Garbage and trash have never been considered an excellent collection to keep with. Trash and junk must be disposed right of, but where? Quick answer in a burn barrel. Now hold on, we mentioned burn barrel? Why is that? Would you need to buy it, or can you make one for your own?
Well, let us take all of those by one and then clear out any confusion we have. Let us brush up on some of our basics, which would help when we come to the main point of making a burn barrel.
Why Do We Need A Burn Barrel?
Waste accumulation will be a massive problem in the future, no not just for you but also for the entire planet. We are producing more waste of an hour and disposing of it is becoming more difficult. In this case, we have a choice, which means there are two options in front of us: we stop producing any more waste, and the other is to start working at an individual level.
Of course, the first one is not possible because waste is limited to humans, but everything around us produces some kinds of waste, and it is next to impossible to stop it. So, now the second option? Well, yes, that might help. For that, we are telling you to do something revolutionary you could dispose of your garden’s organic waste.
And if we come to the small scale and be a little bit more practical, that organic trash that is still in your backyard is adding no good to your house, so what to do with it? Burn it. Burning the waste in a burn barrel is probably the best option, but most of us still will not do it. Because of its price, we have other plans for you, instead of buying one, let us make one, together.
Your Hand Made Smokeless Burn Barrel
We know having a burn barrel might not be very easy on your budget, so many would consider other ways. But no one guarantees that those ways would be safe and clean. So, let us take that load off you and give you your smokeless burn barrel.
But before we let the engineers inside us out, we need to prepare first. The proper plan and list of things we might need must be prepared first. And for knowing that, we better know how a smokeless burn barrel works.
Things to Keep in Mind While Making A Smokeless Burn Barrel
As the names say the half story, a smokeless burn barrel is made to burn some organic garbage without releasing much smoke. So now, let us move to the other side.
So here are some things that you must know before starting the job
Keep Things Fireproof
Now this one is an obvious common sense, still a crucial point if you see. It would help if you made sure that the basics and bases used must be fire-resistant, and it also must go very well with high temperature.
Stay alert.
By staying alert, we mean is that avoid any silly technical mistake at any cost. Remember, not everything you put in the barrel is going to be the same. Something does not go very well with the fire.
So, we better be prepared for such situations. For this one, always keep a high wall. It will keep things safe even if your barrel happens to explode./p>
Do Not Forget the Oxygen
In our school’s science class, we learned that the fire needs oxygen to burn and look at the beauty of science. It applies everywhere, here as well.
When going for a burn barrel, try to maintain the required oxygen level. This could work in two ways. It will maintain the flow of oxygen, and two, it will allow the water to flow out.
And these were some of the points to keep in mind while making our DIY burn barrel. Or, if we become more specific, a smokeless burn barrel.
And now, after getting our basics done, we are capable enough to get to the process. The process of:-
The Process to Have Your Smokeless Burn Barrel?
Arrange A Barrel at First
Yes, we are going with the absolute basics, and for that, first, we need to find our barrel. Assuming you have not yet chosen any, let us go for the fireproof metal ones.
Great now we have chosen our barrels, so we need to do some alterations with it next.
Drill the Holes.
We have already discussed it and how important it is. The holes for oxygen are more likely to be as sides, while water holes are better if kept at the very bottom. Keep this basic pattern in mind. Do not mess up with the numbers and sizes of the holes.
Find Your Lid
Then you need to arrange the lid for your burn barrel You cannot leave the barrel exposed from the top. No, this is not while you are using it. Instead, it is for when you are not using it.
If you let the burn barrel enjoy the open air, the chances are that there will not be a second time while using it. Go for heavy covers and try some bigger ones. This will keep it fully covered.
Mesh
Now is time to create a mesh for your burn barrel. Look for something fireproof, and again meatal would work great, do not choose anything that will react to heat or smoke.
And woohoo! Here is your burn barrel. Enjoy that now! What is the matter? Did we promise for a smokeless burn barrel? Yes, we did, and we very much remember our promise so, let us turn this into smokeless.
A Smokeless Burn Barrel
Now, do you remember when we put a lot of emphasis on the cover? Well, yeah, that is important and very much important for turning the barrel smokeless.
