So, I’ve been messing around with this idea of melting aluminum at home. You know, like those DIY videos you see online where people turn cans into cool stuff? Well, I finally decided to give it a shot. I started looking around for a used aluminum smelter, ’cause, you know, a brand new one is a bit out of my budget for a hobby.
First off, I searched the internet. Man, there are tons of different types, shapes, and sizes of smelters. I saw some websites mentioning they had 1100, 2011, 2024 types of aluminum and more. I just wanted something simple and small to use outside, that could maybe melt the aluminum I have. I found a few decent options, but I wasn’t sure which one to pick. I read that electromagnetic induction heating was a good method to heat rapidly. I didn’t really know what that meant, but it sounded cool.
Then, I started asking around. I talked to some folks in online forums, and even went to a couple of local scrap yards. One guy at the scrap yard told me a story about some smelter in Canada that had union workers locked out. That sounded like a mess I didn’t want to get involved in, but it did make me realize that big companies also have some plans to invest in new aluminum smelters, but I need something smaller than that.
I finally found a guy who was selling a used smelter for a decent price. It wasn’t perfect, but it looked like it would get the job done. We met up, I checked it out, and it seemed to be in good enough shape. So, I bought it! I took it home and I did a test, and I was able to melt some aluminum cans. It was pretty awesome to see it all in liquid form.
Overall, it was a fun little adventure. I learned a lot about aluminum and how it’s melted. And now I have a little smelter so I can melt down cans and make who knows what! Maybe I’ll try to make some art, or maybe just some ingots for fun. Who knows! It’s a start, and I’m excited to see where this goes.
- Starting out: Looked for a used smelter online and offline.
- Learning curve: Learned about different types of aluminum and smelting methods.
- Taking action: Asked around and found a used smelter from a local seller.
- Success!: Bought the smelter and successfully melted some aluminum.
- What’s next?: Not sure yet, but I’m excited to experiment more!
