Welding Certification?

[Avadon]

I was curious if anyone knows of a way I can become a certified welder from online courses? I know you need to have some training and then an inspector can show up at test you in your area the practical portion of becoming certified.

I already know how to weld and have been Gas and TIG welding for years. So i'm wondering if I can skip the community college bit and just do some studying online and then have an inspector show up to test me.

[Thomas Dean]

Never heard of one. I, personally wouldn't hire some one with that kind of credintials either. There's just some things ya can't get on the net.

[arftist]

Doesn't much matter how you learn, you just have to be able to pass the test. No inspectors are going to come to your house though, unless you are very wealthy.
In your area, call Triangle Engineering. They will tell you what you need to do and administer the tests. For about $300 per cert. What cert do you want to get? There are many and most jobs require a specific cert.

[monstermetal]

Yep what he said...

When I got my cert I just called up the local guy, went in to there shop.. did my test... got my card in the mail in a few weeks... I think it cost about $100 per cert... I am only certified in structural FC/steel... all position The basic cert you need to do structural ironwork... There are dozens of diffrent certs you can get...

[petere76]

Avadon,

A lot of Iron worker jobs that require welding are job specific. You would be tested on site for that particular job requirement. the test usually includes a supervised weldign area and a subsequent ribbon test and or, an x-ray exam of the weld. Perhaps certain factory jobs require some sort of general issued issued cert, not sure on that one. You can call the Iron Workers local in your are and I am sure they have the details.

Peter

[Mainely,Bob]

I`d look online for the AWS site.
I`d be surprised if they didn`t post both what the certs consisted of and where in your area you could test.
As stated above there are a lot of different types of certifications and the way I got my first cert was to get the test standards for what I needed and then practice both at the job and at home.When I felt I was ready I went to the test site,paid my money and did my thing.
All the prep and practice was done by me on my own,only the test was supervised and graded.
Last time I did structural the grading consisted of 2 butt weldments both vertical and overhead.Plates came already chamfered,ready to tack.Weld rod was 7018.
The first test was a visual,if the inspector didn`t like it`s look you were a no-go.
Next test was cut a coupon and prep that coupon for testing.If there was any porosity or flux inclusions encountered during prep you were a no-go.
The third and final step was a bend test or x-ray.
Pretty simple for structural.Things get more difficult the higher up the ladder you climb.

Good luck to you.

[clinton]

If you intend to get a job as a welder I would recommend going through some type of training there are many local colleges that offer some type of welding courses, it takes time to learn all the different processes (stick, tig, mig) and to make yourself employable may not be an easy venture. I spent a year going to school full time to learn pipe welding and got certified in stick, tig, mig as well as innershield wire I had multiple certs in all positions structural, aws D 1.1, asme pipe boiler and pressure vessels. I came out with really good certs but no experience in the field= no one wants to hire you and you have to take a job for $5.15/ an hour then you keep looking and get another job for $8.00/ hr then you start to have some shop time and after a couple of years you can find a better paying job. Your other option is join an apprentice program with a local union ( iron workers, boilermakers, piledrivers) that way you learn a trade and you will have a career with good pay and benefits either way it takes time join a union work your way through it and the guys that you work with will respect you for it. I am speaking from personal experience I now work as a journeyman carpenter doing mostly metal stud framing, and yes carpenters can weld also our scope is light gauge 1/4 inch and under

[Dodge]

Yep what he said...

I am only certified in structural FC/steel... all position The basic cert you need to do structural ironwork... There are dozens of diffrent certs you can get...

I agree. I worked in the traffic and street lighting and power transmission standards manufacturing industry. We had basic welding certs and then specific certs for FCAW, SMAC, Aluminum, as well as many individual states required that people that welded on their product have documented tests. I had to take a welding test at least 2 or 3 times a year depending on the work load and the test requirments of our customers. Our test coupons ran the range from simply visual (watch you weld it) to xray to UT to destructive testing. Very thorough. After all, you want to be so when hanging thousands of pounds of steel over traffic ;)

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

If I remember correctly the cert is only good for so long, if you are not doing that type of weld. If you are not working, and the log book shows such, you have to retake the test. Certs are a continual process, not a one time thing. When I had my shop I had looked into getting certs, but in all of the years we were open there was only one job that came in for bid that required a certified welder do the welding. My coupons had passed the tests, but I never got officially certified.

