storing of wire

[tackit]

My shop is not heated all the time, I was wondering....since cold air holds less moisture than warm air is it better to place your wire in a plastic bag and leave out in the shop or would bringing it in the house be better?

[bluecollar]

I would think keeping it in an area or room that has a consistant temperature, cool or warm. big changes in temp will cause condensation(sp?) to form.

throw a couple of those little silica bags in with the wire also.

[hankj]

Well, I surely doesn't get as cold here as in OH and IN in the winter, but it will get down to the low 30's and rise to the high 50's/low 60's thrugh December and January. Last year, I just left my wire in the machine inside the closed and unheated garage with no problems.

Hank

[Paul Seaman]

I buy the copper covered wire for my mig and my small spools of AL I keep in ziplock bags in the garage. So far no big problems except from some free wire that a buddy gave me that had some oxidation on the outside few rows then it was golden. Just push out the extra air and seal it up. Trick for tig wire a piece of pvc pipe with screw on cap ends 2" works like the expensive ones they sell at the supply store.

Peace.

[wrench3047]

vaccum saver

my brother said his welding instructor was always super nervous about oxidation on the al rods. He had build a cabnet for them, he could vac the air out of each chamber label each type and age of rod. It looked something out of a welding catalog but with valve for each chamber. If you could do that with a cabinet you could store your spool indefinately. After the cost of the cabinet just have to get a vaccum sealer of one brand or another. just an idea.

[fun4now]

like bluecollarsaid it is the temp change that gets ya. so if you leave it in the shop you would be better off than taking it back and forth , unless you warm up the shop befor you bring the wire back out. that could get old fast. i just keep mine in my welder without any prob.

[dyn88]

when I change wire over I usually wrap the wire with VCI paper and throw a few silica gel packs in there, no problems yet.(VCI paper is like an anticorosive packaging paper)

[stumpjumperpro]

Is this the same concept for TIG filler rods? Should I keep them in the house instead of the garage?

[Pat]

tackit,

The only problem I have encountered with wire left in the machine is with the flux cored, and generally this happens only in the summer when the humidity is high and several days have passed in between uses. So basically I keep all the flux cored wire in the house when there is no need for it. Never had any problems with the solid wire dry or humid.

[walker]

By far the best solution is to keep the wire in the welder and put the welder outside under a cover. Where did you say you were again,exactly???

[tackit]

I live in northern Indiana, get's pretty cold here and stays that way until the last part of March. I use a hot dog heater for now to heat the shop.

I want to insulate the building but I can't find the industrial insulation that you see in larger metal buildings that has the finnished face.

I don't want to put a steel liner in at this time ($6,200).

[Bulldog]

I built a wooden box and mounted a light builb in it. It's a simple thing to build and it keeps everything around 78-80 deg.