Me too unless I have too much meat for the top then I use the lower one.It's fine to use the top grill in fact it's the only one I use.
Question for the Brothers who are much smarter than me on the subject.
I have read the whole thing over the past months and I've seen posts where people are having problems controlling the temps. A common response or question to the question is how well does the top fit? Does it leak etc. Question is this, what difference (within reason) does it make if the top does not seal? Is that not just another exhaust port so to speak? Again within reason.
I'm asking because so far I have assembled everything needed for zero cost! Which was my goal and why it has taken so long. The donated drum was a refurb with the red liner. During the burn outs (and it was the mother of all burnouts) partially melted the damn thing. I was going to toss it and start over but I though what the hey. After a day of metal working have it in pretty good shape but I'm not sure about how the top fits. Was about to break down and have the interior sand blasted but am I wasting my $20 if it leaks a bit? No the top was not included in the MOB (mother of all burn outs), if I finish this drum I will include photos of the burn and subsequent barrell stretching actiivties.
So, if I DON'T have an old BBQ for the ash tray, what else would do the trick?
You skipped the required reading, didn't you? :biggrin:
You old timers had it easy...you didn't have to weed thru 165 pages of posts...LOL :lol: ...but its all been worth it!!!!!
Ha, it's 392 now. Nice to see everyone else's MISTAKES!
I'm also seeing the same questions time and time again!
Bruce nice rig ya have there. Looks super stable. Nice work.
Bruce--
How about a close-up of those wheel mounts? They look great!
And those intakes seem bigger than the normal 3/4. Are they?
I built a UDS a couple years ago and love it, but I'm about to build another one using an 85 gallon drum.
For those of you who have built a UDS from an 85 gallon drum, did you use the same basic set up as a 55? For my 55 UDS, I used three 3/4" intakes with one ball valve and then eight 1/2" exhaust holes in the lid. Do I need to change anything for a bigger drum?
Can't wait to get started on my new, bigger UDS.
Here's where I'll be getting my drum. :biggrin: