Why should you learn how to weld?
The world will always need welders. Welding skills and the related working knowledge retain value in a variety of fields and applications. Knowing how to weld opens the door to a myriad of creative opportunities, the possibility to travel and set your own hours, and ultimately, professional success. Becoming a welder can be rewarding in a number of ways.
If you’re considering learning how to weld, it may seem like a daunting task. There’s a lot of knowledge that goes into the welding process. Purchasing the right equipment is key as well. However, there are a lot of great reasons to get into welding, no matter if you keep it as a part-time hobby or take it on the road as a full-time profession.
In this article, we’ll list the top reasons why we think you should learn how to weld. Though we are a bit biased towards the subject, there’s a lot to be said for having the skill set to weld. Keep reading to find out more about what welding can offer you.
Here they are, in no particular order: the top reasons why you should be welding right now instead of reading about it.
1. Join Two Pieces of Metal
We’re all familiar with the different ways to connect various materials together. Tape, super glue, adhesive, JB weld—no matter which poison you pick, there’s a way to get two materials to stick together. Welding is just one of the methods used to stick two pieces of metal together—very efficiently.
2. Stacks and Stacks of Dimes
We’re not talking about stacking dimes when you weld. We mean business, as in you can create quite a nest egg from knowing how to weld. Since welding is a vocational skill most people don’t learn along with math and science, it’s highly sought-out—and highly awarded. Sure, some of the working conditions aren’t exactly plush but hey. A six-figure salary affords you all that and more.
3. Repair, Refurbish, Restore
As you dream of a raking in the money with your TIG torch, consider the projects you could be working on right now. Welding is a way to repair the broken materials around you and in some cases, make more of what used to be. Remember that rusty tailpipe installed on your car? Why not weld on an aftermarket exhaust and let the whole world you know how to weld?
4. No Degree Required
Disclaimer: don’t read this as “No Education Required.” There’s still quite a lot of knowledge you need at-hand in order to succeed as a welder. But with that said, there aren’t any prerequisites to a welding career that you can’t overcome with a stellar welding test. Welding privileges skills and experience over textbook repeat-speak.
5. Impress Past, Present, and Future Acquaintances
We all have that one skill or two we boast about around the dinner table, with friends, or even to those of romantic interest. Knowing how to weld can be a great way to impress people and let them know you can get down and dirty. Plus, having your projects on display lets others know that you’re not just a welder—you can actually weld stuff in a creative way. So go ahead, boast a little.
6. Join a Larger Welding Community
Like with any career, pastime, or hobby, knowing how to weld opens the door for you to meet other welders. From all walks of life and any and every continent, welders can connect and come together to share ideas, projects, tips and suggestions, and anything else that might make its way into the conversation. Search out welding organizations in your area or visit the American Welding Society page for more information. After that, travel to a few events and meet fellow welders like yourself.
7. School Project(s)
If you’re looking for something to do for a school project, welding something together can be a great way to practice what you know and impress your teachers and classmates. Whether you’re a high school or college student, there’s no end to the project ideas you can take advantage of.
8. Create A Business or Become Self-Employed
If after you graduate you find welding is something you want to make part of your everyday life, there are plenty of avenues to do just that. Creating your own welding business is much easier than it sounds. Especially with the advent of the internet and the ability to post up videos and pictures, welding projects can reach more people with relatively less effort than before.
9. Learn About the Factors Involved in Welding
Welding is much more than melting two metals together. In fact, simplifying the process into a short description like that is akin to saying a car is just an engine and a frame. There’s an environment within which welding occurs and there are so many factors to consider. Are you going to stick weld, MIG, or TIG? What shielding gas will you use? What filler material? The list goes on from there.
10. Expand Your Skill Set
A larger skill set doesn’t necessarily make you a jack-of-all-trades and master of none. In other words, it just means that you can adapt and apply yourself no matter the situation. Having the skills to be a welder can be a great back-up plan in case other career endeavors don’t pan out. As we mentioned above, it’s a great side-hustle alternative too.
11. Find and Foster a New Hobby
Taking up new hobbies sparks our interest and helps us to stay engaged. Welding, as a hobby, doesn’t have to be that expensive to get into. For example, depending on which type of welding you decide to try out, you could only be looking at a maximum investment of $1,000. That being said, you could also make some really cool projects and sell them as art. Your new hobby can make you happy and pad your bottom line at the same time.
12. Welders Travel Often
If you like to travel, welding could be your gateway career to seeing what the world has to offer. Many welders must work on-site in a variety of locations. Though this might not be a great option for potential welders with families, individuals with a drive to experience new things will appreciate that welding can take them where they want to go.
