[meltinmetal]

Hello from Alaska,

New to the forum, looking to learn more about all aspects of welding. I'm just a self-taught hobby welder burning metal in the garage with a small MIG, a Dynasty 200 DX (such a sweet machine for a hobbiest), Victor plasma cutter, and O-A torch.

I'm currently having issues with HF from the Dynasty tripping three GFCIs in the garage every time I light up. From what I can find from online research, the easiest solution is probably to replace the GFCIs with newer ones more tolerant of HF. I tried a quick search of this forum but did not find any references to HF and GFCI problems. Any suggestions?

[Otto Nobedder]

Welcome!

Dynasty IS a sweet machine, and it sounds like you have a well-equipped shop.

Is this a new issue with the HF? Meaning had you been welding HF just fine before and the issue just began? Or did you recently begin welding with HF and discover the problem?

There are several here who can offer suggestions, but the suggestions will vary with the answer to the question above.

Steve S

[meltinmetal]

I bought the Dynasty 5 years ago and tigged around at first with the new toy long enough to be able to do a half-ass bead and make a few projects out of aluminum. So I was broadcasting a lot of HF then, but no problems with the GFCI breakers. As to electrical config, I ran triple 6 wire out of my house main panel to a garage sub-panel and I put in three 110 circuits and two 220, one for the welder/plasma and one for an air compressor. The Dynasty was used mostly as a stick welder and very infrequently until just recently. I now have the time to put in some serious seat time trying to master the TIG. So I'm tigging my ass off now and blowing GFCIs. I'm thinking the GFCIs may have aged to the point where they are more sensitive to HF now? Just a guess. I saw on a ham radio site that those radio guys trip GFCIs when they broadcast on certain HF freqs, and they listed certain brands of GFCI breakers that they believe are more tolerant to HF radio interference. I'm thinking that I may have to give that a try. Or do I have to ground every metal object in sight, which is impractical.

I should probably move this discussion to some other forum area, eh? Which one?

[Mike]

Welcome to the forum.

[Otto Nobedder]

...

I should probably move this discussion to some other forum area, eh? Which one?

Since this is an HFAC TIG related problem, I'd suggest starting a topic in the TIG section, where you'll get more views from others who may have experienced the same trouble.

I won't argue with the HAM radio guys, they have plenty of experience with HF sources and house wiring, but I will make two suggestions to attempt before you upgrade the GFCIs.

First, be sure to unplug any power tools on your welding table, or move them off the table, before lighting up. (I had a lot of trouble with this at work.)

Second, as an experiment, bond your work table or workpiece lead to a good earth ground, like the ground stake below your electric meter, phone box, cable box/satellite dish, etc., whichever is closest or most convenient (or drive a metal stake as close as practical to where you're welding) with whatever wire is available. If this stops the problem, it suggests you have a weak link in your shop electrical system; Either a weak link between the circuit neutral and the earth ground, or the ground stake itself. This will create a voltage difference between neutral and ground that can back-feed into your GFCIs. Check all connections, particularly where copper meets aluminum, such as wires to the neutral/ground bus bars.

Steve S

[Boomer63]

Welcome to the forum! The Dynasty is a slick machine! Maybe the problem is that you are welding in the garage; maybe you should move the operation into the house? Kitchen, dining room or living room?

Gary

[soutthpaw]

Contact Miller tech support and see if they can help solve your problem.

[AKmud]

Welcome neighbor.