Will it hold to weld…?

[sepani]

Our pool ladder has a very unusual measurement. The flange mount is 39 mm. The metal (stainless steel) has fatigued and broken. Would it be possible for someone skilled in welding to weld it? Would it hold...? See pictures

 

[Isakare]

Absolutely, someone with a TIG welder and knowledge can fix that and it will hold.
Keep the step where it's supposed to be and mark on the pipe/flange with a marker line before you unscrew the flange, so the holes align correctly afterward.

 

[Stefan1972]

It works perfectly fine to use a regular MIG welder even if it's stainless steel. It looks like it's welded on the underside of the flange anyway, so it doesn't matter if the weld itself rusts a bit. It also looks a bit brown in the joint already, so it might have already been welded in the usual way.

 

[sepani]

Now the wife has been with the brackets to a workshop and they say they can't weld "chrome" and that it won't last...stainless steel should be fine, right..?

 

[PNO]

Either they have no clue, or they are well-informed and noticed that it is not stainless steel or some kind of non-weldable quality of stainless steel.

Take a magnet and check. If it doesn't stick to either the pipe or the fitting, then it is probably austenitic stainless steel, and it can be welded. If the magnet sticks, then it is some other type of stainless steel (or a chromated steel pipe). It may still be possible to weld, but there's no guarantee.

A chromated steel pipe should also be quite rusty on the inside in that environment, so it's unlikely.

 

[Daniel 109]

But if they don't work with stainless steel, they might not have suitable welding wire.

 

[Stefan1972]

But if they don't work with stainless steel, they might not have suitable welding wire.

it's perfectly fine to weld stainless steel with regular wire too. No difference except that the weld won't be stainless.

 

[Daniel 109]

Yes, I know. But I wouldn't have done it for a customer.

 

[Dan_Johansson]

Stuff like this is usually made from pretty thin material, so it can be risky to try the wrong welding method on it...

It's not like welding together an exhaust system on a pilsnepråm where you can just spot weld closely if you burn a hole...

 

[sepani]

Now I have checked both the fittings and the ladder, and they are non-magnetic. This is how the ladder looks on the inside. When I bought the pool 8 years ago, I received a ladder that couldn't be assembled... I complained and got this one instead... which I now realize must have been an odd example... while "everyone" else has an inner diameter of 42 or 43 mm, mine has 39 mm... and steel unfortunately needs to be exact... I don't know if it would work with 37.5 mm or if there would be too much play... it's the only variant I found that I can slide the ladder over...

 

[PNO]

Great. Take it to a company that welds stainless steel. They know what to do and have the right equipment both for welding and post-processing the weld seam so it looks good. And it will last.

All other makeshift solutions involving pipes inside or messing around with MAG welding, wrong wire, and the like are not worth pursuing when there is a method that works well. If you're considering poor solutions, a broomstick and duct tape would also work...

If you can't find a workshop yourself, just say where you live and you can surely get some tips. Or maybe a friendly forum member can even weld it for you.

 

[sepani]

Great. Take that to a company that welds stainless steel. They know how to do it and have the right equipment both for welding and post-processing the weld seam to make it look nice. And it will hold.

All other makeshift solutions involving pipes inside or messing around with MAG welding and incorrect wire and such are not worth bothering with when there is a method that works well. If you're going to go for lousy solutions, you might as well use a broomstick and duct tape...

If you can't find a workshop yourself, post your location and you might get some tips. Or maybe even a friendly forum member could weld it for you.

If we're talking about less optimal solutions, my best alternative would be to drill from the bottom, put a thick threaded rod that goes up inside the pipe, and then completely fill the pipe with some filling mass like epoxy or something similar... but welding is better!

 

[Stefan1972]

Hardly likely to be an EPA solution to weld that as usual from underneath. It won't even be visible, and if one can't do it nicely, maybe it's best to practice on something else first. Considering the rusting down in the mount, I bet five that it has already been welded with regular wire.

 

[fsn]

Hardly an EPA solution to weld that from underneath as usual. It won't even be visible and if you can't make it neat, maybe you should practice on something else first. Considering the rusting down at the bracket, I'll bet a five it's already welded with regular wire.

hardly welded with regular wire, the ladder is in a pool. At most, just a bit poorly pickled.

 

[Dan_Johansson]

Would have been fun to see a picture from underneath of the flange that is screwed into the wooden deck in the first post..