How Cooler Weather Can Affect Your Metalworking Project

cooler-weather

How Cooler Weather Can Affect Your Metalworking Project

Cooler weather means more than just warmer clothes, it can also impact projects such as metal fabrication.
If you’ve scheduled a metalworking project that you want to complete during the colder winter months, there are a few things you should know.

 

Welds Will Cool Faster, Potentially Being More Brittle

The speed at which a weld cools relates directly to its strength. Welds that cool slowly have more structural integrity than welds that cool quickly. However,
there are techniques that a welder can use to mitigate this damage. One is to preheat the surrounding steel to slow down the cooling of the weld overall,
creating a stronger structure overall.

Welding Tools Require Additional Care

When the weather gets a little warmer, welding tools may collect condensation inside of them. Though winter weather itself may not cause direct damage
to welding tools, the consequences of it may. Welders need to be particularly careful when taking their tools out of storage and using them for the
first time after a chill.

Painting Metal Will Be More Difficult

It’s challenging to paint metal during a chill due to the frost that often forms over the surface. This frost will make it difficult if not impossible
for the paint to properly adhere to the surface, and the paint will wear and flake off faster than it should. Delay exterior painting jobs until after
the cold weather if you can. Alternatively, appropriately prepare the surface to prevent flaking and promote adhesion. If the surface is completely
clean and dry, the paint will adhere more readily. However, the cold may increase the curing time of the paint.

Professionals will need to be particularly conscientious about the temperatures around them, as well as taking extra care with their tools throughout the
cold season. For more information about how cooler weather can impact metal fabrication—as
well as other potential environmental concerns—get in touch with our team of metalworking experts at Metal Masters, Inc. today.


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