Welding a Vacuum hose hanger?

[lighthousecarwash]

Has anyone been able to weld the hose hanger on the top of a Doyle vacuum? Someone pulled mine off about a month ago. I tried the JB Weld trick, and really thought it was going to last, but I found it laying in the parking lot this afternoon. I assume that the plate is stainless and I don't think you can arc weld it correct? Just looking for any advice or experience with this issue.

Thanks,
Lighthouse.

 

[Whale of a Wash]

You should be able to find a welder that has a portable unit for welding stainless. I have had a welder come over a dozen times with a truck mounted welder and fix vacs, water tanks, grates etc.

 

[MEP001]

You can weld stainless with an arc welder, but it won't look good. If the weld will be on top out of sight, you could drill several holes in the hanger and do some plug welds.

 

[mjc3333]

TIG or MIG would be the correct way to go as far as welding. SS is more difficult to weld than regular mild steel. I've MIG welded SS many times in the past. MEP is right, if you are not very good with a welder, SS can get messy.

 

[Randy]

Don’t even think about Arc welding it, it’ll look like $hit. You want to have it TIG or MIG welded with Argon gas. You should have a local portable welder who can do it for you, but they aren’t cheap, my neighbor charges $100 to come out and a $95 minimum, he is good so he's busy every day.

A word of caution!!! Remove the electronic components, timer, Coin acceptor etc., before you weld on the vacuum. It’s possible to destroy them when you weld on it.

 

[keniniowa]

MIG it. My local Farm Fleet type store keeps 2 lb. rolls of stainless wire. Problem is my welder won't take those little rolls so I've welded stainless with standard wire. Never had breakage problem, but the weld will rust.

A decent 110v welder should be all you need.

I bought a TIG. Nothing stainless has broken at my wash since, worth it for that reason alone.

 

[lighthousecarwash]

Update: I went to Harbor Freight and bought a little MIG welder without gas for $119.00. Worked like a champ. I was told that the actual weld will rust, but since it's on the top of the hose hook and no one will ever see it, I didn't care. It was 110V so I will stuff it under the work bench and store it away until the next project. I think it will be a pretty handy addition to the tool inventory at the car wash.

 

[Reds]

you can buy a spool of stainless wire and use straight argon gas. That will put a bead of stainless steel weld down for you.