Welding Tips and Tricks

Alright... so heres the situation. Im a weldor fabricator and build bumpers etc. For offroad vehicles. Today i got the living piss zapped out of my hand. Details as follows. I wear gloves, redwing boots, miller jacket, and jeans while usually standing on a rubber mat. I was welding on my day to day fab table with my clamp on the right side of my table and welder as well. Ive been wekding for awhile now but this woke my ass up. What could i have possible done wrong. Ive gotten little stings here and there but this was a hell of a wake up callll!!!!


Side note.... i did have sweaty gloves and sweaty everything. I work in Houston for crying out loud. Im soaked in sweat by sun up. Lol. Also my voltage switch was replaced because i was having problems with this welder. Thanks for any help guys.

b1105 wrote:Alright... so heres the situation. Im a weldor fabricator and build bumpers etc. For offroad vehicles. Today i got the living piss zapped out of my hand. Details as follows. I wear gloves, redwing boots, miller jacket, and jeans while usually standing on a rubber mat. I was welding on my day to day fab table with my clamp on the right side of my table and welder as well. Ive been wekding for awhile now but this woke my ass up. What could i have possible done wrong. Ive gotten little stings here and there but this was a hell of a wake up callll!!!!


Side note.... i did have sweaty gloves and sweaty everything. I work in Houston for crying out loud. Im soaked in sweat by sun up. Lol. Also my voltage switch was replaced because i was having problems with this welder. Thanks for any help guys.

I got zapped real bad twice today, running 7018.
Rested my forearms on the part. Hello!!
Had a few holes in the sleeves of my sweat shirt. Must of completed the circuit. My arms wearn't sweaty tho.

Is your table grounded? Were you holding the torch or ground when this happened? Those shocks will definitley get your attention, no matter how long you been welding. Smart to keep the ground and all on one side of your body like you did. I touched a box on a furnace once that was shorted but for some reason didn't blow the breaker, had my other hand on the gas pipe and got it through the chest...very lucky and very scary. My boss walked in and saw me sitting down, white as a sheet and asked what happened. I told him what happened and he asked if I was ok and I said I thought so and then he told me to get off my ass and get back to work....I can't remember the exact words I used but Im sure a couple started with F and Y.

exnailpounder wrote:Is your table grounded? Were you holding the torch or ground when this happened? Those shocks will definitley get your attention, no matter how long you been welding. Smart to keep the ground and all on one side of your body like you did. I touched a box on a furnace once that was shorted but for some reason didn't blow the breaker, had my other hand on the gas pipe and got it through the chest...very lucky and very scary. My boss walked in and saw me sitting down, white as a sheet and asked what happened. I told him what happened and he asked if I was ok and I said I thought so and then he told me to get off my ass and get back to work....I can't remember the exact words I used but Im sure a couple started with F and Y.

I used to love being an asshole like that when I was a boss. Once I was sure the guy was really OK, it was great to be a jerk off. I realize now that old men had a lot of fun doing that when I was coming up; now I get to practice that portion of the craft myself!

Exnail, you did get very, very lucky! Man, take care of yourself! We still need to get together for that cold beer! Can't wait to post the results of that meeting on the forum ... if they have computers in the Joliet County Jail.

We'll meet up soon Boomer, I am finally getting caught up on my projects and hope to take a few weeks off and go fishing or riding or something. I actually got on the bike today and rode down to check out the Kankakee river to see how clear it is for fly fishing...another week or two with not much rain and I am going to be a fly-fishing Mutha humper. Ill be in touch.

exnailpounder wrote:We'll meet up soon Boomer, I am finally getting caught up on my projects and hope to take a few weeks off and go fishing or riding or something. I actually got on the bike today and rode down to check out the Kankakee river to see how clear it is for fly fishing...another week or two with not much rain and I am going to be a fly-fishing Mutha humper. Ill be in touch.

