newbie OUTDOOR welding station questions

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I am new to hobby welding and I have yet to pull the trigger on a welder. The welder I am borrowing (trying before buying) is a older 115v Miller 140 MIG that is gas ready but no bottle and currently set up for flux core welding. I don't have anyplace like a garage or shed to weld inside and with the "smoke" from flux core wouldn't want to weld inside anyway.... so I would like to make a spot in the back yard to weld outdoors.I have asked around and there is no place within an hour drive to take a class so that would mean $40 round trip, each trip, for gas plus the cost of course and materials, so I will be teaching myself. As such I have LOTS of questions I need answered BEFORE lighting up. So I will just throw them out. If you all have a few web sites with answers I have looked at a lot already but many are just some guy making a "demo video" without much discussion of PRE-WELDING safety issues and in some cases completely ignoring safety issues.So here goes:Is it safe to weld on relatively dry ground/grass? I know experienced welders can weld in fields to fix farm equipment but do they bring safety equipment to the field also?I intend to make some welding screens to shield the neighbors from the arc light. I need as cheap as I can get that will do the job. Does it HAVE to be that special orange/green/blue/grey stuff sold from PVCstrip.com or can I just use a BoxStore tarp in a home made frame? Any other ideas?I am pretty sure the current owner has some safety gear but not sure what stuff. I know I need gloves, autodarkening helmet, long sleeve jacket, and safety glasses. Any other MUST have stuff I should have??I will be buying any tools I don't have and currently on my list is a bench grinder and an angle grinder. First on my list of "projects" is a "welding table" and some jigs for practice work. I know I will need some "vise grip" style clamps in different sizes. It would be nice to have all the stuff a welder needs on hand but I will probably have to buy a little at a time or "make do" with something else. Is there any other items you all consider a "must have before i start" item??I am sure I will have more questions, and I hope to be practicing before long.Thanks in advance,dmac257
Reply:As far as welding on grass, basic common sense applies. If the grass is tinder dry, you can expect the hot dripping slag and sparks will cause issues. Green grass usually isn't as big and issue, but caution is still recommended. Have a hose and bucket of water ready. I have one of those old style pump type extinguishers and my buddy has one of the type you pressurize with an air compressor for working around grass and leaves. I usually take the leaf blower and get rid of as many leaves in the welding area as possible.. If possible, try and do most of the welding over an area of bare ground, sand or stone to limit the chances of a fire, or you can always lay down a couple of sheets of plywood under the area directly below where you are welding. Plywood will burn, but chances are it won't flare up suddenly like dry grass will. You can also take the time to wet down the area prior to getting started as a preventative. Just keep in mind standing water and electrical equipment has it's own hazards.Screens... All you need to do is block direct line of sight. plain old tarps will be fine as long as you keep them away from hot sparks etc. Again common sense. I believe arc light only really needs to be blocked at distances less than 50', so I wouldn't get super worried if your neighbors are 200 yds away. Again common sense. It doesn't hurt to be safe and screen off an area, but you don't have to make it perfect in all directions in many cases, just block the main sight lines.Safety gear.. You covered most of it. Again common sense things for the most part. You did leave out basic eye protection. Get a set of safety glasses and wear them full time, even under the hood. Metal in the eyes is a bad thing and no fun. Hearing protection would also be a good idea. It will keep hot sparks out of your ears when doing vertical and overhead as well as protect your hearing. Wished I'd used more hearing protection earlier in life... Jacket or long sleeve fire resistant shirt, leather boots, cotton long pants, gauntlet gloves, good hood covers most of it. Keep in mind synthetic fabrics for the most part are a very bad idea with a few fire resistant exceptions. Nylon melts for example and keeps on burning. Many guys get worse burns from melted nylon than they would have without any protection at all. Cotton will burn, but not right away, and it usually stops if removed from direct flame. It's a much better choice if nothing else is available. Just watch out for frayed areas on pants and shirts. These areas will light up fairly easily.Tools... I could make a huge list. Basic layout tools, tape, soap stone, squares string line, level, all depends on what you are doing. Clamps, you can never have enough clamps, C clamps, bar clamps, vise grips... Hammers, drills, grinders, saws, wrenches... I could go on for hours.  Some way to cut metal is probably going to be high on your list. Chop saw, 4 1/2" grinder with zip wheels, recipricating saw, torch, hacksaw, portaband...  any or all will work.Many projects though can be done with simple basic tools if you think about it and keep things simple. Look at the project and think about how you are going to measure, cut, prep and then assemble it, and that usually will give you an idea what stuff to start with. Tools get addictive.... Post up picts and what thickness materials and settings you are using and we will help you learn. Good luck.Last edited by DSW; 04-14-2012 at 04:02 PM..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:I know a guy in a similar position, no shop, and he put down sand then topped it with that wonder board used for backing tile in wet areas.  It became a really firm surface to work on.And like DSW said, DON'T FORGET THE HEARING PROTECTION (yea I'm yelling, cuz now days I can't even hear myself think   )Lincoln SA 200Esab Caddy 160Thermal Arc 201TSMiller Dialarc HFI don't like making plans for the day because then the word "premeditated" gets thrown around the courtroom....
