Laser Weld Cleaning
and surface prep in Switzerland.
We remove weld discoloration, heat tint and surface oxide from stainless steel and other metals with a pulsed fiber laser. Welds come out clean, the corrosion resistance comes back, the parent material stays at temperature. Mobile service for fabrication shops, tank builders, food and pharma equipment manufacturers and maintenance teams across the country.
- Mobile across Switzerland
- Reply within 24 h
- No pickling paste, no grinding
Before and after: weld cleaning with laser on a stainless seam
Drag the slider across. On the left, a TIG weld on 1.4404 stainless with the typical rainbow heat tint. On the right, the same seam after laser cleaning. Bright stainless surface, no edge thinning, no smearing, ready for passivation or direct service.
How laser weld cleaning
actually works
Laser weld cleaning targets the most demanding part of a stainless weldment, the heat-affected zone next to the weld bead. During welding, the surface oxidizes at temperatures where chromium is consumed faster than iron, leaving an oxide that is rich in iron and poor in chromium. Visually it shows up as the familiar rainbow tint. Functionally it reduces the corrosion resistance of the stainless surface at exactly the point where it is most stressed.
Traditional methods address this in different ways. Pickling paste, typically a mix of nitric and hydrofluoric acid, dissolves the oxide but requires neutralization and produces hazardous waste. Mechanical brushing or grinding removes the visual oxide but smears contamination across the surface and rounds the weld toe. Electrochemical cleaning works well but requires electrolyte handling and is not always practical on large or complex parts. Laser cleaning sidesteps all three concerns: no chemical waste, no smearing, no electrolyte to manage. The oxide vaporizes and is captured by an extraction system, the parent metal surface is left intact and ready to repassivate.
On the production side, the practical impact is in throughput and traceability. A skilled operator can clean several meters of weld per hour, depending on the geometry and the access. Parameters are documented and reproducible, which simplifies audits in regulated industries like food, pharma and process equipment. For maintenance work on existing installations, the mobile setup means we can come to the tank or the piping run rather than asking for the part to be sent away. The combination of clean result, controlled heat input and traceable parameters is why laser weld cleaning has become a standard option for fabrication shops working with stainless steel.
Why stainless fabricators choose laser over pickling or brushing
Restores corrosion resistance
The chrome-depleted oxide is fully removed. The parent stainless surface can repassivate naturally or be promoted with a standard passivation step, restoring the corrosion resistance lost during welding.
No pickling paste, no acid waste
No nitric, no hydrofluoric, no neutralization, no hazardous effluent. Compatible with workshops that cannot host chemical pickling or have moved away from it for environmental reasons.
Weld geometry preserved
No grinding, no flap discs, no rounding of the weld toe. The weld profile that the welder produced is exactly the profile that goes into service, no mechanical reshaping.
Selective on weld and HAZ
The laser cleans the weld bead and the heat-affected zone, leaving adjacent areas untouched. Marking, etching and serial numbers on the part are not affected.
Repeatable on serial work
Once parameters are dialled in, the result is the same from one weld to the next. Useful for serial fabrication, audit-grade work and quality reports that must be reproducible.
Mobile and on-site capable
Mobile equipment for tanks, piping runs, structural welds and other large assemblies. We come to the shop floor or to the construction site, no need to disassemble or ship parts.
Where laser weld cleaning is used
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Stainless steel tanks and vesselsRestore the passive layer on tanks and vessels.
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Architectural stainless and decorative partsBright, even finish on visible stainless parts.
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Process piping and skid unitsClean seams on piping and skids in place.
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Food and pharma equipmentHygienic surfaces that pass food and pharma audits.
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Aerospace and special alloysGentle, controlled cleaning for special alloys.
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Repair and maintenance on existing installationsOn-site seam cleaning without dismantling.
Materials we clean
after welding
| Material | Suitability | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Stainless steel, 1.4301 and 1.4404 | Very good | Heat tint and chrome oxide on TIG and MIG welds. Standard work for tanks, process equipment, food and pharma. |
| Duplex and super duplex | Very good | Higher-grade stainless used in marine and chemical processing. Parameters validated to avoid intermetallic concerns at the weld zone. |
| Carbon steel structural welds | Good | Mill scale, surface oxide and weld spatter around welded joints. Preparation before coating, galvanizing or further welding operations. |
| Aluminum welds | Good | Oxide layer and contamination around aluminum welds, particularly relevant for structural, pressure and bonded assemblies. |
| Titanium | Limited | Surface contamination after welding on titanium components in medical, chemical or aerospace use. Parameter validation through test cleaning is standard. |
| Nickel alloys | Very good | Heat-affected oxide on Inconel, Hastelloy and similar grades. Used in petrochemical, power generation and high-temperature applications. |
How a weld cleaning job runs
Sample and brief
You send photos of the welds, the material specification and a brief description of the application, including any food, pharma or pressure-related requirements.
Test cleaning
For larger or recurring work we propose a free test cleaning on a sample weld. You see the result, we document the parameters used, the main job becomes fully predictable.
Written quote
Fixed-price quote within 24 hours, with breakdown per linear meter of weld or per part, batch size, expected processing time and any travel charges for on-site work.
On-site or in-house work
We come to your shop floor or to the installation site with the mobile unit, or we process the parts at our facility. The parameters and the result match what was demonstrated in the test.
Handover and documentation
Parts or installation delivered with a parameter sheet, photo documentation if requested, and the dust collected in the filter. Recurring jobs use the same recipe, no re-validation needed each time.
Mobile laser weld cleaning on your shop floor
The mobile setup is critical for weld cleaning because the parts that need it are often large, awkward to ship or already installed. A storage tank cannot come to a workshop, a process skid is not worth disassembling for cleaning, a piping run cannot be moved. We arrive with the laser, the controller, the extraction unit and all accessories in a van, plug into a 230 V or 400 V outlet, and bring a generator for sites without power.
We cover all of Switzerland, with regular jobs in Zurich, Bern, Basel, St. Gallen, Lausanne and the surrounding industrial regions. Recurring contracts with fabrication shops, food and pharma equipment manufacturers and maintenance teams are part of our standard offering. More on the mobile service is available through Industrial Laser Cleaning.
What does laser weld cleaning cost?
Pricing depends on the material, the length of weld, the access conditions and any documentation requirements. We work with fixed-price quotes, often per linear meter of weld or per part type. The example figures below give an order of magnitude. A detailed quote follows photos and a description of your case. For oxide removal that is not weld-specific, see Laser Oxide Removal.
| Example | Guide price |
|---|---|
| Small fabricated part, single weld indicative per part | CHF 120 - 240 |
| Stainless welds, per linear meter after parameter setup | CHF 80 - 150/m |
| On-site, tank or skid plus travel, indicative | CHF 680 - 1'500/day |
Questions on
laser weld cleaning
Need clean welds,
without pickling or grinding?
Send us photos of the welds, the material spec and the next step in your process. We reply within 24 hours with a first assessment and, for larger or recurring work, the option of a free test cleaning on a sample weld. No commitment to start, parameters documented for repeatable batches.