How do I melt Aluminum cheaply and easily?

Question

I saw a guy on ebay take a washed out paint can fill it full of lighted charcoal bricks and a tin can in the middle. He was melting aluminum cans in there then pured it into a mold. Does this really work and does anyone have any good ideas on how else to do this?

Answer 1

Aluminum alloys melt at around 1200 degrees, aluminum cans maybe somewhat lower, but I doubt a tin can would hold up long enough to melt much aluminum, and you would need to be very careful, any moisture in your mold will cause the aluminum to literally explode back into your face.  I am not saying it couldn't be done, but you really would need lots of safety equipment before trying it.