Reply:In my opinion, grinding starts more smokers & fires than the welding. Just food for thought."The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, peace at any price, safety first instead of duty first, the love of soft living and the get rich quick theory of life." -Theodore Roosevelt
Reply:I pull my tools (chop saw, bench grinder, welding table etc...) down the driveway with a hand truck. I don't put up arc shields because my neighbors don't stare at the arc in the front yard. If they do, shame on them.  For home use, I personally wouldn't waste my time nor money on arc shields. Wear hearing protection and build your own welding table. In the interim, get two saw horses and a large piece of ply wood for a welding table.  Originally, made my own welding tools.  For example, I took some 1/4" 4x4" plate and made little elevated "hot pads" to rest my welding projects upon, over the wooden plywood. It worked like a champ.  I never burned up my plywood welding table.Getas 4 1/2" angle grinder, about 6 harbor FRIGHT deep vise grip like clamps, some c-clamps, chipping hammer, wire brush, gloves, C25 gas, and your good to go for starters...Lincoln Power Mig 216Lincoln AC/DC-225/125Miller  625 X-Treme PlasmaMiller 211 Forney 95FI-A 301HF 91110Victor Journeyman O/PMilwaukee DaytonMakita  Baileigh NRA Life Member
Reply:With the 140 welder you can get away with a Light denim shirt or order a light weight welding shirt on line.I also wouldn't spend the money on the Tarps- even though people will take  alooksee they won't won't get any permanent damage- they can't look at the Arc long enough.Welding Screens are for work environments where you are around the welding arc all day long and without them you feel the effects from the rays coming at you from the sides.Saw Horses and Plywood as SuperArc mentioned. A piece of sheet metal is handy to put on top so you don't always have to clamp to the project.Things will start to add up $$$ but I highly suggest getting a Porta Band-Ed Conleyhttp://www.screamingbroccoli.com/MM252MM211 (Sold)Passport Plus & Spool gunLincoln SP135 Plus- (Gone to a good home)Klutch 120v Plasma cutterSO 2020 benderBeer in the fridge
Reply:Bare essentail tools. good quality angle grinder, chipping hammer, square, tapeline. you don't "NEED" all the tools to do the job. They just make life easier. but those 4 will get you by to start.The grinder (with different wheels) can cut, prep, and remove metal, the rest of the tools are pretty self explanitory. I'd also skip the tarps. if you're that worried about people watching while you're welding. stand between them and the project. Safety gear has pretty much been covered. But I would say that you don't "NEED" an Autodarkening helmet. Most of us learned on normal full faced helmets. some were lucky enough to learn with flip down lenses. A lot of guys wont use the AD helmets. And for the cost, you money is better spent elsewhere right now.As for where you're welding, gravel and or bare dirt/sand is going to be your safest bet. but with a little thought you can weld just about anywhere in your yard. Just remember, the longer your extension cord, the more voltage drop you'll have. I tend to weld just outside the shop or garage. No need to go to far away.Have you tried talking to any of the local welding shops to see if you can intern there? Some places are willing to give a little instruction to people willing to do a little manual labor.There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:On the tarps, I bought a couple welding blankets from Harbor Freight - they're basically heavy fiberglass.  I welded two frames for them using rebar and them form a right angle V after I tied them together.Although they help contain sparks, the real reason I did it was to screen the activity a little bit and appear to be responsible to my wife and neighbors.  I weld either on the driveway or a gravel side yard, keep flammables a good 20+ feet away, and keep a large bucket of water handy.Btw, when you get welding, you can get pretty lost.  It's a good idea to look up and around occasionally to make sure you don't have a smoldering greasy rag or some leaves on fire.  With a 140 mig you really won't have a lot of sparks and things flying.I'd skip the bottle of CO2/Argon for now and just run some .030 flux core wire for learning.  It'll be a bit smokey but a box fan set a few feet away will create just enough draw to pull the fumes away (the fan should suck air away from you rather than blow air toward you).