How do I build a charcoal grill out of a 55 gallon drum?

[Phlosphr]

I have a friend who works on the docks near where I live. Every once in a while he calls me and says he's got something I may be interested in. This weekend I got such a call, and when I saw what he brought I immediately got excited, and visions of large BBQ's flooded my mind, and the smells of savory charcoal grilled pork and beef ribs resonated in my mind :)

My dilema is this: How do I go about making the charcoal grill out of this 55 gallon drum. I have a torch to cut it with, so no problem there...And the drum is brand new, so I have no clean up of rust....

However, how do I need to sterilize it before use? Do I need to sterilize it if the coals are not going to go directly on the bottom of the drum? How about an exhaust pipe? Will I need one of those? Also, can I make the frame out of wood? I would not think it will get hot enough to ignite the wood....It will also make it much lighter, and easier to manuever. I'll probably put wheels on one end.

Any Ideas?

[Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor]

Rule # 1--

Be certain the contents were non-toxic.

Never use a drum that was used to store pesticides--they don't always wash away.

Aw Hell! Just go buy a goddam grill. It's safer. :smack: :dubious:

[MikeS]

Is this (http://www.lincolnelectric.com/knowledge/articles/content/bbq.asp) the kind of thing you're looking for? This set of instructions involves welding, though.

On preview, yeah, make sure that you won't be eating meat infused with malathion or worse.

[Phlosphr]

Yep, that's the exact thing I am looking to do Mike. The Barrel is brand new, meaning it has not been treated with anything, quite literally, it's off the factory floor. It was overstock, to be shipped to factories or what have you, to use for whatever.....I asked that Q, first. Apparently, there were several guys working that day who got one.

[astro]

Why not make it into a time capsule for future generations?

[Ethilrist]

Shop around at garage sales and see if you can find a couple dead barbecues so you can scavenge the legs/handles/wheels off of them.

I would recommend not using wooden legs. You're right, it might never get hot enough to burn them, but when are you going to find out if you're wrong? When it's full of burning hot coals, hot enough to set wood on fire, and falling over, that's when.

[Philster]

Rule # 1--


Aw Hell! Just go buy a goddam grill. It's safer. :smack: :dubious:

No! This is Phlsphr we're dealing with.

Phlsphr, you can use wood, but it should not be in direct contact with primary parts of the grill/drum. If you used wood handles, if they had some metal mount between them and the drum, you'd be fine.

Like the grill in the link, the wood has a metal banding around it. High temp paint can be found in auto parts stores.

For the frame, again, make sure you have some buffer between the wood frame and the drum. I think you could get away with direct contact, but heat can loosen up joints. Use a good exterior glue on any joint, even screwed joints.

[silenus]

Our auto shop teacher built me one of those out of an old malt-extract barrel. The frame needs to be steel. You also need to cut a smaller piece of grating for the bottom of the barrel to keep the hot coal up off the drum. This gives you some ventilation and helps prevent burn-thru. Mine has an exhaust-pipe off of one end made out of a piece of 5" tubing. If you put a vent hole and damper at the bottom of one end, and the exhaust pipe at the top of the other end, you get a very nice draft. :D

Paint the sucker with high-temp. grill paint, and you are all set.

[Phlosphr]

I agree with painting it with the high temp grill paint. I will go price it out at Lowes when I leave here...

And Phil - I really like your idea of creating a metal bracket around the wood. It will offer the aesthetics of the wood, and the durability from the metal. And I won't find out the hard way that pressure treated wood can spontaneously combust whilst grilling massive amounts of back ribs. :)

I just spoke with my wife on the phone and she says she wants to do the welding... :rolleyes: Jeez, you teach them once how to weld and they want to build you a grill frame and take all the fun from YOUR projects!! ;) :)

[Philster]

Let me jump in on PT wood before others do: DON'T.

Use cedar, teak or other exterior wood. PT wood has carcinogens.

Maybe...maybe on key support members you aren't likely to handle/touch... But since you will be moving it, you probably should ban PT wood from the entire project.

[Phlosphr]

I agree Phil - I did have that in the back of my head...I have a ton of scrap wooh in my barn and will most likely not have to buy anything. I'll stay away from the PT stuff...I do want kids one day :)

[USCDiver]

I've gotten lots of good grilling hours out of my Chargriller Pro (http://www.chargriller.com/superpro.html) which is similar to what you'll be making. I definitely recommend the chimney on one end and the damper on the other for good air flow. You'll need a removable grill surface too. The Chargriller has 4 cast iron pieces about 6" x 18". You'll have to mount a lip on the front and back edges of your bottom half to support the grill surface. The Chargriller also has a nice feature of an adjustable/removable charcoal grate. Be sure to ensure a good seal between your top and bottom halves so that the smoke circulates and exits through the chimney and doesn't billow out around the edges. The warming rack also comes in handy if you're cooking different cuts or types of meat or for bun warming.

And last and certainly not least...put a thermometer on the lid.

[silenus]

I'd also like to point out that if you put some decent vents in this beast, you have a pretty good smoker. Smoking is so much better than grilling, if you have the time. Wood goes at one end, low and slow...meat goes at the other end. I've done some killer briskets in my beast. :D