Took 6 months of trial and error to find this simple weld prep trick

I kept getting porosity in my MIG welds on this aluminum gate project for a client in Phoenix. After burning through 3 spools of wire and wasting $80, I tried wiping the joint with acetone right before welding instead of 10 minutes ahead. The difference was night and day no more tiny bubbles ruining the finish. Anybody else have a weird prep hack that saved your bacon on a tricky job?

2 comments

2 Comments

felixlee1mo ago

I used to be one of those guys who'd wipe everything down with solvent like an hour before welding and call it good. Then I got burned on a stainless railing job where the grease from my fingerprints alone caused pitting (learned that the hard way). Now I keep a dedicated spray bottle of acetone at my station and only hit the joint right before the arc strikes.

perry.evan1mo ago

Acetone pulls moisture from the air so it can actually add hydrogen to stainless welds.