Gas surges can occur in both MIG and TIG welding processes.
MIG Welding
In MIG welding, pulling the welding gun trigger normally starts a sequence including shielding gas, wire feeding and arc initiation.
Short welds, tack welding and production welding can involve frequent trigger operation.
This means:
Gas OFF → Pressure Build-Up → Trigger ON → Gas Surge → Welding → Gas OFF
The cycle may repeat many times during a working day.
As a result, MIG welding can experience both initial gas bursts and additional shielding gas consumption over repeated starts. Gas Surge is More Noticeable in MIG Welding.
TIG Welding
Two reasons cause Gas Surge is no Noticeable in TIG Welding.
- TIG normally operates with a lower shielding gas flow than MIG.
For example :TIG: 6–12 L/min, sometimes up to 15 L/min,MIG: 15–25 L/min or higher
- Many TIG welding machines use a preflow period.
Gas Starts → Pre-flow → Arc Starts
The initial gas surge happens before the arc starts, so the welder may not notice it.
It don’t like Mig welding, gas flow, wire feeding and arc starting happen almost at the same time after pulling the trigger.
Although gas surge may be smaller in TIG welding, the gas surge protector still necessary .
Because TIG is more sensitive to gas flow suppling,too much initial gas flow may cause:
- Turbulent shielding gas
- Air entering the shielding area
- Tungsten oxidation
- Poor weld color at the start
- Less consistent weld starts
And TIG gas surge can become stronger also when:
- The gas hose is very long, such as 10–20 m
- A larger-diameter gas hose is used
- Regulator outlet pressure is too high
- The solenoid valve opens quickly
- The welding machine is far from the gas supply
- Higher shielding gas flow is used
Under these conditions, you may even hear a noticeable “puff” of gas when the TIG gas valve opens.
So stable gas flow is important and in some application ,Specially thin materials, automatic TIG welding, orbital welding and high-purity argon .
What About Robotic MIG Welding?
Robotic MIG uses the same basic gas system as manual MIG welding. Because the welding cycle may start and stop frequently, gas surge can be repeated many times during production.
Gas Surge Protector can help reduce the initial gas burst and provide a smoother gas start.
