Melt aluminium in a flower pot furnace 

that works so good I can't believe how well just that tiny little furnace works and the little casting you made of aluminum is incredible thank you so much for sharing this you do the coolest things on your RU-vid channel and not just Cool, But Very Useful!!

The cover should have a 2 inch hole in the center to work properly. And the hole in the pot should be at an angle to make the flame spiral around the tin can.

Very nice indeed. I have seen these flowerpot furnaces before. They are usually lined, sometimes with cement, or better, castable refractory. As to the lid, don't give up on it. Just drill a 30mm (size not critical) hole through the lid. That will give you draft for the torch. Also myfordboy's channel has an excellent series on furnaces. His torch goes through "tangentially" to the pot, so you get a swirl effect on the torch.

Great experiment. Thanks for sharing.

Would't it work even better when you put your torch in at an angle in order to get a swirling flame around the melting pot, and make a fairly large hole in the lid, so the gases can escape? That's how the larger furnaces mostly work. cheers.

Thanks Rob, another great idea you have passed on to us mere mortals. We got lots of old terracotta pots so will definitely give that a try. Breaking down all the old hard drives today.

How is that flower pot not shattered into pieces?

I am surprise to see that your drill operates with a clockwise direction. I thought that in in Oz they would rotate in the opposite direction.

If you put as much of the pot underwater when you are drilling it will damp out the vibrations. Less chance of breaking the pot.

This worked so well that I'm making a durable small furnace just for this LPG torch. It's not a flower pot design as I think the tapered shape of the pot is a bit restrictive compared to a cylinder shape, and the pot is not very durable. I even spent real money to build this so it had better work. My next video. Stay tuned. Cheers Rob.

Nice video, Rob. So simple and easy to make. I was impressed with the ingot you poured as to cleanliness and purity -- I could not see any inclusions -- considering the method employed in getting there. Some of the most impressive castings I've seen, as to their quality and complexity, were found on MullerNick's YT videos... which include videos on hand scraping, etc. Thanks for posting, I'm a great fan of yours. Cheers, from California, USA.

If you spring for a masonry hole saw, you can pop the hole in neatly in one pass with less breakage risk.

why not a side opener for cutting the can ring lol

watching this 8 years on and all I can think of was why didnt you use a can openeer instead of a cutting tool to open the can

Nice work Rob

I wonder if you fill in the pot with a bit of a vermiculite and cement mix if it improves

Very good! Thank you for your important experience! God bless you sir!

I was wondering if a flower pot might stand up to my burners so I could use them as a crucible. Steel vessels dosen't last 5 minutes in mine but then I realised flowerpots would have a hole in the bottom. Still, Might be ok for seperating out the steel from aluminium and copper when I melt things like alternators and starter motors. I like simple and easy ideas like this. Thanks for showing what you came up with.

Amazing experiment ! Really liked :)

Pop a hole in the middle of the lid, the same size as the burner hole, and you'll get even better results.

Robert, I built a similar setup a year or so back, with a few differences you might want to consider. I used a flower pot about the same as what you used, hole and all. But I put it inside a metal can about 100mm larger, that used to contain pretzels or chips. I filled the gap between the pot and the can with grout mixed with Perlite (available at the local garden center). Packed it in real good, it took a few days to dry really well. This keeps the pot intact should it crack eventually and acts as a insulator/heat sink. If you want to use a lid, use another flower pot like the one you had (upside down) with a hole in it to act as a chimney. Burner must have outside air to work properly. Before you can use any metal can that previously contained food as a crucible, you must burn it empty to get the plastic lining out of it. Or else you end up with that crap in your pour. One more tip, if you want to pour bars of a consistent thickness, prepare a level spot to set your mold on. Otherwise they come out lopsided like yours did. Cuts down on wasted material and machining time.

When i used a flower pot it cracked really badly and molten metal and coal went everywhere. Watch yourself buddy. Use 50/50 mix plaster of paris and sand and line your pot with 1-2" of the stuff. That'll act as a pretty good heat shield.

