Last updated on November 20th, 2023
TIG welding was tough in the past, but now with the latest and advanced functions, it’s pretty easy, and anyone can work after a few days of practice. Therefore, people prefer to buy a unit for home instead of hiring a welding expert for little projects. We have compiled a balanced guide of units so you may decide according to your requirements.
We tested 10 machines from different brands and selected the five best TIG welder for home use based on their overall performance, stability during work, easy-to-use controls, brand’s value in the market, and buyers’ response over the units. Read all reviews, you will find the finest one.
IMAGE | PRODUCT | FACTS | PRICE |
---|---|---|---|
OUR PICK
| Primeweld TIG 225X |
| |
FAVORITE PICK
| HZXVOGEN TIG Welder |
| |
PROFESSIONAL CHOICE
| Everlast Powerarc TIG 140ST |
| |
BEST VALUE FOR MONEY
| Weldpro TIG 200 GD |
| |
BEST VALUE FOR MONEY
| Lotos TIG 200 |
|
Contents
5 Best TIG Welders for Home Use Tested in 2023
1. Primeweld TIG 225X
The Primeweld 225X is always been a favorite of ours. Its design is archaic, but its ease of use, controls, and the high quality of welding it produces make it our top pick for anyone. An easy-to-use machine with a customized front panel.
I welded metals like steel, ⅜” stainless steel, aluminum coupons, 16 gauge, and 10 gauge aluminum. From arc start to end, everything happened fine.
Users complain about the durability of the foot pedal, but it’s not that bad; it’s a little bit tricky.
Pulse on 225X just as it should be in other top-level machines. It has an excellent pulse feature that helps the user weld aluminum thin sheets.
Hf arc function allows the arc to start without touching the metal, and its hf arc start is stable. If you’re not using a foot pedal, its 2T/4T function lets you weld metal with pre-settable features.
Its Ac balance feature (30/70) helps you to draw a clean weld. PWM along with IGBT technology, boosts the unit’s performance and makes it reliable. These discussed qualities are enough to describe a machine and its versatility.
225X has a long list of features, but the important ones are ability of AC/DC TIG and Stick welding, IGBT technology, 2T/4T control, and pulse feature.
- Smooth stable arc
- Color-coded controls
- Flawless welding with thinner materials
- versatile machine
- Power cable is not included
- Only for experts
It has given a tough time to its competitors by offering plenty of features and components at a reasonable price. World standard Ck-17 flex torch with a foot pedal is such an excellent combination. Other than that, the company offers a 3 years warranty with top-notch free technical support.
2. HZXVOGEN TIG Welder
Another impressive welder with such fine qualities that are required for any home welding task. It comes with two patterns, this is a TIG 200P unit. The machine’s multi-role design allows it to satisfy the demands of high-quality welding.
You can easily weld thin materials through this unit, surprised? Yes, this unit has a Tig pulse
function. The peak amp for tig welding is 120A on 110V as well as 200A on 220V. Another fantastic feature is ‘spot mode’ that’s quite good for handling lightweight metals.
While working on stainless steel, the hf start and 2T/4T function worked perfectly for me. The unique thing is the remote control Tig torch, where you have four buttons to adjust low/high current, gas test, and on/off switch. It’s convenient outside due to its dual voltage capability.
This powerful little unit includes following features like pulse function, spot-mode, digital ammeters, and multi-functional design.
Apart from the TIG unit, it’s also a superb stick welder. The performance and features are enough to add it to the list of best Tig welder for home use.
- Smooth stable arc
- Versatile tig torch
- Ideal for garage use
- Hf arc start
- No gas flow meter
- Tungsten electrodes are not included
With its high-quality features and components, it’s a terrific compact unit for both experts and beginners. The pleasing thing is that the company offers a one-year warranty as well as free technical assistance.
3. Everlast Powerarc TIG 140ST
This user-friendly machine comes with all the necessary components to start welding. It’s not an industrial machine, it is a pure home machine. If you want maximum flexibility and result, this unit is for you.
I welded a 16 gauge steel at 24 amps with a filler rod. Because there is no foot pedal, you must draw the tig torch away from workpiece to manage the amperage. Its arc quality can be compared to high-level machines.
Another feature is the auto-adaptive hot start. It allows users to adjust the arc length for their work. And the lift start feature will enable you to start an arc with a bit of touch on metal. It can’t weld aluminum but is very good for steel, stainless steel, copper, and carbon.
Its duty cycle is not stable during heavy welding but is very durable for medium-level projects. The unit gives a 35% duty cycle at rated amps, which I think are enough for home use. You get 80 amps on 110v and 140 amps on 220v so that you can draw good beads.
