DUMB Questions from a Country Living newbie...

[Pilot]

What's all this stuff about cutting off the barrel ends? Sounds like the hard way to me.

I get barrels which have one end held on with a ring. Remove the ring and the lid comes off.

Then lay barrel on it's side, hit the sides at the other end with a pick in several places and you have ventilation. Stand on rocks with the open end up, fill with trash and light.

Here in rain country, a barrel lasts about 5 years.

 

[k0ua]

What's all this stuff about cutting off the barrel ends? Sounds like the hard way to me.

I get barrels which have one end held on with a ring. Remove the ring and the lid comes off.

Then lay barrel on it's side, hit the sides at the other end with a pick in several places and you have ventilation. Stand on rocks with the open end up, fill with trash and light.

Here in rain country, a barrel lasts about 5 years.

Pretty much what we did too when I was a "young'un" except the ventilation was done with about 50 rounds of .22. The cans went into an old metal refrigerator shell after cutting out both ends with the can opener, and washing them out. Then a stomp on the concrete porch on the way out the door. About once a year, a trip to the steel scrapper. We was "poooor" but "we was proud":laughing: We made it..somehow.


James K0UA

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Here in NY it is illegal to burn garbage now anyway.

It's illegal to burn garbage anywhere in the USA, though enforcement of the federal clean air act is left to the states and compliance varies.

 

[JDgreen227]

It's illegal to burn garbage anywhere in the USA, though enforcement of the federal clean air act is left to the states and compliance varies.

Exactly what is "garbage", anyway? Leftover cat food, dirty diapers, moldy beef stew, rotten bananas, etc? I have never known anyone cited for buring garbage, however you define it.

 

[looknlearn]

Exactly what is "garbage", anyway? Leftover cat food, dirty diapers, moldy beef stew, rotten bananas, etc? I have never known anyone cited for buring garbage, however you define it.

The cat food, moldy beef stew, and bananas I would compost, the diapers consider burnable but not when the wind is heading towards the house.



Burnable garbage and none burnable garbage is I think the problem and one of the reasons we have the regulation. We tried to only burn paper and wood but some of our farming neighbors thought if you could get it to a fire it was burnable. Tires and the the large sheets of plastic for covering silage piles were common. The other neighbors were worse because they would let it build up into a mountain and burn it all at once. It looked like an oil rig fire over there.

 

[MossflowerWoods]

but some of our farming neighbors thought if you could get it to a fire it was burnable.

I bought that guys place... In another thread I disclosed I have a terrible left over burn pile full of partially burned stuff that should not be burned...

It is delightful.

David

 

[Bigfoot62]

It's illegal to burn garbage anywhere in the USA, though enforcement of the federal clean air act is left to the states and compliance varies.

I can't speak for everyone, but I don't burn GARBAGE. I burn paper, cardboard, etc, to keep from filling up the garbage cans.

. . . Start a hole in a barrel end with a cold chisel, put an axe in there on an angle and hit it with a sledge so it keep tearing the cut open all the way around the drum top . . .

. . . lay barrel on it's side, hit the sides at the other end with a pick in several places and you have ventilation . . .

. . . except the ventilation was done with about 50 rounds of .22. . .

As in my first reply, I use one of these: Super Duty Air Hammer with Chisels Come on guys, it's only $15. Why do ya'll make it so hard on yourself?

 

[xtn]

I keep my axes and splitting mauls sharp for cutting wood, not metal.

Well if you keep em sharp for that, you have the ability to resharpen them after you do the metal drum.

 

[moeh1]

Well,
after my neighbor's tip, I have to admit I didn't use my best axe for the job, but the old one was no worse for the wear, the metal used in drums must be pretty soft.
Just my two cents.

 

[xtn]

Well,
after my neighbor's tip, I have to admit I didn't use my best axe for the job, but the old one was no worse for the wear, the metal used in drums must be pretty soft.
Just my two cents.

By design I imagine. Preferable to have them deform instead of crack.