Opening a 55 gallon drum

[Lanse]

Hey yall...

I recently acquired a 55 gallon drum, that used to have fuel in it. I dont think that theres any left in there, but it sure does stink like it. I would like to take the top off of it, take it outside and start a fire in in, and when it cools off, use it in my shop.

How does one open one of these without using anything involving fire/sparks??

 

[Fawteen]

Air Chisel.

 

[old]

If your talking about cutting the end out of it there are many ways that are safe some more so then others. One way is the fill it with water and then use a jig saw etc to cut the end out. Another way is to take the bungs out of the end and then set it in a burn pile and light the pile up. If you do this make sure it is way out in the open and away from any thing that can get hurt because when the fuel lights off it can take off like a rocket. Yep done it more then once, you light the fire and run away from it till it and the barrel do there thing and even then it can be something that can cause problems but better then blowing your head off if you so much as make a spark trying to cut it off with a saw etc

 

[LilFarmer]

An air chisel will make sparks, not often but they will.

He would be better off to take to the scrape yard and get a barrel that never had fuel in it.

If he wants to proceed, here is a tool that will do the trick. Cheaper to buy another barrel.
Drum Deheader

 

[LilFarmer]

Yeh, that would work! Fill it clear full of water and then use an air chisel. Might be a little messy for the operator though!

If you want to use it for trash, etc. why don't you find a plastic 55 gal drum. you can cut the top off of them and they make a pretty nice trash barrel.

 

[IOWA NORTHEAST]

I use a drum deheader, it was free. It is just steel.

 

[old]

Ya no matter how you cut one open if it had gas in it then you have to be extra careful opening one up or it can very easily be the last thing you do. That is why I do either the trash pile burn it trick or the water trick

 

[JMS/.MN]

Hammer, chisel, elbow grease.

 

[LenND]

I agree with JMS/MN. If it had deisel or any kind of oil in it cut away with a hammer and chisel. There isn't a hot enough spark there to start fire. Now gas that is a different story.

 

[Anonymous-0]

For the price of that tool, you buy a bunch of brand new drums. Dave

 

[Anonymous-0]

Fill it with water, preferably as hot as you can get and rinse it out a couple times. Then stand it up, fill it with water, and use what ever method you want. A zip disc in an angle grinder would work. Dave

 

[Anonymous-0]

Old oilfield trick, use smaller to med. size pipe wrench (14" to 24") open jaws just enough to pass over lip of barrel. Tilt at slight angle and hit backside of top jaw with 4lb hammer and just work your way around. Makes nice smooth cut and presses jagged edges down flat all at one time.

 

[charles todd]

I like the pipe wrench method. I'll try it next drum I cut. Dad has a de-header and it works slick, but they are pricey, bout +$200.

CT

 

[bill mart]

graingers has several,here is the one I have from them. works great. bill m.
graingers

 

[JMS/.MN]

Thanks- too many want to complicate things, or expect an easy solution. Sometimes it takes some physical effort. Why the need for high tech when a hammer and chisel works for an extremely simple job?

 

[Dean]

I do it with a hammer and chisel. It takes some time but works.

Dean

 

[thurlow]

Been a long time since I used it, but somewhere in the shop is a logger's wedge with a short length of pipe welded on the side for a handle. That and a shop hammer makes short work of cutting the end out of a barrel.

 

[PJH]

Gonna try that. Thanks!


I always use a hammer and big chisel, but never fooled with a fuel barrel. You don't need any sparks. . .

Paul

 

[bruster]

Do you mean fuel oil / diesel?
If so a saws all will cut open the top with no problems

 

[Dick L]

I worked in a plastic factory that did painting. they bought acetone in 55 gallon drums by the truck load to clean paint masks. Those drums were what was used for trash to take to the dump. When the trash cans were to heavy for the little Mexican that hauled trash to dump the just got pushed off the truck, down over the bank.
It was my job to cut the tops off to have enough cans around the shop. Seemed to have to do three or four a week. A big hammer and a sharp chisel and I would walk the chisel around the drum without lifting the chisel out of the cut. Acetone is a might flameable but that does not throw a spark.

