Best Way To Weld Stainless Steel Sheet Metal

For most jobs welding stainless steel you ll want to use 030 inch diameter stainless steel welding wire.

Best way to weld stainless steel sheet metal.

With these materials use a tri mix gas 90 helium 8 argon and 2 co 2. Make sure the fitup is tight with absolutely no gap prop your tig cup right on the joint with the sharp tungsten electrode tip less than 1 16 from the joint. The best way i have found to tack weld stainless steel sheet metal is. Stainless steel welding requires a bit more finesse than welding mild steel or aluminum because heat is an enemy in this process there are three methods of stainless steel welding which are preferred over the rest by many welders.

Continue the same way along the sides of the piece of sheet metal. First you must exercise more care and control with regard to heating and cooling stainless steel. The process uses an inert shielding gas and a semi automatic wire feed which acts as the filling material. When welding 304 stainless steel er308 er308l and er308lsi wires are compatible but for welding 316l stainless you need a 316l wire.

To weld sheet metal with solid wires use electrode positive ep or reverse polarity. For mig welding stainless steel a shielding gas mixture that s 90 percent helium 7 5 percent argon and 2 5 percent carbon dioxide is generally ideal. Metal inert gas mig welding tungsten inert gas tig welding and shielded metal arc welding smaw or. A low cost yet highly productive method of welding which can be used on all common metals and alloys.

Say if you are welding an 18 gauge stainless steel sheet that is 2 2 feet in size to repair the side of your tank start by creating a weld that is 1inch long then skip 6 inches and then create a 1 inch long weld. This is especially useful for carbon steel. One way to reduce the risk is by selecting a metal that is easily weldable and does not require many extra pre weld and post weld operatins to prevent weld failure. For thicker base pieces step up to 035 inch to 045 inch welding wire.

Mig metal inert gas welding. 1 for 1 rule. Lori kilchermann last modified date. The stitch welding technique can be very powerful.

Second it s important to properly match filler metals with the material being welded. The best way to estimate the heat input needed for welding is by applying the 1 for 1 rule this means that 1 amp should be used per 1 thousandth 0 001 inch of thickness. Welding stainless steel is not much different from that required in welding standard carbon steel with a few exceptions. Welding is a complicated process which means there are many complications that can arise.

But when it comes to stainless steel or other nickel based metals less heat is needed. I was hoping to manage a butt weld too but the metal was far too thin for mig and i just blew holes. Below are some of the best metals for welding.