I have part of the Kankakee running out a few miles west of where I stay (Culver, IN).

how is it that you guys are getting zapped? If you are holding on to an insulated stinger and not grabbing the rod, it would seem almost impossible to get hit unless there was a problem with the stinger or the whip. What am I missing? The only times I have got hit with stick were when I was doing something careless while changing the rod.

I've gotten bit working out in the field in wet weather and such, but never in the shop.

Boomer63 wrote:

exnailpounder wrote:We'll meet up soon Boomer, I am finally getting caught up on my projects and hope to take a few weeks off and go fishing or riding or something. I actually got on the bike today and rode down to check out the Kankakee river to see how clear it is for fly fishing...another week or two with not much rain and I am going to be a fly-fishing Mutha humper. Ill be in touch.

I have part of the Kankakee running out a few miles west of where I stay (Culver, IN).

Where do you teach? If your close to the border we could meet at 3 Floyds in Dyer (I think it Dyer) Love their craft brew beer...lets set something up soon.

Last winter I was out welding pipe with a SA200 and 6010.
It was snowing heavy, but by the time it hit the ground it was water.

I was getting shocked left and right, several times per minute. And I was working the whole afternoon.

My jeans, welding gloves, and welding jacket were completely soaked. Even putting a rod in the stinger would bite me.
And every time I toughed the pipe, just holding onto the stinger, it would zap me.
It didn't hurt, but it got your attention quick. It would sorta grab you and shake you.

Miserable.

It was windy and cold. Not a pleasant job for sure.

I'm more electrician than welder. I've always been intrigued at the difference in people's ability to conduct. At 100 volts I need to touch it a second time to be certain there is voltage there. An electrical inspector I once knew would show off touching single phase 480 across two fingers of the same hand. A fellow I know, a body builder who spends half his time in a gym. was jumping out of his skin about a 2 volt potential earth to the door of his outdoor wood boiler. A farmer could feel .1 Volt. I think a big part comes in various levels of hydration, electrolyte levels. At lunch on construction site one day we got out a meter, I was surprised how widely people varied in electrical resistance.

Welders are available with low Open circuit voltage, Gloves help, Stinger rod holders will conduct when they get old. Current is flowing into your body, and out. Stop the flow at one point or another. Better gloves, better sleeves, dryer clothes, or something insulative where you touch the bench or work.

Normal welding current flow does not literally involve earth ground unless the work, or bench are sitting on the earth. Current must flow from the welder through something, then back to the welder.

AKweldshop wrote:Last winter I was out welding pipe with a SA200 and 6010.
It was snowing heavy, but by the time it hit the ground it was water.
...

Well, no wonder you got zapped. What the heck were you doing with 6010's ?
Where were the 7018's ?

(only joking )

My teaching instructor would at times when trouble-shooting a Tig machine, run an arc across to his finger. Don't know how he did that?
Shocks? Keep a few dry gloves handy. I've been zapped a few times by the end of Tig wire against my shoulder, mostly when return clamp hasn't been fitted properly.

Worst shock ever I was zapped doing one of those, sure hold on, put it on the bench. Cascade of stupid small errors.
1. In a rush.
2. Hungry, minutes till lunch.
3. No gloves, already took them and coat off for lunch.
4. Ground on table frame (left side, torch in right hand)
5. Stainless door for sound enclosure of piece of equiptment. (Rubber weather stripping)

So I TIG tack on a new hinge, latch or something with the outside of the door on the table. Then... I flip it over to finish the other side right onto the rubber weather stripping.

Floor the pedal, 70 volts, 120 Amps DC.

BAM! I jumped back in the chair as every muscle clenched and then broke the arc pulling my arms off the table. Entrace burn on my right hand, pinky side as it was resting on the insulated door holding the torch. Exit wound on left wrist pinky side as it was resting on the grounded table. The most painful thing I EVER experienced, and I've had plenty of other things. I felt like a major league batter full out swung at my chest with a bat. I went home at lunch for the rest of the day...


