Inverter welding machines, low voltage

Construction of country houses or cottages, the subsequent regeneration of the land, is impossible without the use of welding apparatus, and then, the farm he can always come in handy. But if, as often happens, the line voltage is below normal, then it is good to think of what the device will provide high-quality welds under these conditions.

Which welder to choose

Often the choice of buyers is justified only by price. In the low price range you will be offered cheap or transformer welding machines inverter type, which hardly will provide your needs , for example, the installation of the heating system in a newly built house. Transformer machines operating at alternating current issued 200A, can weigh up to 23 kg weld seam quality at such current can only be experienced professional. If you buy him a rectifier, which allows to obtain a constant current, its weight approaching 40 kg, and the total price of the device with a rectifier – inverter to the cost of the welding apparatus, a constant current 130-160A. Therefore, the choice should be made in favor of the inverter apparatus, moreover, its weight is around 10 kg, and weld quality with minimal effort it provides even at a low voltage in the mains.

But you have to consider that the cheap inverter machines have a low expectancy of inclusion, which in the technical documentation referred to as PV. For the basic interval in the calculations is taken 10 minutes and, if PV is equal to 20 or 30%, it means that at maximum current to cook it seams you can only for 2 or 3 minutes. The remaining 8 or 7 minutes it needs to cool.

In the case when the current in the network does not exceed 160 A, alternative welding inverter no. But you should be aware that when voltage is less 180, confident welding 4 mm electrode you will not achieve, will have to use a 3-millimeter. At low voltage values not all of the inverter apparatus capable of providing stable performance, judging by the reviews online for these situations, we can advise machines brands: the fast and the furious, Elitech, Fubac, Prorab.

The advantages and disadvantages of inverter welding machines

The main advantage of inverter is that its consumption is equivalent to energy consumption for the welding, regardless of the capacity of the device. This allows him to limit the energy consumption by 80% compared to the welding machine transformer type, which for the welding of 3-mm electrode requires 8kW of power at the time, as the inverter is just 3kW.

But the disadvantages of inverters too, these include high cost, including maintenance and repair. If the overload or large voltage goes down power module, repair the unit will cost almost a third of its price. Devices of this type are highly sensitive to dust, for construction work, it is inevitable, therefore, they have to constantly purged and cleaned. In addition, the electronic control unit inverter unit responds to low temperature and humidity so if you store it in the garage before you start work, you must hold the device a half-hour at room temperature to avoid condensation and failure of individual nodes.

If you have professional experience with welding, and no special requirements to their quality, you can buy a cheaper machine of transformer type.

How to choose the inverter welding machine

As a rule, the inverter apparatus is designed for home use, have built-in protection from power surges, which is 10-15% for industrial vehicles in the figure above. As for dust protection, some models use so-called tunnel fans, which are designed for extreme conditions and significantly affect the price of the device. Not to pay, for cleaning you can use traditional methods – a vacuum cleaner and soft brush.

If the documentation of the device is designated as "household", this does not mean that its low quality, this term usually means that its duration is from 15 to 30 minutes, then within an hour it needs to cool. For professional use manufactured devices, duty cycle of up to 8 hours, but the cost is much higher. Welding quality does not depend on household or professional unit you will gain – only performance. Information listed in the documentation are for standard voltage of 220 V.

Data on temperature regimes, optimal for the operation of the apparatus, must be specified in the technical documentation; if not, you should doubt the integrity of the manufacturer and to abandon such a purchase.

Note that options such as hot start, anti sticking when turned on, and welding is just a publicity stunt. These functions have been provided with inverter technology, and overpay for them is not necessary. But what really should pay attention to is the availability of service and spare parts for a particular brand, promotional products and the manufacturer's website, clear and understandable instructions in Russian.

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