Barrels explode after being welded together - GIF

**Altair** · May 26, 2020, 09:51 PM

Barrels explode after being welded together.

Previously:

Factory fire sends barrel flying - GIF
Propane tank controlled explosion test - video
Throwing propane tanks on truck fail - GIF

**Scrounga** · May 27, 2020, 05:42 PM

Idiots, lucky they weren’t electrocuted as well because that generator was still running when it hit the water.

**old kodger** · May 27, 2020, 06:00 PM

Originally Posted by Scrounga

Idiots, lucky they weren’t electrocuted as well because that generator was still running when it hit the water.

Don't think that was a generator, more likely to be a portable welder, but yes the power lead was still connected, however, that is also likely to have simply blown the fuse off the wall

**VinnieL** · May 27, 2020, 05:52 PM

Should have poured out the gunpowder before welding them, or perhaps cleaned out whatever chemicals were in them....

**neilbourjaily** · May 27, 2020, 07:33 PM

Interesting the slow expansion before the rapid expansion

**metric_taper** · May 28, 2020, 02:35 AM

My brother in law, a lawyer, represented a client that was cutting the top off a 55 gallon drum. The drum came from a scrap yard out in western North Dakota. The client was cutting the top off using an OA torch. The drum still had the bungs in place, was upright, and as he pierced the top with the torch, the drum launched like a rocket, as the bottom physically blew off. There still was an estimated 1/2 inch of the drums original flammable product. As the drum flew upward, it deposited this burning liquid on the idiot, causing 3rd degree burns, my BIL said he looked like Frankenstein. He did win the lawsuit, the manufacture of the drum did not comply with required labeling (a technicality, as it did have a flammable warning label), and the metal salvage yard was also held responsible. The scrap yard industry now has can opening style machinery before selling a used drum, as the intended purpose back when this occurred was a burn barrel. This was more then 30 years ago.

**hemmjo** · May 28, 2020, 05:41 AM

Originally Posted by metric_taper

My brother in law, a lawyer, represented a client that was cutting the top off a 55 gallon drum. The drum came from a scrap yard out in western North Dakota. The client was cutting the top off using an OA torch. The drum still had the bungs in place, was upright, and as he pierced the top with the torch, the drum launched like a rocket, as the bottom physically blew off. There still was an estimated 1/2 inch of the drums original flammable product. As the drum flew upward, it deposited this burning liquid on the idiot, causing 3rd degree burns, my BIL said he looked like Frankenstein. He did win the lawsuit, the manufacture of the drum did not comply with required labeling (a technicality, as it did have a flammable warning label), and the metal salvage yard was also held responsible. The scrap yard industry now has can opening style machinery before selling a used drum, as the intended purpose back when this occurred was a burn barrel. This was more then 30 years ago.

And we all feel the side effects of these idiots. I was dropping off some scrap iron a couple months ago. There was a pile of totally awesome stuff laying there. Perfectly good I-beams, heavy leg (3/8" thick) aluminum angle, not huge pieces, but the exact kind of stuff you want in your "might need this someday" pile. I went to one of the guys and asked about it, was willing to pay for it. His response was "Can't sell anything, we can loose our insurance if we do".

**Frank S** · May 29, 2020, 01:23 PM

With all this talk of exploding barrels and fuel tanks going on wouldn't you know it my welder neighbor brought over a tank off of a Freightliner this morning. Frank can you weld up an aluminum tank for me I've never welded aluminum and would be afraid to weld on a tank anyway, but I spent an hour at the car wash trying to clean it out.
So I started to set up my wire welder with the spool gun and somehow managed to short a couple of wires which burned out the board (Lucky me)
I told him no problem I'll just weld it up with a torch like brazing on steel.
This I got to see he said, I may not know how to weld aluminum but I know that an OA torch is not something you use on it.
My rate is triple for holding class I said.
Well maybe I had better go and work on something call me when it is ready.

Barrels explode after being welded together - GIF-wp_20200529_13_20_15_richftr.jpg

welded up in 2 places on the bead at the rim and the hole rubbed in the side

Barrels explode after being welded together - GIF-wp_20200529_13_57_15_richftrr.jpg

**old kodger** · May 28, 2020, 04:27 PM

About time the insurance industry was told to sod off, and a sign on the gate of scrap yards to the effect that it is a condition of sale that the purchaser of scrap assume total responsibility for any outcome resulting from the manipulation of said scrap. After all, the vendors of other materials always state that no responsibility will be accepted for the use of their product, which is beyond their control.

**Frank S** · May 29, 2020, 12:13 AM

When I was a teenager working at the blacksmith shop we removed the heads from drums regularly and sold them as burn barrels. The blacksmith had made a for lack of a better term giant can opener. Actually little more than a long pipe handle with a hook and a curved blade that functioned like an Army P38 C rations opener.
And ax and a hammer will remove the head from a drum but can create sparks an OA torch is absolutely TABOO. I could remove the heads of about 15 to 20 drums in an hour with it