Was I the only one TIG welding with a dirty gas lens for like 2 years?

I've been doing boiler work for about 6 years now and I always wondered why my stainless welds had this weird haze to them (you know, that sugar look). Last month I was helping a guy named Rick on a job near the Port of Seattle and he asked when I last cleaned my gas lens. I told him I didn't know you had to, and he just stared at me like I had two heads. Turns out all that time I was welding with crusted up spatter blocking the gas flow, which explains the porosity issues I kept blaming on the filler rod. Has anyone else gone years without realizing something basic like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

troy_adams1mo ago

Dude, I totally did the exact same thing for about three years building custom exhaust systems. I kept getting this grey-ish looking weld and thought it was just how 304 stainless looked when it cooled. Finally a buddy at a shop in Tacoma saw me running a bead and just walked over, popped my lens off, and showed me the layer of crud built up on it. Felt like such an idiot. Now I swap them out way more often and my welds actually have that nice straw color to them.

veramartin1mo ago

Heard this same story from a welder at the track last weekend. He said swapping his lens fixed his grey welds overnight.