How to make a 58-1/2 gallon oil drum (learn from my mistakes)

well at least your hear to help save some other peoples lives! not smart but a good lesson.
I remember a guy opened a large lid on a hydraulic tank once at work and peeked in to see the level of the hydraulic oil, only problem was he had a cigarette in his mouth. you know what happened next. the ten poiund lid about took his head off.

Moral of the story is its not necassarily the product but the FUMES that will get you.

i am in the process of printing this and giving it to my shop foreman tomarrow for a safety meeting.

 

Glad you are well...getting better. Thanks for showing what can happen even if you think it is inert. Takes a man to show what you did. Thanks! And oh f'in ouch damn.

You were lucky as well. Thank the man and buy a lotto ticket.

Let me guess barrel sat in the sun for a few hours or days? Then you hit it up?

Yes, residual oil in a drum will vapor and go boom especially when you add a little air from the plasma or a torch. Something about that pesky combustion formula thingy.

Basically treat everything that can burn (flammable) as a combustable/explosive when working around it and life is usually on your side. (thanks to an old man who taught me some respect for life and limb)

Did you know you can literally fly a drum over half a mile away at altitudes of the same distance using the right ingredients? And it has nothing to do with add on aerodynamics either. Not that I would know or nothing.

I know absolutly nothing about making 55 gallon drums fly hundreds of yards whilst shattering a few windows in some trucks and trailers. I was not there and I did not see who did it. Know nothing at all. Nope sorry never heard of it. So don't even ask. Can't help you.

 

I, myself know of similar stories... But that's it. ALL stories!...


Glad to see you are recovering from what could have been a much worse scenario MP&C. Not to say this wasn't bad enough... Get well man.

 

I had visions of that happening at my shop one day. I arrived to find my shop mate/landlord using a barrel of mine as a workbench, grinding in the hot sun. There were marks where he;s already slipped ,and gouged the top of the bulged (from the heat) barrel. Only difference was it was a partially filled barrel of "Nitromethane". Thanks for sharing the "Safety lesson",get well soon.

 

Glad you are doing OK.
I missed this on the first go round.
Definitely something to keep in the back of your mind.
Thanks for sharing this with us.

 

WOW for sure! Thanks for sharing and I hope you recover well.

 

wow. its very possable it was just oil in that drum. i work on tug boats and tanker bardges and OSHA tranning beats that shit into our heads. they sed like half a cup of gear oil could send a barrel sky high if cut with a torch. even a small amount of bunker fule will do that. good to see your still alive it could of been worse

 

You had an angel looking out for you man..glad you are OK..was standing next to a buddy doing the same thing in my shop..it was a drum of industrial soap and a gas rig..it went off and the top flew across the room and dented the refrigerator, could have gone through his legs like a buzz saw..I guess there was alcohol in the soap??...

 

Aside from,,,OUCH. The only other thing I can mention is sometimes we all will do something we know is wrong because guys tell us "I do it all the time and nothing,,,,blah,blah,blah". If just one person has had it happen negatively, THEN DON'T DO IT.

 

I'm the Medical Services Coordinator for a large steel manufacturing plant and after seeing the results of your "science experiment" I immediately printed out the photos and posted them for the benefit of the employees here. Nothing is more painful than a burn as you well know, now. I hope the healing goes well and quick. Maybe your incident will serve as a warning to my people. Thanks for sharing. Nothing trains better than personal experience.