Hi all decided to go with mig wleding I have a 250amp ebay style welder for around the house jobs and a bit of my car restoration project
so ive connected my bottle and started some practice welds however seems gas is getting pressurised in the hose thats attached to regulator and the machine (regulator is heated type)
eventually the hose just pops off.
My gas mixture is Argon mix thats what it says on the bottle.
I did try reducing the flow from the tube with the ball in it . any ideas whats the problem here guys ? do i have a faulty regulator or something in the machine ?
any help is appreciated
Hi muzzytt,
The hose should not be popping off. The regulator should only be supplying somewhere around 20 psi. It sounds like it is leaking through from the high pressure side. In other words a bad regulator. That said, a couple of other thoughts...
If the regulator is "heated" it sounds like it is for CO2. CO2 in a pressurized tank is in fact a liquid. As it is drawn off the liquid must turn to a gas and this requires considerable heat input. A "normal" regulator may freeze up if used on CO2. If you are using a CO2/Argon mix as is common for MIG welding, you do not need a heated regulator.
Here is an example of a typical flow meter regulator http://www.harrisproductsgroup.com/en/P ... lator.aspx Is this something like what you have?
There is a proper procedure for placing one of these in operation.
1 - Make sure the needle valve which controls the gas flow is SHUT. If the needle valve is open you may shoot the flow meter ball up with enough force to damage the flow meter tube when you open the valve on the tank.
2 - SLOWLY open the valve from the high pressure tank. Stand to the side of the gauge face just in case the gauge leaks (so you don't catch the gauge cover in the teeth).
3 - Once the gauge shows the full pressure of the tank, open the valve fully and tightly against its back seat. This prevents gas from leaking along the valve stem.
4 - SLOWLY open the needle valve to pressurize the hose to the welder. Just open it a little.
5 - Set the desired flow rate. I do this by placing the welder in PURGE mode and pulling the trigger on the gun. This allows gas to flow without feeding wire. If you do not have a purge mode on your welder you can just release the tension on the wire feeder and it will revolve but not feed any wire. 20 CFH is a good starting point. You will get to know when you need more flow or less.
To secure the system you should first shut the valve on the tank then bleed off the gas pressure. Shut the needle valve in case you are in a hurry next time.
Bottom line it sounds like you have a bad regulator and/or the wrong regulator. Try placing it in operation per the above steps. If it still pops the hose see it the seller can provide you with a replacement. If not, shop around for a new one. If you need assistance selecting a proper unit just ask in this forum.
Ken
The hose should not be popping off. The regulator should only be supplying somewhere around 20 psi. It sounds like it is leaking through from the high pressure side. In other words a bad regulator. That said, a couple of other thoughts...
If the regulator is "heated" it sounds like it is for CO2. CO2 in a pressurized tank is in fact a liquid. As it is drawn off the liquid must turn to a gas and this requires considerable heat input. A "normal" regulator may freeze up if used on CO2. If you are using a CO2/Argon mix as is common for MIG welding, you do not need a heated regulator.
Here is an example of a typical flow meter regulator http://www.harrisproductsgroup.com/en/P ... lator.aspx Is this something like what you have?
There is a proper procedure for placing one of these in operation.
1 - Make sure the needle valve which controls the gas flow is SHUT. If the needle valve is open you may shoot the flow meter ball up with enough force to damage the flow meter tube when you open the valve on the tank.
2 - SLOWLY open the valve from the high pressure tank. Stand to the side of the gauge face just in case the gauge leaks (so you don't catch the gauge cover in the teeth).
3 - Once the gauge shows the full pressure of the tank, open the valve fully and tightly against its back seat. This prevents gas from leaking along the valve stem.
4 - SLOWLY open the needle valve to pressurize the hose to the welder. Just open it a little.
5 - Set the desired flow rate. I do this by placing the welder in PURGE mode and pulling the trigger on the gun. This allows gas to flow without feeding wire. If you do not have a purge mode on your welder you can just release the tension on the wire feeder and it will revolve but not feed any wire. 20 CFH is a good starting point. You will get to know when you need more flow or less.
To secure the system you should first shut the valve on the tank then bleed off the gas pressure. Shut the needle valve in case you are in a hurry next time.
Bottom line it sounds like you have a bad regulator and/or the wrong regulator. Try placing it in operation per the above steps. If it still pops the hose see it the seller can provide you with a replacement. If not, shop around for a new one. If you need assistance selecting a proper unit just ask in this forum.
Ken
Ken
Thanks for the time you took to reply i'll check over everything when I get home
My regulator is different to the one you linked too mine has the party that screws into tank with high pressure gauge this also had the heater element then this
has the flow gauge attached to it.
Thx heaps
Regatds
Muz
Thanks for the time you took to reply i'll check over everything when I get home
My regulator is different to the one you linked too mine has the party that screws into tank with high pressure gauge this also had the heater element then this
has the flow gauge attached to it.
Thx heaps
Regatds
Muz