iMig 200 110 and 220 Circuit breaker size.

[JBWLDS]

I am having 220 at my home shop ran soon and I am trying to figure out what size breaker is required for this machine on 220 power. I would also like to know what is recommended for 110 as well. I thought it was 30A for either 110 or 220 but I am not sure. I did a quick search in forum for this topic and didn't find anything recent. If this is a repeat question, I apologise.. and perhaps it may help someone else down the line.
All the welders at work are on 50A breaker, but they are 250 amp machines and above. Can someone clarify this for me? I also tried to make sense of the chart on the machine itself but I cant decipher it.

[performance]

30 Amp for 120V is best. For 240V, consider putting in the 50. It won't hurt a thing. The plug is a 50A plug. Some day you may want to upgrade to a larger unit.

[JBWLDS]

Thanks for your reply..
I would still like to know if I am understanding this correctly if you don't mind confirming for me..

Max Inrush ( I1MAX ) Amps:

@110V: 33A
@220V: 36A

Maximum Rated (I1EFF ) Input Amps:

@110V: 20A
@220V: 22A

The information above came directly from the Tech Specs tab on Everlast's webpage for the iMig 200 welder.

According to the I1MAX or Inrush Amps on 220V : 36A, technically a 40A breaker would work fine?? If this is true, I am still not understanding the i1EFF or Input Amps of 20A for 110V and 22A for 220V. I recall asking an electrician about breakers once before and he replied "well how much does the welder draw". Unfortunately, I couldn't give an answer at the time but I think I am on the right track now with inrush and input Amperage's.

I completely understand why you say go ahead and install a 50A breaker, and that's what will be done, but just for my knowledge, I was hoping I could make more sense of this and hopefully any others who see this thread will too.

P.S. Would it be correct to assume that the same 50A breaker is sufficient for a 200amp AC/DC Tig machine aswell? i.e. PowerTiG 200DV

thanks
-JB

[performance]

The NEC has a special section just for wiring welders. Many electricians don't know or won't follow the NEC's guidelines/rules for wiring welders. They always think they know better. In reality, only the really good electricians, usually industrial ones understand the distinction between a welder circuit and a household circuit. IIRC, the NEC allows up to a 200 percent oversize on a breaker. Inrush dictates breaker size, rated amperage dictates wiring size. And wire size is adjusted based off of duty cycle. There's a lot of info there, and that's why we recommend a licensed, and informed electrician. Some local codes are actually written and/or enforced in a way that don't comply with the NEC.

We use the Standard NEMA 6-50 plug, which is a 50 amp plug. A 50 amp plug is good for a 50 amp circuit. The hazard of wiring a 50 amp plug to a 40 amp breaker is not that you will intentionally ignore, but someone else (or I guess you might too if you forget) might come along and see a 50 amp plug and plug a 50 amp rated unit onto a 40 amp breaker. Even a 70 amp draw on a welder can be used with a 50 amp plug too, if the duty cycle is correct.

Here is a decent summary or article 630: http://www.codebookcity.com/codearti...article630.htm

[JBWLDS]

thankyou for the awesome information.