[KYBOY]

My certs were structural/pipe welding..been a long time though, I let my certs drop because I didnt need them at the places I ended up welding for(and my main occupations were still corrections)..I wish I hadnt though..

[Dragons lair]

There was even a ebay listing some time ago. Send plates and fee get cert in mail. Used to have a bunch
for military,aircraft,nukes ect. Retake every 6 mos, every material, every pos. Have worked turbine shops
where I asked about certs. Was told they were already on the board. Went for a test one time, asked the tester
how long he had been welding. Answered "Never have welded took a class to do this" AWS or shop tests are the only ones I will take now. Ya get what ya pay for.
Ken

[Avadon]

Wow, kudos to all the great advice. Yah i'd be looking to get tested in TIG Ferrous metals at first. But it sounds it's almost a catch22 with the certification. You'll get certified at the job, but they might not hire you unless your certified. Do people normally get certified first and then go seek a job? I can tig weld quite well. I've welded on everything from Anvil stands to jewelry to sheet metal and most things in between. I'm also a fairly good gas welder as that's where I started and didn't have the money for arc welding. I've been making smithing tools for years and was investigating getting cert's so I could pick up a 2nd job working for someone else. However it is starting to really seem like a career move rather than just an easy thing to do in a month or two. If I couldn't rocket into 12-15$ an hour it really wouldn't even be worth it for me and I have feeling (especially in this economy) I probably wouldn't. They would probably turn me down if I was being interviewed aside another guy who was equal in welding skill but had all the schooling and looking to make a living out of it. I want to make my living smithing, not welding so I guess i'm not willing to drop everything to pickup a welding career.

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

Also with the economy there are a lot of unemployed welders. I went to one shop which told me, " I turn welders away every day,I have a hard time finding good machinists though." BTW they were paying $23 per hr.

[matto]

as stated befor you can go to any weld inspecting place to get certified. they might have you bring in your pre welded plates
or you may have to weld on site. they will do a bend test or a x ray test. x ray is harder because they can look through all layers
and fail a weld for any little spot in your weld. bend test they bend it and see if it brakes or not then bend to see where it brakes
it all depends on the inspector on how picky they want to be. you can also contact your local or closes community college or trade school
that have welding and talk to the instructor about doing weld testing.

problem with testing for a company is they keep your certs. bonus is they pay for your certs. most companies have you do a weld test even if you
give them your certs. keeps comany curent and shows if you can really weld or not.

[Rutterbush]

The AWS D1.1 welding code - steel and the ASME section IX Boiler and Pressure Vessel code
state that the welding test must be witnessed. As an AWS certified welding inspector I cannot allow a welder to bring a set of welded test coupons to me for testing. I have no idea who actually welded them. There are those who I have run across who will do such things, but one law suit will cull these out quickly.

Generally speaking a company has a WPS welding process specification, PQR process qualification report and each welder must have qualification papers. If you plan to test in an area or process where you hold individual papers it will mean that you are the responsible party to pay for everything. You will need documented test coupons, pay the CWI to witness the welding, do the charpy V-notch test, tensile test, bend test or even a radiograph. You will need deeper pockets that I have.

Then, on the otherhand, there are those engineering companies who employ a CWI to maintain the proper records and test individual welders accordingly. These test are referenced back to the paperwork that that CWI has on file. The individual welder is still out of pocket as refered to in the above posts.

It will be easier and much less costly to apply for a position and take the hands on practical welding test. Go to the company and ask to speak to someone who can answer your questions about the test before you apply. This way you should be able to answer your own questions about your ability to do the welding.

Unless a company requires it for their own files there are no written tests for welders generated by the code setting parties, AWS, ABS, ASME, etc.

