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I'm pushing 80 years old. I made burn barrels as a teenager. I used a5 pound seldgehammer and an old piece of steel to cut out the top. I just banged the hell out of it till it fell out. Then I used 12 guage with any old buckshot from 15 to 25 yards out on it till it looked right.

I take the 22 rifle out makes great vent holes

You don't need a drill to make those holes. When I make a burn barrel, I make a few rows of X cuts with the angle grinder, then knock in the middle with a ball peen hammer. The edges folded inward prevent burning stuff from escaping, pretty well. Cheers.

Whenever you get a barrel with unknown flammable fluids in it. Fill it with 10-20 gallons of water before start cutting on it. Spin it around and the vapors should be contained. I always suggest putting a few gallons in and washing it out before filling with more water to make inert and a little bit of any kind of oil on that step bit will make it last much longer

The match test is always a fun Test! 🔥 🔥 🔥

Good video. I use a pick axe for the holes. You don't need to swing to hard and it makes 4 holes in the bottom and 6 on the sides in about 1 minute.

To eliminate smoke and fumes, make a 3 inch hole in the side just above the bottom,and use a shop vac hose blowing air in. Use a 3 foot pipe between the barrel and plastic hose to keep it from melting. Take a propane roofing torch and direct the flame horizontally above the barrel. this is like an after burner and with the jet of air blowing in the bottom, it will burn clean. B careful it gets hot and blows ash out. works great

Great tips, we use burning barrels at the cottage in NW Ontario. We need a new one(every few years). One thought occurred to me while watching was if you can find a barrel with a removable top it could cover the bins when not in use. I find that rain compacts the residue and makes dumping difficult. Thought the paving stone idea was good. Set on 3 or 4 Bricks . Thanks!

i did a match test once when i was a kid. Right before grade 7. The result of that test was third degree burns all up my hand and forearm. I failed that test.

Thanks bro, making mine today since I have so many downed branches from the ice storm. Can't wait.

Thanks for the video, I'm going to put my barrel up on bricks in the bare dirt like you did. BTW, I set my field on fire with a burn barrel (in February and I'm in Michigan). Scared the piss out of me how fast the flame front advanced. I called our town fire department and they were able to extinguish the fire in a few minutes, thankfully before it got close to the neighbor's houses.

Whe you have to make a "smelltest" on unknown substances never hold your Head directly over the source and breathe. Hold your nose aside and use your hand to wave a little amount of the fumes towards you. This minimizes the risk when the substance is agressive. Also dont forget to wear goggles and chemical resistant garment and gloves. There are many substances that are clear and don't smell but are very dangerous to health and safety. Please check in advance what might have been in the container before.😁

I really apprec8ate your comments about 6000 as ft of garden the master addition and 170 chickens and mostly the board about your tools being disorganized in milk crates..i struggle with similar all the time.

Texas had an ice storm a couple weeks ago and I lost the top quarter of several trees as well as many branches that were taken down when the tops collapsed. I've spent days cutting usable wood for my nephew's fireplace, but have lots of smaller twigs, limbs and pine needles to burn. I spent a year prior to the ice storm debating between a wood chipper/shredder and a burn barrel, the wood chippers that could handle the trees and pine needles were way out of my budget. I also didn't want something that might need gas or electricity in case neither are available. I've just spent over an hour looking at various YT videos how to create the burn barrel, wasn't even sure about the drill bit needed to drill through steel. I came across your video which kind of went through a checklist of things to do, like where to burn, which I'd already decided on the safest place, plus the concrete pavers to set it up on a dirt area, and to have access to my hose. I grew up in N. Idaho and spent many years in WA state and you never leave fires unattended...where I live in TX, people create all kinds of fires and just walk away and leave them burning...which totally freaks me out. Anyway, your video was actually the most helpful and informative for a novice. Really appreciate it. Thanks so much.

Hold my beer while I do smell test. 😀

Good video. I am looking on KZfaq for burn barrel / incinerator ideas. I have gone through 3 barrels in our 30 years here at our Texas Homestead. I looked up burn barrels on google and there were many for a bunch of money. In the past we just pick up a couple of $5 barrels locally and punch holes in them.

that wire mesh that the plasters put on the wall in a home works real well for a mesh top to contain ashes and sparks. And you can get at least 2 our of one piece.

