What are the side effects associated with welding aluminum, such as respiratory? I am a welder and always have a cough and flu-like symptoms after welding aluminum.
The fact that you have an electric machine makes it easier bc the amps and volts stay more consistant than a gas powered unit. I prefer to warm the base metal to about 125 to 150 degrees F prior to welding. Clean the surface area with a STAINLESS STEEL wire brush to remove the oxidation, strike the arc in the normal pattern and then lay the rod back almost parallel with the material and cross arc or long arc against the base metal to allow the material to heat up but not overheat...the weld metal will carry across the arc and drop onto the melted base metal. Good Luck
You can buy aluminum welding rods for stick welding aluminum but it is hard to weld on thicknesses less than 3/16 of an inch with stick without practice. TIG is your best bet on lighter material. You also have to match the rods to the same alloy of aluminum base material you are welding.
well there is much anecdotal evidence that aluminum can cause all sorts of problems . For example there was a big scare that deodorant/antiperspirants with aluminum could lead to Alzheimer's disease. though nothing conclusive was ever proved. There are also tons of reports about heavy metal toxicity. So there could be something to it.
Human Health Effects: Toxicity Summary: IDENTIFICATION: Aluminum is a silvery-white, ductile and malleable metal. It is released to the environment both by natural processes and from anthropogenic sources. It is highly concentrated in soil-derived dusts from such activities as mining and agriculture, and in particulate matter from coal combustion. Aluminum occurs ubiquitously in the environment in the form of silicates, oxides and hydroxides, combined with other elements such as sodium and fluorine and as complexes with organic matter. It is not found as a free metal because of its reactivity. Aluminum metal has a wide variety of uses, including structural materials in construction, automobiles and aircraft, and the production of metal alloys.