Wouldnt it work using the existing holes in the pot? And the lid the same with an inverted pot ontop? Im wondering i need to make a kiln and need something thatll work, thanks sam

Great work! Right now I'm still using a hair dryer, charcoals and bricks, but im going to try this one. Thanks : )

This looks very interesting; I'll be giving this method a try in the future. Tony

Thank you mate!!

Interesting how the crack at the front of the pot went through the hole - a pre existing stress line?

A hole in the lid will help with air flow and will allow you to drop more scrap in the pot so you can pour more each time.

It would be a good idea to place the burner hole of too one side, as this will drive the flame round the back of the tin can crucible. Also perhaps make a hole in the lid so the hot compustion gasses can escape that way whilst keeping more heat in. Other wise it looks like a goer to me, thanks for sharing Laurie

Out of curiosity id be interested what the difference in weight of gas is to melt such volume.

This is the idea which i waiting for it thank you

What you need is a heavier stainless crucible that can withstand high temps, and hold a ton of heat...like a small saucepan or fondue pot.

Use the can opener turned the other way to cut top of can off.

can you make it without a brutane torch and use like charcoal

thanks for the video it answered a few questions that I hat about the melting threshold of tin vs aluminum.

Would a 5" grinder cut that tin can in 1/20 the time ?

Just to chuck my twopence worth of ideas how to keep it simple and get a better result into the ring. I think lifting the flower pot up a bit (support it on two bricks) would allow air in through the bottom (could try putting the flame in through there as well) hole, then put a couple of bits of steel rod in the bottom of the flower pot to lift the can up a bit, for the lid, use another inverted flower pot which fits outside the bottom one would give a hole for the air flow in the lid.

Wouldn’t a fostner bit go better in the bigger hole?

Just wanted to say what a great video. But I have a little suggestion for you to possibly try. For your lid you used for the flower pot furnace, use the same lid you did but try and drill a hole in the center of the lid so the heat has a way to vent out a little. I made a little furnace from a tiny paint can and had the same issue with mine until I put a hole in the center of the lid and it worked out great for that. I'm just curious if it would work on the flower pot lid. Thanks for the video and it was great and I'm going to try and make one.

It works better with the lid off? Why? More air?

I have salvaged a silver stainless steel microwave casing which provides a fantastic melting space. It also has the wiring holes which serve as the air entry and exit points and is raised off the floor so when stood on a paving slab is fairly solid. I line the inside floor with firebricks around the edge with a 1" gap all around between the bricks and outer. I fill the 1"gap with vermiculite and then put a 1" layer of refractory cement all over the top of the bricks before laying a mesh across and a 2nd layer of firebrick on top of the bricks only. Ensure the small air (former wiring) holes are exposed and then simply close off any areas of vermiculite at the front with refractory cement and allow to dry/set. Later, return with your blowtorch and melt to your hearts content. You now have a movable furnace where the casing and stand should remain fairly cool and not melt and hopefully it should last for ages. I have been using mine on a weekly basis for over a year and its only getting sooty inside and just occasionally needs a sweep out. I would recommend the stainless steel cases as white colour innards have microwave paint coating and I'd hate you to get gassed.

Make a small hole in the lid to vent the fumes out and create an air flow to pull fresh oxygen in, as a flower pot has a hole in the base, kine the flower pots with plaster of Paris as an insulation layer.

Hi Bob, what kind of gas did you use for your torch, was it propane or mapp gas ? please let me know, thank you for great video, cheers :)

your aluminium looked very clean and freeof dross.AM i correct?

It would probably work better with a hole in the lid and angle the burner to somewhere around 30°- 45°

How much time it took to melt after gas fire ??

Pretty sure that a diamond tipped ceramic tile hole cutter (low cost sets on eBay are very good) would almost certainly make a better, cleaner, faster, simpler job of cutting the hole than masonry bits.

Nice one I'll try it out

Gday mate. So we get one step closer to the xynudu aluminum smelting company. Great video, thanks for sharing.

