Welding Tips and Tricks

Oddball question, issue.

I mainly do TIG welding (or at least attempts, just a hobbyist)

But after welding for a bit I get a smell stuck in my nose.
Not a horrible smell, but certainly not bacon.

Ideas?
Not sure if a fan is a good idea (don't want blow away the shield)

anode wrote:Oddball question, issue.

I mainly do TIG welding (or at least attempts, just a hobbyist)

But after welding for a bit I get a smell stuck in my nose.
Not a horrible smell, but certainly not bacon.

Ideas?
Not sure if a fan is a good idea (don't want blow away the shield)

What metal are you welding? Are you in a small enclosed area? Has the metal been cleaned before welding?

I get a metallic taste and smell when I plasma cut mild steel when I can't ventilate the room properly.

Metal is just cut up scrap HRS. .060 - .125. (I'm a service engineer for CNC lasers, and typically grab scrap laser cut material from customers) (and purchased .060 wall square mild tubing.

Its not the plasma smell, nor grinding smell, nor like a laser cut smell.

Welding in my 2 car garage with door open. As for cleaning will run a 120 flap wheel across to prep.

(Now I'm hoping to make this thread mainly a light hearted fun goofy thread, but with a little bit of substance.)

Anode
Maybe it's an Ozone smell, generated from the arc itself? Ozone has a fairly pungent smell, and, well, can get up your nose.
Oh, and welcome aboard.
Trev

I also sense a distinct smell when TIG welding either in my shop at work or in the home shop. I beleive it is the smell of ozone cretade by the arc. I have worked with a lot of high voltage electrical equipment which creates ozone and it is the same smell as when TIG welding. It is fairly persistent, takes a few hours to disappear even when I stop welding and leave the shop.

Some thing in shop may be out gassing and/or left over chemical fumes reacting with arc to create the ozone smell.

Bingo to trackranger - ozone.

It's more than likely the Ozone that you're smelling. On a funny note, one of the guys at work complained about an odd smell in the Motor Control Center (MCC) of the plant after I closed it in and air conditioned it. When I asked him what it smelled like, (Ozone) he said, "a petting zoo". I suggested he take his three year old to a different form of entertainment if the farm animals are putting off that much Ozone (O3).

It's also the smell that you can pick up right as an electrical storm is about to hit.

Len