Not having a lid can accumulate water in the burn barrel. The water and moisture may not always come from the rain, but the dewdrops can take away the barrel’s dryness.
A wet barrel will take more time to heat up compared to a dry one. And this is where the smoke will get triggered.
The leading cause of the smoke is its low temperature. If the temperature reaches the right point, the smoke will ultimately become less. So now, our goal is to keep the temperature high.
And how are we going to do it? By keeping the chemical reactions on point.
Yes, we will not use any of the flammable materials or can cause any toxic combustion.
Try finding out some flammable chemicals, most of them would be toxic, no doubt, but you can manage them accordingly. Do not rush with fire.
Ensure every hole you made is in the right position because we do not want our fire to be smokier. Keep the oxygen supply on point. This will make sure that the fire is getting what it needs.
When the fire is hot, its chances of producing smoke will drop low.
How to Use the Smokeless Burn Barrel in Just the Right Way Possible?
This no rocket science, to begin with, all you need to make sure is that you put the garbage inside and then lit it up. Easy right? Nope! What we need to make sure of here are the precautions required. Yes, we need to make sure of what to do and what not to do while using a smokeless burn barrel. Let us split them into a few parts and then discuss those precautions and steps.
Some Unsaid Rules of Using A Burn Barrel
Never Place the Burn Barrel Near the Active Area
By active area, we mean your house and any other locality. Never let this thing go out from your mind that it is fire. You never know when it might lose control.
And we said to keep the walls high to save you from the flames and blast. So, we do not want to cause any harm to the area due to those flames, and if it happens, then a blast.
Look What You Burn
Yes, burn barrels are meant to burn trash, but not everything can be set on fire. We need to take care of things that could be a reason for the next blast or reaction when burnt. Better keep a list of different types of trash.
Separate them according to their nature and reaction to the fire. Never burn things such as electronics and batteries in the burn barrel.
Recycling Might Work
If you find things that are better not burned, try to recycle them. Also, look for things you can reuse. For some bags and clothes that can be reused, it is better to avoid burning them. If you find something that can go well with the fire but can be reused or recycled as well, choose the latter one. As if they can be put into use again, they might not be trash or waste anymore.
What Timing Is Appropriate to Use Your Burn Barrel?
This might look very important at the glance of it, but time is significant. Fire and rain do not go well together. That is quite clear, and we also cannot cause smoke at night either. So we must set our priorities as when we must burn our trash.
Avoid Windy Days
Yes, we know fire is not going to work very well when the weather is windy and rough. But that is not the only case. Wind can also cause a substantial unwanted fire. Wind can blow the fire from one place to another, creating a chain. And if it is your bad day, then you might also see your trash flying away.
If any object with fire files, it might cause a chained fire in the area nearby. And it would be the last thing we want to see. So yes, avoiding such weather is essential not only for functionality but for safety as well.
Consider the Hours
It does not matter how low you keep your smoke or how smokeless our burn barrel is. There are still some chances of your neighbors feeling some irritation due to it. It could be due to smell or some smoke or anything else.
So better inform them before the plan. And then fix a time when both of you are OK with the fire. We better advise avoiding the night and the evening hours. As those are the times, people might want to have some peace.
Avoid Dusty Weather
If possible, then stay away from when the wind is dusty. It can be a real nuisance, especially when you want to protect your flames. To avoid the already existing dust in the area, try some water. Sprinkle them on the ground and then wait for some time.
This will allow the dust particles to rest on the ground. It is a perfect trick and could be used in any case. Just make sure not to wet the burn barrel.This might cause the old problem of lack of heat to occur again.
Avoid Rainy Days
That is entirely understood that your fire might not catch great fire on rainy days or the days with high moisture. During such weather, keep your burn barrel covered and safe. Do not let the droplets stay on it for very long, as it might make it wet.
And these were some of the timing aspects we need to keep in mind while using our burn barrel. These are not the only precautions we need to take. There are many others.
Next, we will discuss some other precautions we need to take when using our barrel. Let us take them one by one.