 

[Ken 46]

When I was a Senior in High School - the morning after the Jr.Sr prom my dad took me to the farm.
I cut the tops out of 55 gl barrels so Dad could weld them together and make a waterway.
My head hurt already before I started cutting them with a hammer and cold chisel.
Dad sat on the tractor and moved them into place, then welded them together, while I cut some more!!.
Sure was glad when that day was over.

 

[jackinok]

you can also use a old lawn mower blade instead of a chisel.just tape up one end with duct tape for a handle.I too would suggest filling it with water first though,especially if it held gasolene.

 

[redFarmallboy]

agreed. Fast and easy. Don't worry about sparks. If the drum is empty and there is only drops in the bottom you wont have a problem.

 

[Mike M]

Must of used the good ole USA ones and not the China wrenches . LOL

 

[GordoSD]

I don't understand what you intend to do. You are going to build a fire in this barrel and then roll it into your shop at some point. Blazing, with smoke boiling out of it. Who knows what fumes, trash, rags, hoses, we've seen pictures of youe working areas.
You have come up with some incredibly stupid ideas in the past and now the big winner.
Do the words smoke, CO come to mind? I think you just like to troll. All these answers about how to cut a barrel and you will never get past the burning outside stage. Give us some slack.

 

[RobMD]

Cut the boy a break, it's not like he's smoking pot or other kinds of garbage.

You were young once, too.

 

[Heyseed]

Had a guy in our used car prep area cut the top off one that had carpet cleaner in it using a torch. The stuff was not supposed to be flammable, but this bozo didn't take the bung plugs out. When he got the metal hot enough to burn through that drum had enough pressure in it that the top blew clean off, spread hot and burning cleaner across the shop. It went right out, but the blast knocked the idiot about 20 feet and ripped his shirt off. He was lucky, other than flash burn, like a good sunburn he was ok. The top of the drum went striaght up hit the rafters and bounced across the bays. It looked like the foil on a jiffy pop when it's done. Loudest double explosion I can remember hearing. KA-Boom...

 

[bill mart]

Gordosd,Lanse said " when it cools off " doesnt sound like he intends to roll it into his shop while its still on fire. Bill M.

 

[Brian Schmidt]

I am assuming he is trying to get rid of the residual fuel before using it in the shed and starting a fire.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

I use an air hammer or aircraft rivet gun and a v shaped bit or a muffler pipe splitter. Goes fairly quick and works well.

Charles

 

[C.R.]

air chisle would be quickest pull out the caps if you are worried fill it with co2 then she womt burn

 

[Lanse]

Hahaha, no Gordo, I'm planning on letting it burn out, and not be on fire when i roll it into my shop. I thought i made that pretty clear in my post, but maybe not.

I just want to burn it, as someone said, to get rid of the residual fuel/fire hazard, and then since it is almost perfect (no dents, etc) I'll probably end up pressure washing it out, and then sandblasting it and painting it, so it will look nice in there.

And although my shop used to be a mess, I've really tried to clean it up since last summer. I dragged out all the old dirty greasy plastic shelves and their contents, cleaned everything out, and organized the place. I'm pretty proud of it now. Here are some pictures of it, as it sits today.

 

[rustyj14]

And then ya have the guy who uses a cutting torch, to cut a part out of a junked car, and sets the "empty" gas tank off!
One day at work, i heard an awful "BOOM" and saw smoke rising out back of our shop! Looked out, and there was one of the shop owners, staggering around with his finger in his ear, looking dazed! And lots of black smoke rising.
After i got done laughing, i found him to be ok, but his hearing was not so good for a spell.

 

[Heyseed]

OMG Lanse you call that clean? I can see dust everywhere, just look at the top of the compressor. One of those combination wrenches is turned the wrong way as well.