|
|
Hi all,I came across a helium cylinder in a pawn shop yesterday. I got it for $40 and found it was full of gas. My intention was to trade it out at my local welding supply for an argon/co2 mix. Anyway, today (Sunday) I did a field job welding some stainless for a restaurant and ran my argon empty. I have another service call tomorrow and was going to swing by the welding supply and swap out my empty argon bottle.It occurred to me that I might be able to use up the helium in that new tank as I'm going out to weld some aluminum. So my question is.... Can I just use it in place of the argon for aluminum work? Or is helium reserved for welding heavy aluminum (I've come to know about using helium for getting more heat from the TIG process, but I've never used it before).Is there a downside to using it for thin aluminum? I will be working on some aluminum pontoon tanks tomorrow, sealing up cracks. What do you say? Can I skip going to the welding supply and just use up the helium this way?Thanks for the feedback,Tony
Reply:So you want to know if you can "Heliarc" weld with Helium?
Reply:All I've researched has said it is superior to Argon, but much more expensive. Carries heat better, less etching/cleaning band. Need higher flow. Never used myself, but it should work if you lower your amps and increase the CFH you use. I'd personally save the tank and blend with Argon when necessary. Seems wasteful to use it up on routine stuff. The only other point is that balloon helium and welding helium are different. Balloon helium has O2 added to prevent suffocation when inhaling for the high voice trick.Need to figure out which one you got.Last edited by Drf255; 03-24-2014 at 05:31 AM.
Reply:So is that where the "heli" in heliarc comes from? It never occurred to me. I'm about to head out for that job and will test the gas to see if it welds OK. If it does, I'll use it up as I need an argon / c02 mix and will swap out the tanks when it runs down. I rarely weld aluminum over 1/4" and my niche is repair welding so I think I've maxed out my welder one time when I got a job of plate and I beam that was 3/8". I couldn't do it. I could have used the helium for that job. So the gas would just sit there for who knows how long If I just used it up on heavier jobs.Thanks for the replies.Tony
Reply:My bet is you'll find out it's the "balloon" grade and will make for messy "heliarc" results.MM200 w/Spoolmatic 1Syncrowave 180SDBobcat 225G Plus - LP/NGMUTT Suitcase WirefeederWC-1S/Spoolmatic 1HF-251D-1PakMaster 100XL '68 Red Face Code #6633 projectStar Jet 21-110Save Second Base!
Reply:Im just imagining you saying something serious while your voice sounds like mickey mouse. I have heard stories from old timers about everyone in the shop squeaky talking! Sounds fun, please post results if u attempt.Sent from my SGH-S959G using Tapatalk 2 Miller Dynasty 350 water cooledweldcraft wp-17www.instagram.com/jmoskeewww.etsy.com/shop/jmoskeeart
Reply:The welding supply shop here filled my scrap yard oxygen bottle with "ballon grade" helium after they put an inert gas valve stem on it and hydro tested it, said it works fine for everyone else. I have not tried it yet.Problem is balloon grade helium can mean anything, from 99% helium to 80% He 20% Oxy mix so people dont sufficate them selves playing squeaky voice.old Miller spectrum 625 Lincoln SP-135 T, CO2+0.025 wireMiller model 250 and WP-18V torchCraftsman 100amp AC/DC and WP-17V torchCentury 115-004 HF arc stabilizerHome made 4 transformer spot welderHome made alternator welder
Reply:Hmmmmm Straight Helium.....The ONLY time I use pure Helium is for DC- and it must be lab grade..The Helium you found might be Lab Grade (Will say on the neck) but most likely Balloon Grade......As mentioned can be really clean or really dirty depending on the supply of Helium when filled and cleanliness of the bottle being filled. That said straight Helium in my opinion will be too aggressive for thin material.Save it and blend it with Argon or trade it for Argon as planned.....Try welding with it, you will know in about 3 seconds...:0 Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:Originally Posted by mad welder 4Problem is balloon grade helium can mean anything, from 99% helium to 80% He 20% Oxy mix so people dont sufficate them selves playing squeaky voice.
