What wires/cable for 220 welder extension cord?

[BLACK DEATH]

Im looking at getting or making an extension cable for a welder i may buy if i can use it further away from the outlet. I cant weld in the garage so i need to weld away from it. Its a 220 welder from lincoln, its the 180 model with a links to it below. I may never use its max welding capability if that matters and i dont think it pulls a lot of amps. So what cable or wire should i buy for lengths posted below? Please be specific as im no electrical guru. Thanks for your input.
10'
25'
50'
75'
100'

http://www.lincolnelectric.com/Catalog/equipmentdatasheet.aspx?p=48149

 

[scottybaccus]

I researched this thoroughly for my own just a couple of weeks ago. You can run up to 100' using 10/3 Portable Power SJOOW Cord.

Home Depot gets about $1.79 per foot. It's rated 30 amps continuous, at 90 degrees Celsius ambient temps. If temps go up, capacity goes down.

My Miller 210 has a max draw of 28 amps, so your Lincoln 180 should be under that.

If you go beyond 100', you will need something heavier. I am not aware of an 8/3 SJOOW cord.

 

[BLACK DEATH]

Whats the difference between sjoow and soow?
What about the 10/3 extension cord they sell in 50 & 100'? Can you cut the ends off and use it? Its cheaper than $1.79 a foot.

 

[ranger302]

Whats the difference between sjoow and soow?
What about the 10/3 extension cord they sell in 50 & 100'? Can you cut the ends off and use it? Its cheaper than $1.79 a foot.

Jsoow has a thinner jacket than standard so cable.

As far as the Extension cord goes, Yes you can cut the ends off and replace with new ends. Just make sure the insulation is rated for 600V. It will say on the cable itself.

 

[scottybaccus]

^^ what he said... Check the jacket for specification, then google ampacity of that wire type in a 10/3 configuration. Not all 10/3 is rated the same.

The thinner jacket is about the portability factor. This stuff is heavy. Some other options are intended for infrequent moving about.

I would be hesitant about using a lower cost extension cord. Go handle some of the SJOOW first and feel the difference. Look at the conductor, etc. There's a reason it costs more. You are about to ask it to supply power to an expensive piece of machinery. Limited voltage drop, current capacity and long term durability are worth paying money to ensure.

 

[BLACK DEATH]

You are right, ill go look at that first. Im glad you all say i can use 10/3 as thats a lot cheaper than 8 or 6/3.

 

[Provincial]

Whats the difference between sjoow and soow?
QUOTE]

SJOOW cord has a lighter build achieved by using a thinner jacket and (I think) thinner jackets on each inside conductor.

SOOW cord is the industrial version of SJOOW.

There are versions of these cords in much heavier versions. I have seen SO-type cord in #2 gauge copper with four insulated conductors plus a bare (steel) ground! It was very heavy to handle.

 

[PT Doc]

S=service cord 600v
J=junior service cord 300v

 

[MN Falcon]

I researched this thoroughly for my own just a couple of weeks ago. You can run up to 100' using 10/3 Portable Power SJOOW Cord.

Home Depot gets about $1.79 per foot. It's rated 30 amps continuous, at 90 degrees Celsius ambient temps. If temps go up, capacity goes down.

My Miller 210 has a max draw of 28 amps, so your Lincoln 180 should be under that.

If you go beyond 100', you will need something heavier. I am not aware of an 8/3 SJOOW cord.

Would the 100' be just the extension cord or from the breaker to the end of the extension cord?

 

[BLACK DEATH]

Good question, is it better to be hard wired in or an actuall extension cord?

 

[scottybaccus]

Ah, the unavoidable reality...

Limiting to 100' of extension cord, should mean that you can deliver the rated capacity of the extension cord from the outlet, to the far end of the cord, without excessive voltage drop, heat, etc.
This all expects that you are well within the capacity of the hard wired circuit. IF the hardwired circuit is marginal for your needs, you have just added a small, but potentially critical, degredation that would drag the overall capacity of the circuit below acceptable limits.

For me, I am running a 40' extension cord, with a capacity of 30 continuous amps at 300 volts, on a 50 amp circuit. I measured the supply voltage at the outlet to be 243 volts. My research told me to expect a voltage drop of about 2% with my 40' extension, so i should be able to supply my welder's maximum demand of 28 amps with a voltage of about 238 volts.

You really do need to run the full equation to be sure you are OK. We usually take several things for granted. i.e. supply voltage is adequate to handle the drop at the end of the cord, current capacity of the parent circuit is well above our needs, and the machine has an operational tollerance to work properly with the results.

I recommend checking your machine's requirements, your circuits capacity, and running the math yourself. (or consult a professional) I did validate my research with a pro. In short, I can run 100' of 10/3 SJOOW (not necessarily any 10/3) and should not suffer critical voltage drop, provided my parent circuit has the capacity necessary. The 30 amp capacity of my cord is good for my machine. I also have a plasma cutter that demands 50 amps. It will required a heavier cord, if I want to run it at max current continuously. I should be OK using it at lower levels intermittently.

Does any of that help?

 

[dkGoodrich dot com]

Thanks for the info guys!

 

[Super Mech]

I've got 50' of 6ga wire with 50amp ends for my Mac 275amp MIG. it weighs more than a marriage! But it was for free so I can't complain too much.

 

[BLACK DEATH]

It sure does.

 

[RangerDaleXp]

It sure does.

Remember, A 10 ga extension cord is rated on the ends as well. A 10 ga cord with regular 15 amp connectors will still be rated 15 amps on the box. The same goes if it has 20 amp connectors....

 

[MN Falcon]

Ah, the unavoidable reality...

Limiting to 100' of extension cord, should mean that you can deliver the rated capacity of the extension cord from the outlet, to the far end of the cord, without excessive voltage drop, heat, etc.........

Thanks for your answer. I am not an electrician, but have done enough wiring of my own to know that there are length limits to the standard current / size rules. I primarily wanted the OP to be aware that if he is running the extension off a circuit that already is a longer run of 10/3 it might limit the effective length he can use.