"Rain two straight days" when it wants to it can rain here a week or two straight hard out. Here in New Zealand these 55 gallon drums we call them drums not barrel are about $15 NZ each but they do burn up the rubbish as we say here just the same.- blessings South Island New Zealand.

I find the 38 Special makes nice holes in the burn barrel. I don’t shoot holes through the bottom. Just about 6 shots through the side below the bottom ring.

Says right on top 5w-40. Smell test is still good. Don't know who had previously. But who's to know what or when you're burning trash, looks like your closest neighbor is over the next mountain range lol. Best words to hear in a shop, "found it".

I use an old lawn mower blade and a sledge hammer to cut the ends out.

Excellent thanks!

Oone hell of a can opener😏

I cut the top off my burn barrel with a air hammer with a chisel bit takes about 1 min to cut it off on the inside leaving the rolled edge intact. Then I cut a 4" hole on the side 1 inch up the bottom . Works great.

I just made one from a new Behrens metal trashcan. I drilled some 2 inch holes with a hole saw on the bottom and a couple in the sides near the bottom and one 4 inch hole through the lid to let it burn down unattended without having to worry about ashes blowing around. In the inside I propped up a 17 inch diameter grill grate with some firebrick to keep an airspace underneath along with the holes to facilitate the fire breathing better and burn hotter. Wish I had a 55 gallon drum like you. Would've been more durable and probably withstand the higher temps better.

Done burn barrels for decades. Sawzall is the tool for cutting. I arrived at a different configuration. Cut out both the top AND bottom. Place a heavy screen on the bottom. An old refrigerator shelf works great. Dig an ash hole and place the screen and barrel on top of some blocks/stones. Light 'er up and the thin g burns like a mother!. Might want to have another screen to control embers and ash on the top. Incinerator on steroids.... Burn baby, burn!

I like this nice and simple not like others I have seen that uses two barrels and

we got some barrels like to use for burning but part of the side walls were cut out for a door and shelving. Is it possible use them as horizontal burn barrels ?

10:55 "I'll show you a couple tricks for making this burn hotter and faster" . . . proceeds to go on a tangent for the rest of the video about fire safety and going to jail. 👍🙃👍

you should add a chimney made of sheet metal with some holes near base of the chimney. it will burn much cleaner.

I cut out the bottom andmake the barrel into a tube. The draft is outstanding and I can simply kick over the barrel when cool to move it to another location.

Angle grinder with a cutoff blade and a hammer are my tools of choice.

Thanks 🙏🏿🇺🇸

You should make a pyrolyzer for making bio-char. Use all your best clean organic matter and through it in your gardens.

If you don't have a cutting wheel you can open it up with a cold chisel.

4 angled slots and bash the ends in to create louvres is better, it creates a nice swirl of air, and all I used was an angle grinder and hammer.

I thinking of ordering a good one for 150 Uline with a rim top and heat rated. Last free ones been crap and we're use salt.

Great channel..I hit the sub button..looking forward to more videos

I got a barrel from a customer that doesn't have the sealed lid. It has a ring bracket that holds the lid on and a gasket to prevent leaking. Still has the rolled edge for strength.

The holes on the bottom are useless once ash collect and further more if hot embers fall through it poses a hazard if you’re on dry ground.

If you have to cut on a barrel that had gasoline or other explosive material it's always safer to fill it with water before you make a cut.

6:24 Before you do this, make damn sure the old contents of the drum were not flammable. Vapors can be just as explosive as the former contents, and guys have gotten killed cutting into "empty" drums that exploded. I was just reading about a guy in Pennsylvania who got killed by a burn barrel last week. Another incident in Iowa killed a man who was welding on top of a barrel, using it as a workbench. Filling the drum with water before cutting into it can displace explosive vapors, if done correctly.

You can get cheap bits at Harbor Freight for this! I use them in HVAC to cut duct work. Much less expensive than the $30 bits!

What fluid you use lighter fluid or gas ,

A fun tip for making the air holes is a .22

I shoot the holes in mine

im a dummy (preface) . i just got an empty Kendal oil barrel that is sealed up . im gonna drill and then use a jigsaw to cut the top off . im scared that it will explode . Oil wont explode , right ? Thanks ,

Roughly how long does a burn barrel take to cool down after a burn?