But of course, there are welding codes for shipping, rail roads, heavy equipment, cars, airplanes, mining, elevators, cranes...I cannot name the full list of welding codes.

[Francis Trez Cole]

Try the community collage when I took the course they had a welding inspecter on staff. He moved away now they do not have one. once you pass the test you have to go back every 6 month to recertify. So going to the community collage is a good way to make the contacts. I just mail my test piece in every 6 months He is a good friend how so we talk reguarly. Other wise I would have to drive 3 hours to take the test. I have my own equiptment and I make $50.00 an hour with my cert. Here in florida you have to have the cert. to get the building permit.

[Rutterbush]

Dragon's lair,
You sound like you've run into the same inspector that I did. Man complained about my weld and told me how he wanted it welded. I told him I didn't understand his directions and could he demonstrate the weld. As I was offering him the stinger he did an about face and disappeared.

On the same note, a good friend of mine has been a CWI for years and he knows enough about welding to keep people from challenging him. He stays with the code which says that an inspector is not there to interpret welding how-to with the weldors. The inspector's job is to make sure that a weld meets or does not meet code.

When not acting as a welding educator or hired as a CWI I load the welding machine on the truck and hire out as a contract weldor. I was on a roof welding down the corrogated steel to the trusses when a fellow walked up and indicated that he wanted to speak to me. He introduced himself as the roofing engineer who designed the roof on which I was welding. He politely asked what type of current welding credentials I had. I asked him to walk down to the truck with me and I would let him peruse the requested paperwork. I handed him the folder and he started flipping through the stack. He looked up and asked if there was a certification that I didn't have. Sure, I told him, but I'm working on them. Satisfied with my credentials he changed the subject and asked what type welding rod I was using. I reached into my back pocket and handed him a 6010. He looked at me and announced that it was not the electrode that he had specified on the blueprints. He unrolled his prints and pointed to the specification. Sure enough, I was NOT using the electrode specified. There in big bold letters it stated that the electrode to be used will be an E-60XX.

I had an enlightenment for that engineer. Those XX's are place holders. The electrode that he specified could be any number, such as, 6010, 6022, 6024, etc. I even took out the Lincoln electrode catalog to prove it.

It didn't matter that he had proved to me that he didn't know welding. What mattered was that he held the position of engineer. He allowed me to go back to welding. I finished the job, got paid and never saw him again.

[Dragons lair]

Mine were far north and far south. Did have a welding engineer one time tried to horn in on a photo op.
I set up a plasma welder for Ti(big bag rig) As soon as the cameras arrived he pushed me out sat down
picked up the torch. I flipped on the pilot last seen doing 0-60 down the main asile. Found out he was the
bosses son in law.
Ken

[clinton]

Rutterbush- they spec 70 series electrode out here in cali (E-70xx) ironworkers use 5/32 7010 on the metal decking usually 16 ga material

[Rutterbush]

Clinton,
Yeah, putting electrodes on specs or prints as 60XX or 70XX is a standard practice probably everywhere here in the States. When the engineer told me that I was using the wrong rod I thought he was kidding. Kinda stunned me when I realized he was serious about using a 60XX and not the 6010. He really didn't understand that the double X's are just place holders and that the welder can use the electrode they are qualified with as long as it's a 60 series rod. That man was educated beyond his intelligence.

Most roofing welders use an E-6022 when speced to 60XX and the 7010 when speced as 70XX. Course they do have a choice if qualified.

The AWS has tightened up some of their requirements for CWI. Anyone who thinks they may be interested can check out the requirements here. http://files.aws.org/certification/docs/b5.1-2003-errata.pdf

There are also several documents that pertain to the actual CWI testing.

http://www.aws.org/w/a/certification/CWI/
Take a look at Part B. That's one of the actual books used for reference during the testing.

[matto]

in nebraska and iowa you have to have a deck welding cert for puddle welding decking. most deck rod is 6022, nice rod because you can run it at
the same setting that you run your 7018. it also is good because you get the deep penitration and cleaning as 6010. 6022 is a great first pass
rod for pipe also.