Welding Tips and Tricks

I have a fan from an icemaker that has multiple cracks in it. Some short ones at the hub and one long one in the middle of one of the blades. It's hard to find a replacement fan, and I'm wondering if you all think I could tig these cracks back together. I would use no filler metal because I don't want to change the balance of the fan. It is a steel fan with some aluminized or zinc coating on it. I'd grind or wire wheel that off before welding. Thanks in advance.

These fans are available from every refrigeration parts wholesaler and probably ebay as well, you just need to know diameter, number of blades, direction of rotation and airflow, diameter of shaft and fastening method. Also they are cheap as chips.

If you must have a go at repairing it, get the plated coating off from around the repair with something like a "tootsie roll" emery roll (wire wheel won't work) so as not to reduce steel thickness. Carbon steel really needs the deoxidisers that ER70S type fillers provide. If you just fusion weld, the repair will be brittle and contaminated and will break in service in short time. Use filler and then sand back to smooth with the tootsie roll.

When finished, place the fan down on a flat surface to see if all the blades are touching the surface. If not, bend them from the hub till they do, the fan will run with better balance and reduce the risk of further cracking.

Get some similar thickness scrap and practice to dial in the right settings before you try the repair.

Buy a new one. It will cost 20-40$ at most. But welding on the existing one is going to put it out of balance enough that it will kill the bearings in those little motors in a few months. The new motor will cost $150-200.

Thank you all...I'll check with a refrigeration supply company and buy a replacement.