Leave it to Windy to be about a generation ahead of the rest of us on
all things RE once again. Cheers to Windy:-)
I still own a Battery Weld 2000 from the 90s, which is a MIG machine
that runs on 24 v dc. The limit is the battery. It can blast at over
200 amps, if you have enough battery to keep the voltage up. I used to
run a 18 v golf cart battery string, so I wouldn't have to use the on
board resistor bank for lower amp welding. My DC welds start getting
messy about 12" into the weld, as the battery voltage drops and changes
the equation.
If you're doing a lot of welding, I would use an AC machine and
inverter, as its much better controlled. Just this week, I tested a
Magnum 4024 PAE with my Lincoln 180, 240 vac MIG machine. The inverter
could handle it, but once again the batteries were the limit, and my
experiment did not have enough battery behind it to keep the inverter on
for very long. 4 Golf cart batteries would be the minimum.
My local industrial battery company has a carbon rod setup, and they
short the battery to weld the lead connectors to the battery posts.
That's the preferred method for adding or removing lead connections at
the battery posts, although I'm not sure if OSHA would approve. They
open all the battery caps, so that they don't build up too much hydrogen
to explode....Sketchy?
R.Ray Walters
CTO, Solarray, Inc
Nabcep Certified PV Installer,
Licensed Master Electrician
Solar Design Engineer
303 505-8760
On 11/23/2013 11:38 AM, Allan Sindelar wrote:
Forwarding from Windy.
-------- Original Message --------
Sure you can solar weld! Afterall, some of us have welded from battery
power when we preferred NOT to.
:0) << that's the HONK of a Solar Bozo (Emeritus)
But seriously, Back in the 1930's to 50's when thousands of farms and
ranches had wind power, 32V was the standard voltage for the 2-3kW
systems. Among the many tools and appliances available, it was common
to have a 32V welder. I used one of them back in the 70's. I was
nothing but a box with a coil in it. The coil wasn't for inductance,
just for resistance. It was steel wire maybe 1/8" thick with taps to
give a choice of current. For max. current, the coil would be
completely out of circuit.
The guys I shared the shop with abandoned their buzz box 'cuz the DC
was so smooth.
Towers are still standing on welds I did in the late 70's using 6011
and 7013 rod (if I remember right).
I had a cell failure early on, and my system was 30, not 32V. Worked
fine for years.
I'm quite sure 24V would work, at least for smallest rods. It
certainly works for MIG welding. Century made a 24V "Portable MIG" to
use on 24V diesel vehicles and farm machines for field repairs. They
were made in 70's and 80's. Nice, 'cuz they are light-weight / no
transformer. I used one on my PV system until I moved recently. I had
3-4V of line loss and it still worked fine with .030 wire. Again, it
has steel coils with taps for control.
If you want MIG, search for a Century Portable MIG. Otherwise, get the
smallest sticks and try 24V. I think I tried it, or heard that it's
not quite enough V. 36V is MORE than you need. If you do 36, use
undersized cable because you'll need resistance anyway!
Searching ... 24V MIG is in remote storage with hen's teeth and
unobtainium.
but discussion at
http://forum.ih8mud.com/tools-fabrication/416445-snap-24v-portable-mig.html
confirmed that you can do stick with 24V.
AND somebody suggested this:
http://store.cyberweld.com/twsgspgun10.html
The spool gun looks like the modern way to solve the problem for
professional use. Reviews there say it doesn't have speed control on
the gun. So you need a resistance coil with taps, and you need a speed
control.
I hope this helps!
Windy
Windy Dankoff Solar Bozo Emeritus
Specialist in solar-electric applications & solar water pumping
Education <> Industry support <> Since 1975
---------------------------------
Founder, retired, Dankoff Solar Products, Inc.
spin-offs: Dankoff Solar Pumps . Positive Energy . Conergy USA
Co-author, work in progress: _The Handbook of Solar Water Pumping_
_
_
12-minute TV interview:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yt3hKgriSbo&list=TLrXFKMLwzCwuUD5h52WCzKdWRR-Juk3XA
---------------------------------
windydank...@mac.com <mailto:windydank...@mac.com>
Santa Fe, NM
home (505) 466-4280
cell (505) 490-0313
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