8 top tips on improving your weld (quality)

Keeping consistent levels of weld quality is important for your working applications. Looking at ways to keep improving your weld quality? Implementing these tips can help you do just that.

Welding is and continues to be a massive part of industries. Such as automotive, construction, railways, and manufacturing, along with many others. The main types of welding are MIG, TIG and STICK.

Welding is the process of joining metals together using heat and electricity. MIG welding stands for Metal Inert Gas, known as Gas Metal Arc Welding. An arc welding process that joins the metals together. TIG stands for tungsten inert gas which uses consumable tungsten. Finally, STICK welding, also known as shielded metal arc welding. Stick uses an electric current and an anode at the weld pool.

Let's get into improving your weld quality; with these changes, you could see incredible improvements:

1. Find the right welding equipment for your needs. It's important to ensure you have the right welding equipment for your applications. Firstly, you’ll need to decide what machine you need: MIG, TIG or Stick. Each has advantages and disadvantages. Then you will need to know what power you need! Ensure you look into the volts and amperage you need to complete your applications. (don’t worry, we’ve got you covered; call us).

Not only is the welder an important factor, but other equipment is equally important. Such as consumable quality, welding torch and PPE. It's important to consider what extra features you would like to make your work that bit easier. Built-in wire feeder?

2. Set your welding gas to the right amount. – A quick fix for weld quality is to ensure your welding gas is set to the correct amount. If it isn’t, it won’t penetrate very well. And can create weak welds and porosity. Adjust your flow meter on your welder, but ensure you don’t adjust this too high, as this can create a worse problem. Find the flow between the two, adjusting when necessary to find the perfect flow for your applications.

3. Clean the weld surface. – Before we get started on welding, it’s a must to ensure the weld surface is cleaned. How clean the surface is determines how well the weld will look as well as be structurally. There are several things that can alter your weld quality, such as dust, grease, rust and paint. Not having a clean surface may even cause your welder not to arc at all. There are ways to sort this though! When it comes to grease and dust, they can be removed with a degreaser and a rag. But when it comes to harder-to-move imperfections such as rust and paint. These will often need a wire brush or even a hand grinder. These must be removed to ensure your weld is strong.

4. Hold the right welding angle. –  Depending on the type of weld you are doing, there are several ways to get the welding angle just right. Often practice makes perfect. Finding the right angle for you can be determined by the type of weld. Try these out:

• If you are performing a T-joint, you will need to hold the gun at a 45-degree angle.

• L-Weld will also use this type of weld angle.

• If you are doing a butt joint or edge joint, it is recommended to hold the gun so the nozzle is straight up and down the weld.

5. Keeping your welding equipment maintained. – It's important to ensure your welding equipment is regularly serviced and maintained. To ensure all repairs are actioned before they affect your welds and help extend the life of your welder. We’ve got a great service and repair department that has recently extended to be able to help you with this. Let us help you with the following:

• Emergency Breakdown

• LEV testing

• Electrical testing of welding equipment

• CP7 gas inspection

• Calibration to British standards

• Planned/contract maintenance.

6. Using the correct electrode size. – Ensuring you have the right electrode size is an important factor for weld quality. Too large or too small an electrode can lead to poor welds.

7. SLOW DOWN! Try to slow your welding speed. Don’t rush through your welds; aim to pace yourself and not to push the weld too fast. This can affect the quality and finish of your weld. Leaving your weld looking thin and tall doesn’t allow you to get deep enough. Keep a steady approach to the weld.

8. Check your tips before performing! - The tip of your welding gun ensures your wire remains straight as it comes out of the gun. These can accumulate dirt and can occur when dirt ends up on the wire and makes its way to the tip, where it builds up. The welding wire will be stuck and jolted, which will have irregular weld patterns. Ensure you keep a check on the tips and clean them regularly.

Implementing these tips can help to improve your weld quality for your applications. Looking for some more information? We are happy to help you find the right welding equipment for your applications and get the perfect weld. Drop us a message for more information.