Auto-darkening mask and protections: what to check before welding

“At the end of the day my eyes burn, and yet the mask does darken.” When you show me your mask, it is often still set the way it came out of the box, or the outer lens is so scratched that the sensor sees very little. Here is what I check, with real numbers: the table of shade numbers by process and current, and the data of the Awelco masks we stock.

The shade number goes with the process

The auto-darkening filter has an adjustable shade number. There is no single right value: it depends on the process and the current. Low-current TIG needs a different shade from a thick electrode or high-current wire. If you switch process and do not change the setting, you are working too light or too dark. Too light tires and damages the eyes; too dark makes you lean your head into the fumes to see the weld pool.

On the mask the shade is written as “DIN” followed by a number: it is the scale number of EN 169, the standard for welding filters, which recommends a number for each process according to the current. This is the table as published in the Neri Safety catalogue, with currents in amperes:

Shade number	Coated electrode (A)	MAG (A)	TIG (A)	MIG, heavy metals (A)	MIG, light alloys (A)	Plasma cutting (A)
8	1.5-60	1.5-70	10-30	—	—	—
9	60-100	70-100	30-70	70-125	—	100-125
10	100-150	100-150	70-125	125-175	125-175	125-150
11	150-200	150-225	125-200	175-250	175-225	150-175
12	200-300	225-400	200-300	250-350	225-300	175-250
13	300-450	400-600	300-350	350-450	300-400	250-400
14	450-600	—	—	450-500	400-500	—

Source: Neri Safety catalogue, “Normative & Info” page. The catalogue also lists air-arc cutting and micro-plasma arc.

An example: TIG at 60 A means shade 9; if you then pick up the electrode and work at 180 A, the right shade is 11. Four things the table tells you that people rarely look at:

• At low currents the shade is 8. It applies to the electrode up to 60 A, MAG up to 70 A and TIG between 10 and 30 A. A “DIN 4/9-13” mask never goes below 9 in the dark state: for these currents you need one with a low range (see the Awelco table below). A darker shade does not reduce protection, but you see the weld pool less.
• At high currents it reaches 14. That happens from 450 A on the electrode and from 400 A on MIG with light alloys. The highest shade on the Awelco masks is 13.
• A fixed shade covers one band only. A “DIN 11 FIX” is the right shade for the electrode between 150 and 200 A, for TIG between 125 and 200 A and for MAG between 150 and 225 A. Outside that band you are working too light or too dark.
• Cup goggles are not for the arc. The Awelco PROTECTOR 400 are DIN 5 (pack of 6, diameter 50 mm): 5 is the shade EN 169 gives for gas welding with acetylene between 70 and 200 l/h. With the arc, the lowest shade in the table is 8.

And current is not the only factor. EN 169 itself warns that the type of arc and the base metal also matter, as does the welder's position (bent over the work or at arm's length may call for at least one shade more or less) and the lighting in the shop. The table is the starting point; if you need to correct, go one shade at a time.

What is written on the filter: the EN 379 marking

Auto-darkening filters have a standard of their own, EN 379, which covers automatic filters that switch from light to dark when the arc strikes. The marking tells you two things.

• The shades. Two numbers separated by a slash are the light state and the dark state; if the dark state is adjustable by hand, the range is written with a dash (the Neri catalogue example is 9/11-13). On the Awelco masks “DIN 4/9-13” means light state 4 and dark state adjustable from 9 to 13. “DIN 4-8/9-13” and “DIN 4/5-8/9-13” have two ranges, a low one and a high one. “DIN 11 FIX” has a single shade.
• The four digits of the optical class, for example 1/1/1/2: optical class, diffusion of light, variation of luminous transmittance and angle dependence. 1 is the best value. Among the Awelco masks in the catalogue only the last digit changes: 4000-E, 5500-E, 8000-E and 9000-E VISION are 1/1/1/1, the others 1/1/1/2.

In newer catalogues you will also find EN ISO 16321, the new standard for eye and face protection, whose part 2 deals with welding. As Portwest explains in its catalogue, it replaces EN 166, and CE certificates already issued remain valid until the expiry date written on the certificate.

Sensitivity and delay

• Sensitivity decides how little light is enough to make the filter darken. With low-current TIG, if it is set low, the filter may not trigger straight away.
• The delay is the time the filter stays dark after the arc goes out. With high currents the workpiece stays incandescent: a longer delay spares you the glare.

And watch out for covered sensors: if you weld out of position and your hand or the workpiece hides the sensors, the filter does not trigger. That is exactly why the number of sensors matters.

These are the figures I find in the Awelco catalogue, useful for comparing:

• Switching time. It is the time the filter takes to darken: less than 1/10000 s on the 1100-E and HELMET 2000 E 11, less than 1/30000 s (about 0.03 milliseconds) on the fastest ones.
• Low-current TIG. For the 7000-E, 7000-E LCD, 8000-E and 9000-E VISION the catalogue states a TIG range from 2 A to 350 A. For the 2000-G our product sheet gives a welding current from 20 to 200 A, for MIG, MMA and TIG. With the table above: for TIG below 30 A, which calls for shade 8, it is better to start from the masks with TIG stated from 2 A.
• Arc sensors. In the table there are 4, except on the 1100-E, 1500-G, 2000-G and HELMET 2000 E 11, which have 2. The 8000-E and 9000-E VISION also have an ambient light sensor.

