Welding Tips and Tricks

When stick welding with low hydrogen open, can the second pass be z weaved for all plate and pipe positions? Also, if a low hydrogen rod sticks more easily than usual and sometimes just has its flux shattered as soon as you pull away, is this an indication that these low hydrogen electrodes need to be treated in a rod oven? Thanks in advance.

Sorry if this seems vague - but the procedure is very much dependent on the code for the given application & thickness - usually once the root pass is done all other passes can be weaved if the WPS allows it - some code will allow it some won't - if it is allowed then there will often be a maximum allowed width - so a thinner piece may allow a full width weave on the cover pass - but on a thicker piece it may exceed the spec for a single weave & need to be split - if the weld is not under any coded regulation then it's more up to the experience / judgement of the welder.

I think if the flux is coming off the rods the time for oven treatment is past - they are suitable for non critical get you out of trouble welds or recycling into hanging hooks for painting etc - I would not use them on anything that matters or will be tested even if you dry them out.

Okay then. Just wondering if things like 2G and 4G and be z weaved by low hydrogen stick.

Chad,

For a low-hydrogen rod to remain low-hydrogen, It should go directly from the freshly opened can to the rod oven. In coded applications, where low-hydrogen is required, any rod you don't use within four hours of pulling it from the oven is junk.

You can't "fix" a 7018 by sticking it in the oven later. Drying it will make it burn okay for non-code repair work, if it didn't get outright "wet", but don't trust it for critical work of any kind.

The major codes do not specify in the code whether or not you can weave. This is up to the process engineer who establishes the WPS for the particular weld. Weaving is perfectly fine, if the WPS allows it, 'cause the code doesn't care.

Steve S

As always, thanks for your thorough reply Otto. Seriously wished someone like you was my TAFE teacher. Yeah, I figured a junk rod will remain junk but for my particular situation I'm just concerned about the rod not sticking and "burning right" since I'm just using for practice in TAFE. So putting my old rods in an oven will make them burn right and not stick like before? Can't wait to see what happens when I go back to school next week.

Also, does the rod oven need to stay on 24/7 or do they just need to be kept in a turned off oven and then treated whenever they're going to be used?

Chad,

A well-insulated rod oven can run continuously for less money than running a refrigerator. Many industrial rod ovens are essentially medical autoclaves, and can run for pennies a day. Typical temperature is 230-270 *F. The point of this is, when you take a handfull from the oven, they stay hot (above dewpoint) for quite a while, and won't begin to absorb moisture before you've used them all.

If you're just using the rod for practice, you really don't need to run it continuously, provided it's indoors under climate control, but I'd make a habit of it. It takes about 24 hours to call a rod "dry". For a real test, I'd get fresh rod from a sealed can into the oven and keep it there, and practice at least once with "code" rod.

Also, DON'T keep 6010 in the oven unless a WPS requires it. Cellulosic flux rods should be kept "room-temperature and dry" in ambient air. They actually like a little humidity. I don't know why.

Steve S