- Adaptive hot start
- Simple to use
- Less energy consumption
- Durable and reliable unit
- No foot pedal
- Not updated from last 7 years
The gas regulator is optional, and if you want to tig weld, you have to buy it. Above all, it’s a perfect unit for little-type projects. The company offers a 5 years warranty with free customer support in this price range, what else do you want?
4. Weldpro TIG 200 GD
Another masterpiece from weldpro with the most advanced qualities and optimized components. It was launched in mid of 2019 and captured a large area of the market.
It uses the most advanced inverter technology, IGBT along with pulse width modulation. The 200 GD has two versions: the Ck version and the Euro version. I’m reviewing the Ck version.
Welding on thin aluminum sheets and thin metals uses an adjustable pulse feature, and even we welded aluminum sheets without using pulse. The aluminium oxidation is cleaned by ac balance, which reduces it from 30% to 70%.
Users want a responsive foot pedal, and its pedal is responsive and adequately optimized to control amperage level. Long bead runs can be drawn without holding the torch trigger because of 2T/4T control. Hf arc start is very smooth and stable.
Its specs are remarkable like adjustable pulse, 2T/4T control, digital display, IGBT technology, and Ac balance. It gives a 40% duty cycle at 200 amps for Dc and 60 percent at 200 amps for Ac.
The unit produces a stable arc, adjustable pulse, optimized foot pedal, great for aluminum welding. People compare Eastwood TIG 200 and Weldpro 200, but according to my experience, Weldpro is better due to many reasons.
- Dedicated foot pedal
- User-friendly controls
- Very popular in market
- Versatile machine
- 3 years warranty
- Few complaints about foot pedal
- No lift tig option
It comes with world standard Ck-17, and the company has updated the warranty from 2 years to 3 years with free technical assistance.
5. Lotos TIG 200
A great welder with straightforward controls and high-grade components. Once you learn its controls, you can draw great beads on aluminum and stainless steel. The square wave inverter helps users for accurate and precise welding of metals.
I welded ⅜” aluminum, stainless steel and repaired an old aluminum fuel tank. Lotos Tig successfully welded without any error. Unfortunately, the unit has no pulse feature, so working on thinner metals is tricky, but for thicker materials, it works perfectly.
The foot pedal controls amperage fine, but it’s not a high-grade pedal, don’t worry, very fine for home use and medium-level projects. The clearance effect works fine. It requires little practice if you’re not familiar with it.
It is the simplest machine, every setting is mentioned on the front panel. The device has no adjustable frequency, it uses a fixed frequency of 50/60 Hz.
- Hf arc start
- Easy to use
- Suitable for aluminum
- Budget friendly
- No pulse feature
- Replacement parts are tough to obtain.
It comes with all of the welding-related components you’ll need. The company has provided 1 year warranty and one month refund period.
Buying Guide – Best TIG Welder for Home use
In this guide, some important points are mentioned for a good TIG welder. You don’t need a high-class welder for residence use; we have listed all varieties of units with ac/dc output and with only dc output. So, before purchasing a unit, consider these points.
Output of Machine
For aluminum welding, Ac output is required, and for other metals, Dc output is enough. You can weld aluminum without Ac output with a few challenging tricks, but it’s not recommended.
Duty Cycle
It is the ratio of time a circuit is ON compared to the time the circuit is OFF.
A 20% duty cycle means the machine on time is 2 minutes and off time is 8 minutes. A medium-level duty cycle machine with a 40-50% duty cycle is more than enough for home use. The duty cycle is mentioned in the description of every product.
Arc Start
In the past, a scratch start method was used to initiate the arc, but its trend is gone. Now, lift tig start and Hf start are common.
The lift tig feature starts an arc with little touch with metal, and the hf arc start is initiated without touching the workpiece.
Multipurpose or TIG
For home use, a Tig welder with multiple welding options is always preferable. Sometimes, you need stick welding or MMA welding. So, a unit with a TIG function and at least one other welding feature are good.
Foot pedal
It allows users to control the amperage level. Most high-level machines use this, and some use a 2T/4T switch instead of a foot pedal. It’s not built-in; you can replace it with a high-quality pedal.
Customers Feedback
For analyzing the performance of a machine out of the box, feedback from the user is quite helpful. You may see thousands of feedbacks at Amazon for a better understanding of the machine in real life.
Frequently Asked Questions
Conclusion:
Now, you’ve enough information and you can decide which unit suits you most. If you’re still confused about selecting the best TIG welder for home use, here are my recommendations.
Primeweld TIG 225 X – classic for home
Everlast TIG 140 ST – good for home shop
Weldpro 200 GD – perfect for home use
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