Your welding machine has been a huge investment, and if there is a problem, rather than disposing and looking for a new one, it is better you diagnose the problem.

Not only will this be more economical, but will also keep you aware of the problems that can pop up in the future. And besides, most welding problems are easily diagnosable.

But before you look for options to solve the problem, it is important you identify it. So, we have enlisted a few common problems below that most welders often complain about:

1. Missing Weld

Machine errors, operator placement mistakes, performance, or settings, any of this can lead to missing weld problems.

Incorrect workpiece selected, poor electrical connections, and even short weld time are strong possibilities that can lead you to the missing weld problem. But that’s not it - wrong transformers, wrong shank, and electrode wear can also cause missing weld.

The possible downsides for this error include cost, production downtime, maintenance, and quality issues. You should refer to the appropriate manufacturer’s specifications to determine the required locations for spot welds. For further reference, conducting various tests is your best option.

2. Stuck Weld

To detect stuck welds pry testing or teardown are your best picks. Once detected, you need to know the possibilities that cause stuck weld, that is, electrode wear, low current weld, and high force weld.

Along with that, the stuck weld can also be triggered by dirty material, wrong transformers, and wrong shanks. But that’s not it, there are a lot of other weak possibilities.

Majorly stuck welds occur when there is insufficient heat at the welding interface to bring about nugget growth.

3. Excessive Indentation

When the depression left by the electrode exceeds the given limits specified by the manufacturer’s specifications, excessive indentation occurs.

For resistance welding, an indentation on one side of the workpiece is an essential part. Excessive indentation can be detected from visual specification and measurement per manufacturer’s specification.

A few downsides of excessive indentation are the impact it causes on quality, cost, maintenance, and cycle time.

4. Crack and Holes

A physical damage to your welding machine, cracks, and holes are caused by metallurgical changes, resulting from welding.

The cracks and holes can be restricted to a specific part of the welding machine, like the center, or can also be spread throughout.

They can also be a result of heavy surface expulsion. Surface cracks radiate from the center of the nugget, and when situations are really extreme, they pass through the entire thickness. They can be detected from visible discontinuities, but in some cases, they are not visible until joint sectioning or teardown.

5. Misallocated Edge Welds

If the workpiece design is dissimilar to that of the positioning of the weld, this problem is bound to occur. The best way to avoid this problem is to refer to company standards, for the positioning of the weld.

This problem can be detected from the observation of tips on parts or post-weld visual inspection. This is a significant problem as it affects the cost, quality, cycle time, and even downtime of the entire welding process.

6. Inconsistent Welds

When applicable quality standards of welds are not met, either it can be a manufacturing error, or with time, the weld has reduced its potential. A gradual decrease in weld quality occurs when the face diameter of the tip increases.

Current steppers, tip dressing, and more like them are countermeasures that can be used to avoid this problem. A simple yet crucial trick to detect this problem is properly scheduled quality checks.

Other than the possibilities we discussed above, wrong cable shunts, wrongly located welds, shunting of guns and parts, poor mechanical connection, are some other causes of inconsistent welds.

Final Thoughts!

While we discussed a few major problems, there are a lot of others as well. For instance, brittle welds, sheet metal distortion are significant problems.

There is one rule of thumb that applies in all the problems and that is, if you detect them early, you can diagnose it. Thus, whether you are an engineer or an operator, implementing regular quality checks will help prevent this problem. You must also opt for occasional welding equipment repair to ensure the long life of your welding machines.

Apart from that, when the symptoms of a particular problem pops up, don’t avoid it until the machine breaks down completely. Take action beforehand!