Reply:Time for a party.Weld like a "WELDOR", not a wel-"DERR" MillerDynasty700DX,Dynasty350DX4ea,Dynasty200DX,Li ncolnSW200-2ea.,MillerMatic350P,MillerMatic200w/spoolgun,MKCobraMig260,Lincoln SP-170T,PlasmaCam/Hypertherm1250,HFProTig2ea,MigMax1ea.
Reply:Hi again,I ran a few test beads on a piece of scrap before heading out this morning and it ran real hard as if the aluminum was dirty with an oxide film floating on top. I had to stab the rod into the puddle to get it to get a bead going. I cranked the pressure up from 15 cfm to 20 to compensate for the lighter gas. These were done with AC. Do I need to raise it higher? Maybe I wasn't getting enough gas coverage? Any thoughts?As it stands now I think I will just take the tank over the the welding supply and swap it out with what I needed, which is a bottle of argon / c02 for a mig welder I am cleaning up and getting ready to sell.Thanks,Tony
Reply:That's probably due to the O2 content in the helium resulting in oxidized heliarc bead. Looks like you've got a tank of classic balloon grade.MM200 w/Spoolmatic 1Syncrowave 180SDBobcat 225G Plus - LP/NGMUTT Suitcase WirefeederWC-1S/Spoolmatic 1HF-251D-1PakMaster 100XL '68 Red Face Code #6633 projectStar Jet 21-110Save Second Base!
Reply:Speaking of Helium. I heard that there is a Helium shortage?...Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkLincoln Pro Mig 180HF Stick/Tig Inverter WelderLincoln AC225s
Reply:the black flakes are typical Of dirt in the bottle... The one bead doesn't Look that dirty? With aluminum surface Contamination must be cleaned before welding.I have used balloon gas before that actuallyWelded fairly good... Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:Originally Posted by SpicytunaSpeaking of Helium. I heard that there is a Helium shortage?...
Reply:Helium "comes" from radioactive alpha decay inside the earth.It gets trapped in natural gas wells. If it doesn't get trapped in the ground and makes it to the atmosphere it rises to the top and is unrecoverable or gets stripped off into space by solar wind.So yeah, there's not much left to recover and there's no way to make more in any quantity.Last edited by MikeGyver; 03-25-2014 at 12:55 AM.Welding/Fab Pics: www.UtahWeld.com
Reply:Originally Posted by DSWActually with the cost and difficulty getting helium today. My guess is balloon grade helium has just enough helium in the mix to float a balloon. I seriously doubt they "waste" any more helium that they need past the amount necessary to reliably float the standard party balloon. What that percentage is I don't know off the top of my head, but I'm sure it's not enough to make any sort of welding practical due to contamination issues.
Reply:Hi again,the aluminum plate I used to test the gas with this morning had other passes on it already. I just happened to run a bead using the helium next to one that had been done with argon who knows how long ago. Both beads I ran with the helium look bad, with black soot (flakes) around / on it. If balloon grade helium can be used for welding then It appears that I have a bad bottle of gas. I have always wondered about that. At what point does age factor in to the quality of the gas contained in a cylinder.This would be the second time in my career that I received bad gas. The first was from my welding supplier and was a "fresh" cylinder. This would be the second time, but here I have no idea how long this cylinder has been sitting around until I bought it.What flow rate does helium require?Thanks,Tony
Reply:Ok the one weld I saw was Argon.....If your welds all have the black flakes in it forget using that bottle for welding anything....and you dont use pure Helium for Stainless.....So your done... Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:Hi all,just a quick update..... I traded out the cylinder for an argon/c02 mix. When I took it down to the welding supply, one of the guys pointed out that it had "balloon grade" printed on the label!!! Duh!!!! I am going to post a problem I am having with the Millermatic 35s mig welder I am cleaning up (the one this bottle was bought for), maybe you can give me some thoughts on what is going on.Thanks for the feedback,TonyLast edited by therrera; 03-29-2014 at 11:04 PM.Reason: to add more info.. |
|
发表于 2021-8-31 22:30:55