Decided to become a welder in Washington State?
If your answer is yes, then this article is for you.
Here, you can find the list of the best welding schools in the state as well as a bunch of useful tips and facts.
Article Table of Contents
- 1 Top 18 Welding Certification Schools in Washington State
- 2 Popular Degree Programs
- 3 Reasons for Becoming a Welder in Washington State
- 4 Average Welder’s Salary in Washington State
- 5 Welding in Washington State: Clue Facts
- 6 Similar Career Options in Washington State
- 7 Welding Safety Tips
- 8 Conclusion
- 9 Frequently Asked Questions
Top 18 Welding Certification Schools in Washington State
If you want to become a welder, you should look for training programs to pursue your career.
Completing your training, you’ll be able to enroll in the certification tests to prove your proficiency.
In the list below, you’ll be able to find high-school welding programs, technical colleges, and centers.
All of them were approved by the American Welding Society (AWS).
Welding Classes in Seattle
One of the most popular locations for welding training is Seattle.
If you look for some options there, you should learn about Tulsa Welding School.
It offers not only welding training programs but some other courses as well.
There are such options as:
- Financial assistance;
- Career services & part-time job help;
- Housing & transportation support.
Best Welding Schools in Washington State
In fact, Tusla isn’t a single option.
There is a bunch of other welding certification schools in Washington State.
Here is the table that contains contact info of all the certified welding schools in the state.
School | Location | Contact Information | Phone Number |
---|---|---|---|
Anvil Welding Instruction | 4227 E. Trent Ave Spokane, WA 99202 United States | Brenda Benn | (509) 891-5914 |
Big Bend Community College | 7662 Chanute Street North East, Moses Lake, WA 98837 United States | Shawn McDaniel | (509) 793-2622 |
Blackwell Job Corps Center | 4155 County Highway H, Laona, WA 54541 United States | (715) 674-2311 | |
Bremerton School District | Number 100 C134 North Marion Ave, Bremerton, WA 98312 United States | Thomas Dargle | (360) 478-5114 |
Centralia College | 600 W Locust, Centralia, WA 98532 United States | Mike Driscoll | (360) 736-9391 |
Columbia Basin Job Corp Center | 6739 24th Avenue, Building 2402, Moses Lake, WA 98837 United States | Paul Muir | (509) 762-5581 |
Curlew Job Corps Center | 3 Campus Street, Curlew, WA 99118 United States | (509) 779-4611 | |
Grays Harbor College | 1620 Edward P Smith Dr, Aberdeen, WA 98520 United States | John Krug | (360) 532-9020 |
Lake Washington Technical College | 11605 132nd Ave NE, Kirkland, WA 98034 United States | (425) 739-8104 | |
Lincoln High School | 701 S 37, Tacoma, WA 98408 United States | Grant Hosford | (206) 596-2017 |
Olympic College-Bremerton/Shelton | 1600 Chester Avenue, Bremerton, WA 98337 United States | Chirs Hobson | (360) 792-6050 |
Skagit Valley College | 2405 East College Way, Mount Vernon, WA 98273 United States | Dan Nelson | (360) 416-6549 |
Southeast Area Technical Skill Center | 525 Campus Loop, Walla Walla, WA 99362 United States | James Polson | (509) 526-2000 |
Spokane Skill Center | 4141 N Regal St, Spokane, WA 99207 United States | Andrew Snyder | (509) 354-7470 |
Tri Tech Skills Center | 5929 W. Metaline Ave. Kennewick, WA 99336 United States | Gina Cutts | (509) 222-7300 |
Upper Columbia Academy | 3025 E Spangle Waverly Rd, Spangle, WA 99031 United States | William Garrett | (509) 245-3600 |
Walla Walla Community College | 204 S College Ave, College Place, WA 99324 United States | D Dawes | (509) 527-2615 |
West Sound Technical Skills Center | 101 National Ave. N, Bremerton, WA 98312 United States | Bela Kovacs | (360) 478-6950 |
Keep in mind that the information in the table may change so we recommend you to doublecheck it.