Hi again Rob, no I'm not stalking you, I've been down with a bad flu so have spent all day watching almost all your vids. Do you chuck any sort of aluminium in the pot such as drink cans and stuff? or are you selective for stock material? regards Wal

You need a step bit. Also, put that torch through the hole at an angle, so the heat circulates more evenly around the crucible, rather than shooting the heat directly at the crucible. The aluminum will melt more evenly that way.

Hi Guys thank you so much for the the wealth of info posted on this particular Video thanks a million Xynudu for generating so much curiosity as a result of your experiment. one question. The melting point of aluminium is higher than can or not ? my question in particular the can should have melted before aluminium ! I may be wrong

That flowerpot is a write-off! The problem with the airflow is probably due to the fact that you used a stand as the lid, without a vent hole. Using two flowerpots or perhaps a metal plate with a hole in it as the lid may yield better results. All furnaces I have seen thus far have an opening at the top. I'm still investigating the ratio of the melting chamber versus width versus the vent hole diameter. What I've come up with thus far is a 2:1 ratio. The furnace under construction is to have a melting chamber diameter of 21cm and a top hole size of 10cm. The internal height of the chamber will be approximately 36cm. Happy casting!

Brilliant. Maybe another similar pot with hole in the bottom would have worked better as a lid? Also put some steel wire around the pot to hold it together if it cracks.

Angle the torch to blow around the crucible and then cut a vent in the lid which will allow excess fumes to exit whilst maintaining a high temperature and allowing more material to be added

Nice work

Hi rob. You need a vent in your lid. I have seen that done also the tin can is only good for a few times you can buy cheap crucible on eBay. Please be careful. Thanks for sharing.

Few right sized holes in the flower pot lid may have solved the lid problem

Awesomeness! lol. Great job!

Hey buddy - Are you still into the furnace game??? What area of Oz are you from? If you're still working on it let me know and I'll share a few pointers with you

Eat enough of those premium Baked Beans, you probably don't need the Gas Bottle either... xynudu

Beautiful ingot.

wait is that a empty can?

Great video, maybe you should invest in a diamond tipped hole saw, they are really cheap now days.

Love the video. I was thinking if you could make a small microwave kiln with a small flower pot and the top piece as the bottom of the kiln. I have been looking for a good homemade microwave kiln. I think this could actually work as a microwave kiln also, but I want your opinion on if you think if you took a small flower pot and use the bottom piece as the base. Thanks for sharing I love this Idea,

What did you make the form that you poured the molten aluminum? It doesn't look like steel because it seems like if it were steel, it would be way heavier. Thanks for the vid!

how much do you loose in weight when you melt alu. down?

I thought the cruicible (the tin you used) would melt faster than the aluminium inside it ? What type of tin did you use ?

You needed to cut a hole in the lid so you could add material and it would also allow the fire to breathe it would heat even faster that way.I suspect the reason the pot cracked was due to moisture in the terracotta pre heating it at a lower temp to drive out any moisture may prevent the cracking. To be safe I would suggest a couple wire hoops to keep it from crumpling, in that event.Gabby

The guy you linked to did not really use flower pots. He used the pots to line with castable refractory. Or high heat mortar basically. That's why his are holding up much better.

Nice job, Rob! The trouble with clay pots is they don't like thermal shock. If you had preheated the pot before you got down to business, it may not have cracked. They make special high temperature cement for making forges for melting metals. Check out Keith Rucker's RU-vid channel as he melts Babbitt for bearings on the old machines he restores. I also liked Emma's comment! Thanks for the video. Have a good one . . . and eat more beans! Dave

can you riddle me this, since I have no working experience with melting anything other than lead for historic munitions casting. The melting point of aluminum is 1,221 degrees F, and the melting point of tin is 449.5 degrees F: the tin can doesn't melt in your video, but the aluminum does. How is this? I want to use a pot to sit on a forge I'm building and it's stainless steel, but some of these stainless steel pots have aluminum fused into the bottom for "even heating".. Would this pot's bottom melt? As I said before, a novice and trying to understand how this works.

I thought the base of a lawnmower was usually made from a magnesium alloy?

