[fleetlines]

I made an electrolysis tank today. Right or wrong, it's not like other's I've seen in my research. I can't recommend or warn against doing it this way as I'm still doing the first item and my previous experience was playing around with a bucket yesterday. Time will tell how well it works. I understand an electrolysis tank can be dangerous with very toxic fumes if you use the wrong stuff and if you use the right stuff it puts off Hydrogen which is very explosive.

I started with a 55 gal plastic barrel. I cut the top off and left the rim for the strength. I needed the sacrificial anode so I went to the local scrap yard to find about 12 pieces about 3"x30". Strangely they did not have anything that fit the bill but I found a steel drum that would fit inside my plastic barrel. In reading up on how they are made and how they work I thought about a barrel inside a barrel to keep line of sight and prevent shadowing. Anyway, he just wanted a couple bucks for it so I thought I'd try it. I explained what it was for but he didn't really seem to follow. When I said I'd cut the top off he offered to do it for me with his torches. Since I'd be using a sawsall I was happy to take him up on that. It was lined of course and I thought it would be easier to grind to bare metal if it was cut along the sides and folded open and that it would allow for more room inside. He was kind enough to do that for me as well.
I bolted a plate to the side of the metal drum to get the hole higher through the plastic barrel. I scuffed where they'd make contact. I'd want it tacked on but this is still an experiment. I had thought to ask him to leave a tab from the lid that I could bend up for this but he was nearly done when I thought of it and I was just happy I wasn't going to have to cut it. If this works alright I will do that and tack the bolt on.
I had a round grate I want to use as the top so I can hang things from different points and still have ventilation. It's rusted badly but if this works I will get it cleaned up! Since it's bigger than the opening I bent it to get it in and I'll flatten it when it's clean. I bent it so there was about an inch from the metal barrel.
I hung it off the 2x4, filled it with water, and added "Arm & Hammer Super Wash Soda" that I stirred into water in another bucket. I put the rest of the box in the 50 (+/-) gallons. That was about 5 cups that was left from yesterday. I then hooked it up with a 12 volt battery charger. It didn't work. Not sure if my chain won't make decent contact or what was up. I pulled it out a little and connected the neg to it and it worked too well. It seemed it was touching the side but by then it was getting dark and I couldn't really tell with my flashlight but it sure didn't look like it was touching. So I fiddled with it but it was drawing to much or nothing. I figured tomorrow is another day and by now I was ready to end my day out there. I thought I'd try one more thing. Something smaller. I got an old cast ladle and hooked it in. It's been working on that for a couple hours now and all seems well. Maybe tomorrow I will fold that grate up a little more and it will work.
Here are the pics: