Hi Derrick,

I would assume it would be similar to cutting open a propane tank, simply fill with water, leave a hose running near a drain and let it fill/overflow for a few hours, then empty and you should be ok.

Once open you would need to burn the inside to remove all traces of the flammable substance, but generally if the flammable substance was in liquid form, then water is the best bet, and use a small grinder with a slitting disc in to get a nice clean cut

 

The best way is steam cleaning but doubt you have that. I'd personally try and cut full of water or filled with inert gas. Just washing with water can leave residues that are explosive. Not saying it won't work 99 percent of the time but there have been people killed by only washing with water.

 

A pneumatic nibbler would work without all the work of cleaning it. I've seen those used to cut up fuel oil tanks for disposal.

But the best option is junk the flammable drum and find one that is new, never used or held something inert. There's just too much risk in cutting a drum that once held flammable liquids.

 

Yup

However, that being said, I myself have cut open numerous 55gal drums safely. I though, know what I'm doing and know exactly what was in the drums FIRST! I also have access to a company steam cleaner with some tough liquid detergents that cut through petroleum based liquids.

I'd NEVER use an inert gas alone while cutting into a drum that had a liquid petroleum substance or residue left inside of it. Also about propane tanks, using the above water method works fine. However with liquid petroleum that does NOT evaporate like propane does when it hits the air, is NOT advisable neither.

Best bet for ANY doubt, is to buy new and clean drums. Period.

 

Just how flammable is this oil tank?? is it like petrol? or engine oil? theres a difference and theres a wide variety of things you can do, but it depends on whats been in there previously. Do you know??

 

Might be useful information before you tell someone to just fill it with water and start cutting...

Even in my podunk area I could find food grade barrels for about $10.

 

I cut up five last week that were filled with engine oil. I did nothing to them and smoked out half the shop. I wore a respirator and that's what they wanted, so here you go, go choke on em. All depends on what was inside bud!

 

Definitely not for me.

 

Air hammer with a sheet metal cutting chisel works good and is fast. I cut the top off one today, took less than a minute.

 

Agreed. Then it's easy to clean out what's inside if you need to do more cutting.

 

They sell "drum deheaders". They aren't that expensive, but more than you would want to spend for a one time job. Kinda like a big can opener.

I would dump about a 1/2 bottle of dawn in it and fill 2/3 with water. Put the plug in it and roll it around a whole bunch. Drain and repeat with the other half bottle. Then fill and rinse a couple times with water then cut while full (quickly!).

 

I'm on my third 1000 gallon above ground fuel tank converted to a burn barrel at the shop. Two I know were gasoline storage and the other diesel till they would no longer hold liquid leak free. On the gasoline tanks I set them crossways on the other burn barrel then lit the lower barrel. After the fire died down, I then rolled the tank around a bit to it's final resting place and just cut them open without any water and had no problems using the edge of a 9" grinder disc.

 

I made a UDS this summer. I used a removable top 55 gallon drum which is best. Thats what I recommend. If you use one of them just hose it out and simple green / 3m pad it. Then light a hot charcoal fire in it. Then spray or rub with cooking oil when cool to rust proof it before you cook. The smoke heat and oil combine to make a protextive coating

 

The quickist way to dehead a drum . is 10 drop of gasoline shake drum attach long fuse to M80 light drop in drum take cover , pick up pieces. what could be simpler .Sometimes it will even flatten the sides out..
gxbxc

 

I normally use an air hammer with a chisel myself but that doesn't ensure I'm spark free. I suppose it would be safer if the barrel was full of water... but then I'd get wet. The correct tool is a deheader, the cutter is generally bronze to prevent sparks. Food grade does not ensure it's safe to cut. I look at every barrel as being a possible bomb and try to only open ones I know are clean.

Eric Leighton was killed when a barrel he was working on in a class at Mother Teresa High School exploded in May of 2011. The class was working on a project to turn the barrels -- which had formerly contained peppermint oil -- into barbecues.
http://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/explosion-was-so-powerful-eric-leighton-couldn-t-have-survived-1.1743886

 

I cut them with a skillsaw.
My evolution 180 is awesome.

plunge and slit....

 

I routinely cut #2 fuel tanks with an acetylene torch. The liquid in the bottom Quenches sparks before they ignite fuel. I had a wild experience once when I intentionally set a 10,000? gallon tank with a bit of sludge on fire. I now know where the idea for jet engines came from.

 

Willie did you also see the video of the guy venting his gas tank with a vacum cleaner , turned it into a jet engine until the motor burned up , and no it wan't that crazy English guy either.

 

A lot of dangerous advice in this thread. ..

 

Can't tell you how many diesel fuel tanks for trucks I've welded up without washing or doing anything to them except grinding, or cutting out a bad section to weld in new. The standard burn barrel for an auto body shop is a 55 formerly used for lacquer thinner. Just let it air out a few days before cutting into it.

On cutting gasoline tanks or barrels formerly holding gasoline you can let a CO2 tank slowly discharge into the barrel causing a very slight positive pressure blanket while the inert gas bleeds as you cut. CO2 will not support combustion.

 

5 wears back a guy have ghe idea to use two barrels as a platform to work in high. The barrel have thinner so she wash the barrel very good. But wasn't enough. It start to weld. The spark ignite the thinner vapor. The leat fly and cut pure man head.. Go find a clean barrel and don't gamble you life

 

i cut an old oil drum open with a torch once...it smoked a lot...my previous dumbass employer said it would explode....it just smoked a lot. drill some vent holes and cut away!

 

Haven't even read through all the posts so maybe this has been said..................

You can buy used barrels for $10 - $20 that have never contained flammable liquid.

 

^this is also true! LOL

 

You can go bang stripper without a hat and you might not get anything. It does not mean you will not.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

 

Such interesting advice.

Before trying to work on a used drum that had any kind of flammable material you should google the phrase "weld oil drum explosion" and follow a few links. That should give you a few things to think about.

It's not the liquid that gets you, it's the fumes that ignite. Unfortunately the fumes might be generated from crusted on gunk on an otherwise empty tank that gets heated by the torch or cutting blade.

Last, remember that ANY oil can become flammable at the right temperature and conditions. Cooking oil will flash at about 600f.

Dan

 

These guys have pretty much told you what has worked for them, the rest have told you what not to do.
Now it is up to you to decide how you want to proceed knowing one of two things will happen.
Something did OR Nothing did!

 

If I were to cut one I would set down with a bottle of Bourbon and when the time was wright I would do it. At least I would go out happy.

 

You know it's threads like this that makes me shake my head at the shear ignorance on the internet. The original poster said it was a barrel labeled flammable, yet there's been multiple people ASSUMING it contained oil and just suggesting to start cutting. Fuggin dumbasses, and people come on here whining about others being mean to people. I personally could care less if ignorant people kill themselves but my mind knows that there are usually innocent people effected by ignorance.

 

Well, when I was a kid. 1976 or so, my best friends older brother was killed by an exploding oil drum he was cutting with a torch. Case closed for me. If I do any cutting on a drum, I use the Giant can opener tool. Its just not worth the possibility of dying.