Those little 115v wire welders you see at Lowes and Home Depot sell like hot cakes. It seems that Home Depot always has the Lincoln Electric Weld Pak HD in stock. And Lowes seems to always have the Lincoln Electric Pro Core 125 MIG / Flux-Corded welder. Every time I visit Lowes or Home Depot, I can’t help but notice that the shelves of welding supplies have gone haywire between my frequent visits. My theory is that cable TV shows like Orange County Choppers and Monster Garage helped bring welding and fabrication more into the mainstream of America and have even created quite a stir around welding and fabrication. It seems that all red-blooded American men with an ounce of testosterone in their gonads want to make some metal and the only real way to do it is with a welding machine. Having a welder in your garage also gives you some bragging rights and makes you think you have a lot more friends than you actually do (kind of like owning a Bass boat).

But what scares me a little and should scare a lot of people is that there are no welding police. No one to blow the whistle and stop people from welding things they shouldn’t. It’s like a sixteen-year-old has the freedom to walk into a motorcycle store and ride a crotch rocket that will go 180 mph. I guess that’s part of living in Free America.

What country!

These little wire welders have some limitations. Let’s be clear about that. There are only a few jobs you shouldn’t tackle with a 115v mig welder.

But cheer up. There are many jobs you can do and do well with one of these 115v welding machines.

The purpose of this article is to explain how to get the most out of your 115v wire feeder welding machine and make sure you are getting the proper penetration into what you are welding.

First of all, if you’re welding a sheet metal quarter panel patch to a Nissan Altima, don’t worry. Penetration will be the least of your worries. But if you’re thinking of soldering something heavier, like a homemade Hummer kit, using 3-inch square tubing with 3/16-inch wall thickness, that’s something else entirely. This is a situation where you will really be pushing the limits of any 115v wire feed welder.

I believe that anytime something is welded that would probably harm someone if the welds fail, a 220-230v MIG welding machine should be used. With that said, there will still be times when people will need to push the limits of their 115v MIG welding wire feed welders.

Here are 7 things you can do to help increase your chances of penetration when you really need it.

1. Use flux cored wire such as Hobart Fabshield 21b and set the machine to maximum voltage, then adjust the wire feed accordingly. Flux core penetrates better than bare wire in 115v wire feeders. Be sure to follow the cable’s recommendations for polarity. A great disappointment has arisen for not changing the polarity when necessary.

2. Connect to a dedicated 20 amp circuit. Most household circuits are 15 amps. You may have a 20 amp in your garage. If not, consider getting one.

3. No, I repeat, do not use an extension cord. If you must use one, you’d better use the shortest and thickest you can find to avoid a power drop. Even then, your machine will probably weld like it’s been castrated. Get it? No balls. Okay, turning to n. 4.

4. Preheat the joint even with a small propane torch, heating a joint up to 150 degrees is like having another 10% extra amperage.

5. Don’t weld downhill. Instead, weld uphill. Vertical uphill welds have more penetration than any other position joint because gravity keeps the puddle behind the arc.

6. Clean the metal with a grinder. Not having to penetrate through hot rolled scale, rust or paint will greatly increase your penetration.

7. Get some small pieces of metal the same thickness as the welding job in question and weld a T-joint. Then break it off with a drill and hammer. If it breaks easily you have trouble and need to adjust the machine and / or technique until you can weld several joints that will not break, or if they break, show good penetration at the corner of the joint.

If you follow these 7 welding tips for better penetration with your 115 volt wire feed welder, you will get the most out of your mig welder.