so i got my 220v HF tig.
i plugged it to the wall and bam. it short circuited the electricity at my house.

i got it as new from EBAY HF before about 3 mounts ago. they shipped it to my uncles house and then he shipped to me (to israel). so it took some time.

i'm gonna open it in a few minutes to see whats going on inside.

can anybody help me and tell what to check?

thanks.

 

Before opening it, did you open the manual and check that the circuit it's on can supply enough power?

 

sure.
its 220v.

 

does it have the amperage thou?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by pythoner &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">does it have the amperage thou?</TD></TR></TABLE>

what what?

i tryed calling HF by the 1-800 number but there is no answer today.

 

what hertz is the power over there?

 

50 i think.

 

ding, ding, ding, ding...

i think we have a winner!

everything stateside is 60 HZ. this could be it. any EE geeks out there?

 

I'm not sure that the frequency difference would cause it...possible though. The HF TIG doesn't really have much in the way of sophisticated electronics, and the transformer doesn't care if it's 60hz or 300hz.

 

you might be right. but if simple things like hair dryers can't work between the two (even with plug adapters), i am thinking a welder might not work.

and were the plugs configured the same? and did the breaker have the amp rating needed?

 

I FORGOT TO MENTION THIS:
i used a volt meter to check continuity between the power and ground wires. and THERE IS CONTINUITY.

 

There should be, what is the resistance? There could be a short in the box too, which wouldn't be all that surprising.

 

i ment the power cord on the welder.
not the box in my house.

 

That is an electric motor... there is a difference between 50 and 60hz when it comes to motors.

 

Hate to ask anything too obvious, but -&gt; What is the amperage on the breaker for that circuit?

 

i'm not much of an electrician. but i looked at thesmaller braker and its says 16A. the bigger one says 30ma.

 

i would first look at the available currenty on that breaker vs how much current your welder was drawing at that time vs how much current all of the rest of stuff on that breaker was drawing.

for example, if you have a hair dryer and a toaster and your welder in the same circuit, thats probably the problem LOL.

 

can also be the wires are too small to handle the load.

I dont think its a shorcircuit or such. 60HZ equipment work in 50HZ, they just will work poorly (low power) or fine. Using 50HZ stuff in 60HZ environment will cause clocks to run too fast, record players to go at warp speed and such. So its alot worse that way.

I personally think the wires that lead to the outlet are too small gauge thus causing them to heat up and the fuse/breaker to snap. 16A should be just fine. 30A is the main.

 

i dont think that the problam was at the eletricity in my house.
i guess the welder was shorted when i got it.

do you guys think that HF will participate in the shipping back from israel to the USA?

 

Man Moshik hope everything works out. When you coming to the states bud?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hondaboy4life &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Man Moshik hope everything works out. When you coming to the states bud?</TD></TR></TABLE>

need to make some money and then ill come.....

 

short in the wireon the welder. get your tester out and start ringing out the wires.

 

My hf tig pulls a load instantly. I kinda get freak once in the while when I plug it in and have the circuit on (I used the breaker switch).

Anyway, my guess would the circuit you are using doesn't have the capacity, whether be the breaker or the wire gauge.

 

ok... so i yestarday i sent the welder to a welders repair shop and got it back today.

the man says that the repair would cost me $200-270 :S
so i took it home to cry on it.....


i sent HF a email not too long ago and i;m waiting for response.


is there any chance that they will tell me to send it back for a refund/repair/replacemnt? (please say yes.... i'm hopeless and need some support )

 

Can't you send it back to your uncle/cousin to have him return it?

My first HF tig, I returned even before I plugged it in... then again.. I have two within 20 miles me.

HF is notorious for repackageing used ****. Hmmm... But they are quite responsive to email! They were pretty good to deal with over the internet... their fone service sux.

Good luck.