Was going to weld some hooks on my bucket. Do I need to disconnect my battery......or remove the bucket from the FEL? Didnt know if there were any electronics that could be potentially damaged. Thx
OK to weld?
- Thread starter mikkeeh
- Start date
It took me all of a minute or so to drop the bucket off my FEL when I welded my hooks on. It may not have been necessary but it was worth the piece of mind to me that I wouldn't have any problems. If you don't want to drop the bucket then I would suggest at least disconnecting the battery. That should isolate you electrical system. Also keep your ground clamp as close to where you are welding as you can.
It is ok to weld. I have welded hooks to the FEL and repaired the stairs on my backhoe while it was attached to the subframe...
I did grind a nice clean ground contact spot for the welder to clamp to (used a magnetic ground attachment on my welder), that was also close to my work area...no problems...
I did grind a nice clean ground contact spot for the welder to clamp to (used a magnetic ground attachment on my welder), that was also close to my work area...no problems...
85Hokie
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Why would YOU not unhook the ground? In all the classes I have taken and all the welders I have talked too, unhook the electrical system! I know people say it doenst matter, but why take the small chance? The amount of current that runs through welding "could" take a toll on anything electrical in the system.
Also consider NOT welding to the bucket and welding to a plate THEN bolting to the bucket via grade 8 bolts - true might cost a little more - and a couple of holes in the bucket - but if you ever want to change something, better to unbolt than to grid off. Plus the plate places a larger footprint across the bucket.
Your bucket - your choice!
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Relax Hokie, the ground in question is the welder ground clamp, not the battery cable.
Hook the ground on the bucket, close to weld, no problem.
I weld on my vehicles and tractor when necessary and never had a problem. I don't bother unhooking the battery because I haven't yet been convinced that it does anything.
Hook the ground on the bucket, close to weld, no problem.
I weld on my vehicles and tractor when necessary and never had a problem. I don't bother unhooking the battery because I haven't yet been convinced that it does anything.
North Idaho Wolfman
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Welding on any vehicle that has electronics, even as simple as a solid state regulator for the alternator can take a hit from a welder, welding can cause a rush of current threw the component and burn it out.
Daren Todd
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I've had a body shop reinstall a headache rack on a flat bed and managed to pop every marker light on the truck in the process. Including dash and dome lights. Lights didn't cost much, but what a pita. Would have taken 10 seconds to disconnect the ground.
Customer burned up a couple of ecms on some equipment while mounting racks. Both cases the bill from the dealer was over 2000$. It just takes that one time
Let's keep this going. Like I said, I'm just not convinced but I am totally open to hearing your viewpoints.
I can certainly see unplugging an ecu type device to isolate it if you're worried, but I can't yet see how disconnecting the ground from the battery would isolate anything other than the battery.
12V systems typically ground through chassis mounting. Every bulb is still grounded with or without a battery present. 12V is switched any typically open when not in use.
I'm sure freak accidental damage could occur, but seems like there would have to be other problems like an unidentified short or really poor choice for welding ground location chosen.
I can certainly see unplugging an ecu type device to isolate it if you're worried, but I can't yet see how disconnecting the ground from the battery would isolate anything other than the battery.
12V systems typically ground through chassis mounting. Every bulb is still grounded with or without a battery present. 12V is switched any typically open when not in use.
I'm sure freak accidental damage could occur, but seems like there would have to be other problems like an unidentified short or really poor choice for welding ground location chosen.
Lil Foot
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My buddy, a NASA certified welder, says anything with computer controls is at risk, and older cars with diodes or diode packs in the alternator is also vulnerable. So basically my old (1979) B7100 should be safe under any welding conditions. But it only takes 30 seconds to pop the hood & remove battery cables, so why not? Good habit to get in, and it makes me feel all warm & fuzzy inside.
Of course you should always put the ground clamp as close to the weld as is practical. My welder buddy said when he was in school, the college had a contract to have students weld a push bar on the front of a fleet of dump trucks. (new enough to have computers) They disconnected the batteries & all went well.
Then a know-it-all student welded one without disconnecting the battery, & it was fine. More confident now, he moved the ground clamp to the rear of the frame & welded one… and promptly fried the computer.
Of course you should always put the ground clamp as close to the weld as is practical. My welder buddy said when he was in school, the college had a contract to have students weld a push bar on the front of a fleet of dump trucks. (new enough to have computers) They disconnected the batteries & all went well.
Then a know-it-all student welded one without disconnecting the battery, & it was fine. More confident now, he moved the ground clamp to the rear of the frame & welded one… and promptly fried the computer.
Daren Todd
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Your battery completes the circuit to all the electronics in a vehicle. Disconnecting the battery (removing ground cable) effectively isolates the electronics. It's similar to a lightning strike by your house. You could end up with a fried tv or toaster if they are not hooked up to a surge protector, or unplugged. Or in my case, my invisible fence for the dogs got hit. Blew the transformer to bits and fried the outlet. If it was unplugged, i wouldn't have had a blown outlet.
Basically when welding, your creating power surges
Basically when welding, your creating power surges
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85Hokie
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All points ..............hit the bulls eye!
to remove the negative lead on the battery, even if you have to open the hood or the grill or whatever to get to, is gonna take a hellva lot less time than to figure out wtf my tractor will not start !!!! JUST in case some little .05 cent part got zapped. Same reason they build PITA safety switches on the PTO and SEAT, too many people got off the tractor and got hurt, now getting hurt and welding are two different items but there is a "logical" thinking to all of this - hell when it comes to lazy, I wrote of few of those chapters!
But I dont want to pay for the ol' girl twice to get fixed!!! not when it is thattttt easy to do !
I guess if you are really concerned...then the best solution is the either take the loader or whatever is being welded OFF the tractor . I could see worrying about the ground being connected...but every heavy piece of equipment worth a damn has been welded on at some time or another...
when you hook the ground up the current runs through the path of least resistance to the electrode. If you hook the ground up near the work then the path of least resistance will be directly to the work and not through any electronics. the current will not ever go through any electronics if you don't hook it up near the work. If you hook the ground on the other end of the tractor then it will still follow the path of least resistance and it could be through electronics
Unhooking battery ground will not save vehicle electronics from not properly grounding the welder. Everything on the vehicle is in constant contact with the ground, and unless a device is on, it does not have 12v+ connected to it. ECMs / Alarms / Radios usually have a constant 12v connection to them.
Improper grounding resulting in 48v DC voltage applied to ground can kill electronics. Many DC electronics can run w/ out a ground wire attached. Unhooking the battery only pulls it off of the common ground.
Unhooking will help protect constant supply devices, but nothing will protect it from an ignorant operator. ESD damage results from sudden inrush current, which will happen w/ or w/out the battery present.
Improper grounding resulting in 48v DC voltage applied to ground can kill electronics. Many DC electronics can run w/ out a ground wire attached. Unhooking the battery only pulls it off of the common ground.
Unhooking will help protect constant supply devices, but nothing will protect it from an ignorant operator. ESD damage results from sudden inrush current, which will happen w/ or w/out the battery present.
ESD can / does take ALL paths to ground. You just want to make sure there is adequate ground to handle the differential. It's minimizing risks....you cannot eliminate it.