Some Other Precautions We Must Take While Using Our Smokeless Burn Barrel
Keep All the Risky Fire Objects Away
We only want to burn the garbage, not anything else with it. If you see anything around the barrel at the risk of catching fire, then remove them from there immediately.
Sometimes, we might not consider objects around the burn barrel, as they might look very far away from the fire zone. But they are not, you might never notice, and the fire would reach it any time.
Keep Your Distance
We do not need to stand us close to the barrel while it is burning. Keep your distance. Stay away from the fire. The flames might catch you if you are too close to it. And not only that, chances are that the heat at smoke can disturb your physical state as well.
Wear the Right Clothes
We are doing things related to fire, so we know we must not have anything that might catch fire. It is not only limited to some objects around, but also your clothes. Do not wear anything that might catch fire.
Also, avoid extra hanging and baggy clothes, such as a scarf or some danglers in clothes. Also, use gloves for picking out the trash and ashes, as the burn barrel might be hot even after use.
Clear Everything After Use
After you use it, clear everything you see inside the burn barrel. We are mostly talking about ashes. If you do not, they will stay inside. And how is that a problem? Ashes might still have some moisture inside them. As we discussed earlier, moisture can lower the temperature, and we very well know what will happen if the fire does not have the right temperature enough. It will produce harmful and irritating smoke.
Never Use Kerosene to Ignite the Fire
Keep this in mind and if possible, write that down on a piece of paper to always remember that, NEVER use the kerosene or gasoline or any other such kind of oils to ignite your fire.
They might seem like a quick method to start a fire, but they can lead to severe damage and explosion. Yes, we mean it. Yes, they can be very, very deadly if you are using them on a large scale.
We are not in the mood for an explosion. We want to burn our trash, so we better use an alternative. There are various alternatives to start a fire, and some are even made and sold for this specific purpose. Get them and use them instead of these.
Get Your Gloves
We advise not to touch the ash even after the fire is now out. It is because it still might be hot and can lead to injuries. If you still need to touch it (to make sure the ash does not have any remaining fire), use fireproof gloves. There are fireproof gloves in the market that use them. Do not use plastic by any chance, as it might stick and melt due to the immense heat.
Go in Trips.
Please do not overdo it at one time. If there is trash in bulk, you can very well go on multiple trips. Do not put everything at once. The best way to avoid them is to know the limit of your barrel. When taking the barrel, make sure that the size is appropriate. And now, when you know the size, keep the trash in a limit. Going all over at once can cause some wildfire in your backyard. We want to avoid that at any cost.
Take Care While Adding Extra Trash to The Burn Barrel
While the trash is burning, you can very well add a few more left trashes if that is still in the zone of a proper limit. But do not go very close or do not put your guard down. The flames show no mercy, and they can catch you anytime. So here, the precautions must be a little bit extra.
Plan the Budget!
Budget! But why? It is all DIY. Yes, everything is DIY. Still, we must have a proper idea of the budget out there. We still are spending a few on the basic things we need, such as the drilling machine and the net.
The money would not be close to the readymade burn barrel, but still, you need to plan things accordingly. And having a proper budget is never wrong. So, make one right now. And here we are now. Knowing all the basics and requirements of a smokeless own burn barrel.
Things might seem a bit tiring compared to a market burn barrel. Still, we need not lose our hope and do not worry. All of this is just one time. Once you make one, it will stay with you for quite some time.
The Durability of The Burn Barrel
The durability of the burn barrel you will be making is totally up to you. If you are the one creating it, the chances are that you can guess its lifeline. If you use some new bases for it, it might go on for around half a year. But it depends on how you preserve it from rust and moisture and any other damages.
Conclusion
So, now we are fully aware of the process of making your smokeless burn barrel. Everything might appear tiring, and yes, it will be for sure as we are going to build everything from scratch.
Still, it is not something to give up on.
If you follow every process with the right precautions, then it might not be a hazardous and tiring process to begin with. And do not make any mistakes at the begging if possible, double-check everything as per your choice to avoid any additional risk, as it may result in a considerable loss later, and the best part is that you will enjoy burning trash. Something not very common if we talk. But after putting your efforts in, you might enjoy the moment a little more.