How to dry out a barrel...

[DrDan]

LOL We freaked over Y2K and had avery sturdy polyethylene 55 gallon barrel filled with water - just in case...

So anyhow it has been taking up space in the basement ever since. I hear they make nice barrels for diesel fuel, but how do I make sure it is totally dry inside. Today I took both bung plugs out and set it upside down in the hot sun. I know alcohol is soluable in H2O so would that work? Wash it in moonshine and dump it back out then let it set in the sun for a few days. Then maybe a final rinse with a gallon of diesel. What do you guys think? I went through that water in diesel trip last year and it cost me dearly. Don't want to go through that again.

DrDan

 

[Hillbilly]

Cut the tops off and they make good shelters for game roosters.

 

[chim]

First of all, with the drum upright, shine a light in one bung. Look in the other to see how much water is in it. You can probably remove most of the water that won't pour out of it by using a 3/4" or 1" wand taped onto a Shop Vac. Then I'd lay it in the hot sun, on its side with the open bungs at 12:00 and 6:00. As the air heats up it should cause a small draft that will circulate air through it and remove moist air made humid by the evaporation of the water. Check for any drops of water again.

If you want to be absolutely sure (****?) about it, and have access to the regulator and gas, purge it with dry nitrogen after doing the above. Out-of-doors would be a must. Nitrogen won't burn, explode or support combustion, of course it won't support life either...........chim

 

[PhilNH5]

Dr Dan,
A barrel like that is very hard to dry out. The shop vac idea is a good one. You can even set it to blow or use an air compressor to blow it out for a while.

Your alcohol idea is a good one. Alcohols tend to be soluble in both polar (water) and non-polar solvents (gas/diesel). Dry gas treatment for a car is just methanol. Alcohol can be hard to come by in a relatively pure state. Rubbing alcohol is probably a reasonably priced option. It is isopropyl alcohol cut with water - but I can't remember the %. It will dry relatively quickly and cleanly. The final rinse with diesel is a good idea as well.

Phil

 

[Bird]

The barrel I used for my diesel originally had a water soluble industrial detergent in it, and still had a gallon or so when I got it. I simply washed it out with water and left it sitting upside down a couple of days and it was bone dry inside and I filled it with diesel.

 

[rf33]

Another very good solvent for removing water from stuff is acetone. Any time that we needed to dry glassware in the chemistry lab, we used acetone. It evaporates very fast, and is pretty generally harmless. You should be able to find it at a home center or hardware store in the paint section. I think it will evaporate alot faster than alcohol. One note, after you use this or alcohol, don't use any sources of ignition around the barrel, the vapors from either are quite flammable.

 

[PhilNH5]

rf33,
I wonder if the acetone would attack the plastic? When sold as nail polish remover it still comes packaged in glass bottles. I don't know what the barrels are made of. And you probably would use such a small amount it wouldn't matter.

I think the poster above had the best answer/experience - just let it air dry.

Phil

 

[rf33]

I would be surprised if acetone would attack the plastic, as it is one of the more mild solvents around. If worried about it attacking, you could always shave a piece off the rim of the barrel, and leave it soaking in a small amount of acetone overnight to watch any possible reaction. The air dry is a good approach, but the acetone might help if you were pressed for time.

 

[AndyR]

After leaving the barrel out in the sun a bit, I took a piece of old towell and stapled it on the end of a broomstick. The homemade swab worked just fine and got rid of all visible water. Another day in the sun and the barrel was bone dry (and soon filled with diesel)

 

[EdDekker]

There are already a few good suggestions already posted: a shopvac, a towel on a stick and leaving the barrel in the hot sun light.

I don't think the solvent rinse which has been suggested is necessary or that the last few drops of water are important to remove. As soon as you add diesel and allow any air space over the diesel, you will start to get condensation. Condensation will add water to the barrel all summer and well into the fall (for Ohio). It will not take long for the condinsate quantity to be larger than a few drops of water left in the barrel. A good storage additive (e.g. Power Service Diesel 911 http://www.powerservice.com or equivalent) should keep the condensed water mixed with the diesel.