Underwater Welding Schools in Washington State
Speaking of underwater welding schools, there is one in Washington State.
It’s The Divers Institute of Technology which is one of the best welding schools in the state.
It provides specialized training in marine diving technology.
Popular Degree Programs
Reasons for Becoming a Welder in Washington State
It’s clear that each person has its own reason for becoming a welder.
However, there are multiple reasons that are common to everyone.
First, welding is a rewarding career that can provide you with a stable income.
Also, welding has an amazing outlook which grows constantly.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics claims that the number of welding job offers will increase by 6% until 2026.
Average Welder’s Salary in Washington State
To begin with, welding is a well-paid career.
A median salary throughout the USA is about $39,390 per year or $21.90 per hour.
At the same time, the top 10% of welders throughout the country earn about $62 100 annually.
Speaking of welders in Washington State, their median salary is about $48 160 per year or $23.16 per hour while the top 10% of welders earn $66 020 annually.
Welding in Washington State: Clue Facts
Before looking for welding training programs, it’s better to start with learning a little about welding itself.
It will let you get a better understanding of this career and decide whether you want to be a welder.
Also, it will make your further education easier.
In simple words, welding is a process of joining metal pieces together.
In order to do it, welders heat and melt metal.
If you want to be a good welder, you should be strong physically and mentally.
Also, you need to be attentive and detail oriented.
One another point is that welders should be able to read instructions and blueprints.
Welders choose methods and tools to perform their job based on project requirements.
Most Popular Welding Methods
There are more than 100 welding methods.
However, most of them aren’t frequently used.
Among the most popular welding methods there are:
- Shielded Metal Arc Welding (Stick);
- Plasma Arc Welding;
- Flux-Cored Welding;
- Gas Metal Arc Welding (MIG);
- Tungsten Inert Gas Welding (TIG);
- Gas or Oxy-Acetylene Welding.
Similar Career Options in Washington State
You should know that there are a number of similar career options but the most resembling ones are soldering and brazing.
Both of these methods are used to join metal pieces as well as welding.
But still, there are some differences.
First of all, welding requires higher temperatures while soldering and brazing use temperature that is below 850 degrees Fahrenheit/450 degrees Celsius.
One another point is that these methods require some extra materials such as so-called fillers.
At the same time, brazing allows creating stronger constructions.
Welding Safety Tips
Welding is a dangerous job and there are lots of safety rules that welders should follow.
There are some of them:
- Read all the instructions properly. There are a number of important warnings in equipment manuals and reading them, you can guarantee your safety and prevent a number of accidents.
- Buy high-quality welding gear. It’s important to use the best auto-darkening welding helmet, gloves, glasses, jacket, and shoes. Also, don’t forget to protect your skin from heat properly.
- Be mindful of the environment. It means that you should keep the area clean, tidy, and well-ventilated.
Conclusion
As you see, there is a lot to learn if you want to become a welder.
Nevertheless, if you choose a good training program, you’ll be able to get all the required skills and start your career.
Use data in this article to get info about all the available welding training courses.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does WFS mean in welding?
WFS stands for wire feed speed.
This controls the amperage and the extent of weld penetration.
It is always important to have an appropriate WFS.
A WFS that is too high can result in burn-through.
If it is too low, you might end up with a bad tie-in at the weld’s toes.
Can you weld brass to steel?
No.
Because brass and steel have very different welding points, welding them together is exceptionally tricky if not impossible.
That said, you can use the brazing technique, which involves melting materials and combining them with filler material, to join the materials together.
What is weld spatter?
Weld spatter forms from droplets of non-metallic material or molten metal during welding.
The droplets can either splash or spray from the metal and hit anything in the surrounding area.
Luckily, excess spatter can be removed and recycled in a furnace for later use.
Read the full guide: How to Become a Certified Welder