Welding on equipment

[VroomVroom]

I have been making rear rack extension on my atv to mount a pan or box. I had to fit the bracket/support on the rear bumper and against the pan and tack weld. I didn’t want to do it as I know the trouble I could get into with frying electronics. So I disconnected battery. OnCe tacked I removed and welded on the floor. Afterwards I hooked the battery back up and started the bike, no issue. But it begs the question. Is it possible to still do harm even if the battery in the equipment is disconnected?

 

[BravoXray]

Oh, you're not going to be ready for the flood of differing opinions this is going to elicit.

That being said, as long as there is no path for the current, which chooses the path of least resistance, through any of the electronics on the vehicle, no harm can come to it. Disconnecting the battery is an old wives' tale. But if you are welding, cutting or grinding in close proximity to a wet cell type lead-acid battery, pull it out so the hydrogen and oxygen they produce won't ignite and blow it up. Not necessary if it's a sealed battery.

 

[WranglerX]

Oh, you're not going to be ready for the flood of differing opinions this is going to elicit.

That being said, as long as there is no path for the current, which chooses the path of least resistance, through any of the electronics on the vehicle, no harm can come to it. Disconnecting the battery is an old wives' tale. But if you are welding, cutting or grinding in close proximity to a wet cell type lead-acid battery, pull it out so the hydrogen and oxygen they produce won't ignite and blow it up. Not necessary if it's a sealed battery.

Ditto....

 

[VroomVroom]

Yeah it’s done now. I clamped ground about two inches from where I was tacking the metal. On the back end of the can am max xt models there’s an aluminum hand hold located between the ball receiver and the back bumper. I made a support that will clamp on that, and on an angle, go upwards to support the large aluminum pan that’s extending out over the rear bumper/rack. But to ensure it would be the propert height to support the pan, I had to attach bracket and tack weld the cross bar that supports the pan. Anyway, it’s done. Honestly, I probably won’t do it again. Not on something like that. Not worth it

 

[mikester]

Anything with a ground loop can be a potential problem. Keep your weld ground as close as possible to the weld zone.

 

[Diggin It]

I have been making rear rack extension on my atv to mount a pan or box. Afterwards I hooked the battery back up and started the bike, no issue.

Not sure what type of machine you're working on.

Generally the body computers (main brains) on most machines have some kind of connector that can be unplugged. Or maybe pull all the fuses.

 

[VroomVroom]

Can am max xt 650

 

[CoyPatton]

Battery risk is at others pointed out, over exciting the charging process and frying the battery. Remove both battery cables while welding and battery risk are eliminated.
Unfortunately, the above will not protect the onboard electronics. Depending on the vehicle some sensors could have grounds separate from the computer and these may get overloaded unless disconnected individually. Most sensors however get their grounds, signals and power through the on board computer. Disconnecting all computer plugs should isolate both the computer and sensors which get both grounds and voltage from the computer.
Some times unfortunately there is just no way to avoid some tacking on the vehicle in order to ensure proper fitment. However if at all possible, for final welding remove all parts and reinstall after cooling. But take precautions to avoid heat warping.

 

[brown91]

Oh, you're not going to be ready for the flood of differing opinions this is going to elicit.

That being said, as long as there is no path for the current, which chooses the path of least resistance, through any of the electronics on the vehicle, no harm can come to it. Disconnecting the battery is an old wives' tale. But if you are welding, cutting or grinding in close proximity to a wet cell type lead-acid battery, pull it out so the hydrogen and oxygen they produce won't ignite and blow it up. Not necessary if it's a sealed battery.

I'm not trying to be a smart aleck here, and this is definitely off topic, but I think this is worth pointing out. I'm not an electrical expert, but the way I understand it, electricity takes ALL the paths, not just the one of least resistance. Although, the path with the least resistance would carry more amps than any other path with more resistance. I only wanted to point his out because I thought the same thing for most of life, but I learned differently in book I read about electricity some time ago.

 

[VroomVroom]

Yeah. I had the bike running today for an hour. But I’ll probably never di again. Glad it seems ok. Just too many variables and those bikes are not easy to wimork I’m on. For example you literally have to remove gauge cluster to change the oil filter by your foot. I’m not kidding.

