It makes sense to buy larger quantities of stick electrodes, say 10 pound boxes.  If you do that, you have to be aware of shelf life and storage conditions.  Contaminated or damaged electrodes will degrade your welds and add frustration to your experience.

Vacuum packaging your electrodes in smaller bunches protects them from damage and degradation.  You can easily break down larger packages into 1 pound lots which you can then vacuum seal in lengths of food storage plastic bags.  This can increase shelf life from 6 months to several years or more.

Any food storage thermal vacuum sealer can accomplish this task.  You can buy rolls of food storage plastic that is already sealed on the edges and cut off the length you need for each bunch of electrodes.  You can even allow a few extra inches in case you don't use all the electrodes in that bunch and want to reseal the package.

You could even add silica gel to the package if you want to eliminate moisture and provide an even drier environment for your electrodes.  This might be advisable if you live in an area with high humidity.  Be aware that this is not a substitute for oven heating E7018 rods or using all of those rods from a hermetically sealed container within a specified time limit.  This is because water becomes hygroscopically bonded with the flux in those low hydrogen rods and silica gel will not be able to remove it.

Here is a video prepared by Everlast welders

that promotes buying larger quantities of electrodes and storing them in smaller batches in vacuum sealed plastic bags.

Last modified: Thursday, 4 July 2024, 2:18 PM