Food grade drums
 

I am new to this forum and I'm sure this has been covered before but here goes... I am getting ready to begin my first UDS build. I have a line on "food grade" drums at a great price. They tell me that they have a "clear, gold coating" inside and that it will burn off easily. I am also considering going with Big Poppa's kit when they have them back in stock. Please give me your thoughts. Thanks in advance!

Can you show us a picture?

The issue isn't always is it safe for food contact, but rather the toxins / contamination that will be released onto the food from heat during the cooking process.

A lot of food grade drums have a light tan colored liner or spray coating inside to create a barrier between food contents and the steel walls. I'd think that's what they're describing and if so, I understand those do come out pretty easily with a good burnout or even Kleen Strip (search the UDS thread). The red liner is the one that is more resistant to being stripped out. (Sandblasting seems to be the easiest and most satisfying solution, if you don't mind the few extra bucks). So short answer, you're probably in good shape.

I plan to go with the Big Poppa kit as well. They ran out just as I was going to put in my order at long last! :doh:

Do the burn out and then take a white wheel to it. Then wash out the drum.

A drum doesnt need to be a food safe drum to be used as a UDS. What makes the drum food grade/safe is the liner which you will be removing. Any drum with a liner needs to have the liner removed, so it doesn't matter if the drum is foodsafe or not when purchased.

I don't have any pics of the drum. I am strictly going based on what the seller described. I may opt for a brand new, unlined drum and invest the extra money. The possibility of toxins, etc. makes my wife nervous. I assume I would still need to give it a good burn, wire wheel and season it so I don't suppose I'll save alot on labour. Just peace of mind.

My 1st drum had the clear gold liner. While its one of the easier liners to deal with, it was still a PITA! Now I just buy new unlined ones.

With a new drum......
1. Drill your intake holes.

2. Burn it out good. This removes the paint on the outside, while also removing any oily residue from the manufacturing process. Get it good and hot so that it burns all the paint off.

3. When it cools, wash it.

4. Rattle can the outside with high temp paint. Spray the inside with a light coat of Pam. This will prevent inside from rusting.

Hope this helps!

+1 on what jrn says. Getting the unlined drum is way better in the long run and gets you up and cooking faster. Don't forget to add the bottle opener and post pics when its finished. :eusa_clap

:frusty::frusty::frusty::deadhorse: Get any unlined open headed drum drill the intake holes and burn it out good, Fire purifies everything!!!!!!!!! Forget the words "FOOD GRADE". FOOD GRADE = BIG FARKING PIA!

I agree with the last 3 posts. Burning out can be a pain in the azz even with gold/tan liner. It took me maybe 20 hours over the span of 3 days and I still had to hit a few spots with a wire wheel(use ear protection and mask). In the future I would bite the bullet and buy unlined. Do a good hot burn out for a few hours, wash out and then season.

Or you could save yourself some cash and get one with the dreaded red liner. Spend an entire weekend burning, grinding, sanding, with most of the time spent with you upper torso buried inside this drum :crazy: But, you will have one really unlined clean drum :clap: the when the next guy asks the same question, you, now with the painful experience, get to add your $.02 to the conversation.............as in "Are YOU FARKING CRAZY, "Buy and unlined drum or get it SANDBLASTED" :mmph:

Unless it had plutonium-239 in it, I would not worry too much about any food grade or otherwise barrel. Its a labor issue. I had mine (red liner) sandblasted so I have no first hand knowledge regarding the removal but I believe what others are trying to tell you. Head first in a barrel with power tools does not sound like a good time. :wink:

I just bought a drum last week with the same type of coating. I did a burnout, but living in town, I couldn't get a fire big enough to take all the paint off without bringing in the fire dept. On the bottom 1/3 of the drum it was mostly off, and the rest was black. A wire brush on an angle grinder took care of most of it, but you're back will hurt from the bending in the drum. I ended up putting the top of the drum on some bricks so i was able to kneel down and lean into the drum. That definitely made things more comfortable.