13. Do-It-Yourself: Money and Time Saver
To expand upon the idea of welding objects to repair them, welding can also be a great way to save time. For example, you go over a big bump in your car and the exhaust pipe sustains a huge rip. Rather than having to invest in a new pipe and paying someone to weld it in place, you can do the work yourself. You’ll save money by not having to pay someone to weld it for you and your car won’t be out of service for a few days. On the other hand, if you don’t want to do the work yourself, you’ll know whether or not the shop you take it to is yanking your chain. In other words, you’ll be a better-informed customer.
14. Help Others
Believe it or not, welding can be a great way to help others. It’s true! If your neighbor needs something welded, you can exchange a dinner together for the repairs made. Sometimes the alternative of welding is better than having to discard or replace an item that might have sentimental value. Because even though you might think welding belongs to a less-technologically-advanced age, it will move strongly into the future as a skill prized by the majority.
15. Train for Your Budding Welding Career
It is possible to train yourself and practice welding in order to do better in a welding career. Most importantly, you don’t always need fancy vocational classes. Welding is one of those careers in which practical application is prized over technical knowledge. If you spend just a few hours each week or even per month on welding, you may find yourself closer to a welding career than you first imagined.
16. Launchpad for More
Even if you never weld another joint in your life, knowing how to weld can be a springboard for the next step in your life. But whether you take the skills you know and become a welder or simply use that knowledge to work in a related field, there’s still value in your experiences. In short, welding can open doors to opportunities you might not have considered before.
17. Explore the Various Types of Welding
As we mentioned above, there are various types of welding, each with their own applications, pros, cons, and techniques. Sometimes experience with all of these types can move you along in your life to a point where you either know welding is something you’d like to do or it’s just a stepping stone to something else. Above all, exploration isn’t a bad thing.
18. Real-Life, Practical Applications
Welding has real-life, practical use. From hobby to career, there are a number of applications, both big and small. Moreover, learning how to weld can teach you a great number of things, from technical knowledge to the value of persistence. In short, welding has value in everyday life.
19. Continue the Tradition
Like many vocational skills, welding has a colorful history rife with iconic figures and valuable achievements. You may find it interesting to read up on how welding evolved over the decades. Because you’re not just one welder in a sea of thousands; you represent the next generation of welders who know the skill set is something to cherish into the future.
20. Continue Life-Long Learning
Each day holds something new for us to learn. In fact, learning can provide a lot of health benefits as well. Give your children the opportunity to continue their education with welding by teaching them how the process works. And if you find yourself at the wisdom end of the age spectrum, don’t give up yet. It’s never too late to learn a new skill.
21. Create Tutorial Videos (For the Next Generation)
Skills such as welding only stay alive because welders pass on the knowledge they’ve amassed over the years. Become the next installment in that series by creating tutorial videos that share your favorite techniques, products, processes, and more. Teach younger generations to become interested in welding and show them that there’s still value in this age-old process.
22. Learn and Explore Cutting-Edge Technology (and Associated Projects)
Welding is part of the larger technological advancement. If you take a look at some of the welding techniques of just one hundred years ago versus today, you’re sure to see quite a difference in how things are done. To clarify, it’s not just 3D printing that’s part of the new technological wave; welding plays a part in the future as well.
23. Welding Doesn’t Discriminate
It doesn’t matter who’s at the end of the torch—at least not to the welding machine itself. Whether you’re male or female, there’s a spot for you as a welder, no matter if you turn professional or just keep it in the garage. As a result, many welders have made their mark on the industry, where anyone and everyone are welcome.
24. Build Cool Things Like This Guy
There’s nothing cooler than showing off the pieces you’ve welded together. Maybe they don’t accomplish much and sure, that time could have been better spent elsewhere, but there’s no denying how sweet it looks when you’re done. Whether you call it art or simply metal fabrication, welding can be a great way to express yourself and your outlook on life. Tell your story with welding.
25. Enjoy and Have Fun!
Welding can be a great way to blow off steam. Relieve some stress by focusing on your favorite pastime. Allow your creative side to come out. Make mistakes—just be safe about it. And whether or not you come up with something at the end of it all, it doesn’t really matter. What counts is that you enjoyed yourself and came out of it in one piece.
These 25 Reasons—and More!
As you can see, there are plenty of reasons to learn how to weld. At the same time, we understand that welding isn’t for everyone. We hope that you’ll at least weigh the pros and cons before deciding, and that this article helps you in establishing a wider view of welding itself.