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[PSUBS-MAILIST] Welding galvanized steel
I'm sure everybody's busy Christmasing, but this one will be waiting for you when you get back.
Just what counts as "galvanized" when it comes to the stuff that's supposed to give off nasty toxic yuck when you get it hot? I work in a hardware store sort of place, and I've gotten a half dozen different versions of this. These people, both customers and other employees are quite good at sounding ABSOLUTELY certain of all kinds of contradictory stuff that just plain doesn't sound right. This includes various theories of the best way to charge batteries, and the fellow who told me quite confidently that aluminum and stainless steel are the easiest things to weld by far - which doesn't sound right from what I've read in this group and elsewhere.
Anyway. I know that a galvanized pail or washtub or trailer house roof with that chunky shiny crystalized pattern on it is "galvanized." So are those crusty framing nails. But what about all the stuff that's "zinc plated" - like the hinges and handles and so forth that have that super-shiny, smooth finish? And decking screws? Nuts and bolts? I was under the impression that the metal in galvanizing was zinc, so isn't this all the same deal, with the same cautions applying?
To further complicate matters, I was asking a local welder-guy who came in about this very thing as he was getting some hinges, and he said that stuff was fine because it was a whole different process and "caddium plated" (I'm guessing he meant *cadmium* but it was too complicated to pronounce?) - in spite of the fact that the packages clearly state "zinc plated" right on the front.
This isn't so much an actual sub question as a general welding-safety one, and this list is where I have immediate contact with people who are regularly discussing welding.
I second Jorge's nifty verse, and hope you're all enjoying what there is of these very, very short days (those of you on the northern hemisphere, that is). Happy solstice, in addition to Christmas, and New Year, and... just everything.
--
David
Osage MN USA
buchner@wcta.net - http://customer.wcta.net/buchner