Are These Drums Safe For A UDS?

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My son works for a company that I can get brand new ones from at a reasonable price. He gets a discount there.
 
Nice! I wish I were closer
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Well, I did a 3 hour burn on one of them yesterday. Gotta go winterize our lake place so I won't get back to it until Monday. I'll be bringing a Weber lid back with me.
 
Well, essentially it's exactly like that because all of the responses -- for and against -- are based on opinion. There is definitely a correct answer but unfortunately, I don't know what that is and it probably depends on the chemical that was stored in it. Wouldn't it be nice if Myth Busters did an episode on "Smoking Myths' and settled it once and for all?
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I think the majority err on the side of caution which I would say is a good thing. At least that can't hurt you. But it would be nice to know for sure.

One thing I can't understand is why people say "burn it out" then "take it to a car wash"? I'm not sure what the car wash is going to remove that the fire did not. Plus, if the car wash owner catches you, he's going to be pissed and likely call the cops.

If you were bound and determined to use it, I would build a big ^%$^% fire in it, then wire brush it down to bare metal, then build another big &^*&* fire in it then wire brush it again. Then stick your head in it and if you can still smell solvent or anything else suspicious, I'd think twice about using it. If it did not have a strange smell, I would guess -- and that's just a guess -- that it would be okay.

Hmm . . . I'm gonna have to do a little research and see if I can find a source to email this question to. Would be interesting to find out from some chemists or metalurgists (SP) or something. Trouble is, I really don't know where to start yet. But if I come up with anything, I'll report back.
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Dave
 
Dave, a good washing will get rid of any residual ash from whatever was burned out and yes, my first plan of action is to brush it down to bare metal with an angle grinder with a brush in it. Then I'll wash it out again and once dry, I'm thinking of giving it a coat of high temp primer, then a coat of high temp paint the same as the outside will be. With it being burned, washed, brushed, then coated with two layers of paint, how could I get any fumes inside the drum?

As far as a car wash owner getting pi$$ed off, by the time I take them to the car wash, they'll just be burned metal drums with no ID on them anyway. I'll hose them out at home first so they'll even look clean inside too. If I had a powerwasher, I'd do it all at home.

I only posted this question in hopes that someone might know something specific. I guess my opinion is that if it's burned out, washed and wire brushed, then sealed behind heat proof paint, it should be pretty safe by then.
 
What ever you do DON'T paint the inside. Just burn it and get it down to bare metal. If it smells okay, rub it down with Crisco or spray it with Pam and smoke a fatty or two to season it. A little vaporized pork fat is a great rust preventer.
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Dave
 
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My first UDS was built from a drum that formerly housed 10w30. I drained out the bit of motor oil that was in it, scrubbed it out several times with degreaser, and burned it out for 6 hours with 3 pallets. By the time I was done there was no smell of anything other than burning pallets. I sprayed the inside down with Pam and did a test fire. I have now cooked on it for 4 weeks or so and built up a nice coat of "rust prevention" with no petroleum smell or taste to any of the food.
 
Yup.....DO NOT PAINT the inside. I coated mine with used peanut oil. That also gets burned in by a seasoning burn....the same one used to cure the high temp engine paint used on the outside.

Did you get the locking ring / lid question figured out? Does the lid have a rubber gasket on the rim? If so, pull that off too.
 
Well, it's all a moot point now. I brought my Weber grill lid back from our lake place and it doesn't fit. When I line it up with one side of the drum rim, there's an inch of clearance on the other side. I don't want a flat lidded one reck UDS and I only want to build one of them. So one berrel will keep getting repeated burns in it and eventually will become the firebrick lined firebox for a 275 gallon oil drum smoker I'm working on the design for and the other one will be my mouse and squirrel proof bird seed storage bin.

So now I'm on the lookout for a new smaller drum, hopefully that has held something safer. I'll be cartin my Weber lid around with me when I go lookin.
 
Why not center the Weber lid on the removable barrel lid, mark its position, and then cut the center out of the barrel lid and weld the Weber lid over the hole thus making a perfect fit...
 
My opinion if you burn some hot fires in them and grind it down to bare metal then burn again i can't imagine them not being ok. just my humble opinion.
 
There are several easy ways to make the lid fit, you will have to do a search, but....have you checked the bottom of the drum for fit? I don't think you will ever find a drum that will fit perfect.
 
Well, I went out and turned the drum over and tried the lid. Still no go, but it's closer. Maybe close enough so that I might be able to hammer the rim of the barrel in just a little and using a hammer flare the rim of the lid out a little, not doing anything major to either. It's worth a try. Originally I wanted to cut the bottom out anyway and have a removeable base too. Maybe tomorrow if it's not so windy out.
 
Just a thought, but what if you cut several small 1/4" deep slits (with a cut off wheel) spaced evenly around the top and then use a small ratchet strap to pull the top in until the lid fits?
 
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