 

[ruffdog]

Disconnecting the battery basically takes the alternator out of the loop. The good thing about that is it also protects the diodes in the rectifier. If the diodes get cooked, your alternator can put out 75+ ACV which will burn out anything that runs on 12dcv so I try to disconnect the battery when I weld.

 

[CoyPatton]

Disconnecting the battery basically takes the alternator out of the loop. The good thing about that is it also protects the diodes in the rectifier. If the diodes get cooked, your alternator can put out 75+ ACV which will burn out anything that runs on 12dcv so I try to disconnect the battery when I weld.

It may protect the alternator! If the alternator grounds to the frame, all bets are off that it is protected from electrical surges while welding on the vehicle.
Also battery being disconnected does not protect computer components and sensors that are grounded to the frame. It is always best to isolate what you are welding to from the vehicle. Even if you need it to be attached to the vehicle for tacking purposes, isolate it if possible. Many possible choices of materials depending on heat involved and duration of applied heat and time till removal.

 

[ROUSTABOUT]

Battery risk is at others pointed out, over exciting the charging process and frying the battery. Remove both battery cables while welding and battery risk are eliminated.
Unfortunately, the above will not protect the onboard electronics. Depending on the vehicle some sensors could have grounds separate from the computer and these may get overloaded unless disconnected individually. Most sensors however get their grounds, signals and power through the on board computer. Disconnecting all computer plugs should isolate both the computer and sensors which get both grounds and voltage from the computer.
Some times unfortunately there is just no way to avoid some tacking on the vehicle in order to ensure proper fitment. However if at all possible, for final welding remove all parts and reinstall after cooling. But take precautions to avoid heat warping.

I weld on trucks on the regular. Never disconnect anything. It may have done some damage but in a few days it will roll over 200,000 miles and it has not affected me yet, but I will keep an eye out for any damage.

 

[Threepoint]

Timely thread for me. Apologies to the OP for high-jacking, but this actually is on topic.

A buddy tore an ear off his BXpanded Piranha Bar for his 60" loader bucket. My little Lincoln Electric Mig (155 amp) is too light to reweld it properly to the 1/2" plate of the bar. My thought is to straighten the ear, reposition it on the bar in the bucket, then make three or four tack welds for proper alignment. He could then take just the bar to a welding shop to complete the job with a heavier machine.

Question is, can I do this safely without the hassle of removing the loader from the tractor, or disconnecting electronics? My grounding clamp would be directly on the Piranha bar itself.

 

[ruffdog]

Timely thread for me. Apologies to the OP for high-jacking, but this actually is on topic.

A buddy tore an ear off his BXpanded Piranha Bar for his 60" loader bucket. My little Lincoln Electric Mig (155 amp) is too light to reweld it properly to the 1/2" plate of the bar. My thought is to straighten the ear, reposition it on the bar in the bucket, then make three or four tack welds for proper alignment. He could then take just the bar to a welding shop to complete the job with a heavier machine.

Question is, can I do this safely without the hassle of removing the loader from the tractor, or disconnecting electronics? My grounding clamp would be directly on the Piranha bar itself.

The odds of you doing damage is quite slim.

 

[Sberry]

I never disconnect and I aint foolin with the plugs and fuses on a new car or any for that matter. People wreck cars and cause a lot of problems and even explode batteries every day fuggin with that stuff. Its extra complicated work moving lots of connections. Yake a pinch of that time and set the ground next to the work on the correct puiece and no problem. New trucks are used as work platforms by the thousands every day. Work would come to a stall if they messed with this and the damage would be huge.
I am cautious but,,, have welded on somewhere between 5 and 10000 cars, trucks tractors planes trains ships, a couple motorcycles among all the buildings and bridges, factories. I dont do it unless I gonna pour sparks over a battery.

 

[WranglerX]

Quite frankly if you visit welding forum its quite a rare occurrence if not almost completely a non cooccurrence of having any problem with welding on vehicles and equipment with computer systems.... IF it was a problem there would be a lots of comments and lots of words of caution which I do not find...