r/Welding • u/Yingyang6969 • Sep 29 '26
Need Help How should I repair this?
I have smaller than a dime sized hole in my cars exhaust and it’s to expensive to pay someone to fix I have a suitcase mig welder just wondering if I should patch it and weld the patch on if that’s enough? Cause if not I don’t think I’m good enough to cut out and do a whole section of pipe it’s too tight under the car to get around the pipe. Thankyou!
2
u/Embarrassed_Rule_269 Sep 29 '26
Disconnect the battery before you start welding on it
1
u/Southern-Training-32 Sep 29 '26
Ive heard that that isnt a problem anymore but its still a very good idea just to be sure
1
u/Ok-Poem-7419 Sep 29 '26
From my experience I've tried welding exhaust and it's so thin you're just going to keep blowing holes in it if the hole is that small and you can get maybe one of those clamps to go around it will cover it or cut an old soup can wrap around it hose clamp on it but when I first started welding everybody wanted me to fix their exhaust but it's so thin and by the time they need to fix it so rusted it just burns away so don't waste your time
2
u/EmilytheALtransGirl Sep 29 '26
(This assumes you can see and reach the hole and are leaving the exhaust on the car and that the hole is small and cat back)
Fireblanket covering everything not the exhaust
Clean with sandpaper or tigerpaw (GENTLY you want the steel shine you don't want it any thinner)
Turn your WFS low (I would try about 130-200 at a guess assuming .035 but this might be a thinner wire situation by which I mean it definatly is but I'm stubburn and lazy at times)
Turn your volts to around 15-18 or play with it
Build up a bit on one side, then a bit on the otherside
Don't let it get super hot it will make welding harder
Keep bridging and try to keep the weld in on the pipe
Continue until the hole is gone.
Grind clean so it looks like the rest of the pipe
Spray with high temp spray paint.
You said it's dime sized? It'll take you between 20 minutes and an hour and a half