How about a spark screen in case a breeze kicks up?

If ya live where it's windy, put a cinder block or fire bricks inside or you'll find your burn barrel over at the neighbors after the next wind storm.

I just became the 700th subscriber

I make burn barrels for a side income. I get the barrels for free, and sell burn barrels for $30 each. I sell about a hundred or so a year. I cut them with an oxy-acetylene torch. I can cut a barrel in the time it took you to get the barrel in the garage and put your gloves on.

Yo! Move that plastic waste basket away from that HOT barrel!

Best burn barrel design is to use a grinder to cut one square 18" hole about 2" up from the bottom and thats it. Burns like a rocket stove!

Well or what my people do get the wash tub from.an old washing machine by side of road set on top of bricks those are usaully tossed our now by people remodel.. and there you are burn tub

Forget drilling. Cut 4 vertical slots 6" long, pound them in so the angle is the same. pound them about 2" deep. It turns the fire into a spinning inferno. No smoke and little ash. Oh cut the slots at the first rib from the bottom.

I have a burn barrel and never flashed on raising it off the ground.. good call,,, thanks..

It is written on it what was inside: SAE 5W-40 = engine oil

Any paper, cardboard type materials are biodegradable. Please consider dropping those materials into your compost bin. You can run those material types through your shredder or just add to the compost. Cans are also biodegradable or recyclable ♻️ as are plastics like coffee containers, yogurt and milk cartons. In the Bush, or limited grid situations you can recycle plastic containers into shapes using heat, melting plastics together and shaping them into useful items for use in on or underground situations, in the garden or around areas where wood or metal would rot quickly. Cheers!

It might help to cut the lid a bit inward so that there is a lip facing inward, perhaps a couple of inches wide. Then put a few holes at the top of the barrel, just under the rim. This air may help combust smoke, and keep the fire more concentrated in the center. Just thinking....

If gas or oil has been in it. Fill it up with water and make sure all tthe air pockets are out. The petroleum will float up and out. Now you're safe.

What about fertilizer, liquid?

The holes in the bottom probably become useless after the first fire when they get clogged and covered with ash

A BIG DY BRO , THANK YOU , IS EASY & CHEAP , I SEE YOU SOON

A file only works pushing forward.

I use tree roots to lift it up,

Next time you toss a lit match into an unknown substance, make sure the camera is running - preferably from a safe distance away and maybe behind some plexiglass.

You should make it smokeless

Did he just say ask permission..from the government to use a burn barrel?

If you fill the barrel with water before starting to cut there is no chance of explosions no matter what was in it.

Starts at 04:40

4:20 in and bored to death.

ON-X HUNT !!

I burn all the papers that has names glass plastic I recycle it saves me about $45 a month in Ohio

No ash tray! The build up blocks air. The bottom will quickly burn out.

Why Not Just Get a 55 Gallon OPEN TOP Barrel With Clamp Ring? Cover Fits With ZERO Fit! Lots Of Work Here and Sharp Edges.

Other videos require TWO barrels.

I'm so glad he gave us the lecture on not to burn down the neighborhood .....who would have thunk it?

Too much talkie talkie

Video needs to be fast forward to last 3 mins, watch 1 min, then fast forward to end. 😂🤣😅😆 Chop the holes with a hatchet. Flames do not care about being pretty & round.

I really don’t know what was in it so let’s put a spark to it 🤦‍♂️

Did you think of this all by yourself.

Fill It With Water 1st

So your method on making a burn barrel is, get a 205L drum and put holes in it ! Didnt need a 14 minute video to explain that!!! Can I suggest researching SMOKE FREE BURN BARRELS? They are worth a 15 min DIY video.....

Why on earth is this 15 minutes long?

So much wasted time.

Jesus saves

Lol you sad “let’s get to it” then showed too much time of you walking and getting the drum. SMH

I suspect I'll never learn. These types of videos are almost useless. There's nothing enlightening here except to someone whose been sheltered all their life. Two to three minute video at best. Sorry, but it's discouraging at times that KZfaq doesn't have some means for users to weed out the wheat from the chafe. Thanks KZfaq for fast forward.

Numerous safety violations...improper or unnecessary use of tools... dudes is a amature at best....smell and match test is just plain stupid...the comments are better than the video.