I was wondering where you guys weld? In the basement, garage, outside. If you do weld inside do you have pictures of your welding area. What precautions do you take beyond a fire extinguisher and watching over your work area for fly away sparks? Winter is coming in my area and the garage is not insulated or heated, I have a bunch of welding to do on parts for my 56 F100 and my only possible warm area is the basement and wanted to see if this is a possible area to weld. Its a clean concrete space, the closest cardboard box area is 10 feet away from my work space and about 5 feet away is a 3 1/2 foot concrete wall with wood framing and insulation to the ceiling. My time behind a welder is limited and all my welding projects in the past have been outside using gas except my last time where I tried flux core (not that happy with the flux core btw) so i never needed to look for an alternate welding area Thanks, Johnny
this is a pretty good question,i weld in a shop, but besides that, things not to weld around (car batteries, glass, greasy rags, anything combustable), my family actually owns a welding and machine shop and look out for a lot of different stuff but our shop at home we actually weld and do wood work in, so we clean up any wood shaving before any major welding. just be safe, and dont touch hot sh*t
i have welded in my basement because of the cold, to tell the truth i ran my fab shop out of my basement for a couple years after it was set up, it wasent finished so it was just concrete up 4ft and then 2x6 studs with insulation and plastic, the one thing i made sure of was the furnace was off while i was working so as not to get dust in the rest of the house, my GF at the time and her boy would come over and we would all work together down there, i did put up a backstop made of metal for the chop saw and when i was done for the day i swept up, about once a week i went around with the shopvac, the shop i'm in now was built in 1958 out of wood from a church that was over 100 years old, i worry more now about fire then i did in my basement.
there is definitely a fire story behind the blanket .....i'm sure there are welding screens available and do wonder if they effectively stop sparks
The couple of things that come to my mind apart from the obvious fire risk: 1. Ventillation 2. If you had a fire would your insurance Co pay? With the right precautions I suppose you could do it. Would I? NO. Pete
We wont tell the wife... Never leave parts in the oven or dish washer If you have a good wife like I do. She will just shake her head and tell you to get your shit out of the kitchen Welding is about the only thing I have not done it the house. I have done lots of welding in the basement in the past but you must use a good fan or two to suck all the fumes outside so they don't go up in the house
ventilation is a good one i did not think of, i also have to consider the risk verse the reward....i guess all the welding can wait for 5 month but that is a long time when you want to progress on a project, i have other things to do but not 5 months worth maybe 2 1/2 to 3 month of things to keep me busy so my real down time will be 2-2 1/2 months
i heard that welding in winter is not ideal...can it affect your welds?...I could always get a force hot air propane heater to keep me toasty and just do it in the garage
i always wanted to learn and my father did a bunch of tig welding at work before he retired so I will have some guidance....only downside is buying more welding equipment that I rarely use.....maybe I can ask some buddied if they have a tig welder...with your statement I assume tig does not throw as much sparks?
I weld in my basement but only TIG. I would not feel safe welding MIG. too many sparks. If you do decide to do it I agree with others. cover all flammable surfaces and have lots of ventilation.
TIG does not throw any sparks. If you can MIG good TIG is not that difficult. I tought myself. Also welding units can be really cheep. I bought one for $400 that doubles as a plaz. Yes it's foren but it gets the job done. Once you learn how to do it you will want to use it more than you think.
Proper oxy/fuel welding doesn't throw sparks either. Regardless, any type of welding needs a controlled environment. Unfortunately, I don't have a garage. I do all my welding outside in the breeze, so I use flux-core wire welding and get great results with heavier gauge metal. It does throw sparks, so I keep the area tidy.
I have worked as a welder for a looooong time the only thing i set on fire with welding is my clothes. The angle grinder is much more effective to start a fire with hahaha Buy a tig and find out how much use you realy have for it my tig they have to prye from my cold dead hands
The problem with welding is its seldom done with some grinding taking place as well. There is no way I would want the fumes and mess associated with welding & grinding in my house. Heat the garage, and warm the metal before your ready to weld, to get the moisture out of the steel, anyone that lives in the house will be much happier if the welding is done elsewhere. Gene
I weld in a 100 year old barn, it is falling down on me. I get nervous when I use the heat wrench(oxy/acet) or Air Arc Gouge, thats when the fire blankets and sheet metal covers come out... Ventilation, fire blankets and fire extingushers are a good precaution, I always try to stay in the area (fire watch) at least a hour after the last sparks fly to make sure. Mig and Tig are more forgiving than the above mentioned, Common sense goes along way, you're always better safe than sorry. As far as a basement goes, my biggest concern would be fumes, smoke and ventilation.
I just re-read your post, SUCK-IT-UP and do it outside/garage. If "comfortable weather" was an issue, you wouldn't be living in MASS!
it was a hot and dry spell here for awhile this summer, i was outside working on a railing, i had to grind off a little splatter and one of those balls shot off and landed in some 4ft tall dry grass, about two seconds later i could smell the grass burning, thank god i had the garden hose all ready as it was it burnt a spot about 4ft around, my heart still pounds when i think of it, not a house around there worth less then $1,000,000 plus.
In ,y single car garage with the wire feed, might roll it outside if it isn't windy. Stick welding is all outside because I use an old Lincoln pipe liner that's parked across the driveway.
i know....i should be living in florida but i happened to be plopped out in this region, i can deal with the cold but i rather not, one of my concerns welding in the cold is the metal, the snow on the ground with a welder in or around it (rather not have my head pop off in sparks) and the garage will house my viper and 56 f100, it will be a pita to roll out the f100 every time I want to weld but I can deal with that but the viper will be place in such a way it will not come out of the garage until spring...i was looking for an alternative because i really dont want spark anywhere near it, its a rather small 2 car garage but I will buy some fire blankets for the viper, fight the cold move the f100 then weld my heart away, i liked the idea of welding in the basement, seems from the post it could be done but not recommended, so I will forgo doing it in the basement and do it in the garage. Everyones response are appreciated they all were helpful
I've had more than one friend die in a garage fire or explosion and another guy from the old neighborhood who lived but looks like Phantom of the Opera. One was in an all metal building and the others were in block buildings. All buildings were ground level walk-out, and you want to weld in a wood framed basement?
I have a large garage with a concrete floor. I've covered parts of the floor with some take-out carpet from out house. Have been welding above this (on a lift) with no fires yet. Lots of little burn marks though!
I try to do it outside if the weather is favorable. I dont have a dedicated steel welding table so inside is always a risk. Too much stuff around that could ignite. My epoxy floor under the lift is the exception. It shows the scars from my abuse with a MIG.
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