Not everybody has gas. Try the same thing with charcoal and a hair dryer might be more interesting.

you needed a hole in the center of the lid

Very nice Work

Hey mate, What type of regulator is that between the gun and gas bottle? thanks.

can u melt copper using the same.method

Another good demo vid Rob. My lpg torch is identical to yours, its my old mans ex pmg/telecom, companion brand torch, on oldie but a goodie. To be honest, I never attempted to melt aluminium with it but now I know its up to the job for small melts, I think I will be making a mini version of my current furnace. Then maybe have a go at some small lost wax castings for model engine parts. I was holding my breath the whole time you were drilling that hole and laughed my head off at your "oh well, I'm off to the bank now" comment at the end :D

I made a furnace that works really well, probably too well... I use charcoal and a vaccum, and I try to melt melt soda cans and stuff. But as I mentioned it gets too hot and the containers always brakes after a while... Do anyone know what I should use for container? Does stainess steal work?

WELL that was Iwill try this idea with slver .

At 10 : 30, what kind of saw did you used ?

3:49 ..maybe a diamond or carbide hole saw ?

Well done! It looks like a hole in the lid about the same size a your burner might help. I would have chickened out before you did when you were using the largest carbide bit!

Rob, since we've talked before I know you haven't burned your shop down yet! :-) The cracks in the pot we're making me nervous. I was envisioning an aluminized Rob! Most surprising to me was drilling that hole. I had no idea a clay pot would be so damn hard to drill. If you had turned and internal wood plug you could have jam chucked it, so you'd have two handed drilling. Hey! Did ya clean that shop vac filter yet? ;-) Cheers! Chris

it cracked bc you didn't heat it up slow..... take the torch and hold it above the pot and let it heat up for about a min or 45 sec. keep the flame 6 to 8in away from the pot when doing this

did this in a concrete flower pot with charcoal and no external oxygen just a vortex feed

you know that a hole in the lid woulda worked like you wanted it to ??

first few seconds i thought the video frozen, or a still image

Does ur username have to do with rush??

I like this old video, however, I'd like to suggest you first give the pot/tool a few coats of water glass, inside and out, allowing each to dry completely, before moving on. Secondly, use 12.5 - 25mm ceramic blanket, as an inside liner, glued on the outermost side, with more w.g. and when dried spray the other inside fabric with several layers of the same it until the material is very firm to the touch. Line the bottom with a layer of ceramic cloth, with w.g.treatment, raise the bottom with a layer of another 25mm, using pearlite, again waterglased. Make a second hole I to the side of the pot, beforehand, for a 25mm air inlet, to which you add a pipe with a long hose, and a hair dryer on cool. This is your air supply and will increase the heat, saving gas. Good luck, and I've seen you other video with the paint cans.

That was cool.

so I've been doing this and using cans as a crucible they are not working they are flaking

Australian right here he's got his Coles beans

Think why it does not worked with the top for you case the top was much smaller then the bottom. On the site the top is the same size as the bottom try to get an other pot and try again. Probably you can reach higher temperature with the top on.

Very nice job sir! But as you suggested to prevent cracking, cement would only be worse. Clay is far more resilient to heat than cement concrete.

Hi nice test. But be careful. Please do your experiments on a bottom of dry sand. It s easy to burn a hole in the tin can, the molten alu drippes out of the burned hole through te burner hole. Everyting the melted metal contacts will set on fire... Don`t think about when someting is dripping from the bench over your shoes! Melting metal : use precautions, even when its only a few cubic centimeter. Grtz Jan. (Did several wvo furnace alu melts)

the lid put on over the pot, needs a hole in the lid . . . you can slow down the hot air . . . but . . . you do need to release the hot air at some point . . . or break the system

Just some advice, the flower pot cracked because you heated it up to hot to quick. The flower pot is like a clay crucible you have to heat treat it, heat it up slowly multiple times hotter each time to heat treat it. Oh ya Aluminum only has 1 "i" in it, I saw you misspelled it in the video title!

The pot was cracked 👀