Welding is based on the flow of high current. In order for everything to take place in completely safe conditions for the operator, appropriate welding cables must be used. What are their characteristics and why is it not worth saving on them?
Check welding cables at the Onninen wholesaler
What is a welding cable?
Cables are conductors of electricity and are most often made of copper. Although aluminum can sometimes be found, it can carry much less electrical charge. In turn, the best material to conduct electricity is silver, which is too expensive to produce wires.
Copper, like any material, has a certain, low resistance. It is proportional to the amount of current flowing through it. At high intensity, the cable may even ignite and cause a fire. Much more often, however, continuity is interrupted, which results in the activation of overcurrent protection.
Therefore, it is worth connecting a special welding cable to the welding machine, which is more resistant to high loads. Additionally, it is recommended to fully unwind the cable every time you weld. This way you can avoid overheating and damaging it.
Types of welding cables
A standard welding machine requires several welding cables. Regardless of whether the MIG, MAG, coated electrode or TIG method will be used, you will always need:
- The cable leading from the welding machine to the handle. The handle is most often positive pole (this depends on the welding method used). In addition to the power cable, in the case of MIG/MAG, it is also necessary to connect a welding wire to the handle.
- Ground cable. As the name suggests, it is most often responsible for the negative pole. Such a welding cable ends with an attachment to the material being welded.
- Connection units are a type of welding cable. However, in addition to the cable supplying electricity, they also have a wire and gas feeder (argon in the MIG method or carbon dioxide in the MAG method).
The use of an appropriate welding cable guarantees not only a high level of safety, but also comfort during welding.
What should you pay attention to when choosing a welding cable?
Are you looking for the right cable for your welding machine? Contrary to appearances, you can find quite a large selection of models, differing in characteristics and parameters. Therefore, it is worth considering in advance what cable you need. What to look for?
- Cable cross-section. This is a key parameter that determines the maximum current that can be supplied by the welding machine. Our smallest model is the OS1/ONS 1x16 welding cable . It is characterized by a nominal cross-section of 16 mm 2 . In turn, the thickest welding cables have a cross-section of 120 mm 2 .
- The number of veins is usually 1 - more is simply not needed.
- The rated voltage at which the welding cable should operate is most often 100 V.
- Outer shell material. Rubber works best in this role, as it provides adequate flexibility and temperature protection.
When choosing the H01N2-D 1x120 welding cable , it is worth remembering that its external diameter will be much larger. This will also translate into the weight and amount of space needed for transportation. Therefore, it is not worth buying a model with too high parameters "as a spare".
The best welding cables in the Onninen wholesaler
If you weld as a hobby, you may not know whether the OS1/ONS 1x95 welding cable will be suitable for your welding machine. It is also not easy to determine the optimal length of such a cable (in our warehouse we have 1000 m long reels of wound wires - so we can provide you with almost any length of cables, according to your preferences). Contact us by phone or e-mail for more information. We will also be happy to advise you on the length and thickness of the cable to choose. Take advantage not only of our products, but also of our valuable experience in selecting equipment.