solar masks

[andrewblueboy]

i bought one of the cheap auto dark masks and its solar so no battery.now nothin mentions about solar first use etc ,and might be daft question but would these be like ready to use or do i leave it to get light for a bit for first use. at momment its in box and thought i ask before use it ta

 

[chevy2]

Should be ready to use straight away unless its the type that takes batteries which may need switching on?

 

[andrewblueboy]

Should be ready to use straight away unless its the type that takes batteries which may need switching on?

no switches so ready to use great thanks for that

 

[ibrooks]

It will have batteries. Probably a couple of coin cells sealed inside the unit that aren't designed to be changed. If it's been out of the light (in proper darkness) for a long time (months) they might be flat. I'd suggest that sitting in a box in a warehouse might do the trick so it's a good idea to hold it up to a light to make it change at least once before you use it in anger or it can take a second to change when you first spark up. Holding mine near to the flourescent lights in the workshop is enough to do it.

I tend to leave mine sat on a shelf face up in the workshop and that gives it enough light through the window or if I've got the lights on that I can just pick it up and use it but every so often I hold it up to a light to see it change as a test.

My old one started to get iffy on the first spark up if I didn't leave it sat on the windowsill when not in use - that was the sign that the batteries were going and not holding a charge and it was time to buy a new one. It had worked fine for nearly 10 years though.

Iain

 

[normspanners]

It will have batteries. Probably a couple of coin cells sealed inside the unit that aren't designed to be changed. If it's been out of the light (in proper darkness) for a long time (months) they might be flat. I'd suggest that sitting in a box in a warehouse might do the trick so it's a good idea to hold it up to a light to make it change at least once before you use it in anger or it can take a second to change when you first spark up. Holding mine near to the flourescent lights in the workshop is enough to do it.

I tend to leave mine sat on a shelf face up in the workshop and that gives it enough light through the window or if I've got the lights on that I can just pick it up and use it but every so often I hold it up to a light to see it change as a test.

My old one started to get iffy on the first spark up if I didn't leave it sat on the windowsill when not in use - that was the sign that the batteries were going and not holding a charge and it was time to buy a new one. It had worked fine for nearly 10 years though.

Iain

----x2

 

[PTvor]

It will have batteries. Probably a couple of coin cells sealed inside the unit that aren't designed to be changed.

It helps a lot if the batteries are changeable without surgery. Even some expensive ones were designed with the idea that the batteries would last the life of the helmet. When they go, it can involve a lot of fiddly and potentially disastrous cutting and then gluing.

 

[ibrooks]

I did have a go at pulling them out of my old one but the casing was very well glued together and I managed to crack the screen in getting to them. No-loss as I'd already bought a new mask and went into the exercise with the attitude that if I knacker it in the process I'd lost nothing. Once I did get in there everything was potted with some sort of resin so even if I hadn't managed to crack the screen it would have been a major exercise to dig the batteries out of the goo without damaging anything else.

Iain

 

[rustyoldford]

The solar panel relies on uv light to charge it so you strike an arc any wahay your charging the unit instantly.
Great forum tips are very handy

 

[PTvor]

I believe the way it works is that the batteries sit there powering the detector, drawing about as much current as a watch, and maybe for the first millisecond or so, the filter. Then the solar panel, powered by the light from the arc, takes over and does the heavy lifting of powering the filter.

If the solar panel did everything, it would cause a few problems, such as with welding in poor light. There's also the question of how fast the solar panel can be up to speed and producing enough to darken the filter. Helmets have to have a reaction time of 1/10000th of a second or less.

They've really got to sell a product which you can just pick up and use, at least while it's new. If they were trying to sell one with a string of conditions about leaving it in the sun to charge it before use and you have to do this and can't do that, they wouldn't get very far, hence the batteries.

 

[ibrooks]

They've really got to sell a product which you can just pick up and use, at least while it's new. If they were trying to sell one with a string of conditions about leaving it in the sun to charge it before use and you have to do this and can't do that, they wouldn't get very far, hence the batteries.

But back here in the real world there's only so much that's possible. No doubt the batteries are charged and it's ready to rock when the mask is packed in the box but how long it's in there before you take it out is out of their control so it's possible that they are low by the time you unpack it to use it.

When it's not in use the batteries are doing nothing they are there to provide/assist the initial surge to switch the LCD. Once it's switched the solar cells get more than enough to sustain it from the arc - they also re-charge the batteries to put back what was taken out to darken the mask. The problem is that current battery technology (within the budgets we are talking about) will still see a battery discharge over time whether it's connected or not.

First time out of the box with a new mask check it on something safe to verify that it works at all and that it has an initial charge or to give it one. After that it should be pretty much maintenance free. A regular check on a safe light source is simply good practice.

Many years down the line when the batteries are getting past their best you can extend the life of the mask by leaving it in strong light. This should give you time to sort a replacement.

Iain

 

[PTvor]

But back here in the real world there's only so much that's possible.

Constrained by what the customer is prepared to pay and how long the unit is expected to last. Makers are usually a bit vague about what happens after the guarantee (a year?) is up.

No doubt the batteries are charged and it's ready to rock when the mask is packed in the box but how long it's in there before you take it out is out of their control so it's possible that they are low by the time you unpack it to use it.

When it's not in use the batteries are doing nothing they are there to provide/assist the initial surge to switch the LCD. Once it's switched the solar cells get more than enough to sustain it from the arc - they also re-charge the batteries to put back what was taken out to darken the mask. The problem is that current battery technology (within the budgets we are talking about) will still see a battery discharge over time whether it's connected or not.

First time out of the box with a new mask check it on something safe to verify that it works at all and that it has an initial charge or to give it one. After that it should be pretty much maintenance free. A regular check on a safe light source is simply good practice.

Many years down the line when the batteries are getting past their best you can extend the life of the mask by leaving it in strong light. This should give you time to sort a replacement.

Iain

To the best of my knowledge lithium button cells are not rechargeable. Lithium batteries are preferred for things like smoke alarms because they can sit there for years having a microamp or so drawn and then rise to the big occasion. Computers have lithium batteries to preserve low level settings and keep the clock going when they are not connected the mains and they last for years.

Now, maybe button cells are rechargeable a bit and in view of the low current required capacitors could do. There are memory retention capacitors.

However, I'm highly suspicious of the idea of having a welding helmet where the batteries are not mentioned in the blurb and cannot be changed and that being a feature.

My welding helmet has two AAA alkaline cells claimed good for 3000 welding hours and an on/auto off switch. I can cope with this. 3000 welding hours would be money's worth for the helmet as a whole. I know alkaline cells will need replacing.

The idea of making and selling, and people buying, a product based on a battery which will never need replacing and furthermore designed so that the battery can't be replaced, seems to me ridiculous.

 

[andrewblueboy]

just like to say thanks for all infor and the tips regarding the battery and solar use. ive tested it with light but yet to test car actuall welding, due to weather.