Many businesses perform welding tasks every day, including parts manufacturers, vehicle makers, construction businesses and repair shops. People who enjoy do-it-yourself projects can handle automotive tasks or home repairs with a good arc welder. Thanks to welder rental options, you don’t even need to purchase welding equipment to get the job done.
Two popular types of arc welding equipment are metal inert gas (MIG) welding and tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding. What are the differences? How can you decide whether MIG or TIG welding is the right method for your application.
MIG Welding Process
MIG welding utilizes a welding gun with a machine-fed consumable wire. This metal wire serves as the electrode and provides the filler material for the weld at the same time.
While you work, the MIG welder delivers inert gas (usually argon) to shield the weld pool and protect the metal from contamination. The MIG welding gun automatically feeds more wire into the molten pool as you advance, so this option provides “what-you-see-is-what-you-get” welds that are easy to start, direct and control.
MIG welding is also known as gas metal arc welding, or GMAW. With MIG rentals, you can handle projects with pulsed, spray arc, globular and short circuit transfer.
TIG welds look amazing. There’s no slag to clean up. A TIG weld works beautifully for finishing touches on metal items, such as stainless-steel kitchen appliances, food service prep areas and home decor.
TIG Welding Method
Unlike MIG welders, TIG welders separate electrode and filler metal. During TIG welding, you need to hold the electrode/gas nozzle in one hand and your filler wire in the other. The electrode is tungsten and doesn’t get consumed.
This tungsten electrode is responsible for generating your arc. The nozzle feeds inert shielding gas automatically to the weld site to prevent impurities. At the same time, you need to feed your chosen filler metal into the weld pool as needed. As you move the arc, you must also remember to move the filler metal.
TIG welding is also called Gas Tungsten Arc Welding, or GTAW. TIG welding lets you adjust the amperage and heat of the weld using a foot pedal, allowing for impressive customization.
Advantages of TIG Welding
For experienced welders, TIG is often considered the Cadillac of welding. It’s extraordinarily clean and precise. TIG welders give operators significant control over the heat, speed and penetration of the weld.
You decide how much filler metal to apply and where. TIG can also work without filler metal at all, making it a good choice for thin or delicate materials.
TIG welds look amazing (when done correctly). There’s no slag to clean up. A TIG weld works beautifully for finishing touches on metal items, such as stainless-steel kitchen appliances, food service prep areas and home decor.
Downsides of TIG Welding
The two-handed approach to welding requires extra finesse. If you’re planning on working with TIG for a project, you generally need professional instruction first. Put simply, TIG welding has a steeper learning curve but offers incredible benefits once you master it.
MIG Welding Process
MIG welding is significantly faster than TIG. For business owners, this means that it also costs less to use because workers can produce more welds in the same amount of time. MIG rentals generally cost far less than TIG systems. Buying a TIG welder can set you back almost double what you’d spend on a comparable MIG welder.
For assembly line tasks where speed and consistency are more important than appearance, MIG is often the way to go. Learning to use MIG is fairly simple for new workers, garage enthusiasts and DIY-project lovers. It’s essentially point-and-shoot, making MIG welding probably the easiest of all arc welding methods to pick up.
One of the main disadvantages of MIG welding is the strength of finished welds. The automatic wire feed can sometimes cause inconsistent arc strength and result in uneven amounts of filler metal added to the weld pool. This can lead to small holes in the final weld that require correction.
In-Depth Overview of MIG Versus TIG
The more you know about both MIG and TIG welding, the better prepared you are for the job. This is especially true when it comes to finding a welder rental for a specific project.
Weld Quality and Penetration: TIG
It’s not just that TIG welds are better than MIG welds. TIG welds are unbeatable, period. TIG welding penetrates deeper into metal than MIG welding. To get similar results with MIG, you usually need to make V cuts into joints.
In the hands of a welding expert, it’s amazing the seals you can achieve with TIG. These welds are the preferred choice for metal applications that require a high-strength, waterproof or airtight seal, such as pressurized tanks.
Precision: TIG
The arc produced during TIG welding is much narrower than a MIG arc. It concentrates more heat in a smaller area, which is why the penetration is so amazing. A state-of-the-art TIG welder can produce fine welds that look perfect and have considerable strength, even on thin metals.
Speed: MIG
The same narrow arc also means TIG welding takes a long time to complete on large sections of metal. Feeding the filler metal into the weld pool by hand also takes longer than the effortless wire feed of MIG systems.
With a MIG rental, you can get your arc started in seconds and keep the weld going practically as long as you want. You still need to take some time for good penetration, but you can move along work surfaces much more quickly.
Ease of Use: MIG
Using a MIG gun is relatively simple, even for welding beginners. You mainly need to worry about controlling your direction and speed. There are many more factors to juggle with TIG welding.
Work Preparation: MIG or TIG
You need to carefully prepare your work surface with both MIG and TIG systems to avoid weld contamination and weaknesses. For TIG welding, the entire seam needs to be free of grease and oil, which means carefully cleaning the metal with a grinder or prep chemical.
MIG welding may require making cuts or preparing joints carefully so the weld pool can penetrate deeply into corners. There is generally less overall prep time required for surfaces, however.
Finished Results: TIG
MIG welding is much cleaner than traditional stick welding, but the results just don’t look as good as what a TIG welder can do. With TIG, beads are more uniform, and there’s virtually no splatter or cleanup work.
Factors To Consider Before Buying or Renting Welding Equipment
What if you only have enough money for one type of welder rental or welding equipment lease? Taking a look at the specific factors involved in your project can help you make a smart decision.
Amount of Work
How much welding do you need to do? A MIG rental is often a great choice for smaller projects because it’s so versatile. You can weld fence posts, create metal furniture or artwork or work on vehicles. A TIG welder is a sizeable investment, but it’s worth the cost if you’re going to be doing a lot of welding where precision counts, such as assemblies or high-performance products.
Type of Seam
MIG welding shines when you have a lot of material to cover or long, continuous seams to weld. Many general contractors rely on MIG systems to handle needed welding tasks for rafters, beams and other structural components.
Thickness of Metal
The incredible heat control of TIG welding makes it easier to avoid burning through thin metals. You can adapt your voltage on the fly, getting excellent penetration with seams for metals of different thicknesses. MIG equipment can weld thin metal as well, but there’s a greater risk of damaging the metal.
Type of Metal
For welding aluminum, you need to make sure that the MIG or TIG welder you select has both AC and DC options. AC is necessary for working with thin sheets of aluminum. Most MIG systems have this feature, and some TIG welders do.
For stainless steel, TIG is almost always the welding method of choice. This metal is more expensive, so businesses want a premium look for seams.
Work Position
While TIG is often preferred for precision automotive work, it’s not as adaptable for strange positions because of the need to use both hands. If you’re lying on your back or trying to reach weird angles, the point-and-shoot nature of MIG welding is a major plus.
Experience Level
Only choose TIG welding if you feel comfortable with your welding experience or if you’re studying professional welding. Many welding techs start with MIG and progress to TIG welding over time. If you can master TIG, it can give you many business opportunities.
Project Budget
TIG welding uses electricity more efficiently, but it takes longer. Going with MIG rental is generally a better choice for saving money and time. That said, if you’re experienced with TIG and you know beautiful seams will increase your product’s value, you can also rent or buy used TIG systems.
MIG Versus TIG: Which Is Better?
For some projects, the precision and control of TIG welding are optimal. For other work, you need the speed of MIG welding to profit. Both systems perform well in different situations, which is why many welding businesses have both. If you have additional questions about MIG or TIG welding, or any another welding method, contact our welding system experts at Red-D-Arc for assistance right away.
