Portable BBQ, Made Out of Recycled Junk !

by eXtremeSomething

7.2K234

Intro: Portable BBQ, Made Out of Recycled Junk !

It is finally BBQ weather in the UK and to make the most of it, many people have BBQ's on the beach. However shop brought BBQ's are too expensive for what they actually are; a bowl with holes in and a metal grate.

So why not use an instant BBQ? Well these are designed to be disposed of, after use. However, I can guarantee that only a few people take apart the BBQ to remove the coals and then rinse out the tray as recommended on the packaging. This is a waste of resources and not only that, it is more costly than buying the fuel separately for a reusable BBQ.





STEP 1: Materials: Junk

To make on for your self you will need the following tools and materials:

Parts:
  • A Colander, this is like a sieve but is made from a thick heavy metal and has fewer larger holes in. (free)
  • An old ATX PSU with a built in fan grill, it doesn't need to be a working PSU as this won't matter.
  • Any two miscellaneous nuts and bolts that will fit.
Optional:
  • Washers that fit the bolts
  • stainless steel wire for the grill
  • A round microwave rack from a combi microwave / grill
Tools:
  • Philips Screwdriver
  • Pliers

STEP 2: The Base:

There a four types of PSU fan grill types. I have defined them as A,B,C and D as shown in the tags on the pictures. Type A prefered as the 4 hole in the center usally line up with the holes in the colander. Type B will just require you to drill the holes yourself, as do C and D. Type D requires you to turn the psu case up side down and drill the holes that side.

To make the base and old ATX PSU is used:
  1. Remove all four screws around the case. There may be more on your case.
  2. Lift off the case and keep the screws in a pot for later.
  3. Gentally follow the wires from the fan and unplug / cut away from the main board.
  4. Remove the futher four screws holding the fan in place and put the fan away for other projects
  5. Remove the screws holding the circuit board in place and put to one side.
  6. Drill the holes in the correct place by lining up the colander if required.

STEP 3: Fire Chamber:

To attach the fire chamber:
  1. Push the two bolts through the corresponding holes in the colander and then through the PSU.
  2. If the bolts don't fit, either use smaller ones or drill out the holes to make them bigger.
  3. Put on some washers if more height is required.
  4. Tighten down the nuts to secure the two.

STEP 4: Grill:

If you plan to use this BBQ as a BBQ and not just a fire pit you will need a grate. To make the grate I used a round microwave rack, as found in a combi microwave that had a built in grill.
  1. Squeeze the leg of the grate at the top and bend the leg out and up holding the pliers in the same place and position, the whole time.
  2. Repeat for he other two legs.
  3. Flip the grate and place in the colander and bend the legs to fit.

STEP 5: Optional:

Here are some optional things you may want to do to improve your BBQ:

Sturdy base:

  1. Get the other part of the ATX PSU case
  2. Screw it back together whilst attached to the colander
Improved Grill:

  1. Using stainless steel wire, wrap between the rods of the grill. This will fill out the grill and will stop small food from falling through.
  2. Repeat until all substantial holes are reduced.
Fan Boost:
  1. Mount a small 60mm or a 80 mm fan back into the side of the PSU
  2. Screw the fan in place
  3. Hook up to a 12V battery or 12v DC power adapter

STEP 6: Other Pictures:

Here are some pictures I took whilt using the BBQ:

4 Comments

Yard Sale Dale 10 years ago

Good job. Seriously charcoal grilling is not rocket science, so don't let the hecklers get you. Recycling is cool.

canucksgirl 11 years ago

Interesting idea. Did you actually get it working as a BBQ?

It kind of looks like your hot coals are made with photoshop. It would be great if you could post a real photograph of the BBQ in action!

eXtremeSomething 11 years ago

Yes it actually does work as a BBQ hence the heat markings on the colander and the casing. The only reason I made the instructable was because of its sucess. As you can tell I had already tested it before the tutorial and had quickly used paint to give you and idea of a running Bbq, I will give you a video of it running in the next day or so with food, yum. Thanks for the feedback and feel free to follow me!

canucksgirl 11 years ago

I look forward to seeing it. :)