Plasma Table Fluid: Why Use It?

Cantesco PATF plasma water table fluid, 5 gallon carboy

Why use it?

Plain water in a plasma table doesn't stay clean. It rusts the slats and the table, gives fresh-cut parts a coat of flash rust, and as it sits it goes stale and starts to smell.

Cantesco® Plasma Arc Water Table Fluid is a concentrate you add to the table water. Cantesco® formulates it to stop steel corrosion and foul odours, in the water table and on the work pieces, so your table lasts longer and your parts come off cleaner.

BeforePlasma cutting water table with rusted slats and contaminated water
A neglected table: rusted slats, scale and contaminated water.
AfterPlasma cutting water table with new slats and clean water
A clean, maintained table.

The clean table is shown with new slats and is for reference purposes only. Table appearance depends on the end user's cleaning, maintenance and use.

What it's for

Plasma cutting water tables used on stainless steel, steel and other ferrous metal fabrications.

Do not use on copper or aluminum.

How to use it

  • Add at 10% of the tank volume, at room temperature: a 10:1 mix.
  • Check the mix with pH strips. Aim for pH 9 to 10.
  • The fluid doesn't evaporate with the water. Top up with plain water so you don't double-dose.
  • Clean and refill the table at least once a year, or sooner if oil or dirt gets in.

Storage and safety

Shelf life is five years unopened, six months once opened. Safety Data Sheet: Warning, harmful if swallowed. Download the SDS (PDF).

Sizes

Cantesco PATF-5G 5 gallon carboyPATF-5G
5 US gallon carboy
Makes about 50 US gallons of table mixCantesco PATF-DR 55 gallon drumPATF-DR
55 US gallon drum
Makes about 550 US gallons of table mix

Need coolant for the plasma system itself? See the coolant comparison chart. All Safety Data Sheets are on our Safety Data Sheets page.

Cantesco® is a brand of KEMPER SYSTEM.