The Awelco masks in the catalogue, with the manufacturer's data

I have put the data from the Awelco catalogue in a table, so you can compare them without opening one product sheet at a time. “Switching” is the time from light to dark, “delay” the adjustable clearing time.

Model	DIN range	Arc sensors	Switching	Delay
9000-E VISION	4-8/9-13	4	< 1/25000 s	0.04-2.0 s
8000-E	4-8/9-13	4	< 1/25000 s	0.04-2.0 s
7000-E / 7000-E LCD	4-8/9-13	4	< 1/15000 s	0.04-2.0 s
6000-E AIR FRESH	4/5-8/9-13	4	n/a	0.1-1.0 s
5500-E	5-9/9-13	4	< 1/30000 s	0.2-0.8 s
5000-E	4/5-8/9-13	4	< 1/30000 s	0.1-1.0 s
4000-E	4/5-8/9-13	4	< 1/30000 s	0.1-1.0 s
3000-E FLIP UP	4/5-8/9-13	4	< 1/25000 s	0.1-1.0 s
3000-E ORION / JOKER	4/9-13	4	< 1/30000 s	0.1-1.0 s
2000-G / HELMET 1500-G	4/9-13	2	< 1/30000 s	0.1-1.0 s
1100-E / HELMET 2000 E 11	11 FIX	2	< 1/10000 s	0.1-0.8 s

Viewing area and weight range from 100 x 45 mm and 0.4 kg for the 3000-E ORION to 116 x 81 mm and 0.7 kg for the 9000-E VISION. The 5500-E has 100 x 97 mm for 0.4 kg. The 6000-E AIR FRESH, the ventilated one, weighs 2.7 kg.

How I choose, in practice:

• Electrode and MAG between 100 and 300 A (shade 10-12 in the table): a 9-13 range is enough, like the one on the 3000-E.
• Electrode up to 60 A, MAG up to 70 A, TIG up to 30 A (shade 8): you need a low range that reaches 8, that is the masks with a 4/5-8/9-13, 4-8/9-13 or 5-9/9-13 range. The TIG rated from 2 A is only on the 7000-E, 8000-E and 9000-E VISION.

Lenses and batteries: the maintenance nobody does

The outer protective lens fills up with spatter and has to be replaced: it costs little and protects the filter, which costs much more. Every mask has two lenses, an outer and an inner one. Awelco sells them in blisters of 2 outer and 2 inner, or loose in packs of 20. The sizes change from one model to another: on the 3000-E ORION the blister is code 90333, with outer lenses of 115 x 104 mm and inner ones of 100 x 49 mm; on the 5000-E and the 6000-E AIR FRESH it is 90338, with 118 x 137 mm and 105 x 92 mm. That is why I ask you for the model of the mask before preparing the spare.

If the mask has replaceable batteries, check them before the filter starts playing up. Almost all the Awelco masks in the catalogue are listed as solar powered; the 6000-E AIR FRESH has a replaceable battery, and on our product sheets the 7000-E and the 5500-E also have a battery (built-in on the first, auxiliary on the second).

Fumes: the mask does not stop them

An auto-darkening mask protects eyes and face from radiation, not from fumes. Ventilated versions bring air in front of the face and help a lot in long work, but they do not replace extraction where it is needed. If you weld a lot indoors, let's talk.

The 6000-E AIR FRESH is the ventilated mask in the Awelco range: it weighs 2.7 kg, and the catalogue lists the particulate filter (code 90462) and the foam prefilter (code 90461) as optional.

The rest: skin where the spatter lands

For welding you need welding gloves, not just any work gloves: those certified EN 12477 are made for this. Then, depending on how much and how you weld:

• leather apron and sleeves if you weld seated or in the flat position;
• leather hood if you weld overhead, where the drops fall on your neck;
• protective curtains so you do not blind the person working next to you: the Awelco RED Welding Curtain measures 174 x 174 cm, like its tubular frame.

Never synthetic fabrics underneath: a spark melts them and they stick to the skin.

For clothing there is EN ISO 11611, with two classes: class 1 for less hazardous welding techniques and situations (less spatter and radiant heat), class 2 for the more hazardous ones. The Portwest SW10 leather apron, in 1.3 mm cowhide split leather and measuring 91 x 58 cm, is class 2.

What I need to know

• which processes you use (electrode, wire, TIG, plasma) and at what currents: with the current I find the shade in the table;
• how many hours a day you wear the mask and whether you wear prescription glasses;
• whether you weld out of position or overhead;
• whether other people work close to the station;
• the model of the mask you already have, if you need spare lenses.

---

We stock these

A few items from the range we keep. If you cannot find the size or the model you need, just ask: what you see online is only part of what we can source for you.

Browse the whole category: Welding Masks

Browse the whole category: Clothing, Protections and Accessories for Welders