Welding rod storage

tractorkrum · Jul 26, 2020

This has probably been discussed before, but I do not recall seeing it. I am making a dryer/storage box for my welding rods. I am using a file box and installing a light socket with a 15W light bulb. Should I include some ventilation holes in the box? How do you store your welding rods to prevent drawing moisture? Any help would be appreciated.

Old560 · Jul 26, 2020

I buy about 10 lbs at a time and throw them on a shelf in the box they came in. I know people will say I am doing it wrong but I’ve never had a problem. I also live where we have low humidity. I mostly use 1/8 7018.

Ellis Kinney · Jul 26, 2020

If moisture is a real problem, heat the oven to 100 degrees and bake for a few minutes. Ellis

timcasbolt · Jul 26, 2020

(quoted from post at 09:32:13 07/26/20) This has probably been discussed before, but I do not recall seeing it. I am making a dryer/storage box for my welding rods. I am using a file box and installing a light socket with a 15W light bulb. Should I include some ventilation holes in the box? How do you store your welding rods to prevent drawing moisture? Any help would be appreciated.

guess one of the most common rod ovens out there is an old refrigerator with the motor and stuff removed. Disable the switch so the light stays on all the time and you're good to go. Problem is, even with a 15w bulb it gets plenty hot in there and the bulbs don't last very long. I bought a line voltage thermostat for mine and then was able to use 40w bulbs which are much cheaper than the small ones and they last a lot longer. Set it for around 75 or 80 and no vent.

moresmoke · Jul 26, 2020

Needs to be as airtight as possible. I have a similar storage cabinet. I couldn’t get a reasonable life out of low wattage light bulbs. I put in a Glade plug in air freshener base, been working for years.

1948CaseVAI · Jul 26, 2020

If you weld every week then get or make a rod oven. If you only weld three or four times a month do what Mr. Kinney suggeseted and just bake them for a bit first.

Or just realize that most farm repairs can be done with other than 7018 and just throw them on the shelf. 60xx has put tons of farm equipment back together just fine, right off the shelf.

DoubleO7 · Jul 26, 2020

An old mini fridge and a cheap coffee mug warmer.

Tony in SD · Jul 26, 2020

4wdtom · Jul 26, 2020

I keep them in 4" PVC pipe with a cap glued on one end the other end just slip fit and of course removable. The thin wall drain pipe has flat end caps that will allow the containers to stand up. I keep them in the house near the wood stove and for 6 mos. of the year they are warm and dry. The other 6 mos. they seem to make out OK. Take a few to the shop at a time for the job at hand. I only weld now and then, not all the time and this has been working for me.

Richard G. · Jul 26, 2020

I have been welding for 58 years.
Still do a bunch in my shop.
Rods are stored in open boxes in my shop and I have never had a problem.
In fact, an old cousin of mine that welded in a shipyard during WW II, showed me that soaking AC welding rods in water would make them work well on cast iron.
I took some 6013 rods and soaked them and welded a cast iron frame on a very old concrete mixer and it worked very well.
Richard in humid NW SC

old · Jul 26, 2020

I've been welding since I was 16 or 17 and store my rods pretty much the same as you do. The old buzz box has a place in the back where my rods sit unless I have to many rod and then they sit on top or next to the welder

guido · Jul 26, 2020

Hello tractorkrum,

Usually moisture is not an issue. If moisture breaksdown the coating it can make for erratic arc. Take a black 5 gallon bucket with a good seal and you got storage for your rods.
If makes you feel better to heat them, put the bucket in the sun for a couple of hours. If the coating is intact, the rod will be dry the first few seconds you hold an arc, and all will be well

Guido.

old · Jul 26, 2020

Years ago before they came out with the 7018 ACrod the old welders trick was to dip the rd in water before sticking an arc

Bill in IN · Jul 26, 2020

If you aren't worried about strength or meeting a code requirement, not much worry about most stick electrodes. 7018 is known in the trades as low-hydrogen for a reason...

DavidP,South Wales · Jul 26, 2020

In the 60s and 70s my father always kept his welding rods in the airing cupboard in the house. This was a large cupboard where the domestic hot water tank was located. The rods were around the tank with blankets etc on the shelves above. He would take out just enough for a particular job.
DavidP, South Wales

guido · Jul 26, 2020

Hello old,

I had my rods in an open metal cabinet at work. 5/32" 3/16" and 1/4
7018". some welds were specified as 5/8" one pass. I did put them in the warmer before use. Welding cracks in axle housings and installing new spring seats, probably not a necessity, but the boss said to do it,

Guido.

wore out · Jul 26, 2020

(quoted from post at 13:27:40 07/26/20) If you aren't worried about strength or meeting a code requirement, not much worry about most stick electrodes. 7018 is known in the trades as low-hydrogen for a reason...

"7018 is known in the trades as low-hydrogen for a reason."

Bill, for those of us who are here to learn it would be really COOL if you could go into a a bit more detail to explain that statement, "low hydrogen for a reason". TIA!

SVcummins · Jul 26, 2020

I was wondering the same thing

MarkB_MI · Jul 27, 2020

> Bill, for those of us who are here to learn it would be really COOL if you could go into a a bit more detail to explain that statement, "low hydrogen for a reason". TIA!

Well, 7018 IS a low-hydrogen electrode, and it's important to use a low-hydrogen electrode for critical work to avoid hydrogen embrittlement. But 7018 ceases to be low-hydrogen when it absorbs moisture, which negates the main reason to use it. I think Bill's point is that if you can't properly store 7018 rods, it might make sense for most folks to use a different electrode such as 6011 or 7014.

Butch(OH) · Jul 27, 2020

Lots of people use an old fridge with a small light bulb in it. I have a much smaller RV that holds enough rod for my limited stick work. A vent that can be adjusted would be a good idea. It doesn't take much of a bulb to heat a rod heater box, mine has a Christmas tree bulb in it,, the old style.

As to the importance of dry rod just because it lays a bead does not mean its a sound weld. Some rods lose nothing when damp 6010, 11 and 13 would be examples. Others, most notably the 7018, 8018 and 11018 types lose important properties when damp. Other types will lose flux when damp. The people who manufacture the rods is my guide as to whether it is important to keep thier rods dry,,,

Butch(OH) · Jul 27, 2020

MarkB,, exactly!

Stephen Newell · Jul 28, 2020

I used to buy Hobart rods that came in a plastic container. I saved the containers and keep the rods in them. The only storage problem I've had with rods is getting them wet and the plastic containers are enough to prevent that.

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