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100 milliamps is enough to cause death.

gnabgib wrote:100 milliamps is enough to cause death.

100 mils can cause death if administered to moist sub-epidermal tissue. And would probably have to include the heart in the circuit path. It won't cause death across dry epidermis. A lot of folks have been made "scared of electricity" by that comment quoted out of context.

Somewhere, there is a picture of Zap taking it finger to thumb. I get the theory, high voltage low amperage, no harm. I once saw a plumber go finger to thumb with a 10,000 volt furnace ignition transformer. He had charring of skin! It ain't something I'm going to do on purpose!
In most cases, our bodies resist the flow of electricity limiting amperage to sufficient degree it won't kill you. Death can come from shock numerous ways. Our nervous system regulates muscles with electrical signals. Confuse the muscles with electric shock, they might do the wrong thing. I read about a motor inverter drive technician without adequate safety training, working in an enclosure he had turned off. He was unaware someone had added a second power source for some sort of clock timer. Autopsy found suffocation was the cause of death. Involuntary muscle contraction caused him to bang his head hard into the corner of the metal enclosure. He appeared to me knocked out. Respiratory arrest caused him to suffocate before he was discovered.

There's another story of a guy welding a wagon frame, he's sitting with a sweaty T shirt with holes, his back resting on the steel frame the ground lead was connected to. In his hand is the stinger. No gloves, jacket, or gear except a helmet. He was found dead, coronary arrest.

Shock is to be avoided. you must conduct current through your body to be shocked. You can hold on to the rod, stinger or anything else, if you don't provide a second point on your body for electrical contact, no shock. Keep skin covered. UV isn't good anyway. Gloves, even wet offer some resistance limiting current.

TIG welding, be aware HF can jump considerable distance to get you.

I was standing chest-deep in Lake of the Ozarks, welding a pivot-pier for a floating dock. It was 96* that day, light puffy cumulus, and a light variable breeze.

Bobcat 250, at 125A, welding 1/8" 7018 rods.

Rods up on the walkway above me, to stay dry.

Gloves getting sweaty... Boss gets out of the water, walks down the pier, stands over me, watching for a minute. Dripping water on my rods the whole time.

Next rod in the stinger, and I can't let go. I'm seized up, eating current. In my arm, out my chest, so crossing the heart at least a bit.

I didn't let go until I had a convulsion. Rod flew left, stinger flew right, into the water, me over backward.

I was able to walk away from that, but I never forgot.

Steve S

Steve,
I think that perfectly discribes the old,
"To be old and wise, first one must survive being young and stupid" phrase.
Live and learn is the flip side.
Cheers

Otto Nobedder wrote:I was standing chest-deep in Lake of the Ozarks, welding a pivot-pier for a floating dock. It was 96* that day, light puffy cumulus, and a light variable breeze.

Bobcat 250, at 125A, welding 1/8" 7018 rods.

Rods up on the walkway above me, to stay dry.

Gloves getting sweaty... Boss gets out of the water, walks down the pier, stands over me, watching for a minute. Dripping water on my rods the whole time.

Next rod in the stinger, and I can't let go. I'm seized up, eating current. In my arm, out my chest, so crossing the heart at least a bit.

I didn't let go until I had a convulsion. Rod flew left, stinger flew right, into the water, me over backward.

I was able to walk away from that, but I never forgot.

Steve S

Not being able to let go is a scary experience you won't soon forget. It has happened to me only once, left hand to right, 120 volts to ground. A house's power line was knocked down by a tree. The transformer fuse on the power pole was blown. I didn't take the time to think it through that the neutral might still be flowing power. I separated the connection that should have been 20 feet up on the side of the house. There I was! Telling my hands to let go didn't work. I'm not certain how long it was, long enough to think "what should I do?" Eventually I walked backward, dragging cable with me. As it got tight, I tripped, falling backward, it came loose. It seemed like forever! Forearm muscles were sore for weeks!