Welding is a profession that involves multiple risks, including a close and daily brush with fire. It is essential to have the right tools and have them appropriately organized to complete the task at hand. Welding backpacks have swooped into the modern era to abet this noble endeavor.
Many would question the need for a specific backpack aimed at welders when almost any other with thick material and enough space could work well for retaining tools. It turns out that is not the case. Welding requires a helmet, tongs, a clamp, a chisel, a hammer, and many more such singular tools that are bound to get mixed up if thrown carelessly into some bag.
Welding backpacks have been born out of long years of observing welders at work. Their hands automatically go to some tools, and others are used less often. Some things are a staple even before the work begins; the rest have to follow in a precise order. The backpacks are designed so tools can be placed systematically, saving the welder much time unpacking and packing.
There are, however, specific standards every attribute of the backpack should meet before it becomes a home for your special welding tools. Read on to get the ultimate guide.
A Strong Material
Welding tools require a strong and durable shield. This can only be provided by a backpack made of a strong material like nylon or polyester. However, polyester is the better of the two, considering its waterproof quality. Such a backpack will last the welder a long time, rain, hail, sleet, or snow.
Another significant element that the welder has to brave is fire. The modern world has surmounted this obstacle by coming up with fire-resistant welding backpacks. One needs to look out for the ‘FR’ tag to get the bag of the most superior quality.
This adds to the idea of reliability. The bag’s material and handles should be made for rough handling and regular wear and tear. The bag should be a partner for more hijinks and adventures than any regular backpack ever can. It should, quite literally, be able to pass the test of fire to become the welder’s constant companion.
Easy Carry Backpack
With its immense weight, lugging around welding equipment is already a hassle. Compounding it with a heavy bag will not sell the welder on its advantages. The bag should not weigh too much in itself. It should be light enough so that the tools only make it slightly heavy. The portability of the bag is, after all, the primary reason for buying one.
Carrying Capacity of the Backpack
A welding backpack should have a 20L to 30L volume for tools. This is not to say that that is the limit. There are high-end bags with as much as 50L carrying capacity for the professional welder.
This is why a welding backpack is different from a standard backpack. A 15L backpack could suffice for the usual stuff, but a backpack needs more strength and volume for the paraphernalia required for intricate welding work.
Multiple Compartments for Belongings
In the modern era, nobody leaves home without their phone, wallet, and other effects. Minutiae such as earphones, a charger, and sanitizers would all require their own pockets in one bag. Welding bags are plentiful in this respect.
A spacious welding bag should be segmented to allow for personal effects other than tools to remain snug and safe in the bag. Some backpacks claim to have as many as 20 pockets for the various knick-knacks apart from the tools. Some even come with laptop sleeves so that even those can be carried around in one all-purpose bag.
Backpacks with Velcro loops help place tools when busy on the job. Those can be game-changers for welders.
An even better one can pre-empt the welder’s needs and come with an additional helmet bag to keep the headgear secure. This can be a detachable bag or a front pocket in others, specifically in the helmet’s shape.
Weight Distribution on the Shoulders
As mentioned, welding equipment can strain the shoulders, especially those of the peripatetic welder. The best welding backpacks come with shoulder straps that can be easily adjusted to balance out the weight on the shoulders, chest, and hips.
The sternum and hip strap are additional features of these highly-practical welding backpacks that help distribute the load around your spine. Despite the load they claim to carry, good welding bags make it so that the wearer isn’t completely weighed-down by it. Thus, it helps to have sturdy straps.
The Seminal Backpanel
Since welders interact with water, fire, and electricity for hours at a stretch, often wearing their bags while doing the work, their bags should be such that they do not accumulate sweat. The back panel sticking to the welder should be well-padded to allow the absorption of sweat and even electric shocks.
The backpanel of the bag can make or break its utility. It is of the utmost importance in the regular workday of a welder.
Sturdy Base or Feet
An equally important part of a welding backpack is its ability to stand upright when placed on the ground. It should have a sturdy base and additional rubber feet if this happens.
Nothing is worse during a hectic shift than having your carefully arranged tools topple over and become a chore to sort through due to a backpack that insists on being prone instead of standing upright. Most well-made bags understand this problem and provide the necessary base support.
USB Charging Port
Electronic gadgets meant to take the welder through the monotony of the day mustn’t die abruptly. Hence, the USB charging port in the welding backpacks. These are a good solution for those who are always on the go. It can even come in handy with tools that require constant battery backup. A power bank connected to the port and the USB cable to it- and the welder is ready to take on the day without needing to find sockets everywhere.
Welding backpacks are, thus, crucial in sustaining the long work hours of the welder and their ability to work in dangerous situations. A backpack can genuinely become the backbone of the business because it brings order to the chaos. Every morning when the welder arrives with a well-organized backpack and multiple projects before them, they look forward to the day. It simply is because there is no mess to be made in the process. All the background work has already been taken care of by the backpack.
Hence, this is an investment one must make, keeping the future and comfort in mind. It is such a thing that becomes like a second skin once the welder starts using it and, therefore, needs to be a careful decision made for the long foreseeable future.