What Do I Need To Weld Some Pipe To A Drum?

Even if you think you know what was in the drum, drop 2 or 3 lbs of dry ice in it. (DON'T seal drum after you put dry ice in it!!!!!)

My brother wanted to show what a great MIG welder he was in making a drum cover for our parents motorcycle shop waste oil drum. Even though the drum was 3/4rs full of oil (and other things obviously) it went off with a wush! after about

No one was hurt and not a single car was damaged by the flying filters and bucket.

LUCKY!!!!!

Please learn from my personal experience and don't make the same mistake.

Bart D. Hull snipped-for-privacy@inficad.com Tempe, Arizona

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carl mciver wrote:

--Stove cement can be had at any good hardware store or fireplace store.

Thanks for the info. So far it sounds like my best bet is screwed on/in fittings and stove cement, whatever that is.

Indeed Lucky an uncle of mine cut a drum apart; number 98 out of a hundred or so. They never found anything of size to bury.

that's a cool project ulysses, i wish you much luck with it. aren't they specifying black iron fittings because they're cheap easily accessible, etc.? (not because they're the best for the job) they're using a HUGE threaded connection only because it's "airtight" and easy to come by. i wondered if ulysses could use, instead of the thick/thin black iron/sheet metal, couldn't he use some kind of thinner pipe/tubing, like automotive exhaust pipe, then it'll be at least "not-as-thick" to thin. i think those access portals suck. it specifies putting silicone sealant on them when you screw them on, what a hassle if they have to be opened and closed a lot. the drum... the top will be cut off it, presumably that could be done by the guy who sells the drum, so there would be less of a concern with an explosion. i always imagined guys who sell 55 gallon drums have some sort of device that works like one of those industrial (one gallon size) can openers. is that what is commonly used to cut the tops off 55 gallon drums? i'd guess they'd be relatively explosion proof. the elbows and tees in the plans could be welded up or bent from automotive exhaust pipe. problem is (availability, expense) with the airtight closure to substitute for the 4" and 3" threaded black iron pipe. looks to me the plans were drawn up so an "average joe" could put it together inexpensively with locally available materials, but that leaves the difficulty of welding thick to thin. in my limited experience brazing requires an even more deft touch than welding, if it were me i wouldn't want to braze it. i wondered if instead of trying to weld a fillet joint from the thin sheet metal of the drum to the thick black iron pipe on the outside of the drum, if it would be possible to weld inside the drum (with O/A) the edge of the pipe, with a very tight fit-up, to the thin sheet metal focusing the flame onto the pipe. i'd imagine there would be less of a chance of burning through the thin sheetmetal if you weren't trying to do an inside fillet joint. even maybe filing or grinding the inside edge of the black iron pipe to a thinner wall thickness just on the end that needs to be welded to the thin sheetmetal, and maybe even then getting inside the drum to do the weld? a fusion weld on a very tight fit up. i still think using threaded black iron sucks. too damn heavy.

are there any relatively inexpensive airtight heat-tolerant lightweight sheet metal fittings/closures that could be substituted for the thick heavy threaded black iron fittings/closures? i'd bet there are! somewhere! like... the top of a paint can. i'm not saying "use the top of a paint can", but that would be an example of an airtight, lightweight, heat tolerant sheet metal closure. i bet there are others out there somewhere that would be acceptable.

actually, if it were me i'd probably want to make it out of an old (100 pound) propane cylinder, etc.

b.w.

"Ulysses" wrote in message news: snipped-for-privacy@corp.supernews.com...

Thanks for all the suggestions!

First off I've read that welding galvanized pipe produces toxic fumes so it's safer to use black pipe. I agree that much of their design leaves a lot to be desired. My plan is to build a small unit that could power a 4 HP engine and with the experience I gain from that I could make modifications and build bigger units. And yes, old cans are a good source of sheet metal :-). I'll all for scrounging and improvising.

One modification that seems like it should be obvious is the elimination of the "shaker." It should be easy enough to get the vibrations from the engine to do all the shaking for me.

Flexible exhaust pipe for cars might be useful for parts of it and could probably be sealed with stove cement and hose clamps, at least for a prototype. As far as cutting the tops off the barrels I've seen some that had a removable lid that was held on by a clamping band.

If the first one works and is not a real PITA to operate then I'm going to experiment with using woodgas to operate a water heater and perhaps I could make a small unit for my BBQ. If we run out of gasoline here (USA) then an old Toyota or Datsun pickup with a carburator could provide transportation.

I have a lot of oak trees where I live and the work I do (custom picture framing) produces an abundance of wood chips that would probably be ideal for these woodgas generators. I'm living off-grid right now and my generators eat a lot of gasoline. I could be running them nearly for free if I can get this to work.

I like the idea of a heavier cylinder such as the propane tank you suggested but I think it would require a lot of work to cut the top off and make the necessary holes in it. I expect that I'll determine the need for a heavier duty design once I build the first one.