My 200A MMA stick welder and it's power supply cabling

[richard8356]

I have a new 200A MMA welder. It came today and it has attached to it a circular industrial plug, 2P+E, to IP44.

It is 16A plug.

I intend to buy or make up a shortish cable with a regular BS1363 plug at one end and a circular industrial socket on the other. Then I can plug the machine into a regular 13A house socket.

I think I'll be okay, as long as I don't set the machine amperage too high. I imagine I'll be okay with rods about 3mm diameter. Not sure what amperage that will call for.

Edit1: I think 3.5mm sticks calls for 105-110A. Not sure what that translates into mains amperage.

 

[Lewis Medlock]

Hello Richard,

It'll be fine and you'll run 3.2's all day (or for as long as your duty cycle allows). I did the same with mine, I got a good length of the thickest rubber cable that would fit into a decent rubber 3 pin plug and put a 16A socket on the other end.

Enjoy your new stick welder! Jim

 

[richard8356]

I can get an approximate mains amperage at 100A:

From the machines nameplate:

At max current:

U2 = 28V @ 200A
I2 = 200A
Pmax = 28V x 200A = 5600 watts

At I2max, the current drawn from mains is:

I1max = 26A
Pmax = 220V x 26A 5720 watts.

At 100A current

U2 = 24v*
I2 = 100A
P = 2400watts*

At I2 = 100A - current drawn from mains is:

P = 2400 watts*
Therefore I2 = 2400W/220V = 10.9A*

* = estimated or approx.

10.9A is an estimated result, because U2 voltage at 100A is estimated. U2 is 28V @ 200A and 20.8V @ 20A. I've taken U2 to be 24V @ 100A. Also, no adjustmments for efficiency.

 

[richard8356]

Hello Richard,

It'll be fine and you'll run 3.2's all day (or for as long as your duty cycle allows). I did the same with mine, I got a good length of the thickest rubber cable that would fit into a decent rubber 3 pin plug and put a 16A socket on the other end.

Enjoy your new stick welder! Jim

Hi. Duty cycle is quite good it's 155A @ 100% and 200A @ 60%.

Like you, I'll get biggest cable I can that will fit into a BS1363 plug.

 

[richard8356]

What is curious is that according to the nameplate max mains current is 26A. But the machine is fitted with a 16A circular industrial plug. Unless 26A is a surge current. Then my calculations above would be partly wrong (when machine is operating at max 200 amperage).

Although the V and A figures (taken from nameplate) more or less lead to pretty much the same power in mains circuit compared to weld circuit:

Pmax (mains) 220V x 26A = 5720 watts.

Pmax (weld circuit) 28V x 200A = 5600 watts.

 

[rich r]

Correct - you get massive currents flowing when the arc starts and stops. Hence why you'll trip a typical domestic B16 MCB every now and then. So you should use a C16 type - which will take the higher current for longer before tripping. The 26A fuse protects the welder itself should it exceed that.

You'll probably find you blow 13A fuses in the BS1363 plug occasionally for the same reason. I can use 2.5mm rods at 80A on my 160A buzzbox from a 13A socket with rare fuse issues, but take it up to 120A and they'll blow virtually every time, meaning I could only just about use 3.2mm rods. Switch to a 16A plug and MCB and it'll happily go up to 150A without issues, which will just about do 4mm rods. For me to use the full 160A, I'd need to change to a 32A breaker and plug/socket.

My garage doesn't have capacity for that, so I'm sticking with the 16A plug/socket, with a three pin BS1363 plug to 16A socket adapter for when I need to weld elsewhere, though accepting I'll only be using 2.0mm or 2.5mm rods.

 

[Robotstar5]

Like you, I'll get biggest cable I can that will fit into a BS1363 plug.

2.5mm² is the biggest you can get into a decent plugtop.

 

[richard8356]

2.5mm² is the biggest you can get into a decent plugtop.

Hi. Yes. I can get "16A 240V IEC309 Extension cable (2.5mm Cable) - 14m [Blue]" from Amazon at £29.97 Free postage. I can take off the IEC309 plug "circular industrial plug" and fit a BS1363 plug, I reckon/I hope.

Perhaps Weldequip should also sell extension cables! :c)

 

[justin]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/UK-MAIN-HOOK-UP-ADAPTOR/dp/B001AVLPF2/ref=pd_sim_sbs_sg_2

 

[justin]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Orange-Coloured-Metre-Caravan-Extension/dp/B001BRX1NY/ref=pd_sim_sg_3

 

[richard8356]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/UK-MAIN-HOOK-UP-ADAPTOR/dp/B001AVLPF2/ref=pd_sim_sbs_sg_2

Thanks. Got this to save me taking off the IEC plug from my extension.

Note the reviews about potential incorrect polarity.

 

[brightspark]

i cant see the point in using them when u can just change the plug to 13 amp .its just another conection in the line for no reason

 

[rich r]

I have one just in case I'm asked to go and weld something at a friend's house and they don't have a 16A socket. It's rare, but I have had to use it twice in the last year - once to fix a gate, and once to weld a ride on lawnmower's frame that cracked when 'someone' failed to stop when approaching a large tree.

Saves unwiring the 16A plug and cramming the thick cable into a 13A one.

But for 99.5% of the time, mine's plugged in to a 16A socket in my garage.

 

[brightspark]

I have one just in case I'm asked to go and weld something at a friend's house and they don't have a 16A socket. It's rare, but I have had to use it twice in the last year - once to fix a gate, and once to weld a ride on lawnmower's frame that cracked when 'someone' failed to stop when approaching a large tree.

Saves unwiring the 16A plug and cramming the thick cable into a 13A one.

But for 99.5% of the time, mine's plugged in to a 16A socket in my garage.

good point i thought u were just using it at home on a 13amp plug not a 16 amp supply