OUTLET "Welder Only" and refer the inspector to them or ask him to look up the State Code.So I did as they suggested and passed the inspection. Since the primary circuit was only about 15 ft from the circuit breaker I made up an 25' extension cord using 10 gauge wire. Works perfect.Bottom line - before you make an extension cord OR wire a circuit, make sure it will support the max amp draw of your machine(s) and NOT have an excessively high breaker. 6 gauge will work and lessen any voltage drop BUT is a LOT more expensive. I saved over $100 in wire alone sticking with 10 gauge in the two circuits and extension cords.
Reply:What would be so wrong running on a higher circuit breaker? If something shorted wouldn't it trip regardless? I'm thinking about places that only have 1 outlet and might run a 50 amp welder or a 30 amp compressor with the same plug.Last edited by Welder Dave; 12-26-2020 at 02:25 AM.
Reply:I've worked on plenty of places where to identify a breaker I simply short the wires.... and more than a few times I could not get the breaker to trip
usually long runs from a panel or just high ohm connections were contributing factors.
Reply:#10 would be fine too at only 50 feet for that machine. #8 would be more than fine.
Reply:
Originally Posted by ronsii
I've worked on plenty of places where to identify a breaker I simply short the wires.... and more than a few times I could not get the breaker to trip
usually long runs from a panel or just high ohm connections were contributing factors.
Reply:
Originally Posted by danielplace
Hit the panel with infrared scanner while shorting it out and watch for breaker to turn red. Lol.We used to specialize in switch gear heat scans of large commercial buildings. Hands down the best way to find your problems before they become real problems. The stuff you would catch with the scanner was incredible. Equipment caught in the act of failing before anyone would even know.You should have saved the aggravation and pulled #6 that would have hurt nothing and just swap it to a 30 amp breaker after inspection. That way the 50 amp can be easily upgraded to 50 amp again and voltage drop to receptacle would have been less.
Reply:
Originally Posted by ronsii
I have a couple of flir's
and use them for that when the need arises.. but when the panel box is in a different room behind a dozen doors that's a bit tricky
especially when you're working alone... guess I need a tripod and remote viewing flir...
Reply:
Originally Posted by Welder Dave
What would be so wrong running on a higher circuit breaker? If something shorted wouldn't it trip regardless? I'm thinking about places that only have 1 outlet and might run a 50 amp welder or a 30 amp compressor with the same plug.
Reply:
Originally Posted by UserJB
Let's say you run a 30-amp appliance (welder, compressor, whatever) on a circuit rated for 50 amps with a 50 amp breaker. Sounds safe, right? Usually, except for this scenario. You might later encounter a short that draws somewhere between 30 and 50 amps. That short won't draw enough amps to trip the breaker, but it will draw more amps than the appliance's wiring is rated for. So the appliance wires could overheat and cause a problem but the breaker won't trip.
Reply:
Originally Posted by UserJB
I'm looking into either a 25-foot or 50-foot extension cord for a Lincoln Power MIG 255. There are plenty on Amazon or eBay. But I noticed they all use 8-gauge or 10-gauge wire. Will that be a problem? My 220-volt outlet uses 6-gauge wire from the electrical box to the outlet. Will the lesser gauge on the extension cord limit the electrical current?
Reply:
Originally Posted by UserJB
I'm looking into either a 25-foot or 50-foot extension cord for a Lincoln Power MIG 255. There are plenty on Amazon or eBay. But I noticed they all use 8-gauge or 10-gauge wire. Will that be a problem? My 220-volt outlet uses 6-gauge wire from the electrical box to the outlet. Will the lesser gauge on the extension cord limit the electrical current?https://www.southwire.com/calculator-vdrop
You do not have to lie if or when you get tech support. If it doesn't weld something you have done all you can do. Sincerely, William McCormickIf I wasn't so.....crazy, I wouldn't try to act normal, and you would be afraid. |
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发表于 2021-9-1 23:15:52