How to Charge a Solar Welding Helmet?


How-to-Charge-a-Solar-Welding-Helmet

For those wanting to conserve resources and use more solar-powered tools, using a solar welding helmet can cut back on the power you are utilizing and can be a handy tool.

Although they do come with batteries for any additional necessary power, it is important users are clear on how to charge their helmets to get the most out of each use.

How do you charge a solar welding helmet? The sunlight charges photovoltaic cells on the top of Solar-powered helmets. The batteries within the helmet are also solar-powered and provide the helmet with additional power. Therefore, the helmet does not need any charging by a traditional power source.

In knowing how to charge your solar powered welding helmet, you need to be aware of exactly how to use a welding helmet, and the kinds of tasks you may need it for.

Also, in this article, we will discuss keeping your helmet charged and ready to use, even when the sun is not out.

Why Do I Need a Solar Powered Welding Helmet?

If you are doing any kind of welding, a welding helmet is the most important piece of equipment to have handy. This is mostly due to the protection you will get from your helmet while you are welding.

There are residual flames, fumes, and debris that is generated from the process. If you are not protecting your eyes, you are putting them at risk.

Not only can these elements cause health problems if you get burned or get debris in your eyes, but it can also deeply damage your eyesight due to the light being emitted from the flames.

To avoid any health issues coming from your welding, it is critical to utilize a welding helmet whenever you are working with metal in this way.

Related article: What is Arc Eye and What are the Symptoms?

The ultraviolet and infrared rays are blocked with the welding helmet as the lens on the helmet has a filter that protects the eyes from these harmful ways. Solar-powered helmets are no different.

They follow the same structural and functional guidelines to deliver optimal safety and functionality while welding.

How to Charge a Solar Welding Helmet

Using a welding helmet is simple. With the photovoltaic shells, they are auto-darkening, which increases effectiveness and convenience. With this built-in technology, all you need to do is put the helmet on, and your eyes are protected from harmful rays and debris that may come at you during your project.

Auto Charging

For any helmet to work, it needs to be able to darken when the wearer is using it; therefore, there needs to be a power source for the auto-darkening to occur.

Because of this, manufacturers need to either need to create helmets with batteries or solar power. Often, both are used to make the power last longer in the helmet.

Your solar-powered helmet will charge up when it’s in the sunlight, and if you have a helmet that also has batteries within, the batteries will also charge up from the sunlight.

The benefit to these is that they store energy to be used later once it is charged and still in the sun. This ensures that your helmet will work for a longer time once you are not in the sun.

A common misconception is that solar-powered tools will only work in the sun. However, this is not true. While they charge in the sun, they will work in any weather or under a roof once they are charged, just like any other battery.

This is a huge benefit as you can be charging your helmet while you are using it, rather than having to wait for it to charge to use it.

Advantages to a Solar Powered Welding Helmet

The majority of welders prefers the solar-powered helmet due to their battery life. Since they can charge while in use, they are highly functional and easy to use for all level welders.

Another huge benefit of using solar-powered helmets is that since they do not have any additional controls, they are significantly lighter.

The weight of the helmet is critical to consider when purchasing, as welding is hard work, especially if you are in the sun on top of it. You do not want a heavy helmet on you, making you warmer.

With this, in addition to its practically unlimited battery life, it is the practical choice when welding.

The helmets work equally well inside, once charged, and outside, and on top of the batteries being solar powered, they are interchangeable.

Most use AAA batteries, and welders can switch out their batteries to a different set in the middle of working with ease and will not slow you down much.

This means you can continue charging these batteries while you work.

Interestingly, these helmets can also harness the power and energy of the welding arc rays being produced while you are working to charge.

Therefore, as you use your helmet, you will be recharging it with your work being done. This feature makes the solar-powered helmet very self-sustaining and gives it a long lifespan.

The Disadvantage to a Solar Powered Welding Helmet

When shopping for a solar-powered welding helmet, you must be finding a good quality helmet that has good reviews. If you settle for one that may be cheaper or rated a bit lower, it may have a shorter lifespan than that of some of their alternatives.

Also, although the solar-powered helmets are lighter than others, they are generally larger. These helmets need more surface area to put the panels and therefore, can be a bit chunkier than their competition.

This can make it harder to transport them or may be problematic for certain people and therefore is something to be aware of.

The batteries also can sometimes be lithium, which is more difficult to replace and are more expensive than other battery types.

Certain helmets also do not have the option to replace the batteries, which can contribute to a shorter lifespan and should be considered before purchasing as this comes back to the first disadvantage discussed above.

Final Thoughts

Remember that whenever you are welding, you must wear a helmet to conserve your eye and skin health. If you fail to wear a helmet, you are likely to damage your eyes with the rays or get debris stuck in your eyes.

This can be extremely harmful and painful and can also be avoided simply by using a great helmet.

Before you buy your welding helmet, it is important to consider how you want to be able to use your helmet. Taking into consideration the weight, size, and charging capabilities of whichever helmet you buy so you can better breakdown, which is going to be ideal for your purposes.

Once you identify what aspect of the helmet is most important to you, you can best choose a helmet.

For those who are interested in cutting back on their power use and finding more sustainable alternatives to power their tools, using solar power is a great alternative.

This sustainable energy source ensures that your tools are able to sustain their own power and as previously mentioned, can have longer lifespans and battery power. These are huge benefits to solar power.

Most welders prefer the solar-powered helmets since they have unlimited battery life and can be charged while you work. There are so many benefits to using a solar-powered helmet; however, also remember that every helmet is going to have disadvantages, which are even more important to research before you begin your work welding.

Recommended Reading

How to Properly Clean a Welding Helmet Lens – Fast and Easy

How to Adjust an Auto Darkening Welding Helmet: A Quick Guide


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David Harper

David is the Co-Founder and Senior Editor at weldingtroop.com. David's an experienced fitter and tuner/welder who's passionate about helping others develop in life through new skills and opportunities.

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