Tried a cheap flux-core setup on a rusty tank patch, lesson learned

Last week I grabbed a $140 flux-core welder from Harbor Freight to patch a 30 year old tank shell that was too nasty for my MIG. The slag was a pain and I burned through twice on the first pass, but once I turned the heat down to the lowest setting and slowed my travel speed, it laid in there solid. I'm not saying it replaces a real rig, but for small repair work when you can't drag the big machine up a ladder, this thing earned its keep. Has anyone else used a small welder like that on rusty carbon steel and got it to hold up on the pressure test?

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alexk603d ago

Patching a fuel oil tank back in 09 with a $99 Campbell Hausfeld, same deal. Rusty 12 gauge steel, I ran .030 wire and kept the heat just past where it would sputter, maybe 1.5 on the dial. What saved me was cleaning a strip down to bare metal on both sides of the crack first, the flux core hates rust more than the solid wire does. Beveled the edges a bit with a grinder so the puddle had somewhere to sit instead of rolling off. Let it cool slow under a welding blanket so it would not crack, then hit it with soapy water at 5 psi. No bubbles. It is still holding today.

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