Copper is a fairly ductile material with a golden pink color or pure pink if there is no oxide film. He is extremely popular. Quite often you can find copper products, various souvenirs, many decorative elements, beautiful and unusual objects. There are also some useful household items. This material is held in high esteem by many masters. The most common use is pure red copper, bronze and brass (its alloys).
But what if you are not a professional master and at the same time decide to make something from this metal? You have a reasonable question: "How to melt copper at home?"
From the following article, you will learn all about how to work with this material and its alloys at home.
What do you need for work?
Before proceeding with the processing of copper and its alloys, it is necessary to acquire all the necessary tools:
- crucible;
- forceps;
- muffle furnace;
- charcoal;
- hearth;
- household vacuum cleaner;
- hook made of iron wire;
- mold for the product to be manufactured.
Make sure that before you melt the copper at home, all the tools are at hand and neatly laid out, not piled in a heap.
How to melt copper yourself?
For all the work to be successful, without any problems, just follow the algorithm indicated below:
- All fragments of copper are stacked in a crucible, which is placed in a muffle furnace.
- It is necessary to set the desired position for the heating controller. You can monitor the status of the contents through the window in the oven door.
- Further, in order to melt copper, it is necessary to wait for the required temperature so that the metal begins to melt. As soon as this happened, you need to open the furnace and using special forceps to grab the crucible.
- Upon melting, an oxide film will appear on the surface of the metal. It will need to be removed to the side with a hook made of iron wire.
- After that, you can begin to manufacture various copper products by simply pouring it into pre-prepared molds.
Important Notice
It is worth noting that there are many stories on the Web about how people smelted this metal not with special equipment, but at a stake, in a tin can. As a rule, such authors do not even have a clue about what the melting point of copper is actually - 1083 degrees. The essence of what has been said is that you should be prepared for a fairly large financial outlay. Many tools are not too cheap. Plus, before you melt the copper, you should take care of the safety features.
An example will be given of working with a copper alloy.
How to melt brass?
This material is a multicomponent copper alloy. Parts made from it are often used to create various designs.
What is useful for melting? To melt brass, you need to get all the tools listed in the following list:
- muffle furnace;
- blowtorch;
- gas-burner;
- crucible;
- metal tongs;
- charcoal;
- iron wire;
- the shape of the product that will be made of this metal.
Instruction for melting material
To avoid various injuries, as well as damage to materials, it is necessary to act strictly according to the specified instructions. Another important point is the provision of ventilation in the working room. The second thing to do is grind the material itself, which will allow it to melt faster. Once this is done, you can begin to work:
- put all the material in a crucible, place in the oven;
- using the element that controls the temperature, set the desired degree of melting (from 880 to 950 degrees); turn on the stove;
- while the metal is melting, watch it through the window in the furnace door;
- as soon as the necessary condition of brass is reached, you can open the door;
- remove the oxide film from the surface using an iron wire hook;
- Using forceps and observing all safety precautions, grasp the crucible with them;
- carefully pull it out of the oven and start pouring the contents into pre-prepared forms.
Copper Melting Tips
The following tips can simplify the process a little, if suddenly you did not have at your fingertips any of the necessary tools:
- In the event that the muffle furnace is absent, you can use a blast furnace, if any. It is worth noting that it can also be rented. But before you melt the copper, make sure that the device is able to heat up to 1083 degrees. And also make sure that it can withstand operation at a given temperature.
- If you still had to use a blast furnace, find out more about how to work properly with temperature extremes. Otherwise, the metal may begin to boil.
- A mold for the manufacture of a copper product should have a higher melting point than the metal itself.
Also, instead of furnaces for processing brass, you can use other improvised tools. For heating, you can use a torch or blowtorch. To process metal with it, it is necessary to place the device in a stable position with the flame up. Place an iron wire stand above it. Above all, install a crucible with brass folded into it. Next, you need to turn on the heating tool, setting the fire power so that it can completely cover the bottom of the vessel. Due to the fact that melting will occur in the open air, brass will become oxidized. To reduce this effect, fill the surface of the vessel with a dense layer of charcoal.